Burlington Walk-Bike Council

AGENDA - Burlington Walk / Bike Council October 5, 2022, Wednesday 6:00 – 7:00 pm MEETING OPTIONS: 1. In-person - DPW conference room at 645 Pine Street, Burlington 2. Virtually - using Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88225473951?pwd=YzFFQ1Q3Y3J4bzcwR2VNYWRFWnhtUT09 Passcode: 091788 (See other remote access options below) AGENDA: 1. Introductions, Announcements, Updates and Public Comments (10 min) 2. BWBC Support for Plattsburg Avenue Bike Lanes (10 min) Local Motions worked with the Coordinating Committee to prepare a draft memo of support for the proposed bike lanes on Plattsburg Ave. We will discuss the memo, determine if further edits are needed and decide whether BWBC should sign onto the letter. See draft memo here. 3. BWBC Comments on the Railyard Enterprise Project (35 min) Local Motion worked with the Coordinating Committee to prepare a draft letter to DPW with comments on the conceptual plans for the Railyard Enterprise Project (REP). We will briefly discuss the conceptual plans in regards to walking and biking, review the points made in the draft letter, determine if further edits are needed and decide whether BWBC should sign onto the letter. See draft letter here and please review the REP public meeting materials here. 4. Next Steps (5 min) Previous Meeting – At the meeting on August 3 DPW staff discussed the status of all the active walk-bike projects they are undertaking. There was no BWBC meeting in September. Next Month: BWBC Meets Wednesday, November 2, 2022, 6:00 – 7:00 pm The BWBC is an all-volunteer advisory council to the City of Burlington. We work closely with and advise the Department of Public Works and the Department of Parks, Recreation, & Waterfront on infrastructure improvements and policy changes for walking and bicycling. The council also leads advocacy efforts and organizes events and activities that promote and celebrate walking and biking in Burlington and beyond. See www.burlingtonwalkbike.org (under construction) and BWBC Minutes and Agendas . BWBC Community Liaisons Erik Brown Brotz*, Ward 5, erik@burlingtontelecom.net, Chair Greg Hostetler, Ward 2 Faith Ingulsrud*, Ward 6 Peter Keating, Ward 6 Justine Sears, Ward 3 Karen Sentoff, Ward 4 Jason Stuffle*, Ward 1 Kerry Swift, Ward 4 Allegra Williams, Ward 3 * = BWBC Coordinating Committee Remote access options for non-ZOOM participation: Phone one-tap : US: +13017158592,,88225473951#,,,,,,0#,,091788# or 13126266799,,88225473951#,,,,,,0#,,091788#. Or Telephone: Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location): US: +1 301 715 8592 or +1 312 626 6799 or +1 929 205 6099 or +1 253 215 8782 or +1 346 248 7799 or +1 669 900 6833 Webinar ID: 882 2547 3951 Passcode: 091788. International numbers available: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdoOfuotqF  Burlington Walk Bike Council (BWBC) October 5, 2022 Meeting Notes The monthly meeting took place 6:00- 7:00 pm via Zoom and at DPW Office. In-Person Attendees: Erik Brotz - Chair (Ward 5), Ryan Thornton, Taylor Adams, Jak Tiano, Daisy May, Julia Ursaki from DPW. Online Attendees: Dan Castrigano, Grey Johnson, Patrick Carton, Faith Ingulsrud (Ward 6), Jonathan Weber from Local Motion, and Cory Mims from DPW. 1. Introductions, Announcements and Public Comments Erik Brotz opened the meeting and everyone gave short introductions. Faith gave a short summary of the World Car Free Day event that took place on 9/22/22, which was challenged by rain and windstorms at City Hall Park, but she reported that volunteers, partners and participants seemed to have a good time and the event provided both networking and publicity opportunities. In response to the question of whether anyone was interested in organizing a Car Free Day event in 2023, Ryan, Taylor, Jak and Daisy volunteered, and the idea of doing an open streets event was discussed briefly. Faith will follow up with them. 2. BWBC Support for Plattsburg Avenue Bike Lanes Local Motion worked with the BWBC Coordinating Committee to prepare a draft memo of support for the proposed bike lanes on Plattsburg Ave. Erik explained that as part of the paving project on Plattsburg Avenue, the city has proposed to remove the on-street parking and to stripe a bike lane in keeping with Plan BTV Walk-Bike. The proposal will be discussed at the November 16 Public Works Commission meeting. The neighbors along the route will be given notice of that meeting. In response to a question about whether a protected bike lane would be feasible it was noted that the Plan BTV Walk Bike does recommend a protected lane in that location in the long term, but that other locations are a higher priority at this time. All those present (with DPW staff abstaining) voted in favor of BWBC signing on to the memo. 3. BWBC Comments on the Railyard Enterprise Project Local Motion also worked with the Coordinating Committee to prepare a draft letter to DPW with comments on the conceptual plans for the Railyard Enterprise Project (REP) in advance of the City Council meeting in November when the conceptual alternative for the project will be chosen. To inform the discussion of whether to sign the letter, DPW project manager Cory Mims gave a summary of the project based on the REP public meeting materials here, with the following points: ● The project team is recommending Conceptual Alternative 1B, that connects Pine Street just south of Curtis Lumber to Battery Street at the Maple Street intersection. ● The designs at this point are just conceptual so final dimensions and decisions about what types of intersection will be used, etc. will be proposed in the design phase, after the city has chosen which alternative to move forward with. ● Previous alternatives developed during scoping studies conducted by CCRPC resulted in the three alternatives the city examined in the current study.  ● The proposed, separated multi-use path will be on the east side of the street to avoid conflicts with the railyard, and is proposed to be 10’ wide. ● Sidewalks and bike lane will continue to be located on both sides of Pine Street, and there will be sidewalks on both sides of the extended So. Champlain Street. ● The proposed street will be a truck route so both vehicle lanes are proposed to be 11’ wide with a 2’ shoulder delineated with a painted line to allow large trucks to maneuver the curves. The speed limit will be 25 MPH. ● Once the alternative is chosen, the next steps will involve right-of-way acquisition and agreements with the railroad to move the alignment of a track. At this point the rail company is indicating a willingness to support the preferred alternative but there is no guarantee that the final negotiations with all the involved parties will be successful. Erik explained that the main concern expressed in the draft letter is the 13’ wide vehicle travel lanes shown on the plans, because with a street that wide, cars will be encouraged to speed. Since Cory’s presentation clarified that there will be a striped 2’ shoulder, he asked if the letter should be edited to reflect this new information. After discussion, Jonathon edited the letter to recommend consideration of mountable curbs (like those used in roundabouts) that can accommodate trucks while narrowing the apparent width of the street for all other users. The other issues raised in the letter are the proposed widths of the multi-use path and of the green belt, to enable planting of large street trees. While some locations along the route have obstructions that don’t allow the widths to be increased, there was discussion about the potential to increase the widths where it is possible. After edits were made, all the participants (with DPW staff abstaining) voted to have BWBC sign onto the letter. Erik then closed the meeting shortly after 7 PM.