City Council - Ordinance Committee

City of Chicopee City Council Ordinance Committee Approved 6-12-2018 Members James Tillotson, Chair Fred Krampits, Vice Chair Frank Laflamme Gary Labrie Jerry Roy MINUTES May 8 2018 The following are the minutes of a public hearing held Tuesday, May 8, 2018, at 6:30 PM in the City Council Chambers, Fourth Floor, City Hall Annex, 274 Front Street, Chicopee, MA 01013. Members Present: Tillotson, Krampits, Laflamme, Labrie, Roy Also Present: Dan Garvey (Associate City Solicitor), Councilor Courchesne, Councilor Zygarowski, Councilor Vieau, Lisa Sanders (Health Director), Elizabette Botelho (City Engineer), Jeff Cady (General Manager CEL) The meeting was called to order at 6:30 PM. In compliance with the open meeting laws the Chairman asked if anyone in the audience was recording the meeting. Hearing none the meeting continued. ITEM #1 BE IT ORDERED THAT the Ordinance Committee meet with the PVTA, representatives from Chicopee Electric Light and City Engineer to discuss the request from PVTA to place bus stop signs on utility poles at certain locations along Grattan Street. Stop # Stop Name Street Address Recommendation 549 Grattan / Philathea 1140 Grattan Street Electrical conflict at existing location. Preferred installation to Utility pole beyond TD Bank Driveway before 1155 Grattan 550 Grattan / Philathea 1149 Grattan Street Electrical conflict at existing location. Preferred installation to Utility pole #115 586 Grattan / Providence 703 Grattan Street Preferred installation to Utility pole #48X 601 Grattan / Percy 593 Grattan Street Preferred installation to Utility pole #39X 635 Grattan / Naomi 228 Grattan Street Preferred installation to Utility pole #19 651 Grattan / Montgomery 33 Grattan Street Prior street occupancy highlighted concern for proximity to fire hydrant. Preferred installation, move to utility pole #3 1 Sandra Sheehan Administrator PVTA and Nicole Rohan Springfield Transit Company SATCO from Operations were present. Sandra Sheehan stated we have some bus stops that we want to put in the ordinance, some we want to remove and some we want to put on the poles. Sandra Sham stated that they are getting requests from the passengers that the bus is not stopping because there is no sign. Jeff Cady stated that our preference is to not put them on the poles. He stated if we let one company do it we have to let everyone else do it. Nicole Rohan stated that we use to have signs at those locations and there was construction in the past and the signs were never put back. Councilor Laflamme stated that he is not in favor of any signs on the electric poles. He stated that we don’t even allow the city residents to use the poles. The DPW would like to use the electric pole because they have some issues where you have to bore right next to the light pole. He stated we have to call dig safe and have them bore it out of there and clean it up, it cost the taxpayer money. He stated he is concerned we are opening up a Pandora’s box. Councilor Laflamme stated some of the bus stops are public safety issues. He asked for a picture of every location. Sandra Sh eehan stated that they try to make sure their bus stops are in a safe location. She stated that they are going through the different stops and working to update their list. She stated it will take a little time to go through all of them. Councilor Roy asked what the procedure was for a bus stop sign. Sandra Sh eehan stated that once it is an ordinance we contact Dig Safe. She stated they have to go through a sidewalk and attach a pole. #549 Councilor Tillotson stated that 549 Grattan / Philathea you will put the sign with a pole and you won’t use the utility pole. He stated that we already have an ordinance for that it’s just a question where the signs going to go. Councilor Tillotson asked if they could send a picture when it is done. #550 Councilor Tillotson motion to postpone #550 – motion passed #586 Councilor Tillotson stated that they are going to propose a new location. He stated that this bus stop will stay in effect until we get a new location. Councilor Tillotson stated that if you are not going to use the utility pole for #586 where will that PVTA sign go. Councilor Laflamme stated that this is a busy intersection next to Lucky Strike and he is not in favor of this. Sandra Sheehan stated that the PVTA is a State Transit Authority. Sandra Sheehan stated that we will have a Safety Officer take a look at this. Councilor Laflamme stated we should get the input from the Police Department from now on. Sandra Sheehan stated they could take a look at it and come back with a recommendation. She stated that she could submit something to us in two weeks. #601 Sandra Sheehan stated they will put the sign near the utility pole. #635 Sandra Sheehan stated that they will put that right in front of the utility pole. #651 Sandra Sh eehan asked if they could put it on the pole that is there. Elizabette Botelho stated that she will have to talk with Jeff Neece to see how he feels about putting signs on city poles. She stated that she thinks it will be ok because they are a state entity. Motion made for the PVTA to install their own bus stops Committee vote 5 – 0 favorable ITEM #2 DELETE GRATTAN / PERCY STOP #601 – 593 Grattan Street BUS STOP Sandra Sheehan stated they would like to have bus stops across from each other so they would like to delete some bus stops that don’t have one across the way. 2 Motion to strike – motion passed Committee vote 5 – 0 favorable ITEM #3 DELETE GRATTAN / TRILBY STOP #607 – 543 Grattan Street BUS STOP Councilor Krampits motion to strike – Councilor Tillotson 2nd the motion – motion passed Committee vote 3 – 0 favorable ITEM #4 DELETE GRATTAN / MCKINSTRY STOP #591 – 683 Grattan Street BUS STOP Councilor Labrie motion to strike – Councilor Krampits 2nd the motion – motion passed Committee vote 4 -0 favorable ITEM #5 DELETE GRATTAN / MONTGOMERY STOP #650 – 36 Grattan Street BUS STOP Councilor Labrie motion to strike – Councilor Tillotson 2nd the motion – motion passed Committee vote 4 – 0 favorable ITEM #6 ADD GRATTAN / MONTGOMERY STOP #650 – 39 Grattan Street BUS STOP Sandra Sh eehan stated that this used to be an old bus stop sign and we would like to add it back. She stated it’s on a State Highway and we need permission. Motion to add Committee vote 5 – 0 favorable ITEM #7 ORDERED THAT a Safety Zone, 20 MPH speed limit, established on Front Street starting at the speed indicator sign near Chicopee High School and ending just beyond the Emily Partyka Library be stricken. Motion to postpone Councilor Tillotson stated that Engineer didn’t think this was a good idea based on a street study so we are going with a school zone which will work well. He stated that the light in front of Chicopee High School, they can push a button to turn the light red so they can walk across the street. We need to concentrate on Dupont School it has no lights there. Elizabette Botelho stated school zone only apply to grades one to eight. She stated they are proposing four locations for speed bumps; Bell Street, near Wheatland Ave., Simon Street and Academy Street. She stated that we would have to contract this out. Elizabette Botelho stated that they have done a speed study and the average was thirty six to thirty nine miles per hour. Councilor Tillotson stated that anything we can do to slow the traffic down is a plus. Councilor Krampits motion to postpone to the call of the chair – Councilor Tillotson 2nd the motion – motion passed 3 Councilor Laflamme motion to take #8 out of order – Councilor Laflamme 2nd the motion – motion passed ITEM #8 DELETE DEWEY STREET Northeast side (even side) – entire length PARKING PROHIBITED Public Input Mike Horak 61 Dewey Street, he stated he has lived here for sixty five years and we have never had a parking problem. He stated that since they put up these signs and changed the parking everyone has a problem. He stated that they are parking on the lawns and it’s a mess over there. Irene Horak 61 Dewey Street stated that the residents on the street have an empty driveway by still park in the street and we can’t get out of our driveway. She stated that she has been living there sixty years and has never had a problem. Marge Relis 32 East Street stated that there has never been a problem with emergency vehicles and she has been there thirty five years. She also stated that Councilor Dobosz stated that he stands with the residents. He stated after talking to the residents he asks the Council for their support in removing them. Elizabette Botelho stated that she brought this ordinance up when they were getting complaints about parking on Dewey Street. She stated that all the tree belts were paved and the residents continued to park on them. If you change the drainage on the street you introduce water onto the pavement and it starts cracking. She stated now the city has ruined their own investment. She stated that the street is very narrow; it varies from nineteen to twenty four feet wide. She stated a street with two way traffic and no parking should be twenty four feet wide. She stated if you want parking you should have an eight foot shoulder. She stated that there is parking in the tree belt because they will be prohibiting vehicular traffic from passing by. There was another couple in the audience that were concerned but didn’t want to speak. Councilor Laflamme stated that he also visited Dewey Street. He stated that a lot of our city streets are the same and they have never had a problem before. He stated that they didn’t finish the roads when they paved and it’s going all the way down to the curbing and that’s what’s eroding the road. Elizabette Botelho stated this was before she started with the City of Chicopee. She stated our highway department is going to be adding berm along that side to help with that. She stated it was a rutting issue and re-establishing that road edge with that catch basin and now the water’s getting around it, so we will be extending the berm around it. Councilor Laflamme stated he understands the erosion needs to be fixed. He was concerned if the road work made the road width smaller. Councilor Labrie stated before they did the Sewer Separation project there were no berms at all and now that the berm is there they have to park in the street. Elizabette Botelho stated that with the sewer separation project there were paved tree belts that were removed and the tree belts were reestablished but berms were not put back. She stated that once it was done residents began parking on the tree belts and ruining them so they have to be filled back in. Councilor Tillotson stated that the signs will stay up until we have a meeting with the Fire Department. Councilor Krampits motion to postpone to the call of the chair – Councilor Labrie 2nd the motion – motion passed Committee vote 5 – 0 favorable ITEM #9 71-73 Maple Street Handicap Parking Al Kendall stated he approves of handicap parking on Maple Street. He stated its one side parking. Councilor Krampits stated it’s going on the opposite side of her house because there is one side parking there. there was a handicap sign there years ago on the persons front lawn but they took it out because it was not needed anymore. He stated once it was removed the woman across the street came into the City Council to apply for handicap parking for three family members. Now there’s an issue with that it will be placed in front of a neighbor’s house and the Police have been called their several times. He stated we can issue it but does not know how successful the sign will remain up. He added we may be able to shift if up a little so it’s not directly in front of their house. He stated that they do not own the handicap parking sign. Al Kendall stated that the Police will be visiting regularly. Elizabette Botelho asked if she could review this further. 4 Councilor Krampits motion to postpone – Councilor Tillotson 2nd the motion – motion passed Committee vote 5 – 0 favorable ITEM #10 44 Meetinghouse Road Handicap Parking Al Kendall stated that we want to go back to the Housing Authority and Housing Association. He stated that they need to be involved and we have to have input. He stated that there are already four handicap spaces in that one section. He stated we want to refer it back to the Commission on Disability so we can discuss it. Elizabette Botelho stated she does not recommend Item’s 10, 11, and 12 because Meetinghouse location there is no ramp, there’s granite curb and there is a handicap parking sign there. She stated that we should look at another location for this because this won’t serve everyone with a placard. Sited unfavorable by the City Engineer and Commission on Disability Councilor Laflamme motion to approve – Councilor Tillotson 2nd the motion – motion passed Committee vote 5 – 0 unfavorable ITEM #11 52 Northern Drive Handicap Parking Al Kendall stated this is a problem, there is handicap parking and across the street parking. He stated that there is another handicap sign and three parking spaces there. Elizabette Botelho does not recommend this. Councilor Laflamme motion to approve – Councilor Krampits 2nd the motion – motion passed Committee vote 5 – 0 unfavorable ITEM #12 64 Peloquin Drive Handicap Parking Al Kendall stated that we would like to refer back to the Commission on Disability. Elizabette Botelho stated that there are several handicap parking spaces and one right outside their house. Councilor Laflamme motion to approve – Councilor Tillotson 2nd the motion – motion passed Committee vote 5 – 0 unfavorable ITEM #13 Councilor Labrie motion to approve the Minutes – March 27, 2018 – Councilor Tillotson 2nd the motion – motion passed Meeting adjourned at 8:04 PM. 5