MPO Policy Committee

MPO POLICY COMMITTEE AGENDA February 23, 2017 1:30 p.m. Executive Conference Room Farmington City Hall 800 Municipal Drive Farmington, New Mexico  FARMINGTON METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION POLICY COMMITTEE MEETING February 23, 2017 1:30 PM This meeting will be held in the Executive Conference room at Farmington City Hall, 800 Municipal Drive, Farmington, New Mexico. ITEM PAGE 1. Call meeting to order 2. Approve the minutes from the January 26, 2017 Policy Committee meeting. 20 3. TIP/STIP Amendment Direction/Requests from NMDOT 1-14 Presented by: Duane Wakan 4. Report on bridge conditions in FMPO 15 a. Performance measures b. TIP development Presented by: Derrick Garcia 5. Review and consider approving the draft PC Resolution 2017-1 16-18 Presented by: Duane Wakan 6. UPWP Planning Activities Update 19 Presented by: Duane Wakan 7. Reports from NMDOT a. District 5 (Paul Brasher) b. Planning Division (Brian Degani) 8. Report on new MPO website development 20 Presented by: Duane Wakan 9. Report on updating the MPO Bike/Ped Plan 21 Presented by: Derrick Garcia 10. Information Items 22 a. FHWA Small Town and Rural Multimodal Networks Resource Guide b. Joint TC and NMDOT meeting in March c. Call for Projects – FFY2018-2023 TIP d. Special Policy Committee meeting in March Presented by: Derrick Garcia 11. Business from Chairman, Members, and Staff 12. Business from the Floor 13. Adjournment ATTENTION PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES: If you are an individual with a disability who is in need of a reader, amplifier, qualified sign language interpreter, or any other form of auxiliary aid or service to attend or participate in the hearing or meeting, please contact the MPO Administrative Assistant at the Downtown Center, 100 W Broadway, Farmington, New Mexico or at 505-599-1466 at least one week prior to the meeting or as soon as possible. Public documents, including the agenda and minutes, can be provided in various accessible formats. Please contact the MPO Administrative Assistant if a summary or other type of accessible format is needed.  FARMINGTON METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION Agenda Item # Subject: TIP/STIP Amendment Direction/Requests from NMDOT Presented by: Duane Wakan, MPO Planner Date: February 15, 2017 BACKGROUND  NMDOT has directed/requested that Phase I and II of the Pinon Hills Bridge over the Animas River be removed from the FMPOs TIP.  A letter from Anthony Lujan Deputy Secretary dated January 10, 2017 requested CMAQ funds be removed in FFY2017 from Phase II and that and that failure to do so would result in the TIP no longer being fiscally constrained.  In addition, a letter from Secretary Tom Church stated conditional approval of the FMPOs TIP Amendments providing that Phases I and II demonstrate fiscal constraint.  Phase I ($4M) is currently programmed in FFY2018 while Phase II ($22M) is programmed in FFY2019.  It was determined that the matter needed to be vetted by the TC and PC.  Financial plans that accompany the TIP, STIP, and metropolitan transportation plan must identify strategies for ensuring the availability of these new revenue sources in the years when they are needed for project development and implementation [see 23 CFR 450.216(m)]. TECHNICAL COMMITTEE DISCUSSIONS  Letter signed by Anthony Lujan requesting the deletion of CMAQ funds from Phase II of the Pinon Hills Boulevard project.  Letter signed by Secretary Tom Church requesting that the City of Farmington demonstrate fiscal constraint on Phases I and II of the Pinon Hills Bridge Projects.  Correspondence between NMDOT and FMPO staff regarding the matters at hand. BACKUP MATERIALS  Letter signed by Anthony Lujan requesting the deletion of CMAQ funds from Phase II of the Pinon Hills Boulevard project.  Letter signed by Donald R. Koski and J. Don Martinez requesting that the City of Farmington demonstrate fiscal constraint on Phases I and II of the Pinon Hills Bridge Projects.  Correspondence between NMDOT and FMPO staff regarding the matters at hand.  FARMINGTON METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION Agenda Item #3 Subject: TIP/STIP Amendment Direction/Requests from NMDOT Presented by: Duane Wakan, MPO Planner Date: February 15, 2017 BACKGROUND  NMDOT has directed/requested that Phase I and II of the Pinon Hills Bridge over the Animas River be removed from the FMPOs TIP.  A letter from Anthony Lujan Deputy Secretary dated January 10, 2017 requested CMAQ funds be removed in FFY2017 from Phase II and that and that failure to do so would result in the TIP no longer being fiscally constrained.  In addition, a letter from Secretary Tom Church stated conditional approval of the FMPOs TIP Amendments providing that Phases I and II demonstrate fiscal constraint.  Phase I ($4M) is currently programmed in FFY2018 while Phase II ($22M) is programmed in FFY2019.  It was determined that the matter needed to be vetted by the TC and PC.  Financial plans that accompany the TIP, STIP, and metropolitan transportation plan must identify strategies for ensuring the availability of these new revenue sources in the years when they are needed for project development and implementation [see 23 CFR 450.216(m)]. TECHNICAL COMMITTEE DISCUSSIONS  Letter signed by Anthony Lujan requesting the deletion of CMAQ funds from Phase II of the Pinon Hills Boulevard project.  Letter signed by Secretary Tom Church requesting that the City of Farmington demonstrate fiscal constraint on Phases I and II of the Pinon Hills Bridge Projects.  Correspondence between NMDOT and FMPO staff regarding the matters at hand. BACKUP MATERIALS  Letter signed by Anthony Lujan requesting the deletion of CMAQ funds from Phase II of the Pinon Hills Boulevard project.  Letter signed by Donald R. Koski and J. Don Martinez requesting that the City of Farmington demonstrate fiscal constraint on Phases I and II of the Pinon Hills Bridge Projects.  Correspondence between NMDOT and FMPO staff regarding the matters at hand. ACTION  This is an information item only.  FARMINGTON METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION Agenda Item #4 Subject: Bridge Conditions in FMPO Area Prepared by: Derrick Garcia, MPO Associate Planner Date: February 15, 2017 BACKGROUND  During the Technical Committee meeting on January 10, 2017 staff was asked by the Chairman of the Technical Committee to seek out information regarding bridges within the MPO Area, both on and off the National Highway System (NHS).  An up to date inventory of off-system and NHS bridges is important to have to prioritize resources such as the Surface Transportation Block Grant Program due to the State’s prioritization of funds to NHS bridges.  This report was presented to the Technical Committee on February 8, 2017. CURRENT WORK  NMDOT’s Bridge Management Section shared with staff their most up to date version of their inspection records for all bridges in San Juan County.  Bridge information shared by NMDOT includes: o Deck, superstructure, substructure, culvert, and NBI ratings on a 0-9 scale. o Bridge owner (city, county or state). o GPS Coordinates. o Inspection Dates o Bridge inspection frequencies (in months).  An ArcGIS Online map has been created to view this information geospatially and can be shared as appropriate. FUTURE WORK  Discussion with Technical and Policy Committee members on reflecting this new information in the MTP. INFORMATION ITEM  This is an information item only.  FARMINGTON METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION Agenda Item #5 Subject: Policy Committee Resolution 2017-1 Prepared by: Duane Wakan, MPO Planner Date: February 16, 2017 BACKGROUND  At the December 8, 2016 joint meeting, the Policy Committee directed staff to draft a resolution highlighting the following: o Redirect NHPP funds away from US 64 Phases V and VI; o Focus attention on funding projects of regional significance in the FMPO; o Encourage greater partnership with NMDOT and the local entities; o Address different levels of accountability, transparency, and public comment opportunity from NMDOT; o Emphasize that the FMPO’s TIP is to be incorporated into the STIP without change per the state’s own procedures.  The resolution was presented to the Technical Committee for review on February 8. They moved to hold a Special Meeting to review and discuss the draft resolution further.  A Special Technical Committee meeting was held on February 16, 2017 where they recommended approval of the draft PC Resolution 2017-1. CURRENT WORK  Seek Policy Committee input and approval of the draft resolution. BACKUP MATERIAL  Policy Committee Draft Resolution 2017-1 ACTION ITEM  It is recommended that the Policy Committee review and consider approval of Policy Committee Resolution 2017-1.  POLICY COMMITTEE RESOLUTION NO. 2017-1 REAFFIRMS THE NEED FOR IMPROVED COMMUNICATION, COOPERATION, COLLABORATION AND SUPPORT BETWEEN THE NEW MEXICO DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (NMDOT) AND LOCAL AGENCIES OF THE FARMINGTON MPO. WHEREAS, the Farmington MPO (FMPO) is the designated Metropolitan Planning Organization for the cities of Farmington, Aztec, Bloomfield, and the urbanized area of San Juan County; and WHEREAS, metropolitan planning organizations are designated in urbanized areas to carry out the metropolitan transportation planning process coordinating decisions based on regional perspectives per 23 U.S.C. 134; and WHEREAS, the preponderance of state-wide populations reside within MPOs; and, WHEREAS, NMDOT and local agencies will “work together to build trust and leverage external support for transportation initiatives by coordinating early, often, and successfully with federal, state, regional, Tribal, local, and other agencies to plan, fund, and implement projects and programs” as adopted by NMDOT in its New Mexico 2040 Plan. WHEREAS, the Farmington MPO Policy Committee is the decision-making body for the MPO and addresses the major transportation issues in the metropolitan planning area; and WHEREAS, communication breakdowns between NMDOT and the local entities within the FMPO highlighted the need to improve transparency, ensuring the future communications are continuous, cooperative and comprehensive according to 23 CFR 134 including “that the selection of federally funded projects in metropolitan areas shall be carried out, from the approved TIP”; and WHEREAS, the Piñon Hills Bridge over the Animas River and the East Arterial Relief Route in Aztec are respectively the number one and two regional priorities as identified in the 2040 Metropolitan Transportation Plan (2040 MTP); and WHEREAS, future TIP developments require an extensive joint cooperative vetting processes to identify funding gaps and shortfalls, as well as clear regional priorities for NMDOT and the local agencies; and WHEREAS, a more collaborative and supportive process can eliminate the appearance of non-responsiveness by providing empowered proactive Local Programming assistance for successful project completion; and WHEREAS, travel demand modeling by the MPO has shown that the construction of the two phases of the Piñon Hills Bridge over the Animas River and Oxbow do more to alleviate congestion on two major highways than does the widening of the two remaining phases (V and VI) of US 64; and WHEREAS, the cost and apparent benefit of constructing the Piñon Hills Bridge with its various phases equates to $26M exceeds that of completing the final two phases of US 64 which equates to over $30.5M; and NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE FARMINGTON MPO, NEW MEXICO: Support 1. Improvement in communication and transparency from NMDOT to its regional bodies which include Aztec, Bloomfield, Farmington and San Juan County; and Support 2. That the NMDOT evaluate and collaborate with the Farmington MPO regarding the feasibility of a diversion or exchange of construction funds for Phase V and VI of US 64, to the Farmington MPO planning area to prioritized projects identified in the 2040 MTP; and Support 3. Future Federal funding be directed to the completion of Phases I and II of the Piñon Hills Bridge over the Animas River as well as other regionally significant transportation projects; and Support 4. That the development of the FMPO regional Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) follow 23 CFR 134 namely in cooperation with the State and any affected public transportation operator, the metropolitan planning organization designated for a metropolitan area shall develop a TIP for the area for which the organization is designated; and Support 5. That the NMDOT resolve to explore available and alternate processes to expedite the completion and approval of project submittals, specifically but not limited to Right of Way (ROW) and environmental certifications on projects to alleviate cost burdens and time constraints on local agencies. PASSED, SIGNED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED this day of , 2017. _______________________________ ______________________________ Nate Duckett June Markle FMPO Policy Committee Chair MPO Administrative Assistant  FARMINGTON METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION Agenda Item #6 Subject: UPWP Planning Activities Prepared by: Duane Wakan, MPO Planner Date: February 14, 2017 BACKGROUND  The MPO regularly needs to reassess the readiness of the delivery of planning products and timelines in the UPWP.  There is a need at this time to discuss the UPWP work calendar and which activities merit priority over others.  This report was presented to the Technical Committee on February 8, 2017. CURRENT WORK  The Safety Plan is currently calendared for work and completion, however new safety rulings from FHWA allow State DOTs to set safety targets that can either be adopted by MPOs or which also allow MPOs to set their own targets.  State DOTs have until Aug 31, 2017 to establish safety targets, MPOs have until February 27, 2018 to do the same.  The MPO wishes to coordinate a response with other MPOs in New Mexico as well as consider the direction of the TC and PC.  Scenario Planning is an activity which can be undertaken by MPO staff at this time but will require data collection and model development and calibration.  Other activities in our two year UPWP include scenario planning, transit studies, updating the travel demand model (TDM) and acquiring data to help calibrate the TDM model. INFORMATION ITEM  This is an information item only. Input from the Policy Committee members will be accepted.  FARMINGTON METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION Agenda Item #8 Subject: FMPO Website Development Prepared by: Duane Wakan, MPO Planner Date: February 14, 2017 BACKGROUND  CivicPlus has been contracted to develop a new website for the MPO.  Initial design process is set to begin.  The contractor has asked that the MPO provide images, high resolution logos and branding if applicable early in the design process.  Outreach with the 2040 MTP revealed the potential for bias in planning work and activities under the existing name.  Staff has discussed a possible name change and/or logo update that better reflect regional nature of the MPO.  If the MPO were to adopt a new name and logo, it would be ideal if those transpire concurrent with the web-site update.  This report was presented to the Technical Committee on February 8. They recommended to table the conversation until the March 8th meeting. CURRENT WORK  Staff was asked to move forward with the existing logo and MPO name for now for the website to be completed, and update the website at a future time with new concepts or ideas.  Seek thoughts and opinions and or input and ideas from Technical and Policy Committee members for new MPO name and logo.  Name changes that have been discussed among staff are reflective of regional geography are as follows: o San Juan Basin MPO o Three Rivers MPO o Tres Rios MPO o Totah MPO o Others???  Work with CivicPlus on gathering information and photos for the initial design phases of the website development. INFORMATION ITEM  This is an information item only. Discussion and opinions from the Technical and Policy Committees are being sought at this time.  FARMINGTON METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION Agenda Item #9 Subject: FMPO Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan Update Prepared by: Derrick Garcia, MPO Associate Planner Date: February 15, 2017 BACKGROUND  The Farmington MPO adopted the Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan on June 12, 2008.  Standard time periods for updating planning documents are typically 5 – 10 years.  A member of the FMPO Technical Committee, Mr. David Sypher, has expressed interest in updating the current plan as well as implementing common standards and a cohesive plan.  The Technical Committee gave direction to staff to prepare a summary document of the MPO’s current Bike/Ped Plan as well as a best practices review of other Bicycle & Pedestrian Plans that have been developed by small MPOs around the country.  The FMPO Officer recommended to the Technical Committee that this potential update be done “in-house” by FMPO Staff. INITIAL UPDATE OUTLINE  Develop overview presentation of existing plan.  Conduct best practices research and present findings to Technical Committee.  Staff will draft an outline on how an update to the plan would potentially proceed: o Steering Committee within the Technical Committee. o Stakeholder outreach for update participation.  FMPO Member Entities  Community groups/organizations  School Districts  Public Safety and First Responders  General Public Meetings.  Public Participation and engagement. o Web-based outreach to gather community input. INFORMATION ITEM  This is an information item only. Discussion and opinions from the Policy Committee are being sought at this time.  FARMINGTON METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION Agenda Item #10 Subject: Information Items Prepared by: Derrick Garcia, MPO Associate Planner Date: February 14, 2017 INFORMATION ITEMS a. Small Town and Rural Multimodal Networks. FHWA recently released their Small Town and Rural Multimodal Networks resource guide. This guide should have a lot of application in NM—it’s been marketed as a “NACTO for small towns/rural areas.” It can be found online at the following address: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/bicycle_pedestrian/publicatio ns/small_towns/ b. Joint Meeting. The Technical Committee and NMDOT are planning a joint meeting on March 8. c. Call for Projects. The MPO has issued a Call for Projects for development of the FFY2018-2023 TIP. d. Special Policy Committee Meeting. A Special Policy Committee is needed in March to review and consider approval of the TIP Amendments. e. Other.  MINUTES FARMINGTON METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION POLICY COMMITTEE MEETING January 26, 2017 Policy Members Present: Sherri Sipe, City of Aztec Nate Duckett, City of Farmington Linda Rodgers, City of Farmington Stephen Lopez (Alternate), NMDOT, District 5 (via phone) Jimmy Voita, San Juan County Policy Members Absent: Curtis Lynch, City of Bloomfield Paul Brasher, NMDOT District 5 Staff Present: Mary Holton, MPO Officer Duane Wakan, MPO Planner Derrick Garcia, MPO Associate Planner June Markle, MPO Administrative Aide Staff Absent: None Others Present: Brian Degani, NMDOT Planning Liaison (via phone) Larry Hathaway 1. CALL TO ORDER Councilor Duckett called the meeting to order at 1:35 p.m. 2. APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM THE POLICY COMMITTEE PORTION OF THE DECEMBER 8, 2016 SPECIAL JOINT POLICY/TECHNICAL COMMITTEE MEETING Councilor Rodgers moved to approve the minutes from the Policy Committee portion of the December 8, 2016 Special Joint Policy/Technical Committee meeting. Commissioner Sipe seconded the motion. The motion was approved unanimously. 3. COMMITTEE BYLAWS & OPERATING PROCEDURES – AMENDMENT #1 Subject: Committee Bylaws and Operating Procedures – Amendment #1 Prepared by: Duane Wakan, MPO Planner Date: January 16, 2017  BACKGROUND  The Committee Bylaws and Operating Procedures provide the guidance for the Policy and Technical committees.  The Bylaws are formally updated in conjunction with the Joint Powers Agreement every three years and can be amended as needed.  The current Bylaws were adopted on May 28, 2015.  The new Bylaws govern from October 1, 2015, through September 30, 2018.  The Technical Committee reviewed the proposed revisions for the sections on Technical Committee and Staff responsibilities on January 11, 2017 and recommended approval of Amendment #1. CURRENT WORK  The amendment is being proposed primarily to allow for Policy and Technical Committee members to add items to an agenda before it is finalized and distributed. ACTION ITEM  It is recommended that the Policy Committee approve Amendment #1 to the Committee Bylaws & Operating Procedures to the Policy Committee. DISCUSSION: Mr. Wakan reported that this amendment to the Committee Bylaws & Operating Procedures was primarily to allow for input on the agenda from Policy and Technical Committee members prior to the agenda being finalized and distributed. Mr. Wakan referred to Pages 14, 15, and 17 of the Agenda and noted the proposed changes. The new language provides committee members the opportunity to add an item to the agenda and, working with Staff, to develop a staff report that would later be presented to the entire committee at the scheduled meeting. Page 17 of the Agenda reiterated the MPO Officer and Staff responsibilities and stated that all agendas would go through the MPO Officer prior to distribution. The same language and changes were also proposed for the Technical Committee. Councilor Duckett said he thought this was a positive change and appreciated the opportunity it offered committee members to get the draft agenda early and to review the anticipated meeting items. He asked if getting an agenda out this early put a strain on Staff. Mr. Wakan said it was not a strain to get the agenda out early as it prompted Staff to frame what needed to be discussed in order to then develop the staff reports. Councilor Duckett reiterated that he thought this was good public policy. ACTION: Councilor Rogers moved to approve Amendment #1 to the Committee Bylaws & Operating Procedures to the Policy Committee. Mr. Voita seconded the motion. The motion was passed unanimously. 4. NMDOT REPORTS Planning Division – Brian Degani Mr. Degani stated that he was the new NMDOT liaison replacing Robin Elkin. Mr. Degani reported that the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) scoring committee will meet on February 6 to review the submitted TAP applications. Mr. Wakan asked if the application review would also include the applications for the Recreational Trails Program (RTP). Mr. Degani noted that Danial Watts is in charge of both programs, but he would verify if the RTP applications were going to be reviewed at the same time as the TAP applications and report back. Mr. Wakan noted that the Santa Fe MPO would be representing all the MPOs on this scoring committee this year. Mr. Lopez had not yet joined the meeting by telephone, so the Policy Committee moved on to Agenda Item #5. Following completion on Agenda Item #5, Mr. Lopez was contacted by phone and provided the following update: District 5 – Stephen Lopez Mr. Lopez had no updates or changes from the December meeting to report. He stated that NMDOT is proceeding with US 64 project F100112 as planned and they will initiate the design portion of the last phase of US 64 heading into Farmington. Councilor Duckett asked for an update on whether the Pinon Hills Boulevard extension project had made it onto the STIP. Mr. Lopez replied that project had been deleted from the STIP. Mr. Lopez stated that it, and all the MPO projects needed to be included, will be in the upcoming Amendment #6 to the STIP which the State Transportation Commission will consider in February. Mr. Wakan said NMDOT told the MPO that because there are no federal funds for Phases I and II of the Pinon Hills Boulevard project, the TIP is not fiscally constrained and these projects need to be removed. The City of Farmington instructed Staff to officially delay removing these projects until the formal amendment process begins again in February and March. Since neither the Technical nor Policy Committee approved the MPO removing these projects from the TIP, they cannot now be removed administratively even though that was the instruction from NMDOT. Mr. Wakan stated that the MPO would work with NMDOT on this issue. Mr. Wakan also reported that the MPO wanted to ensure that some of the other projects in the TIP amendment were properly imported into the STIP database by the state. The STIP public notice had some issues and Mr. Wakan communicated with the STIP Coordinator, Rebecca Maes that the East Arterial Route and the Kirtland Walk Path needed to be corrected. She confirmed that they would be accurately reflected in the STIP. Mr. Wakan also said that he was not sure if some local TAP projects had been added to the final iteration of the STIP. Mr. Lopez said NMDOT was still in the process of adding all the projects to the STIP based on approval for funding for each project. 5. UPDATE ON RED APPLE TRANSIT RIDERSHIP Subject: Red Apple Transit Update Prepared by: Derrick Garcia, MPO Associate Planner Date: January 17, 2017  BACKGROUND or PREVIOUS WORK  Staff will need to collect transit data on an ongoing basis to comply with MAP-21 performance measurement requirements.  Ride Right was awarded their contract with the requirement to collect boarding and alightment data using on-board technology.  These new ridership collection methods have been in place since March 2015 using bus-based tablets.  Staff secured nineteen months of ridership data (March 2015 – September 2016) totaling in over 180,000 rows of tabular data requiring manual resolution.  The Technical Committee received this report on January 11, 2017. CURRENT WORK  Boarding and alightment figures are in the process of being summarized by both route and stops.  Overlapping bus stops are being aggregated for the purpose of GIS analysis and mapping.  Additional analytics are being conducted on transfer rates, bus passes, boarding rates, and discount fare boarding rates. INFORMATION ITEM  This is an information report requesting feedback from Technical Committee members. DISCUSSION: Mr. Garcia provided a Red Apple Transit ridership update. Data from the last half of 2016 was just received from Ride Right and Staff is analyzing all boardings and alightments for each route. Mr. Garcia reported that having a full calendar year of data provides the opportunity to analyze each route: • Most popular stops; • Breakdown of fares (pass, full fare, child, etc.); • Transfers: o What are the most popular stops; o What are the most popular transfer combinations? • Federal ruling regarding performance management: o Able to determine mode splits and determine transit efforts to reduce congestion which could impact CMAQ funding; o Baseline data helps determine annual ridership trends by stop and/or route (percent increase/decrease at same time last year). Mr. Garcia provided a chart that showed the boardings and alightments for each of the stops on the Aztec route for the entire year of 2016. He noted that there no riders boarded or alighted at the Microtel Inn which is available as a “call in” option. He explained that riders call Ride Right if they want the bus to stop at this location. This is similar to how riders get to the BLM Office and the Four Corners Regional Airport locations. Mr. Garcia stated that Staff would be compiling this data going forward and asked the Policy Committee to let Staff know of any additional information on the transit routes they would like to see compiled. Mr. Stephen Lopez with NMDOT District 5 was contacted by phone to provide his update (see above). 6. COMPLETE STREET FUNDING Subject: National Complete Streets Grant Prepared by: Duane Wakan, MPO Planner Date: January 17, 2017 GRANT PROGRAM  Smart Growth America has a technical assistance grant program via the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Sustainable Communities, which helps facilitate local solutions to local development challenges.  The tools and trainings help: use land strategically, maximize existing resources, and invest public funds in ways that catalyze quality private development. They have worked with 70 communities across the country  Complete Streets Consortium Series- is a new workshop series for three units of government within the same state. The three applicants join together to form a consortium, with each unit of government receiving their own workshop that builds on the other workshop in the series.  Workshops articulate the relationship between land-use and transportation, different modes of travel, multimodal integration, and Complete Streets implementation.  Staff would consider some benefit from complete street implementation strategies and best practices. Because we have developed regional design guidelines and policies it is felt we would not require any updates to our CS Plan.  Eligibility is open to subdivisions of local government, Indian tribe, or regional governments. They do not need to be geographically adjacent but must make a case they are committed, coordinated and justify assistance. A workshop must take place within the jurisdiction of each applying entity.  Smart Growth America expects to select one consortium of three applicants to receive free technical assistance in this application cycle. APPLICATION PROCESS  The deadline for the new Complete Streets Consortium Series in Thursday February 2, 2017 at 5:00 PM EDT.  Applications must be uploaded to the Smart Growth America web page application portal or via by the same deadline.  MRCOG and Santa Fe MPO asked if the FMPO would join forces to create a consortium to pursue this grant which would require the signature from the Policy Committee Chairman.   The application process is also open to all entity members in the State of NM and is attached to this staff report. ACTION ITEM  Staff had insufficient time to gain a recommendation from the TC.  It is recommended that the Policy Committee support the consortium of State MPOs or encourage a local consortium within the FMPO. DISCUSSION: Mr. Wakan reported on an opportunity for a technical assistance grant program offered by Smart Growth America through the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Sustainable Communities. This is a call for applicants interested in pursuing technical assistance for Complete Streets projects. The grant is open to applicants who create a consortium of three different cities or regional governments which can include regional transportation organizations like MPOs. The Santa Fe MPO and Mid-Region Council of Governments (MRCOG) contacted Staff to see if FMPO wanted to participated in forming a consortium of MPOs to seek this funding. Mr. Wakan said both MRCOG and FMPO have established complete streets design guidelines while Santa Fe has a resolution but no guidelines. Although the MPO has received a lot of technical knowledge, but this funding, if awarded, could benefit the MPO on implementation strategies, the use of simple treatments to create complete streets, and help communicate with the public on how complete streets could work. The application process also required a letter of support from the Policy Committee to Smart Growth. Mr. Wakan said he wanted to present the concept to the Policy Committee to see if there was interest. If the MPO did not choose to form the consortium, perhaps the local entities might consider forming a consortium. Councilor Duckett asked if there was any downside to forming the consortium. Mr. Wakan said he did not think there was any negative impact. If awarded the funding, the MPO would need to stress that they were interested in implementation strategies, not in changing any of our existing design guidelines. Ms. Holton added that this could be a good vehicle for the other communities to come together and get their own technical assistance to stimulate local interest in complete streets designs. She thought this could be a positive opportunity. Commissioner Sipe asked if the local councils/commissions needed to give their approval to pursue. Ms. Holton said this would not be a commitment by the local entities if the MPO participated with the other two MPOs in the state. Mr. Wakan would speak with each of the entities on how any implementation strategies might be deployed in their area and only if an actual project was proposed and funding needed to be sought. Mr. Garcia also noted that another requirement for receiving the grant is that representatives from each MPO would present on their complete streets designs at each of the other entities in the consortium. This means that planners from Santa Fe and Albuquerque would present here so we could learn what they are working on and staff and members of our local entities would travel to the other cities and present on what our region has accomplished with complete streets. This would be a very beneficial and educational process for all. Mr. Wakan stated that there were several options for the Policy Committee to consider: support the consortium of the three MPOs or recommend that the three cities consider applying as their own consortium. ACTION: Commissioner Sipe moved to support the State MPOs in forming a consortium and applying for this technical assistance grant. Councilor Rodgers seconded the motion. The motion was approved unanimously. Mr. Wakan said he would draft a letter of support that would be forwarded to all Policy Committee members for their review and input. Once approved by the committee, the letter would be given to Councilor Duckett to sign as Chair of the Policy Committee. 7. COMMITTEE MEMBER DISCUSSION ITEM(S) No items were received from Committee Members. 8. INFORMATION ITEMS Subject: Information Items Prepared by: Derrick Garcia, MPO Associate Planner Date: January 16, 2017 INFORMATION ITEMS f. GIS Intern-- Todd Gabhart, the MPO’s GIS intern since last June completed his work at the MPO on December 15. g. NMDOT Planning Liaison-- Brian Degani has replaced Robin Elkin’s role as the MPO’s NMDOT Planning Liaison. h. Citizens Advisory Committee—Staff continues to recruit members of the community to serve on the CAC. Draft bylaws will be presented at the next meeting for review. i. Lincoln Davis Wakan-- Duane welcomed a new member to his family over the holidays. DISCUSSION: Mr. Garcia reported that the MPO’s GIS intern, Todd Gabhart, completed his work at the MPO on December 15. He has provided a good foundation of transit and crash/safety data for Staff to build on. Mr. Garcia reiterated that Mr. Brian Degani has taken over as the NMDOT Planning Liaison for the MPO. Mr. Wakan reported that Staff is still receiving periodic notices of interest and support in participating on the Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC). Staff is still seeking names of additional potential members. Staff reached out late last year and tried to contact Linda Thompson who was referred by Commissioner Sipe. Ms. Thompson was not able to be reached. Councilor Duckett offered the name of Matthew Clugson (320-7542). Everyone congratulated Mr. Wakan on the birth of his newest son, Lincoln Davis. 9. BUSINESS FROM THE CHAIRMAN, MEMBERS AND STAFF Mr. Lopez asked if the MPO had ever modeled the East Aztec Arterial using a t-model similar to what had been done for the Pinon Hills Boulevard project to determine if there were congestion relief features that would warrant it being a valid relief route. Mr. Wakan responded that modeling had been done on that route. The congestion relief being sought is not for all the vehicles on Main Street but simply to move the large trucks and semis off of Main Street. These heavy vehicles are damaging the historic buildings downtown and creating serious safety concerns for both pedestrians and local traffic. The route is being developed for purposes of the city’s economic vitality. The information specific to this project is not on the MPO website, but Mr. Wakan can provide the information requested. The 2010, 2025 and 2040 information is all modeled. Mr. Degani also asked for peak hour data for 2010 and 2025. There was no additional business from the Chairman, Members and Staff. 10. BUSINESS FROM THE FLOOR Mr. Degani said he had learned that the RTP Scoring Committee discussed earlier will be meeting the week after the TAP Scoring Committee (sometime the week of 2/13/17). He will gather more information from Danial Watts as the meetings progress. Mr. Garcia asked if the scoring committee meetings were public meetings and, if so, would minutes from the meetings be produced. Mr. Degani said he would need to check with Mr. Watts before he could answer that question. There was no additional business from the Floor 11. ADJOURNMENT Councilor Rodgers moved to adjourn the meeting. Commissioner Sipe seconded the motion. Councilor Duckett adjourned the meeting at 2:10 p.m. __________________________ ___________________________ Councilor Duckett, Chair June Markle, Administrative Assistant