Streets & Roads Commission

Streets and Roads Commission Meeting Minutes August 24, 2017 Commission members in attendance: Chair Tom Fleming; Jennifer Smith; Nick DiTizio, Councilman Scott Strong. Citizens: Karl Mulder, Jean Gue, Roxanne Hemphill I. Call to Order: The meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m. II. Administrative items a. Approval of Meeting Minutes 1. The Commission members approved the meeting minutes for the February 23, 2017 meeting. b. Notes from the Chair 1. This is Tom Fleming’s last meeting as Chair. Jennifer Smith nominated Nick DiTizio to replace Tom Fleming as Chair of the committee. The vote was unanimous. Nick will begin his tenure as Chair after this committee meeting. c. Council Liaison Report 1. Councilman Scott Strong was present and is the new Council Liaison to the Streets and Roads Commission. 2. Councilman Strong discussed the Town’s progress on paving repairs throughout the Town. The Town has been busy patching roads before the end of the fiscal year. The market area at the rail yard was repaved. The Mayor is actively looking for additional areas throughout Town that are in need of repairs. The intersection of Twin Arch Road and Century Drive is currently experiencing pavement slippage due to the weight of heavy truck traffic in this area. The Town is evaluating options to address this issue. 3. Two new candidates for membership on the Streets and Roads Commission will be presented to the Town Council at the September 11, 2017 meeting. III. Citizen Comments a. North Main and Route 27 Traffic Signal Karl Mulder asked the Commission if there was any knowledge regarding the Maryland State Highway Administration’s (SHA) plans to upgrade the traffic signal at the intersection of North Main and Route 27. The Commission members have no knowledge of any status on this. 1  b. Speed on Buffalo Road and Sterling Glen Karl Mulder asked the Commission if the Town could discuss speed issues along Buffalo Road in the vicinity of Sterling Glen with Frederick County. The Commission will request the Town bring this issue to the attention of Frederick County staff. c. School Bus Stop Warning Signs Karl Mulder requested the Town install school bus stop ahead signs along Buffalo Road and Candice Drive to serve the bus stops in the Sterling Glen neighborhood. Councilman Strong will discuss this request with Town Engineer Barney Quinn. The Town will contact both Frederick County and Carroll County regarding this request. d. Speed Issues on West Road Jean Gue discussed a speeding issue along West Road. Ms. Gue has discussed this issue with the resident State Troopers. Ms. Gue requested the Town consider installation of a speed bump or speed table or other traffic calming device in this area. IV. Old Business a. South Main and Route 27 The Commission again discussed the difficulty with making a left turn from South Main Street onto Northbound MD 27. There are two through lanes of oncoming traffic from the exit ramp of I-70. The driver turning left from South Main can be confused by both lanes having the through designation. Councilman Strong indicated he would discuss the matter with the Town Engineer Barney Quinn to determine if any action will be taken by the SHA. V. New Business a. Presentation of Alternative Center Street Alignment Mr. Ron Thompson of Van Mar Associates presented an alternative alignment for the intersection of Center Street and Rout 27. The alternative involved constructing an overpass from a newly aligned Center Street West and newly aligned Center Street East. Ramps to and from the overpass would be constructed along with two round-abouts for traffic control on Route 27. The alignment would shift the intersection of Center Street south, essentially up grade, to reduce the grade differential between the overpass and Center Street. This shift would reduce the cost of construction. Funding of the project would possibly come from a combination of public and private funding, some of which may come from the owner/developer of the Beck property. Ms. Roxanne Hemphil, member of the Planning Commission, was present to support the proposed project. The request from Mr. Thompson was that the Streets and Roads Commission support the inclusion of the project into the 2  Route 27 Corridor Study. Mr. Thompson indicated State funding of the project would be contingent on it being included in the Route 27 Corridor Study. Mayor Pat Rockinber was present to discuss the viewpoint of the Town staff. Mayor Rockinberg requested the Streets and Roads Commission not make a decision regarding support or not supporting the inclusion of the proposal into the Route 27 Corridor Study until hearing from Town staff. Mayor Rockinberg suggested the Commission convene a special meeting in September to hear from the Town staff. Commission members agreed to table any recommendations until after hearing from Town staff on the proposed project. VI. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 8:45pm. The next meeting will be held on October 26, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. Respectfully Submitted by, Jennifer M. Smith 3