AIM Norman Neighborhood Workshops

CITY OF NORMAN, OK AIM NORMAN NEIGHBORHOOD WORKSHOPS McKinley Elementary School, Cafeteria, 728 S Flood Ave, Norman, OK 73069 Tuesday, March 12, 2024 at 6:30 PM MINUTES It is the policy of the City of Norman that no person or groups of persons shall on the grounds of race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, age, place of birth, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, familial status, marital status, including marriage to a person of the same sex, disability, relation, or genetic information, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or otherwise subjected to discrimination in employment activities or in all programs, services, or activities administered by the City, its recipients, sub-recipients, and contractors. In the event of any comments, complaints, modifications, accommodations, alternative formats, and auxiliary aids and services regarding accessibility or inclusion, please contact the ADA Technician at 405-366-5424, Relay Service: 711. To better serve you, five (5) business days' advance notice is preferred. All AIM Norman Neighborhood Workshops are not regular meetings of the AIM Norman Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee, but the Steering Committee will be invited to attend, and this notice is being posted in compliance with the Oklahoma Open Meetings Act in the event of a quorum. (Steering Committee attendance by sign-in) 1. DOORS OPEN TO PUBLIC AT 6:30PM. 2. PUBLIC INVITED TO VISIT TABLES STAFFED BY CITY PERSONNEL, CONSULTANTS, AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS TO DISCUSS VISION FOR THE AIM NORMAN PLAN. Current Land Use Board o Develop downtown to put 20,000 residents there o Too much low density, we need more medium and high density housing and mixed use o Move the airport Future Land Use and Density Board o Need to take into consideration where we are going to stop growth o We aren’t Edmond or Austin. Have people that don’t want to be these communities Planning Scenarios (created by the Steering Committee) Board o Green space circling city in addition to playgrounds in town o Two votes for scenario three o More options of SF [single family] homes with detached second unit; or new homes with second unit o Alley access to backyard and add secondary units; Historic district as an example o Too much concentrated industrial. Think about who lives there and protect o Green ring with more dense development o Incentivize green development. More natural areas; patios facing nature! o No industrial near waterways! AIM NORMAN NEIGHBORHOOD WORKSHOPS - Tuesday, March 12, 2024 Page |1  o Like the parks corridor connecting city center and Lake o Too much low density. We should not have industrial near the Lake. o Like the greenbelt but don’t like concentrating new development and high density on town edges; this will eat up money, destroy land, and counter walkability Norman Today Board o Affordable Housing is the need! Also coordinated mobility/connectivity between neighborhoods to work/school/shop o Better transit options needed for Norman/OKC commuters. Current bus ride takes 2+ hours for whole trip one way o Transit methods to relieve street congestion as our population grows Development Principles Board o Love the 10 development principles! Especially the commitment to the environment and to transparency and collaboration o Overall, great principles but needs medium density to work, which we need to present in a more palatable manner to people used to R1 Neighborhood Map o Protect “remnant prairies” from developers/mowers. o Consider light pollution o Need green areas, trails circling the city, perhaps linking to Lake Thunderbird. A green necklace will be gone if not connected. Housing Board o Information Board comments:  Need more quality, affordable housing for low and middle income. Too many large property companies taking advantage of people.  Half of our population sacrificing other needs to be housed! Unacceptable!  Must find ways to subsidize to lower housing cost to prevent unstable and untrusted City issues  Affordability and instability is our most important issue! Nothing else can function properly until we solve this problem!  State housing that is affordable for young families interconnected to other neighborhood amenities – schools, work, leisure, consumer activities, biking, trails  Turn parking lots into dwellings  No parking mandates  Create a downtown housing plan  Less zoning  3D printed homes, tiny homes village  More housing, senior village with HOA, pool with ownership gates o If you had to move in the next several years, identify up to two housing options you would desire using the green dots. Place a blue dot on housing that is needed in Norman, even if it is not something for you.  Smaller single-family homes: 10 green dots, 1 blue dot  Larger single-family homes: 2 green dots, 0 blue dots  Duplexes: 1 green dot, 2 blue dots  Townhomes: 2 green dots, 2 blue dots  Manufactured homes: 0 green dots, 0 blue dots  Modular homes: 0 green dots, 2 blue dots  Accessory dwelling units: 2 green dots, 3 blue dots  Small multi-family apartments: 0 green dots, 3 blue dots  Medium multi-family apartments: 0 green dots, 0 blue dots  Large multi-family apartments: 1 green dot, 3 blue dots AIM NORMAN NEIGHBORHOOD WORKSHOPS - Tuesday, March 12, 2024 Page |2   Senior living: 2 green dots, 2 blue dots  Mixed use units: 2 green dots, 4 blue dots Parks, Recreation, and Open Spaces Board o What have you seen in other places that you would like to have in Norman (parks)?  Good trail system is important to a good park system – smooth/connected for elderly  Activities/passive activity station sat Klyde Warren Park  Parks lack flowers. Beautiful with lots of flowers AND keep the trees  Pollinator gardens  Picnic areas  Bathrooms  Green belt/paths/trail system that connects neighborhoods around Norman  How connected are parks to each other? Longer connection of paths, trails, parks, and green space!  Wood chip trails  Floating boardwalks  Parkhouses/community buildings at some parks. Would allow for activity indoors during extreme heat or rain.  Pickleball, basketball, games, ping pong, chess?  Pay Jason more and give him more stuff. “Much love to Jason!”  Develop along the Canadian River  Comprehensive trail network that is safe, beautiful, and has art  Artist in residence location need it! o What (park) amenities are most important to have close to home?  Keep wild spaces wild and biodiverse  Non-sport programming  More walking trails for people (through the parks) with good lighting  Protect natural green areas – constructing without being a plain/empty canvas but more between trees  Trails around the lakes and existing wild areas that are not a kids park  Plan for Griffin Memorial  Consider a large parkland in former Griffin land o What needs aren’t currently being met by our parks and programs?  Do we have sufficient hiking trails?  Bike trails  Designated off road bike trails. Shared road concept isn’t working (safety)  Bike trails away from roads; dirt trail network through the city and on the country side; bike mobility trail connectivity with River and OKC  Only neighborhood parks in the 48th-22nd Corridor  Wheelchair accessible sidewalks and crosswalk to get into Ruby Goat  Shaded spaces for hot summer days; cooling/mist stations; more trees around the city  Developers should NOT be allowed to pay fees in lieu of parks. If essential, the fee should be much higher  Greenbelts and trails to get to the parks  Indoor, non-sports programming  Collaborate with stormwater development Transportation Board o Information Board Comments:  We must make active transportation (bike/walk/transit/taxi) more pleasant, functional, and safe AIM NORMAN NEIGHBORHOOD WORKSHOPS - Tuesday, March 12, 2024 Page |3   Resolve congestion  Sidewalks/trails apart from roadways o How should future transportation projects be prioritized? Place a dot in the box that you feel should be prioritized more:  Safety: 6 dots  Road capacity: 1 dot  Intersection improvements: 4 dots  Connectivity: 4 dots  Bike/pedestrian accommodations and facilities: 8 dots  Transit: 7 dots o Other comments:  Improve pedestrian safety on busy intersections  Need more road diet projects to slow traffic  Safer crossings for pedestrians and bicycles at major intersections  Provide separate pedestrian crossing at major intersections  Need more bus frequency  Improve pedestrian access to transit throughout the city  Parking garage near transit center when commuter rail begins  Prioritize safety (fire exits)  Add lighting  Need a bus stop and crosswalk at the Adult Wellness Center  No turnpike  Having a good an interconnected land use plan and transportation plan to reduce car trips and congestion and encourage alternate modes of transportation  No turnpikes – Hwy 9 will be a bigger death trap if Turnpike happens  Would like to see denser development with increase walkability and bikeability  Alternate transportation infrastructure, protected bike lanes, green belts  TOD around RTA stops  Take a 4-lane street to a 2-lane street for protected bike lanes Active Transportation Board o Where do you or would you like to ride or walk to? o Downtown, everywhere commercial and to parks  24th North of Robinson – Target, etc. should be bikeable and walkable  From neighborhoods to core Norman restaurants/campus/Lake Thunderbird o Where are more bike and pedestrian facilities most needed?  East > West protected paths for bikes  Boyd Street sidewalks  NE 36th-NE84 bike lanes  Along Main Street, west of Floyd, by the Mall  Everywhere Water/Wastewater Board o How do you feel about water reuse?  I would support recycling water back into Lake Thunderbird: 10 dots  I would support recycling water back to the drinking water treatment plant: 4 dots  I would support expanding other sources of supply instead: 1 dot o What is your biggest concern regarding the City of Norman’s wastewater system?  Water reclamation facility capacity and reliability: 3 dots  Quality of treated water discharged: 5 dots AIM NORMAN NEIGHBORHOOD WORKSHOPS - Tuesday, March 12, 2024 Page |4  o Additional comments:  No meters on private wells  We should think about reducing yard size (no more 25 foot setback in R1) so we can use less water on keeping grass alive  We need to better use rainwater, more rain barrels to reduce stormwater and reduce landscaping uses  Can we use natural filters on the edges of Thunderbird to keep it clear?  Maintenance modernization optimizing of water treatment for less energy consumption  Look at Dr. Jason Vogel’s work at OU about pros and cons of wastewater reuse Stormwater Board o Information Board Comments:  Need to account for expanded floodplain due to impermeable surfaces  Stormwater and green roofs, permeable pavement, and bioswales everywhere but especially heavily developed areas like OU o The City uses the following evaluation criteria when choosing stormwater projects to implement throughout the City. Place a green dot on the item that you feel is most important and a red dot on the second most important.  Public Safety: 5 green dots, 3 red dots  Economic Development: 5 green dots, 2 red dots  Cost to Implement: 5 green dots, 2 red dots  Ecological improvement: 5 green dots, 3 red dots o Using a red pin, identify locations on the map where you have experienced flooding, drainage, or erosion issues o Put a green pin on the map in a location that you think green infrastructure would be a good fit in the community 3. MEETING ADJOURNED UPON CONCLUSION OF DISCUSSION. AIM NORMAN NEIGHBORHOOD WORKSHOPS - Tuesday, March 12, 2024 Page |5