Public Works / Traffic / Transit Committee

Chris Jenkins, Director PUBLIC WORKS DIVISION Cemetery Department , Stan Rogers, Director Public Works Garage Department Brandon Coryea, Director Solid Waste Collections Department Donnie Barrett, Director Solid Waste Processing & Disposal Department Lee Stone, Director Streets & Drainage Department Chad Hampton, Director PUBLIC WORKS AND TRANSIT COMMITTEE AND TRAFFIC COMMISSION February 12, 2020, 10:00 a.m. Sam King Room ‐ 601 Broad Street PRESENT: Commissioner Sundai Stevenson Commissioner Jamie Doss Commissioner Mark Cochran Mr. Sammy Rich, City Manager Mr. Patrick Eidson, Assistant City Manager Mr. Chris Jenkins, Public Works Director Mr. Justin Messer, Assistant Public Works Director Mr. Aaron Carroll, Engineering Services Director Mr. Artegus Newell, Planning Director Lt. DeHart, Rome Police Dept. CALL TO ORDER Commissioner Stevenson welcomed everyone and asked them to introduce themselves. REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes of the previous meeting were approved as written POLICE REPORTS Lt. DeHart presented the traffic accident and DUI report for the month of January. He noted SR 53 at the loop was a hot spot, as well as Martha Berry Hwy at GA Loop 1, but other than those two there was nothing else that stood out during the month. The greatest number of accidents occur during lunch and dinner times. There were no other major differences from the previous month. 200 Vaughn Road • PO Box 1433 • Rome, Georgia 30162‐1433 Phone: 706/236‐4466 • fax: 706/236‐4532 OLD BUSINESS TRANSIT OPERATIONS Transit Development Plan Update Mr. Eidson updated the Committee on the Transit Development Plan. He presented a flyer announcing the “open house” meetings scheduled for Thursday, February 27th from 3:00 to 7:00 PM and on Friday morning from 8:30 AM until 12:30 PM on the Sam King Rome. He noted these meeting are open to the public to allow them the opportunity to share information about public transportation service options in Rome an Floyd County. Consultants and staff will be on hand to answer questions. Light refreshments will be served. Commissioner Stevenson encouraged everyone to come and suggested everyone take help distribute flyers. New Bus Shelters Installed Mr. Eidson reported that new bus shelters have been installed at Maple St. and 12th St. he noted that Mr. Carroll helped with the purchasing process. He presented photos of the new shelters. Mr. Carroll added that we are currently working on placing new shelters on South Broad St. at Pennington and at Nixon near Cherokee and Redmond Circle across from Walmart as well as Etowah and South Broad St. Ms. Shealy added there will be a new shelter added at the library and Mr. Eidson noted we are working on one for the hospital as well. NEW BUSINESS One Community United September 20th Event Mr. Jenkins reported the One Community United event is scheduled for September 20th at 6:30 on the Pedestrian Bridge, which is jointly owned by the City and County. This event has been held for the last couple of years. They need approval from both Commissions for this event. Commissioner Cochran moved to approve the request. Commissioner Doss seconded. The motion carried. Sidewalk Improvements Mr. Jenkins reported that we budget about $100,000 per year for repairs on sidewalks annually, which is spent this fairly quickly on emergency repairs. He noted that the section of sidewalk we replaced on Branham Avenue cost $80,000, and repairs and improvements to the sidewalks on Lavender Drive was funded through the $1 million 2017 SPLOST project for infrastructure improvements. With the high cost of this work, we are very happy to receive grants to supplement our budget. Public Work Committee/Transit Committee/Traffic Commission Minutes, February 12, 2020 Page 2 of 5  Mr. Albea reported that street scaping was recently installed on West 3rd Street to match Broad Street. In conjunction with that project, we also laid underground conduit for any future underground wiring needs. Mr. Rich added that good public investment helps attract private investment and restaurant owners in that area have been very happy with these improvements. Mr. Jenkins noted that the CBDG grants have enabled us to replace whole sections of sidewalk rather than just patch which can be unsightly. Mr. Albea reported the next project was on the east side of Maple Street totaling about $150,000. This project extended from 12th Street to 8th Street, where there was a lot of broken concrete, tree stumps and trip hazards. He showed before and after photos noting the radius was improved at the intersections and drop inlets were updated to City standards. Mr. Carroll added the bid for the west side of that street will be going very soon. Mr. Rich asked Mr. Jenkins to talk about our contractor for sidewalk assessment. Mr. Jenkins replied that we have used a company called Georgia Safe Sidewalks to inspect our sidewalks and mark areas of concern that need repair or replacement. They do an excellent job and give us a good report. We now have a good inventory of sidewalk that needs attention. Mr. Jenkins added that one of the issues we face in Rome is the sidewalk on State Routes. The State builds the sidewalk and then under State Code 32-2-2, the State relies on local government to handle maintenance of the sidewalk while they retain responsibilities for “substantial repair”. It can be difficult to determine where maintenance ends and substantial repair begins which is a problem for us. CDBG Funded Demolitions Mr. Jenkins reported that last year the Street Dept. demolished thirteen houses. Of these, eight were under clean and lien and the other five were brought to us by Community Development Director, Bekki Fox using CDBG funds. The cost for the demolitions total between $6,000 and $7,000 per house totaling about $33,000. This year Ms. Fox has asked us to do this again this year with funding she has acquired and we expect to be demolishing about five houses. Installation of Trash Cans on Trails Mr. Jenkins reported that 10 new trash cans will be installed on the walking trail from the library to the stadium. He noted that we haven’t experienced much trouble with litter on the trails and rarely have complaints. Commissioner Doss asked how often these cans are serviced. Mr. Jenkins replied that averages about twice per week but that changes depending on the season and the level of use. Coordinating ‘Blooms on Broad’ Mr. Jenkins reported that Blooms on Broad came to this Committee last year as a pilot project. He met with the foundation’s Executive Director Joel Snyder, yesterday to begin work out the transition to having the Street Department take over the maintenance of the flower containers. Currently the containers placed at the intersections of 2nd Ave and Public Work Committee/Transit Committee/Traffic Commission Minutes, February 12, 2020 Page 3 of 5  Broad St. and 4th Avenue at Broad St. There are 12 containers per intersection so we have a total of 24. The plan is to expand to 6th Avenue and Broad Street. This will be implemented soon. This has been a good partnership with the community foundation. They will plant the flowers this year and then we will step in and take over the maintenance from Waters Landscaping. Mitchell Plaza Improvements Mr. Jenkins reported, Mitchell Plaza was originally dedicated in 1998 in honor of former Commissioner Buddy Mitchell. In September last year, his son, David Mitchell, reported some concerns about the way it looks. This was always a natural water feature but the water has been turning green. Mr. Mitchell asked us to take a look and see if we could improve the overall appearance. Mr. Jenkins noted there was an unsightly ‘No Wading’ sign that we removed. We added some pool chemicals that will keep the water clearer. There was an old thin copper plaque on the wall dedicating the plaza that was obscured by a magnolia tree and covered an electrical panel. We are replacing it with a nicer bronze plaque, which is much more attractive. The plaque will be installed soon. NPDES Annual Report Mr. Jenkins gave a presentation on the City’s NPDES program. This program came out of the Clean Water act of 1972, which requires us to ensure we are doing our best to keep our waters clean. He added that the City is required to submit an annual report to EPD each year providing documentation of our best management practices to protect our water. NPDES stands for The National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System. He detailed the items covered under the NPDES permit that the City must adhere to throughout the year in order to stay in compliance. These include the public outreach programs like Bring One for the Chipper, Rivers Alive and the Polar Bear Paddle. We are also required to monitor illicit discharge detection and elimination, construction site stormwater runoff and to help prevent future pollution, we regularly maintain and inspect stormwater structures and lines and educate our employees, developers and the public about the importance of keeping our stormwater clean. A sizeable report must be submitted each year to EPD who then responds with questions and comments that must be addressed before the permit requirements are met. The report is due on February 15th each year. Mid-block Crossing Safety Improvements 200 Block of Broad St. Mr. Carroll reported that DDA is concerned about safety up and down Broad Street and especially at the midblock crossings. In the 200 block, since pedestrians can be obscured by trees. We are going to cable an LED light in the median as a pilot project and it will be tied in to the lights in the trees so it will come on at the same time as the tree lights. Public Work Committee/Transit Committee/Traffic Commission Minutes, February 12, 2020 Page 4 of 5 MONTHLY REPORTS Departmental Reports The departmental reports were distributed for review. ADJOURN There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned. Respectfully Submitted, 0 DUJDUHW+ROOLQJVZRUWK Margaret W. Hollingsworth, Secretary Public Work Committee/Transit Committee/Traffic Commission Minutes, February 12, 2020 Page 5 of 5