Public Works / Traffic / Transit Committee

Chris Jenkins, Director Justin Messer, Assistant Director PUBLIC WORKS DIVISION , Cemetery Department Stan Rogers, Director Engineering Services Aaron Carroll, Director Solid Waste Collections Department Tim Garrett, Director Solid Waste Processing & Disposal Department Lee Stone, Director Public Works Garage Department Joe Krinke, Superintendent Streets & Drainage Department Chad Hampton, Director PUBLIC WORKS AND TRANSIT COMMITTEE AND TRAFFIC COMMISSION CALLED MEETING March 2, 2021, 10:00 a.m. Sam King Room ‐ 601 Broad Street, and via Zoom PRESENT: Commissioner Mark Cochran Commissioner Bill Collins Commissioner Bony Askew Commissioner Wendy Davis Commissioner Jim Bojo Mayor Craig McDaniel Mr. Sammy Rich, City Manager Mr. Chris Jenkins, Public Works Director Mr. Justin Messer, Assistant Public Works Director Mr. Aaron Carroll, Engineering Services Director Ms. Toni Rhinehart, Finance Director Mr. Art Newall, Planning Director Maj. Rodney Bailey, Rome Police Department Ms. Brittany Griffin, Associate Planner/Historic Preservation Ms. Kayla Schaaf, Associate Planner/Transportation Ms. Aundi Lesly, DDA Director CALL TO ORDER Commissioner Cochran called the meeting to order. 200 Vaughn Road • PO Box 1433 • Rome, Georgia 30162‐1433 Phone: 706/236‐4466 • fax: 706/236‐4532 NEW BUSINESS River Arts District Streetscape Project Commissioner Cochran stated the sole purpose of this meeting is to review the plans distributed by the Re‐Development Committee at their last meeting relating to the 5th Avenue Bridge and the redevelopment of the River District. He noted this project is being discussed in this committee because the bridge would be taken from four lanes to two. Mr. Rich added that traffic concerns and pavement markings are typically discussed in this committee. He presented a concept drawing and identified the different sections covered by the project along with the associated cost estimates as follows: Section Cost A‐ 5 Avenue Bridge ‐ th $44065.00 B‐ 5th Avenue ‐ $1,634,344.00 C‐ 5th Avenue Intersection $1,526,773.50 D‐ 3rd Street $3,146,503.00 Estimated All‐In Costs $6,755,652.50 Mr. Rich added that due to the scope of this project we would want to get some outside assistance with design along with having Engineering Services Director, Aaron Carroll, take a look at the bridge (Section A) to determine what could be done in house. Mr. Jenkins noted this portion of the project could probably be accomplished in‐house since it mainly involves pavement markings. He added that we know from previous structural analyses that the bridge can handle the weight of parallel parking, but if the pushouts are to be in concrete rather than painted, we would need to bring in a structural engineer to determine the weight load on the bridge. Commissioner Collins stated the conceptual drawings make a lot of sense if taking the bridge down to two lanes, but suggested we physically cone the areas off to have a better idea of how it would look on site. Mr. Carroll noted that since this conceptual drawing is based on topo maps we provided, it should all fit in theory, but we would need an engineering set of drawings as well as to check all the radiuses for truck maneuvering to be certain. He noted that painting on concrete is a different process from painting on asphalt with an extra base coat applied to ensure the striping adheres properly. Mr. Jenkins added the sidewalk on the bridge is very high and must be considered in planning parking on the bridge. Mr. Carroll reported the City was awarded a $600,000 ARC grant to improve the water system from 5th Avenue , and W 3rd Street to 2nd Ave. They will be upgrading the existing 6” lines to 10 and 12‐inches. There will also be some sewer work from 5th to 3rd. This project is currently being finalized with EPD, which has chosen the West 5th Public Work Committee/Transit Committee/Traffic Commission Minutes, March 2, 2021 Page 2 of 5  corridor as the starting point for the upgrade. Additionally, the SPLOST project includes getting the power lines underground on 3rd, from 4th up to 5th and along 5th for the majority of the Avenue A intersection up to the bridge. He added there are a lot of moving parts to these projects with the water, streetscape and power projects all to be considered. Commissioner Cochran stated that it doesn’t make sense to piecemeal the project because the costs are at their lowest now and he prefers to tackle the whole project at one time. He stated we are dealing with the Public Works portion of the project today, which is taking the bridge from four lanes to two. He asked if this would require GDOT input or approval. Mr. Carroll said he does not think that GDOT has to approve this project but he will verify that. Commissioner Cochran noted that Commissioner’s Davis and Bojo of the Re‐ Development Committee were interested in moving forward with this project so taxpayers can see some progress. Commissioner Davis suggested we do it on a rolling basis with one section leading directly into the next without gaps in the work. She felt Section A is the best place to start adding that she likes the idea of taking this design and improving on it. She asked about the push‐outs in the drawing. Mr. Rich noted that in the concept drawing it is just striping but could be done in concrete if the bridge can bear the weight. Commissioner Bojo agreed that Section A encompassing the bridge would likely be the quickest and cheapest section to complete and get the public excited about the project. He added that we should go right into the next phase once it is complete without having a big gap between. Commissioner Davis added it makes sense to do the underground utility work along with it while working to forward other sections simultaneously. She noted that Section A doesn’t seem to incorporate the trail which she would like to see included. Mayor McDaniel asked Mr. Carroll when the $600,000 ARC funds are due. Mr. Carroll responded that we are working with the Water & Sewer Division right now to get the drawings done. The money is available now and has a deadline of October 2022. The project should take about six months. He added he would like to request proposals for final engineering drawings for Sections B, C and D and then let the Water Dept. start on maybe West 3rd St at 2nd Avenue. Mayor McDaniel asked Mr. Rich if there is a set of plans that we can review on how the SPLOST money will be spent. Mr. Rich replied Mr. Carroll is proposing putting an RFP out to get specific plans to go out for bid by April which will give us more specifics on costs. Mr. Carroll added that historically we have always tried to do as much in‐house to conserve funds for the project. Mr. Rich said Mr. Carroll’s effort at this time should be towards putting together an RFP. Public Work Committee/Transit Committee/Traffic Commission Minutes, March 2, 2021 Page 3 of 5  Commissioner Collins asked if there is a situation with the water line project that will halt Section A from continuing until we get it finished. Mr. Jenkins replied that is not the case, only that we need to have Phase B scheduled and ready to go before A is finished. Commissioner Collins asked if Bryan King of GMC is finished with his designs. Mr. Rich said Mr. King is finished with what he was asked to do. He added that if it is the Commissioners wish, we could borrow the money to supplement our SPLOST dollars so we have actual amounts to plan with. Commissioner Davis asked if we could move forward with Section A while we are doing the RFP for B, C, and D. Commissioner Cochran said we can probably move forward with Section A in‐house. Commissioner Bojo noted that we need to get an engineering drawing to be able to plan. Commissioner Askew asked how long before we can get the water line project down 3rd Avenue and 5th Avenue, and how it would affect the streetscape. Commissioner Bojo said we can probably get an answer at the Water & Sewer Committee on Thursday. Mr. Carroll noted that the grant has to go through EPD approval and we are going through the process right now to get that cleared up so we can start. Commissioner Cochran asked DDA Director Aundi Lesley how they envision the bridge project. She noted that they are looking mainly for it to provide connectivity from Broad Street to the River District. Added parking is not the main goal but rather to provide functionality and safety while making it more pedestrian friendly. Mr. Newell agreed. He added that he would like to see some sort of marquis or homage to the previous bridge installed at the bridge as the gateway to the river district. Commissioner Cochran suggested we get started immediately on Section A and get a structural engineer on board to discuss weight load. A new concept sketch will be drawn up for Mr. Carroll to go forward with getting the RFP’s out for engineering drawings. He suggested having an integrated design project with a cohesive team to work on all the different aspects of the project, which could save a significant amount of time. He noted that if we do the design build we would need all the money up front so if we are going to move forward with B, C and D, we need to figure out the costs associated with the whole project. Commissioner Cochran asked for a proposal to allow in‐house engineering to work with DDA, the Redevelopment Committee and the Public Works Committee to get a conceptual design to start section A immediately including coning it off to do a walk‐ through after completion of the design. While that is happening, we will handle the planning and funding of sections B, C, and D. Commissioner Collins moved to allow staff and associated committees to collaborate to come together in the conception of how Phase A should be done right away. Commissioner Askew seconded. The motion carried. Public Work Committee/Transit Committee/Traffic Commission Minutes, March 2, 2021 Page 4 of 5  Commissioner Cochran asked Mr. Carroll to get a survey of the bridge. Commissioner Davis asked if we could get the County to add better signage for their lot making it clear the public can park in that lot after hours. 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, March 2, 2021 Page 5 of 5