Complete Streets Advisory Board

SARATOGA SPRINGS COMPLETE STREETS ADVISORY BOARD MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 9TH, 2023 - 5:00 P.M. ATTENDEES: CHAIR KEN GREY, TED OROSZ, MIKE KING, JEN NATYZAK, LYNN KEATING, LINDLEY HICKOX STAFF: JEN DUNN, MICHAEL DUTRE ABSENT: SUZANNE JAGODA MEETING MINUTES ARE NOT A WORD-FOR-WORD TRANSCRIPT. CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 5:00 p.m. I. Public Comment Kerry Mayo of the Planning Board is curious about Complete Streets 25mph speed limit recommendation to City Council. Ed Lindner of the Open Space Advisory Committee and Bikeatoga advocates for 25mph speed limits to promote safety. Additionally, Bikeatoga was recently in the news for their work displaying the history of cycling in the City. II. Administration a. Approval of Minutes Chair Grey asked if the group had any edits for the minutes. No changes were made. III. Updates a. Oak Ridge Development Jen Dunn updated that the development put up signs saying the trail was for resident use only. The city has contacted Saratoga PLAN to investigate. b. Safe Streets for All Jen Dunn explained that the Capital Region Transportation Council (CRTC) has received bids from the RFP that are now being reviewed. The municipal joint applicants will meet and select the best consultant for their respective Vision Zero plans. IV. Action Items a. 25mph Speed Limit i. Public Hearing Jen Dunn said there was one person in favor and one person opposed to the 25mph speed limit at City Council. ii. Safe Streets for All – Engineering CSAB agreed to move forward on the fastest path possible with engineering to progress 25 mph speed limits in the inner tax district 1  iii. City – Engineering Ted Orosz mentioned that a certified engineer will have to review and approve 25mph speed limit. b. ADA Transition Plan Jen Dunn outlined that Complete Streets should also prioritize the ADA Transition Plan as the City only has 10 years to implement. Mike King offered to review the plan with Jen Dunn. V. Funding Priorities a. Congress Park Gateway Jen Dunn went through power point slides that illustrate the potential project. The goal is connecting bike and ped paths, expanding open space, historical preservation and increasing safety. b. Crescent Avenue Chair Grey reminded the group that Congressman Tonko allocated $300,000 toward path construction. Engineering and additional funding considerations will be required. c. Missing Links Phase II Jen Dunn highlighted that Missing Sidewalk Links was popular and identifying funding and sections for a phase II would be pertinent. Chair Grey agreed that Missing Links is a key part of the kind of walkable community the City should be. d. Union Avenue Chair Grey asked what can be done in-house. DPS and DPW should continue bike lanes (installed by DOT from Henning to East Ave) and continue from East Avenue to Nelson at a minimum. Ideally, CSAB would like bike lanes continued to Congress Park, however we are awaiting final JMT report decisions. The City should match what the state has done at minimum. e. Henry Street Jen Dunn will find out what can be done internally to complete Henry Street since there was already a pilot and it may be an inexpensive multimodal connection compared to other projects. f. Ballston Ave Mike King recommends that the board move forward with Ballston Ave as well. VI. 2024 Priority Projects in Collaboration with DPW a. Blodgett Chair Grey spoke with the DPW Commissioner and he would like two achievable shovel-ready projects. Jen Dunn clarified that the Blodgett agenda item stems from a grant awarded to the City from the County. She will coordinate with DPW to put in parking and a trail so users can access City open space. b. Railroad Run Lighting Pilot Jen Dunn and Michael Dutre are working with the City Arborist and Electrician to select dark-sky compliant motion sensing LED lights to illuminate the darkest parts of the path. Engineers will determine the ideal locations for lighting. VII. 2024 Priority Projects in Collaboration with DPS a. Pitney Crossing Jen Dunn is working with DPS for a possible safer crossing to Pitney that would serve the High School, YMCA and surrounding neighborhoods. 2  b. Union Ave Striping – East to Nelson Ted Orosz recommends bringing DPS and DPW together on Union Ave safety and accessibility since striping is one department and pavement is the other. c. Spring Run to Lake on Eureka CSAB discussed the possibility of striping a bike path from Spring Run up Lake on Eureka. d. Circular, Park and Whitney Intersection Jen Dunn identified that these problem intersections could be baked into the Congress Park Gateway proposal. Lynn Keating recalled seeing a lot of confused and dangerous driving in this corridor. VIII. Communications Coordinator Chair Grey doesn’t have any stories to feed to the communications coordinator currently but they will be in touch. IX. Adjourn 3