City of Lawrence

Lawrence – Douglas County Bicycle Advisory Committee

July 15, 2014 Notes

 

MEMBERS PRESENT:

Lisa Hallberg, Bill Anderson, Dan Ashley, David Hamby

MEMBERS ABSENT:

Jacki Becker, Justin Eddings, Chad Foster, Erin Paden, Chris Rogge

STAFF PRESENT:

Todd Girdler, David Cronin, Jessica Mortinger, Seokwon Kim

PUBLIC PRESENT:

Michael Almon, Tom Peters, Sarah Mayfield, Eli Mayfield, Esa Mayfield, Rod Hernandez

 

1.   Call Forum to Order and Introductions

A quorum was not present. The meeting began at 5:10 P.M. and introductions were made.

 

2.   Action Item: Approval of the June 17 Minutes and June 23 Notes

This item will be considered at a future meeting.

 

3.   Discussion Item:  Safe Routes to School Letter of Support

Lisa Hallberg indicated that in order to meet the application deadline she would send the letter of support as BAC Chair and it will be shared and considered at a future meeting.

 

4.   Discussion Item: 11th & Mississippi Street Project Update

David Cronin presented the preliminary development plans for the 11th and Mississippi block. He mentioned that City Public Works staff initially discussed the possibility of reverse angle parking, but the idea did not move forward. David presented the features that were added since BAC last saw the design including the raised crosswalks that were integrated as a traffic calming measure, pedestrian easements for wider sidewalks, narrower lanes on Indiana, a turn lane on Mississippi that was warranted in the traffic study, the bus pullout on Indiana, the consideration for removing parking for game day parking on Mississippi, and fire access lanes. Lisa Hallberg said that recognizing this as a bike route and designing it with consideration as such, considering the high percentage of bicycle and pedestrian users in the area, and continuing to conduct bike-ped counts would be important. She indicated that a 20 mph speed limit might be appropriate for this area because of congestion during peak periods such as KU football games during the school year, as well as shoppers that may park there on weekends from 9am to 6pm. This is consistent with the speed limit in other places in Lawrence where angle parking exists. She indicated concern for cyclists coming down the hill on 11th St. potentially conflicting with cars backing out of the parking on Mississippi Street. She also noted that sharrows should be installed to indicate that bicyclists need to take the lane. Michael Almon asked if the developers had final say over the public improvement plans. David Cronin responded saying that was part of a conversation City staff is having  with developers to determine what kind of infrastructure and parking will be improved as part of the project that accommodates all users. This item will be considered at a future meeting.

5.   Discussion Item: Bike/Ped Coordination Follow-up

Jessica Mortinger said the outcome of the coordinated meeting on June 23rd was to draft a letter asking the City Commission to create a taskforce to improve coordination of bicycle and pedestrian issues. Since then, the City Commission accepted the Multimodal Studies Projects and decided to create a city taskforce to help prioritize implementation of the plans and coordinate bike-ped issues. The draft letter included in the packet was to ask City Commission to add the creation of a coordinated taskforce to the responsibilities of the taskforce being generated. It is not yet known who will staff the taskforce. This item will be considered at a future meeting.  

 

6.   Prioritization of Bicycle Infrastructure Improvements

This item will be considered at a future meeting.

 

7.   Other Business/Updates

Lisa Hallberg was very pleased with the updated bicycle rideability map and said that the maps were currently at the printers, soon to be distributed throughout the region.

 

8.   Public Comments

Sarah Mayfield had questions about the distance it takes for her kids to get to school walking or biking in the Prairie Park area. She also asked about opening/closing dates for the 31st and Haskell/Louisiana area and added that improvements could be made with lighting. Her son Eli, a boy scout, had questions about the structure of the meeting, the role the BAC has in the region, and certain issues in fulfillment of a citizenship in the community merit badge.

 

9.   Adjournment of Meeting and Announcement of Next Meeting

The meeting ended at 5:50 P.M. The Next Meeting is TBA at a date between late July and early August.