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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES Transportation Visioning Committee 2011-07-06RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado, July 6, 2011 Minutes of a Regular meeting of the TRANSPORTATION VISIONING COMMITTEE of the Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado. Meeting held in the Municipal Building in said Town of Estes Park on the 6th day of July, 2011. Members: Stan Black, Kimberly Campbell, Peggy Campbell, Charley Dickey, John Ericson, Larry Gamble, Wayne Groome, Jacquie Halburnt, John Hannon, Cory La Bianca, Fred Mares, Jerry Miller, Rex Poggenpohl, Greg Rosener, Frank Theis, Annika Van der Werf, Gary Van Horn Attending: Kimberly Campbell, Peggy Campbell, Charley Dickey, John Ericson, Wayne Groome, Jacquie Halburnt, John Hannon, Cory La Bianca, Fred Mares, Jerry Miller, Rex Poggenpohl, Greg Rosener, Frank Theis, Gary Van Horn Also Attending: PIO Rusch, Director Zurn, Deputy Town Clerk Deats Absent: Stan Black, Larry Gamble, Annika Van der Werf Chair Miller called the meeting to order at 3:04 p.m. MISCELLANEOUS. Public Works Director Zurn provided the Committee with information related to the status of an environmental study regarding transit. A Request for Proposal (RFP) has been issued for consulting services for a National Environmental Pollution Act (NEPA) study to determine the best alternatives for transit between the Town and Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP). The study will look at transit alternatives from additional parking along the Highway 34 corridor to taking no action, and will include a public input process. The Town of Estes Park, RMNP, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), and the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) are partners in this study. The budget for the study is $250,000, with $10, 000 coming from RMNP, $40,000 from the Town of Estes Park, and $200,000 from the federal government. This study is unrelated to the study/survey that is being conducted to determine if variable sign messaging and radio messages can influence people to utilize the transportation hub parking facility. MINUTES. The minutes of the regular meeting held June 15, 2011, were approved. DISCUSSION OF TOWN BOARD WORK SESSION AND FORMAL TOWN BOARD MEETING. Chair Miller thanked the members of the Committee for their participation in the Town Board Study Session on June 28th, and said a short presentation will be made at the July 26, 2011, Town Board meeting after which the TVC will ask for approval from the Trustees to move forward with the public process. He suggested the presentation consist of a brief recap of the TVC activities; an outline of public process ideas, including dates, location, and facilitator; and said the Committee will be seeking information about the public's perception of transportation issues, not solutions to transportation problems. Town Administrator Halburnt noted that during the Study Session, the Trustees had questions about the TVC's purpose and desired outcome. RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Transportation Visioning Committee — July 6, 2011 — Page 2 Cory La Bianca asked that the Committee focus on its desired outcome stating that without a purpose it is difficult for anything to be accomplished. Frank Theis said the public process will provide additional ideas and concerns to be included in the final report to the Board which can be used by the Trustees as they see fit. Charley Dickey, Cory La Bianca, Fred Mares, and Trustees Ericson and Miller will work on producing the presentation for the July 26, 2011, Town Board meeting. Fred Mares summarized by saying there are three topics to discuss 1. content of the next presentation to the Town Board, 2. the public process, and 3. the ultimate end product of the TVC. He recommended concentrating on the next presentation to the Board and utilizing the outline previously followed for the Town Board Study session presentation. PUBLIC INFORMATION AND INPUT. Public Information Officer (PIO) Rusch identified basic questions that need to be answered before moving forward with the public process, including 1. What does the Committee want to know? 2. Who do you want to hear from and why? 3. Will the TVC's ideas be presented to the public for their reaction? 4. Will general topics for discussion be provided by the TVC to give some structure to the meetings? (Example: Work Group topics) 5. Will questionnaires and surveys be utilized? 6. How will the information that is gathered be used? Discussion followed and is summarized: want to identify transportation issues; the facilitator will have input into the process; perhaps utilize task force or focus groups; hear from taxpayers and residents; LMD survey can provide information from visitor perspective; provide the public with information about the magnitude of the issues and reasons their input is needed; create a handout with key issues for the public to respond to with place for comments; don't want stories or personal agendas; want to get both quantitative and qualitative information; design a questionnaire to follow the structure of the conversation; questionnaires could be distributed through the utility mailings or placed at the CVB; utilize a world cafe model with different topics being discussed at different stations; the Town Board may have suggestions related to the public process; what is going to be done with the information gathered; set expectations as to how the information will be used; the Committee should focus on the "what and why' and staff should focus on the "how"; turn out at the public meetings may be low; open house format may attract more participants; make sure everyone has opportunity to give input; and have a final report to the Board by November. PIO Rusch updated the Committee on the community survey that is being conducted through a random sampling of 1200 households in the town limits. Results of the survey will be available in October. ADDITIONAL MEETINGS. Chair Miller suggested the Committee hold a discussion related to pedestrians, bicycles, and special needs at an upcoming meeting to include making the downtown area more pedestrian friendly, tying in with the existing trail system, and bicycling. He said with the passage of legislation the government may mandate that future highways and roads be designed to meet a multi -modal transportation component. Rex Poggenpohl said multi - modal transportation is a part of long-range planning across the U.S. and Europe to cut down on emissions and provide healthy social activities. He provided a summary of statistics related to traffic including that Highway 36 west experiences the heaviest traffic, and noted that the highest traffic peaks were experienced in September of 2010. Fred Mares asked that the moderators finalize their lists of work group ideas. RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Transportation Visioning Committee — July 6, 2011 — Page 3 Presentations from CDOT and the YMCA may be scheduled in the future. UPCOMING MEETINGS. • Parking/Shuttles Work Group — July 13, 2011, 3:00 p.m., Room 203. • Final Preparation for Town Board presentation — July 20, 2011, 2:30 p.m., Room 203 (Committee Members Charley Dickey, Cory La Bianca, Fred Mares, and Trustees Ericson and Miller.) • General Meeting — Wednesday, July 20, 2011, 3:00 p.m., Room 203. • General Meeting — Wednesday, August 6, 2011, 3:00 p.m., Room 203. There being no further business, Chair Miller adjourned the regular meeting 5:04 p.m. CynQILILL eats, Deputy Town Clerk