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Home My WebLink AboutPACKET Transportation Advisory Board TRANSPORTATION ADVISORY BOARD REGULAR MEETING May 21, 2025 12:00 p.m. Town Hall | Board Room 12:00pm Public Comment AGENDA 12:05 pm Trustee Liaison Update Trustee Igel 12:10 pm Approval of Minutes dated April 16, 2025 (packet) 12:15 pm Introduction of new members 12:30 pm Introduction of Public Works Director, David Greear and new employees 12:45pm Multimodal Transportation Plan & Transit Development Plan Update 12:55pm Big Horn Parking Structure Design Update Project Manager Pastor 1:05pm Engineering Updates Engineer Muhonen 1:25 pm Bicycle Field Tour of Infrastructure 1:35 pm Update on Past Public Comment 1:45 pm Other Business Adjourn Link for Multimodal Transportation Plan & Transit Development Plan Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado, April 16, 2025 Minutes of a Regular meeting of the TRANSPORTATION ADVISORY BOARD of the Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado. Meeting held in the Municipal Building in said Town of Estes Park on the 16th day of April, 2025. Board: Chair Belle Morris; Vice-Chair Carissa Streib; Members Kristen Ekeren, Larry Gamble, Linda Hanick, Joan Hooper, Misti Marcantonio, and Wallace Wood; Trustee Mark Igel; Staff Liaison Dana Klein Attending: Chair Morris; Members Ekeren, Gamble, Hanick, Hooper, and Wood; Manager Klein; Director Muhonen; Engineer Wittwer; Recording Secretary McDonald; Mayor Hall; Trustee Brown; Resident Engineer Gina Fox, Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) Absent: Vice-Chair Streib, Member Marcantonio Chair Morris called the meeting to order at 12:05 p.m. PUBLIC COMMENT None. TRUSTEE LIAISON UPDATE Trustee Igel reported that applications for Town-appointed board positions are being accepted through April 17, with interviews to follow for selected applicants. TAB members are encouraged to invite interested parties to apply for its open positions; current members whose terms expired March 31 can easily apply for reappointment. An action item on the April 22 Town Board agenda (Transportation Advisory Board Member Appointments and Roles) may involve discussion points and voting. This item is a follow-up to confidential conversations with Mayor Hall that took place after the March 19 TAB meeting. Trustee Igel would field any questions about this topic after today’s meetings. APPROVAL OF MINUTES DATED MARCH 19, 2025 It was moved and seconded (Gamble/Hooper) to approve the March 19, 2025, minutes with a minor amendment, and it passed unanimously. MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN & TRANSIT DEVELOPMENT PLAN UPDATE This item was introduced earlier on the agenda to accommodate a delayed arrival. Manager Klein explained that the Multimodal Transportation Plan (MTP) and Transit Development Plan (TDP) drafts required further attention from Kimley-Horn after the Transportation Advisory Board – April 16, 2025 – Page 2 March 19 TAB meeting; this delays until June 24 the MTP-TDP presentation to the Town Board for adoption. Staff has requested proofreading edits, style corrections, and an update to the scope of work. Director Muhonen asked whether the TAB wished to review the plans one more time after these insignificant changes, or could agree that enough feedback had already been provided to Chair Morris for drafting of the TAB’s letter of recommendation or comment. It was agreed that the TAB had sufficiently reviewed the MTP-TDP and approved supporting its adoption; Chair Morris, to provide clarity about the points that would appear in the TAB’s letter, then read aloud the comments she had recorded during the March 19 meeting. Discussion points included a reminder of the visionary, guiding nature of plan documents; reiteration that the ranked lists of MTP priority projects are unreasonably long, and that the plan should explain that recommended projects are subject to change due to funding and periodic analysis; the influence of staff-initiatives on the actually timing and implementation of project ideas and listed recommendations; how the review protocol for the Town’s master plans should be clear in the Development Code; and whether review of current land use applications that impact transportation infrastructure could be a static item on the TAB’s future agendas. Chair Morris will draft the TAB’s letter in the coming days, and Members Gamble and Hanick will review it. Members should watch their email for the draft, which will be voted upon during the TAB’s May 21 meeting. COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION: PROJECT #26643 CO 7, ESTES PARK BICYCLE/PEDESTRIAN STUDY Presenter Gina Fox summarized CDOT’s February 2025 Estes Park Bicycle Pedestrian Study, which was developed to observe Colorado Highway 7 (CO 7) activity on a peak traffic weekend (Elk Fest) and determine potential safety improvements for its vulnerable road users. While the presentation does not measure school -day activity, such data was gathered on Thursday, April 10, and will be incorporated. The study’s data and recommendations will shape projects that could be added to CDOT’s proposed projects list, but not for at least two years. Discussion points included the major traffic and safety issues present on school days, since most parents drive and drop off their students; how fact-based traffic studies must take precedence over parent survey results; intersection delay analysis and the effect of mid-block crossings for all signals; the need for a crosswalk solution at Holiday Inn Estes Park; how to address crossing safety at 1st Street, where visibility is obstructed by parked vehicles, and whether parking could be removed or reduced in that area; how nearly half of the data shows pedestrians crossing CO 7 away from the crosswalks; how a continuous median would impact left turn options; the potential hazards of a road diet on CO 7, with so many intersections and business driveways; the need for a protected right turn at US 36 and CO 7; the possibility of bike lane barriers and curbed bike lanes; the requirement that sidewalks and bike lanes need to be tied in; and the needs defined by uphill versus downhill speeds. Transportation Advisory Board – April 16, 2025 – Page 3 Engineer Fox will be in contact with Public Works upon completion of the study’s next draft. BIG HORN PARKING STRUCTURE DESIGN: TAB POSITION LETTER DRAFT DISCUSSION Chair Morris summarized the handout she had distributed, just prior to the meeting, about the TAB’s pros and cons on the Big Horn Parking Structure (BHP G). Manager Klein advised that this position letter for BHPG design contract funding would be due by 5pm today for inclusion in the April 22 Town Board packet; on that date, the Board will also be asked about construction funding options and their perspective on public involvement opportunities. The BHPG would be built as ground plus two floors to accommodate 88 parking spaces, with potential for a future third and fourth level. Discussion focused on the need for BHPG traffic planning and wayfinding signage, since Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) visitors aim heavily for the US 36 Beaver Meadows Entrance Station instead of the US 34 Fall River Entrance Station. Based on the TAB’s pros and cons notes listed on the handout, it was moved and seconded (Hooper/Hanick) for Chair Morris to draft a TAB letter of support for Big Horn Parking Structure design funding, and it passed unanimously. PARKING & TRANSIT UPDATES Manager Klein will present two parking items at the April 22 Town Board meeting: an ordinance amending the Town of Estes Park Municipal Code chapters on overnight parking prohibitions; and revisions to the Commercial Loading business permit in Policy 842 Parking Permits. Town Administrator Machalek will request renaming the Post Office lot to the Baldwin Parking lot, for consistency with lot naming based on location rather than business names. The 2025 paid parking season will resume with no changes to rates, areas, and hours. Bustang to Estes will resume service at $15 roundtrip from Union Station to RMNP, with a stop at the Estes Park Visitor Center (VC). Manager Klein presented a transit map draft to point out a new stop at The Stanley’s Aspire Hotel & Spa; another new stop near Snowy Peaks Winery will serve passengers near the Estes Park Aerial Tram. The CDOT Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) for Fiscal Year 2023 Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) Funds was received to support The Peak’s 2025 and 2026 expansion efforts. After a March 31 workshop, the Zero-Emission Vehicle Fleet Transition Plan is in the draft technical support stage; a public comment period is forthcoming in June. ENGINEERING UPDATES Engineer Wittwer advised that the annual Street Improvement Program (STIP) news release would be out this week. Milling and paving will require full lane closures with one- way traffic patterns. The East Riverside parking lot will be closed for approximately five days between May 5 and 12. CDOT continues work at US 36 and Marys Lake Road as Transportation Advisory Board – April 16, 2025 – Page 4 part of the US 34 and US 36 Resurfacing Project. The Fall River Trail Extension project is on schedule to resume construction of the final 0.7-mile segment in November/December, with anticipated completion by the 2026 Memorial Day weekend. Director Muhonen advised that the Safe Routes to School (SRTS) grant application—for construction funding for the proposed multimodal trails on the north side of Manford Avenue and the east side of Community Drive from the high school to the dog park—was denied. Grants were awarded to projects that focused on safety between home and school, rather than between school and recreational areas. Alternative grant opportunities will be pursued. Town Board and staff will meet on April 18 for the second of two draft working sessions on the 2026 Strategic Plan (SP). The TAB will have the opportunity to comment upon the SP draft in October/November. The new Public Works Director, David Graeer, starts April 28 and will be introduced at the May 21 TAB meeting. Members thanked Director Muhonen for his years of leadership and thoughtful guidance. UPDATE ON PAST PUBLIC COMMENT None. OTHER BUSINESS None. There being no further business, Chair Morris adjourned the meeting at 1:59 p.m. Lani McDonald, Recording Secretary