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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes CITY OF OSHKOSH SUSTAINABILITY ADVISORY BOARD Minutes February 4,2019 PRESENT: Margy Davey, Michelle Bogden Muetzel, Pat Dwyer Hallquist,Vic Oliver,Jake Krause, Jason Kalmbach, Lurton Blassingame EXCUSED: Adam Maslowski, Robert Turner ABSENT: None STAFF AND OTHERS: Steven Wiley,Jim Collins (Director of Transportation), Alexa Naudziunas (Associate Planner), Scott Williams (Oshkosh Media), Emily Dieringer (Winnebago Health Department), Nathan Bettger, several Oshkosh residents I. Call to Order Chair Margy Davey called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm and a quorum was declared present. II. Public Comment Chair Davey asked if there were public comments. Ben Rennert of 1823 Simpson Street stated that he was on the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee and that bike facilities for Westhaven were listed in the Pedestrian and Bicycle Circulation Plan for a while. He explained that the Westhaven bike lanes were a means of connecting the west side of the city since there were not many other bicycle facilities to get people from south to north there. He explained that he and his family used the lanes regularly. He mentioned that there were many younger riders in the area and wanted the SAB to keep safety in mind when making their recommendation. Chair Davey asked if the lanes were only one-way each. Mr. Rennert replied affirmatively. Lois Jaenke of 480 N.Westhaven Drive then spoke. She was not against bike lanes but wanted to narrow the bike lanes by 6 inches on each side of the street. She asked for parking to be reinstalled on the east side of the street,just like was the scenario at St. Raphael's Church. Gen Steinhilber of 340 N.Westhaven Drive mentioned the bike lanes on Wisconsin Avenue and that they were narrow. She asked why bikers could not use Oakwood Road since there was no parking there currently. Annabelle Wojahn of 1535 Westhaven Circle spoke and she stated that she used the bike lanes, wanted to advocate for the protection of them, and that she often biked to multiple destinations. She thought that the lanes allowed her to get to more places including work. Brad Brown of 3020 Mockingbird Way spoke and stated that he was on the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee. He advocated for the bike lanes on Westhaven. He mentioned the agreement with the Town of Oshkosh and that Westhaven was a main north-south artery. He stated that the goal was to make the area safe for cyclists. He mentioned that he did ride on Oakwood. Oakwood was not a part of the Pedestrian and Bicycle Circulation Plan because it was part of the township. Westhaven on the other hand was part of the plan. He stated that as the lanes moved out into the road,more safety considerations needed to factor in. He stated that keeping the bike lanes closer to the curb and placing parking out towards the travel lanes was not recommended. Mr. Blassingame asked about the idea of having a bike lane but reducing the lane width. Mr. Brown stated that this would make the lanes more unsafe. Mr. Kalmbach asked where the five foot dimension for bike lane width came from. Ms. Naudziunas recommended that the board look at the alternative designs on the screen. Chair Davey asked if she was recommending that staff present the slide presentation on the alternatives first. Ms. Naudziunas stated that she believed that would help. Chair Davey asked if anyone else had any more public comments. Ed Pollex of 460 N. Westhaven Drive spoke and said that they were not trying to take the bike lanes away. He wanted to see parking like at St. Raphael's Church. He stated that the 5' width for bike lanes was not a rule but only a recommendation. He stated that Westhaven Drive was a popular place for speeding. He stated that he has seen very few bikers there. He stated that many more automobiles were there for every biker that used the street. Bjorn Kienert of 1647 Sanders Street stated that all the bikers he had spoken with seemed empathetic to the residents in the area. He stated that there was not a constant stream of cyclists on Westhaven, there were also not constant people parking there either. He believed that cyclists were willing to share the road with people needing to park occasionally. He stated that the lanes were used and that the notion of bicycles on sidewalks existed because Oshkosh was traditionally viewed as a bike-hostile community. He stated that if the bike lanes were to come out this would compromise the Pedestrian and Bicycle Circulation Plan. He did not want to go backwards by taking the lanes out. Antonio Zapada of 420 Waugoo Avenue stated that he was new to Oshkosh and previously lived in Los Angeles. In downtown Los Angeles there were many cyclists all the time. He stated that many times cyclists there would ride in the "gutter' which was a 6" wide space with speeding traffic running close by. He stated that 6" of space did make a difference and that more bike lanes in the City were better. He stated that an analogy would be handicap ramps and spaces which were not used all the time but were still provided. Judy Pollex of 460 N. Westhaven Drive stated that she had seen more cyclists at the committee meetings than she did using the bike lanes. She stated that 6" was 6" of 5 feet,not 6" of 6." She was unsure why it was a big issue. She supported having parking with a bike lane. Chair Davey then mentioned that Alicia Alsberg, who was unable to attend the meeting,had an update on the Green Team at Traeger Elementary. She provided an overview of the Green Team's activities and explained that they had conducted a waste audit on the garbage and recycling. She stated that Ms. Alsberg would report on this. In 75 minutes each day 105 pounds of waste were produced during the lunch periods. The team had come up with a plan to reduce this waste. III. Approval of Minutes,January 71h,2019 Chair Davey asked if any board members had any revisions to the minutes. No members had revisions so the board approved the minutes 7-0. (Blassingame/Krause) IV. Westhaven Drive-Bike Lanes-Discussion/Action Ms. Naudziunas gave a brief presentation on the N. Westhaven Drive bike lanes. She provided an overview of the current configuration on the street along with some potential alternatives. Mr. Krause commented on Alternative 2 of the slideshow and was concerned with 11' wide travel lanes with the curve. He asked about the possibility of doing two 4'-6" wide bike lanes. Ms. Naudziunas replied that generally staff would prefer to use whole numbers for bike lane widths. Mr. Collins then responded that staff could implement what Mr. Krause was proposing. Mr. Collins mentioned the Pedestrian and Bicycle Circulation Plan and its goal of connectivity. He stated that he and his staff were responsible for the implementation of bicycle facilities and that each section of road where these facilities are implemented is unique. He mentioned Traffic Review's preferred alternative and stated that 4' wide bike lanes were acceptable. Mr. Collins stated that the road on Westhaven was wide enough to accommodate both bike lanes and parking. He stated that if the community wanted to support the bike plan they would not want to see the lanes removed. He stated that 4' wide lanes (as were implemented on Wisconsin Avenue near the bridge) were the previous standard but that the standard changed to 5.' Mr. Kalmbach asked what the width of the travel lanes was on Irving Avenue. Mr. Collins stated that they were 11' wide lanes. Chair Davey asked if there was any advantage to 10' wide lanes. Mr. Collins stated that some research showed an argument for this and that with wider lanes motorists were comfortable driving faster. Mr. Collins recommended 11' or 12' wide travel lanes. Chair Davey asked if snow ended up on the terrace or in the parking lane during snow removal. Mr. Kalmbach stated that on Irving Avenue snow ended up in the parking lane. Chair Davey asked if there was a reason Oshkosh could not implement bike lanes close to the curb with a parking lane between the bike lane and vehicle lane. Mr. Collins stated that cyclists would have to deal with the vehicle doors opening. He explained that consistency with other bike lanes in the City was also a reason. Ms. Bogden Muetzel stated that the configuration Chair Davey mentioned could also pose challenges for people turning left. Ms. Dwyer-Hallquist stated that challenges could arise also for road users turning right. Ms. Bogden Muetzel explained that she would rather see the vehicle lanes narrowed. Mr. Collins stated that his staff could implement a different alternative than what was originally implemented but that road users would still see the marks from where the original paint was removed. Mr. Blassingame complimented the residents and interested parties that attended the SAB meeting and that he felt they were compelling. He emphasized the goal of making Oshkosh more sustainable and moved to recommend that the existing configuration on N. Westhaven remain as it was. Ms. Oliver made a motion to approve Alternative 1 (two 5' wide bike lanes, two I wide vehicle lanes, and one 8' wide parking lane on the east side of the street) from the slide presentation and Mr. Krause seconded. Mr. Kalmbach stated that based on research he had come across, Alternative 1 was more appealing from a safety standpoint. Mr. Krause stated that Alternative 1 was a compromise and could meet the needs of the different perspectives. The board voted 7-0 to recommend Alternative 1 as the SAB's preferred recommendation(Oliver/Krause). V.UW-Oshkosh Environmental Studies Projects-Fall 2018-Update Chair Davey asked Mr. Wiley for a quick update on this item. Mr. Wiley stated that he had received the final reports from Professor Feldman s class and that he had looked through them briefly. He stated that the reports were posted on the Sustainable Oshkosh website and included in the monthly SAB meeting materials for February. Chair Davey stated that the student reports always contained great information for the SAB and City to consider. Ms. Dwyer-Hallquist asked what the next step was regarding the reports. Mr. Wiley stated that the Green Infrastructure Audit was still ongoing and that staff would continue on the Audit and use the information the students provided as a starting point. VI. Environmental Leadership Award -Update Mr. Wiley provided a brief update. He explained that the award nomination materials were posted on the SAB website and that the nomination period was open until January 31,1. Mr. Wiley had not received any additional nominations beyond the original one submitted. The nomination period had closed so Mr. Wiley had City IT staff remove the nomination materials from the SAB website. He stated that the next step was for the SAB and Rotary to establish the selection committee to determine whether to move the award nomination forward for approval. VII. 2019 Oshkosh Farmers Market Handout-Update Ms. Oliver provided an update on the Farmers Market Handout. She explained that she would add an item on rain barrels to the handout. VIII. SAB Facebook Page-Update Ms. Oliver explained that since the January meeting, she and Mr. Wiley had met and created an SAB Facebook page. She stated that the page was still very new but that she had started to post material on the page. She explained the graphics she chose for the page and showed the board around the page. She stated that it was a good method of providing outreach to the community regarding the SAB's goals, function and events. She stated that SAB members could send material to Mr. Wiley and then to her for inclusion on the SAB Facebook page. IX. Urban Bee and Chicken Ordinances-Update Mr. Wiley explained that the draft ordinances were revised and that staff was meeting the next day to discuss a strategy for moving forward with the ordinances. Staff wanted to get on the same page regarding the ordinances and Mr. Wiley stated that he would revise and once staff was in agreement on the drafts they would come back to SAB and then Council for consideration. X. Agenda Items for Future Meeting Chair Davey stated that she would include a guest speaker for a portion of the meeting. The meeting would also include ongoing items such as 2019 SAB goals,updates on the Facebook page, the fall 2018 student projects and updates on the bee and chicken ordinances. Ms. Bogden Muetzel asked to place the Menominee Shoreline Restoration on the April SAB agenda. Chair Davey stated that for May, some discussion on recycling and solid waste could occur. XI. Next Meeting, Monday, March 4,2019-City Hall Room 404 XII. Adjourn The board voted 7-0 to adjourn at 7:04 pm (Oliver/Bogden Muetzel). Recorded by: Steven Wiley,Assistant Planner