Session 07-01 a meeting of the Transportation Advisory Committee was called to order by Chair Marquardt at 5:34 p.m. on January 16, 2007 at the City Hall Cowles Council Chambers located at 491 E. Pioneer Avenue, Homer, Alaska.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS: KURT MARQUARDT, STEVE SMITH, DOUG STARK, BRYAN ZAK

ABSENT: MARY CALHOUN (EXCUSED)

STAFF: DEPUTY CITY CLERK JOHNSON

CITY MANAGER WREDE PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR MEYER

AGENDA APPROVAL

The agenda was approved by consensus of the Committee.

SYNOPSIS APPROVAL

A. November 28, 2006 Synopsis

STARK/SMITH – MOVED TO APPROVE THE SYNOPSIS.

There was no discussion.

VOTE: YES. NON OBJECTION. UNANIMOUS CONSENT.

Motion carried.

PENDING BUSINESS

A. Boulevards – Homer Area Roads

At the November 2006 meeting boulevards were discussed in great length. The main point is to connect theme districts in the key points of town that may deserve special treatment. The document will allow for special recognition of certain streets and specific criteria for designated boulevards.

Chair Marquardt asked that discussion on boulevards be postponed to the next meeting to look at the language in the document. Copies of the Transportation Plan, Boulevard Document and the Homer Non Motorized Transportation and Trails Plan will be provided to new TAC member Bryan Zak.

B. HARP (Homer Accelerated Roads Program) Policies and Procedures for New Local Roads and Non Motorized Trails

STARK/SMITH – MOVED TO RECOMMEND TO CITY COUNCIL THAT THE NAME OF HARP (HOMER ACCELERATED ROADS PROGRAM) POLICY BE CHANGED TO HART (HOMER ACCELERATED ROADS AND TRAILS PROGRAM) POLICY.

Last fall trails were included as an entity to HARP funding.

VOTE: YES. SMITH, ZAK, MARQUARDT, STARK

Motion carried.

There is a need to decide if the existing road infrastructure should be upgraded to include sidewalks and pedestrian transportation needs. It would be difficult and expensive to remedy storm water. If the water was draining to a collecting system the output would have to be dealt with. The current system is inadequate for pedestrian trails.

Public Works Director Meyer noted last summer 10,000 lineal ft. of street repaving was done at a cost of $600,000. To include sidewalk, curb and gutter the amount would exceed $5M. To comply with DEC regulations storm water filters, concrete vaults and sedimentation basins are all needed to get rid of ditch and surface drainage. When the average person voted to include trails as HARP, they were thinking of concrete sidewalks downtown or a trail system to connect the outer limits of town. In every other community sidewalks are paid for and maintained by the property owners that front them.

It was suggested a committee be formed to make recommendations on sidewalks. In the 1980’s when John Calhoun put the HARP together there was a need for a roads committee; the same condition exists today with sidewalks.

Question:

* Does it benefit the whole community to share the expense?

Suggestions included:

* Prioritize trails.

* Sidewalks may not be necessary on each new road.

* Main arterials should be given high priority.

* The ROW acquisition may be the owner’s contribution rather than having to buy the ROW.

Heath Street, Poopdeck Street and Hazel Avenue were constructed with HARP funds and have curbs, gutters and sidewalk. Areas that need improvement with curb, gutter and sidewalk are Fairview Avenue to West Hill. Lower priorities include: Ben Walters Lane, Main Street, Kachemak Way to Pioneer Avenue to Sterling Highway. A road in Town Center is a priority, yet there is not enough money in HARP. More discussion is needed to define the priority of streets needing improvement.

Public Works Director Meyer suggested a methodology could be proposed to make it real from a financial aspect. An example is the HAWSP (Homer Accelerated Water and Sewer Program) transition where the project cost percentage was increased to the property owner to keep the fund viable. Owners now pay 75% of project costs.

Suggestions for trails included:

* Trail from Senior Center could become the #1 priority.

* The common starting place for trails is 10% of road projects.

* $1.2M per year is generated to the program.

Fairview Avenue was discussed and the need for improvements. It is a quiet residential street with three segments that are unconnected. It is needed as an arterial or collector street for the city. If property owners are opposed to an LID it could be funded by the City and matched by the State. The biggest thing a community can do is provide matching funds for DOT funding. Discussion ensued on the costs to bond $5M over the next 10 years. Public Works Director Meyer is to return with bond figures at the next meeting. HARP is continued to the next meeting under Pending Business.

The committee requested the accelerated sidewalks program be pursued to create a basic loop within the city. The roads that need pedestrian access the most are Fairview Avenue, Main Street, Kachemak Way and Ben Walters Lane. This topic will be a separate agenda item next month.

STARK/SMITH - MOVED TO PLACE THE ITEM ON THE NEXT AGENDA TO PRIORITIZE SIDEWALKS ON FAIRVIEW AVENUE AND MAIN STREET.

There was no additional discussion.

VOTE: YES. NON OBJECTION. UNANIMOUS CONSENT.

Motion carried.

NEW BUSINESS

A. Shuttle Bus

Chair Kilcher will be at the next meeting to share his ideas and experience. It was the consensus of the committee that Shuttle Bus be continued to the next meeting under Pending Business.

NEW BUSINESS

A. Resolution 07-18, Re: Use of Pioneer Avenue, Lake Street and the Bypass (Sterling Highway) as a One-Way Traffic Couplet Around City Center

STARK/SMITH – MOVED TO APPROVE.

The committee discussed couplets, noting the concerns with truck traffic off the Spit going up Lake Street and down Pioneer Avenue. Problematic may be that all three roads are State maintained. It would upset the merchants on Pioneer Avenue.

Public Works Director Meyer noted the couplet would provide an efficient corridor for pedestrians, as the ROW would be used. There would be no need for roundabouts or traffic signals in the downtown area. All interconnecting intersections would be alternated. There would be a continuous movement, making it necessary to drive around the block once or twice to get to where you want to go.

The committee asked for a detailed map outlining the traffic flow. Public meetings could be scheduled to get input.

From a traffic engineering perspective the concept is good. A standard set of criteria for road construction cannot be applied to a sidehill community. It is not an ideal situation, but we are stuck with what we have now.

Chair Marquardt requested Resolution 07-18 be continued to the next meeting. Public Works Director Meyer is to provide a detailed map with the pros and cons. Supporting material on couplets should be included. The Committee concurred, stating they will make a recommendation based heavily on public input.

INFORMATIONAL MATERIALS

A. Letter from Mayor Hornaday, Re: Appointment of Bryan Zak as Planning Commission’s Representative on the Transportation Advisory Committee

B. Memorandum from City Clerk, Re: Setting the Land Allocation Joint Worksession with Council’s Advisory Bodies for Monday, February 26, 2007 at 5:30 p.m.

C. Resolution 06-160(A) Establishing the 2007 Regular Meeting Schedule

D. Newspaper Article, Re: More Open-Street Design is Not Wise

PUBLIC COMMENTS

There were no public comments.

ADJOURNMENT

STARK/SMITH – MOVED TO ADJOURN.

There was no discussion.

VOTE: YES. NON OBJECTION. UNANIMOUS CONSENT.

Motion carried.

There being no further business to come before the Committee the meeting adjourned at 7:01 p.m. The next Regular Meeting is scheduled for February 20, 2007 at 5:30 p.m. in the City Hall Cowles Council Chambers.

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JO JOHNSON, DEPUTY CITY CLERK

Approved: ________________________