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Home My WebLink AboutBPAC 10 04 16 MM Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee Meeting Minutes October 4, 2016 6:00 p.m. West Conference Room, The Centre Present: Tom Armstrong, Michele Campbell, Wayne Heinmiller, Parker Thompson, Jerry Turnquist Staff: Dave Waden (Planning/Parks & Recreation), Ron Rudd (Engineering) Absent: Darin Anderson, Chris Manheim Call to Order: Secretary Armstrong called the meeting to order at 6:03 p.m. Thompson seconded the motion Election of Chair: Armstrong made a motion to appoint Michele Campbell to serve out 2016 as Chair of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC). Thompson seconded the motion. Motion passed unanimously. Approval of Minutes: The committee accepted the minutes as published. Bikeway Projects: • South Street Extension: The South Street Extension project will be completed ahead of schedule. A ribbon cutting is scheduled for Saturday, October 29th. • Chicago Street: Engineering drawings have been submitted to IDOT for review and approval. • Bikeway Route 1: Working to complete final payout. • Bikeway Route 4: Rudd reported that IDOT is considering a plan to reconstruct the State Street (IL Route 31) bridge over U.S. Route 20. The project would include a wide shared path on one side of the new bridge. Staff will be meeting with IDOT to discuss if this MEETING MINUTES might allow planning and design work for Route 4 to proceed. • Bike Routes 2 & 3: Campbell inquired about the status of Bike Routes 2 and 3. No work has been initiated on either route due to budget constraints. 2016 Activities/Projects: • Armstrong, Campbell and Rudd attended the Illinois Bike Summit in Bloomington/Normal. Campbell participated in some of the optional rides. Rudd attended the training session for the NACTO Urban Bikeway Design Guide. Presentations from the Summit are available on the Ride Illinois web-site. • The Elgin Parks and Recreation Department and BPAC hosted three rides touring the Elgin park system on Bike Your Park Day, September 24th. About 16 riders participated in the morning ride. Six riders in each of the afternoon rides. Bike Your Park Day will occur annually on the last Saturday in September. • The Ride Down South ride is scheduled for Saturday, October 29th. Bicyclists will meet in Shamrock Park at 11:00 a.m. for the Ride Down South and ride to the ribbon cutting location at the east end of the project for the 11:15 a.m. ceremony. Cyclists and other attendees will return to Shamrock Park for a lunch served by the Elgin Community Network. Children are encouraged to decorate the bikes and/or wear Halloween costumes. The road will be opened to vehicular traffic beginning at 1:00 p.m. • The committee discussed how to encourage residents and businesses to shovel sidewalks this coming winter. The committee will research policies and practices in other communities, and public relations efforts by advocacy groups supporting walkability. 2017 Initiatives: • Complete Streets Policy: Armstrong made a motion to proceed with drafting a complete streets policy. Thompson seconded the motion, which passed unanimously. Armstrong, Campbell, Heinmiller and Parker will begin working on a draft policy for staff and City Council consideration. • Downtown Bike Racks: The City obtained a CMAQ grant to purchase and install 80-90 bike racks in the downtown area. The installation of bike racks is one of the best ways to encourage cyclists to stop and support local economies. Accordingly, this is an important economic development initiative for downtown Elgin. The City Council must authorize the 20% match. A Committee of the Whole memorandum needs to be drafted to bring this up for consideration. Staff has recommended that this be done early next year following budget approval. • Organized Rides: One of the recommendations from the League of American Bicyclists was that BPAC offer more organized rides during the calendar year. In 2016, we offered the following rides: Cyclofemme Ride (May 8), East Side History Tour (May 21), West Side History Tour (May 26), Ride for Ice Cream (June 19), Breakfast Ride with a City Council Member (or 2) (June 22), Fox Valley Exploration Ride (June 24), Bike Your Park Day (September 24). Potential additional days for rides in 2017 might include: St. Patrick’s Day, Earth Day, and National Night Out. • Elgin Bike Map: The committee agreed to pursue creating and publishing a bike map to assist cyclists in getting about town. The committee has raised money to match a $7,000 grant from the Sustainability Commission for this purpose. • Bicycle Friendly Community Application (BFC): The committee agreed that if it can accomplish some of the above listed initiatives that it should reapply for BFC recognition during the second review cycle in 2017. Other Business: • Thompson suggested organizing an event with PACE to promote its transit service and the showcase the advantages of combining cycling with bus trips to extend the first and last mile of those trips. • The committee agreed to schedule a work session meeting for Tuesday, November 15th to focus on planning for 2017. Next Meeting: The next regular meeting of the BPAC is scheduled for Tuesday, November 1st at 6:00 p.m. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 7:22 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Tom Armstrong, Secretary Approved: