10.17.07 Bike/Ped Meeting Minutes- October

Bike/Ped Subcommittee

Meeting Minutes

10.17.07

Attendees:

Sam Pearson (TAC)

Judy Ellis (EBTBPC)

Marge Duck

Harriet Bresenhan

Ann Longanbach

Geoff Goodenow

Kathy Rowe

Meeting Proceedings:

We reviewed where the East Buffalo Township Bike/Ped Committee stands. 

·         JE said the committee is officially approved by the Supervisors.  The membership is getting lined up, but hasn’t been finalized yet.  The Supervisors will also approve the citizens appointed.  When the list is finalized, JE will get it to us.  She did note that it includes both Hank Baylor and Vince DeCerchio, current supervisors, and that Jim Buck, one of the Supervisor candidates, is very interested in the topic as well.  She also said Brian Auman, a resident and landscape architect and planner with SEDA-COG will serve on it. 

·         Dick McGinnis, a traffic engineer from Bucknell, declined to participate, though he did offer to be a resource.  He is on sabbatical and out of the country much of this year. 

·         SP suggested JE look into whether there could be an official Bucknell representative, since the university is in the Township.

·         SP will serve as the official liaison to the Lewisburg Traffic Advisory Committee.

·         GG asked whether we should start looking into seeding similar efforts/committees in other communities throughout the county, especially Mifflinburg and New Berlin.  That could be a precursor to a larger scoped County Bike Committee, plus it could work on developing a network.  GG said he would start asking people he knows in Mifflinburg about it.

·         This feels like an effective effort so far.  Good work everyone.  JE is anxious to get to work.

We discussed what our next short term project should be.  SP noted that getting bike/ped friendly public participation into the Union County Comprehensive Plan process would be a good thing to focus on.  The comp plan is now underway.  It will continue over the next year and now is the time for public input.  Barb Martin had asked about when and how we should mobilize and make visible the latent support for bike/ped issues.  Well, this is it. 

·         AL and HB will review the Comp Plan website, www.cultivatingcommunity.net, and put together a short description of how to go on and register comments online. 

·         SP will work on developing a list of talking points, though anything you want to say in support of increased bike/ped access would help. 

·         SP will also make sure the comp plan is linked to from the LAN website. 

·         GG offered to help post flyers prompting those interested in cycling to contribute input to the plan.  He sketched a rough draft which SP will flesh out.  They can be posted at bike shops and other public spots, like Weis and libraries. 

·         GG also suggested a blurb reminding people to attend the Talking Turkey public forums in November, to mail in their comments and/or to submit them online could be distributed to the newsletters of many other organizations, like Seven Mountains Audubon, the Linn Conservancy, Sierra Club, the Historical Society, and retirement homes.  SP pointed out that while we do want broad input, to also remember that we have a specific goal of mobilizing those who are already aware of and interested in how they stand to benefit from improved bike/ped facilities and accommodation.  The work that HB and AL are doing will feed directly into this.

We passed around the extended general outline of topics and touched on a few of them. 

·         AL asked for more specifics in terms of what she might ask Sam Alcorn or Tom Gibson to write about.  SP suggested a follow up reporting on the results of the bike survey and/or discussion of how to drive in the presence of bikes (the League of American Bicyclists has a good information sheet on this that they could work off of). 

·         SP also noted that Tom Egan unexpectedly found himself with two jobs and less free time, so if anyone else would like to work on the bike rack topic, please step forward. 

·         AL noted that two people she had forwarded information about the meeting to were unable to attend this evening, but hope to make it next time.

New attendees were also introduced to the pathway diagram submitted to the EBT Supervisors to clarify what kinds of improvements we are asking for.  SP also mentioned the three possible bike/ped projects that would be proposed for the Borough to consider (as a show of good faith to encourage other municipalities to take action and make improvements).  They include in order of desirability, a stone dust path through the LARA park back 40 between 15^th St and Fairground Rd (~1680’), a stone dust loop along the inner edge of the gravel loop at Wolfe Field (on the way back to the brush pile), and a downtown alley loop path network.  The first would connect directly to the work we have already asked EBT to consider and would improve the connection to the library.  It would also better serve the existing user base at the LARA park.  More thought on where to put one or more crosswalks over Fairground Rd is needed.  Looking at the plan, it would be logical to stripe them both at the intersection with St Mary St and also over near the property line of the animal hospital.

We also briefly looked over the bike/ped network concept map.  Right now further progress on fleshing out and updating the document will wait until we get more official input from the new EBT committee.

There was still no recurrent date set for bike/ped meetings and we are hoping that the EBT Committee will start meeting in November.  SP proposes a tentative date of Wednesday, November 28^th, at 8pm at Cherry Alley for a next meeting.

End of minutes