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BPC 05-16-07 , > . CUPEI(fINO MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE BICYCLE PEDESTRIAN COMMISSION May 16, 2007 (The minutes for this meeting were taken by Commissioner May Koski) The meeting was called to order at 7:08 p. m. ROLLCALL Present: Commissioners Geoffrey Paulsen, May Koski, and Jim Wiant. Commissioner Joe Walton arrived at 7:10 p.m. with supplies for Bike to Work Day. ;\bsent: Staff: David Stillman, Senior Civil Engineer ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Leslie Fowler, a resident of Mira Vista came to find out more about the BPC. She said it is difficult to get out of her neighborhood by bicycle. It's bordered by McClellan Road, Foothill Blvd. and Stevens Creek Blvd. It is hard for her kids to ride bikes to friends' houses when they have to cross Foothill and Stevens Creek Blvd. She inquired about whether there is a bike path planned from Rancho San Antonio to Stevens Creek Blvd. that was promised by a developer. Anne Ng mentioned that a developer did promise the land for the proposed Stevens Creek trail in that area and a road (not a city street) exists, but Union Pacific has opposed bicycle/pedestrian crossings of the railroad line. So a locked gate keeps people from crossing the tracks at the location at present. Commissioner Jim Wiant asked David Stillman to verify two items regarding the road crossing of the Union Pacific tracks in the Rancho San Antonio/Foothill Blvd. area. First, what if any capital expenditure by the city is currently part of the Stevens Creek trail plan with regard to improving the trail/road across the UP tracks in the Rancho San Antonio area? Second, what is the current status of Union Pacific regarding trail access across railroad tracks? As a side note, Commissioner Joe Walton mentioned the current Union Pacific project in Cupertino and Saratoga to upgrade and raise all the crossings, which have so far been first class. Funding, at least at the Cox crossing was from a VT A grant to the city of Saratoga. Construction was supervised by UP. Also Ms. Fowler expressed concerns about having her children to ride to Kennedy Middle School along McClellan Road. She inquired about the status of the BPC's work to reopen the gate at Scenic Circle or elsewhere to allow access to Blackberry Farm. Commissioner Joe Walton summarized that the city council voted recently to keep this matter on hold, as construction has closed Blackberry Farm at present. Commissioner " May Koski responded that this would be a good time to research and brainstorm, trying to come up with a solution for access to Blackberry Farm from the Mira VistalPa1m/Scenic neighborhood that has not been considered. She mentioned that walking is safe along McClellan Road. Commissioner Geoffrey Paulsen said that creative thinking often leads to engineering solutions for difficult pmblems. Additionally, Ms. Fowler suggested allowing pedestrians and bicyclists to cross Stevens Creek Blvd. from the vicwty of PharLap Drive to Blackberry Farm Golf Course via a small path or bridge directly under the bridge that crosses Stevens Creek. She suggested another such bike/ped path or bridge where Stevens Creek crosses McClellan Road. Mr. Stillman said it's difficult to respond without a specific design, and that any project around the creek involves addressing numerous environmental issues. Consultation and approval by the Santa Clara Valley Water District and a number of other resource agencies would also be necessary. Conformance to ADA requirements for slope, etc. would be necessary. Commissioner May Koski suggested that she search the city database for the current status of the Stevens Creek trail at this location, as discussion was held at Parks and Recreation Commission meetings on the topic. David Stillman suggested that she contact Terese Smith. Anne Ng said she believes the current plan for crossing Stevens Creek Blvd. at PharLap involves a traffic calming, pedestrian refuge island in the middle of the street with warning signs, etc. Chairperson Jim Wiant discussed an oral communication from resident Bob Cronin. He reported that the northbound bicycle lane markings on Foothill Blvd. as one crosses Stevens Creek Blvd. are confusing and not the required width. Chairperson Wiant took a picture of the bike lane in this location and agrees with Mr. Cronin. The photos were passed around. A rider traveling along Foothill Blvd. toward 280 from McClellan Road is initially in a wide bicycle lane. As Foothill Blvd. becomes wider to accommodate the entry to a gas station on the south side of Stevens Creek Blvd, the bicycle lane curves, becomes quite narrow and comes very close to the curb. . At this point the line of sight to where the bicycle lane continues and crosses Stevens Creek Blvd. is extremely difficult to see. Mr. Cronin suggests that the bike lane in this area be widened and realigned so a rider can see where the lane continues on the other side of Stevens Creek Blvd. Mr. Stillman said that he would look into the matter. He mentioned that bicycle lanes next to a curb should be 5 feet wide with a 2 foot gutter. An interior lane should be 4 feet wide. Anne Ng announced that the Bollinger Bridge over Calabazas Creek should be under construction starting in June, with bicycle lanes in both directions. The project should be completed before the rainy season starts. WRITTEN COMMUNICATION David Stillman announced that the ribbon cutting ceremony for the Lawrence/Mitty crossing will take place on May 30, 2007 at 10 a.m. at Mitty and Lawrence Expressway. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. March 21 The commission approved the March 21, 2007 minutes as submitted. VOTE 4-0. '. OLD BUSINESS 2. Bicycle Transportation Plan Update Commissioner Joe Walton informed the commission that the Executive Summary of the plan is ready, although he would like to add an acknowledgement of various individuals' collective effort on the plan in the past. David Stillman will have the existing plan scanned into OCR form that can be electronically updated, and will email the chapters to the commissioners. Commissioner Joe Walton suggested that we use VTA's Bicycle Technical Guidelines, which are currently being updated, as an attachment to the document. David Stillman assigned pairs of commissioners and Anne Ng to update each chapter, based on our indicated preferences. The assignments are: Executive Summary - Joe Walton Chapter 1 - Land Use, Bicycle Usage and Conformance with Other Plans - May Koski Chapter 2 - Recommended Bikeway Networlc - Anne Ng and Geoff Paulsen Chapter 3 - Bicycle Parlcing - Anne Ng Chapter 4 - Bicycle Education and Safety - May Koski and Jim Wiant Chapter 5 - Bicycle Promotion Programs - Joe Walton and Jim Wiant Chapter 6 - Implementation Plan - Geoff Paulsen The scheduling of reviews for each updated chapter will be worked out at a future meeting. 3. Mary Avenue Bicycle Footbridge Update Chairperson Jim Wiant read an article from the Cupertino Scene regarding the city of Sunnyvale's refusal to contribute additional funding to the project at the May 1 city council meeting by a vote of 4-3. David Stillman mentioned that both construction bids for the project were $12 million, while the engineering estimate was $6 million. The city rejected the bids, and will put together new cost estimates, putting the project back out for bid in June, opening bids in August or September. They will allow a longer construction duration, which reduces costs. Construction is still expected to start in October 2007. The city is doing outreach, hoping to receive bids from some companies with experience building cable-stay bridges. David Stillman passed out copies of Resolution No. 03-162; Cupertino's current naming guidelines for naming city facilities. He suggested that the city council take the lead in naming the Mary Avenue Bicycle Footbridge. NEW BUSINESS 4. R~rt on Smart Growth Conference Commissioner Geoffrey Paulsen reported on his trip to the Smart Growth Conference in Pasadena, CA in February 2007. The meeting was an intersection of school boards, city managers, and business leaders. He summarized ideas from talks he attended, such as making 4 lane roads into 2 lane roads with wide bicycle lanes and sidewalks, and encouraging smooth, slow vehicle traffic by using engineering options such as roundabouts instead of speed bumps and stop signs, and use of scramble-style crossings. David Stillman mentioned that the city is currently doing a traffic count at all major intersections. The count includes a tally of turns made by.drivers in the city. 5. Bicycle Friendly Community Status Commissioner Joe Walton said that the League of American Bicyclists sent him ten copies of their magazine, which features cities that have received the Bicycle Friendly Community award. He suggested that we send a cover letter and copy of the magazine to the city manager, mayor, and members of the city council, so they can become more familiar with the organization and the process of becoming a Bicycle Friendly Community. Chairperson Jim Wiant discussed his conversation with John Brazil of San Jose (awarded BFC Bronze level) regarding the process and a recommendation of further improvements that comes with the designation. Commissioner Joe Walton moved to send a cover letter and a copy of the magazine to the city manager, Inayor and members of the city council. Chairperson Jim Wiant seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously 4-0. David Stillman will review the cover letter before it is sent. 6. BPC Participation in Public Safety Fair Chairperson Jim Wiant summarized the recent meeting of Fari Aberg's group which is planning the 2007 Cupertino Health and Safety Fair on August 25,2007. Fari is looking for someone from our commission to help her raise awareness of the event among children in the community, through the schools, the YMCA, or other organizations. Commissioner Koski volunteered to contact Fari ~bout getting the flier for the event approved and distributed with the back-to-school packets for Cupertino Union School District. Suggestions for sponsors can be made to Chairperson Jim Wiant and he will share them with the group organizing the event. Current events for the fair include a number of speakers about topics like ill theft, stranger danger, minimizing accidents for seniors, etc. There will also be a high school volleyball contest, a kids walk and run, bicycle helmet fitting, a car seat inspection, a senior walk, free turkey dogs, a bicycle safety rodeo, and much more! The Cupertino website has more information about the fair. The Bicycle Pedestrian Commission will handle the bicycle rodeo, using a rodeo kit produced by State Farm. 7. Bike to Work Day Participation Chairperson Jim Wiant reminded the commission that Thursday May 17 is Bike to Work Day. The commission is manning an energizer station on Stelling Road in front of the Quinlen Community Center. The station will be open from 6:30 a.m. until 9:00 a.m. David Stillman provided counters from the city. The city is also providing tables and chairs. Commissioners Joe Walton, May Koski, and Geoff Paulsen will be present, as well as Chairperson Jim Wiant and Anne Ng. We will provide Roasted Coffee Bean coffee, water, and Hobee's coffee cake. SVBC is providing musette bags and other give- aways. There will be a drawing for a Marin bicycle for all Bike to Work Day participants in the Bay Area. ~ Commissioner Joe Walton provided Bike To Work Day t-shirts for the commissioners and David Stillman, which were greatly appreciated. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS 1. Discuss specific process and schedule review of updates to the Cupertino Bicycle Transportation Plan. 2. Summary of results from the Kennedy Middle School Transportation Survey and the activities of the local Traffic Safety Group for the Regnart, Lincoln, Kennedy and Monta Vista school area. Commissioner May Koski will not be present at the July 2007 meeting, so this should be on the September 2007 agenda. 3. Refer to the Pedestrian Transportation Guidelines, and discuss the possibility of providing access to Cupertino Square in the Merritt/Perimeter Road area by placing an opening in the sound wall. ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Geoffrey Paulsen moved to adjourn the meeting. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Joe Walton. The motion was passed 4-0. The meeting was adjourned at 8:49 p.m. SUBMITTED BY: ~ ~