Meeting Notes

Fairview Loop Pathway & Safety Improvements Project Number Z560200000

Online Mat-Su Transportation Fair Summary

SUBJECT: Fairview Loop Pathway & Safety Improvements PROJECT NUMBER: Z560200000 GROUP: Public DATE: Thursday, October 15, 2020 TIME: 3 to 7 p.m. LOCATION: https://publicinput.com/MatSuTransportationFair or by phone call OUTREACH: See Table 1. Event Outreach ATTENDANCE: Wasilla Area Booth 5,597 social views, 77 comments and responses Mat-Su Transportation Fair 10,215 social views, 518 comments and responses STAFF PRESENT: DOT&PF: Travis Holmes

EVENT INFORMATION: Attendees joined the event online or by phone. 55 transportation projects and programs were represented at 6 booths. Community members were encouraged to ask questions of the project teams and to provide verbal and written comments. Please see attached comment summary. Regarding the Transportation Fair in general, attendees submitted the following comments about the event. • This is a bit awkward for participating, however I appreciate the big efforts the project teams put forward to clearly and politely share information in this format! Thank you for your responses, presentations, and attention to all of our questions. • Is this part of the NEPA process for these projects?

Table 1. Event Outreach

Date Outreach method Description 8/26/20 Email notice Save the date notice, event details, 10/5/20 and reminder sent to 10/14/20 approximately 2,400 addresses 8/26/20 DOT&PF online calendar Invited the public to the event http://dot.alaska.gov/creg/calendar. shtml 9/25/20 Postcard 16,600 postcards sent to area Date Outreach method Description project mailing lists, including Fairview Loop. 9/30/20 Project specific website Meeting notice posted on the public involvement page 10/02/20 DOT&PF website Launched page on the DOT&PF website for the event http://dot.alaska.gov/creg/mat-su- transportation-fair/ 10/05/20 Event website Launched landing page for the live event at https://publicinput.com/MatSuTra nsportationFair 10/06/20 State of Alaska online notice Sent by DOT&PF 10/07/20 Email notice to project stakeholders Sent by Brooks & Associates 10/09/20 Elected officials Sent request to forward to constituents 10/09/20 Borough employees Invited all Borough employees to the event 10/09/20 Community councils Request to forward invitation to subscriber lists 10/09/20 to Radio advertisements Invitation to the event sponsored 10/14/20 by the Mat-Su Borough, Alaska Railroad, and the City of Wasilla played on KSKA, KMBQ, KFQD, and KAYO 10/09/20 Civil engineering classes Invited current civil engineering students and professors to the event 10/15/20 DOT&PF Facebook page Live streamed booths to the DOT&PF Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/Alaska DOTPF

Documents on file: Outreach, fact sheet, and project graphics Attached: Public comments

Fairview Loop Pathway & Safety Improvements – October 15, 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair Summary Page 2 of 2 What aspects of the Fairview Loop spot safety improvements are you most looking forward to, or believe will have the greatest impact in the area?

Annette Mullen 1. The bike path immediately!! We are tired of trying to avoid kids and pedestrians that walk in the road. The biggest safety hazard is the people that are forced onto the road way!! 2. Yearly trimming of the weeds and trees along the road would be a great help so we are not pulling out from subdivisions onto Fairview Loop road blindly. Or just pave wider aprons so no weeds grow, obscuring our views to the main road.

20 days ago ! 2 Agree

54 seconds ago

Al Roskam We sold the state our property for the bike path years ago with the understanding that it would get built. If you are not going to do the job like you said we want our property back.

12 days ago ! 1 Agree

Anne Brooks (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) Thank you for your participation in the 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair and for the comment on right-of-way. As noted on the project website, the Department will evaluate the relinquishment of already acquired rights-of-way after Phase 2 is complete. If the Department decides to relinquish the property that is no longer needed, then there are established processes to do so.

54 minutes ago

Joanne Rehn The listed improvements are needed greatly, but unfortunately only a band-aid answer. The entire road is hazardous, with little to no shoulders, poor sight lines, and too many people in a hurry. It is dangerous for pedestrians and bicyclists. All of the 90 degree turns are dangerous. There is no sight line pulling out from E. Chugach view or Patty Drive. The turn by Linlu Lane is the scene of many vehicles sliding off the road in the winter. Jackfish Road and Well Site don't approach at a 90 degree angle to the road which can make ingress and egress difficult. I don't see these problems addressed with spot safety improvements.

12 days ago ! 1 Agree

2 minutes ago

Daryl Kollander Fern street turn lane drainages improvements

11 days ago

Anne Brooks (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) Thank you for your participation in the 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair. Left turn pockets will be included on both Fern Street and Fairview Loop with the safety improvements at that locations. Drainage improvements will be addressed when adding turn lanes.

39 minutes ago

Anne Brooks (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) Thank you for your participation in the 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair. Left turn pockets will be included on both Fern Street and Fairview Loop with the safety improvements at that locations. Drainage features will be improved with the lane additions.

46 minutes ago Ann Meyer One of the major safety concerns where we would like to see improvement is a bike path. There was work on a plan for this to be built a few years back, and it did not happen. It is exceedingly dangerous for bikers and pedestrians. If it is being built from Knik Rd to Snowshoe School, a suggestion for a finished route could be to extend to Fern and go down Fern (another very dangerous area for pedestrians, bikers and kids out playing) back to Knik Rd.

11 days ago

Anne Brooks (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) Thank you for your participation in the 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair. project includes 3.7 miles of pathway generally centered about Snowshoe Elementary School and will connect to the pathway recently constructed by the Fairview Loop/Knik Goose Bay realignment project.

A future project would need to be considered to extend the pathway beyond the limits now in the project.

44 minutes ago

David Dorsey Improvements to FVL near Togiak and Sue. Only problem is people driving on FVL will drive faster.

11 days ago

Anne Brooks (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) Thank you for your participation in the 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair. Improvements are planned at Togiak Avenue which will realign Togiak Avenue, South Valley Lop and East Sue Lane intersections to improve sight distance.

We heard many comments about speeds on the road. we are sharing your concerns with traffic safety and enforcement.

50 minutes ago

Dorothy Hight Plans to straighten the highway, long overdue, have been scaled back over recent years. Would like to see a public advocacy for widening the road to include shoulders for drivers needing help and walkways to accommodate pedestrians. Concern for un- evaluated increase in housing beyond the road's ability to accommodate. Have already addressed this in prior note.

13 days ago

a minute ago

Straightening the route in front of our home: looking forward to it. However there is a new housing project being started right across the street including the space indicated for straightening that was not on the horizon until this summer. Now there are multiple roads going in, including a new outlet on Fairview Loop in the area leading into the dangerous curves in front of our land. This makes a potential large increase in the number of vehicles driving out onto the Loop and increasing the number of lots that the gov't will need to buy back in order to complete this project.

19 days ago

a minute ago Joe And Susan Schroeder * Lower speed limit to 40 mph. * Add guardrails to curves and steep embankments along roadway. * Make it no passing. Entire road. Must be no passing mile 3 through mile 7. Before someone gets killed This is the most urgent priority for safety and the most affordable action. * Please put up some don’t litter with fines signs. * Put an end to the atvs and off road vehicles that destroy the drainage ditches, road shoulders, Driveways and Crossroads, personal and private properties, and cost the state and property owners countless dollars. They Throw gravel up on the roads creating additional safety hazards.

20 days ago

Thanks for the comment on speeds, guardrail placement, signage and no passing zones in the corridor. We are sharing your concerns with traffic safety and enforcement.

22 minutes ago

Kathy Sleen Turning into Carr Street needs less of an angle and a landing for a bus stop. I turn on Ice downhill slope directly pointed at children waiting for the bus. A shoulder might help.

21 days ago

58 minutes ago

David Dorsey Improvements from Sue to Candywine. Are they going to improve shoulders, add guardrails and paved pathways?

21 days ago

Anne Brooks (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) Thank you for your participation in the 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair. We appreciate your feedback. The Cotten Drive and David Road improvements include straightening the roadway alignment and flattening the vertical grades and curves along Fairview Loop in the vicinity of Cotten Drive. It also realigns the Cotten Drive and South Candywine Road, and East Kirby Drive and Davis Road intersections to improve sight lines. The project includes a 1-foot paved shoulder and a 1-foot safety edge to protect the pavement edge. The 3.7 miles of pathway included in the project is generally centered about Snowshoe Elementary School and will connect to the pathway recently constructed by the Fairview Loop/Knik Goose Bay realignment project.

33 minutes ago

Richard Dembroski The blind spot at Togiak needs fixed and the rest of the side roads with houses need paved

21 days ago

32 minutes ago What should we pay attention to as we continue our work?

Mary fulton The blind intersection at Jack Fish Road. When leaving the Jack Fish Landing Subdivision traffic from the right is impossible to see oncoming traffic until they are right there. As mentioned before, most drivers are not adhering to the 50 mph speed limit and come up on the intersection faster than is safe for the driver pulling out of Jack Fish Landing. I had understood at the beginning of the project that this was going to be addressed and unfortunately now is no longer in the plans.

21 days ago ! 1 Agree

Anne Brooks (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) Thank you for your participation in the 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair. We appreciate your feedback. At Fern Street improvements will adding left turn lanes on Fairview Loop and Fern Street. These improvements begin near Jack Fish Road and Well Site Road.

Thanks for the comment on speeds in the corridor. We are sharing your concerns with traffic safety and enforcement.

25 minutes ago

Richard Dembroski Shoulder work, they are huge drop offs near Carr, Candywhine etc. if you go off the road you dive 10-12 feet

21 days ago ! 1 Agree

an hour ago

Christiane Allison Shoulder work is very important. Your wheels can get sucked off the roadway by worn edges where there are no shoulders, especially in the snow. You also need a very accurate accounting of where pedestrians are often found on the roadway.

11 days ago

Anne Brooks (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) Thank you for your participation in the 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair. We appreciate your feedback. In the vicinity of the safety improvements the shoulders work will include a 1-foot paved shoulder and a 1-foot safety edge to protect the pavement edge. When time and funding is available, DOT&PF maintenance personnel will restore the roadway shoulders in areas outside of the safety improvement areas,

29 minutes ago

David Dorsey Pedestrian safety and shoulders

11 days ago

an hour ago

Dorothy Hight Sorry, forgot our name. We are on the corner of Davis Rd and Fairview Loop. Part of our lot extends across the Loop adjacent to the new subdivision going in.

19 days ago

an hour ago David Dorsey Safety features for pedestrians, shoulders to pull off on in case of break down, speed limit????

21 days ago

an hour ago Based on your experience as a Fairview Loop project stakeholder, what advice do you have for future project teams?

Richard Dembroski State needs to do something about speed controls in the area. People race down FVL going 65-70 all the time

21 days ago ! 3 Agree

Anne Brooks (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) Thank you for your participation in the 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair and comments on speeds along Fairview Loop. We are sharing your concerns with traffic safety and enforcement.

43 minutes ago

David Dorsey Think more on safety. Also the impact on residents in area.

21 days ago ! 2 Agree

41 minutes ago

David Dorsey Pedestrian safety is almost totally ignored. Also speed limit is 50, road engineered for 40 in 1979 and people driving way over the limit. Need to get sppeders under control.

11 days ago ! 1 Agree

Anne Brooks (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) Thank you for your participation in the 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair and comments on speeds along Fairview Loop. We are sharing your concerns with traffic safety and enforcement.

43 minutes ago

Daryl Kollander Speed limit of 40mph and enforcement are a must, people have to slow down. Fairview and wellsite,jack fish are a death trap at 50 mph

11 days ago

Anne Brooks (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) Thank you for your participation in the 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair and for the comment on speeds in the corridor. We are sharing your concerns with traffic safety and enforcement.

56 minutes ago

Vikki Gross Limiting the number of high-density residential areas with driveways coming onto Fairview, This road was not designed for high-volume traffic, with driveways coming onto it at every angle and closely spaced together on curves. If they want to build those subdivisions, they should have to provide safe access to Fairview in the form of an approved road, which may have to be extended to a safer egress area, i.e., one with less blind curves.

11 days ago

Anne Brooks (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) (Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities) Thank you for your participation in the 2020 Mat-Su Transportation Fair and for the comment on development in the area. All developers must follow Mat-Su Borough platting and subdivision requirements which are outside of DOT’s control. Developers must also apply for a DOT driveway permit.

55 minutes ago Christiane Allison The most dangerous section of the road is the intersection at Linlu Lane, with traffic cutting across to the side road with both directions going high speeds. All project teams should also be aware that this road is covered many times throughout the winter in a very dense fog that makes visibility extremely difficult and dangerous without significant light or reflectors for guides. It needs the same kinds of reflectors that have been installed on KGB for the sharper corners.

11 days ago

48 seconds ago