Meridian Transportation Task Force

Meridian Transportation Task Force Meeting Agenda and Packet September 16, 2010

1. Old Business/Follow-Up a. August Meeting Summary b. Interim Intersection Request

2. New Business a. Destination Downtown, Mobility Committee b. Presentation by ACHD, COMPASS, ITD and VRT Staff on Programming and Capital Improvement Plans c. Transportation Priorities for 2010 3. Future Meeting Topics Staff proposes the following, and requests committee member input: a. Meridian Transit Plan (ongoing)

4. Next Meeting Date The next meeting will be Thursday, November 4th, at 3:00pm. The group will meet at Meridian City Hall.

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 1 1a. August Meeting Summary

Meeting Summary Meridian Transportation Task Force August 5, 2010 3:00 PM—5:00 PM

1. Attendance & Agenda  Members Present: Councilman David Zaremba, P&Z Commissioner Joe Marshall, Steve Sedlacek, Shawn Martin, and Caleb Hood.  Members Absent: Mayor Tammy de Weerd, Councilman Keith Bird, Rich Allison, Bob Bruce, David Wynkoop, Terry Smith, Le Ann Carlsen, Scott Colaianni, Joe Silva, Toni Tisdale, and Miguel Legarreta.  Others Present: Eric Exline and Don Nesbitt, JSD #2, for Le Ann Carlsen  Meeting agenda topics included: 1) ACHD FY11 Budget, 2) STIP/TIP Review, 3) ACHD FYWP Scoring Update and 4) Roadway, Intersection, and Community Program Project Prioritization

2. Old Business/Follow-up A memo was provided in the packet summarizing the June meeting, and verbal updates were given on the CIM Meeting in a Bag Drawing Winners and Interim Intersections.

3. Discussion Items a) ACHD FY11 Budget: A brief overview of the proposed FY11 ACHD budget was presented to the TTF. The members were notified that the public hearing on ACHD’s budget was scheduled for Wednesday, August 25th. No discussion occurred. b) STIP/TIP Review: The TTF was notified about the public comment periods for the TIP and STIP. Key changes to the STIP and TIP were outlined for the TTF. The members were encouraged by City Staff to provide comment to ITD and COMPASS on the draft programming documents. (NOTE: A brief presentation about grants for transportation projects was also presented to the TTF by City Staff.) c) ACHD Scoring and Ranking of Projects for Programming: City Staff explained how the ACHD Capital Improvements Citizen Advisory Committee (CICAC) has been working on establishing a new scoring and ranking criteria for use when creating the Five Year Work Plan (FYWP). Handouts were given to the TTF showing how roadways and intersections “scored” for safety and congestion using cost-benefit methods. These handouts were used to discuss priorities for 2010 (see next.) d) Roadways, Intersections and Community Program Priorities: Community Programs: City Staff provided an overview of the Community Program process, a status report on last year’s priorities and facilitated a discussion about the 2010 priorities. The TTF discussed some changes to the priority lists, but no substantial changes were made to the priorities. City Staff summarized a few new projects that have been requested through other City Departments and community Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 2 members. Joint School District #2 representatives were present and also mentioned a couple of new projects to add to the list of priorities. A TTF member also mentioned a new project to add. In total, eight new projects were added to the list. Staff is prepared to submit CP applications to ACHD for these projects, pending City Council approval of the priority list. A final recommendation from the TTF to the Council of CP projects is planned for the 9/16 meeting. Roadways and Intersections: Staff prepared an overview of the City’s priority projects from last year, as well as some draft recommendations and analysis for the 2010 priorities. The TTF quickly reviewed the new criteria that ACHD will be using and discussed the priorities and made changes to some of the projects as well as the format of the priority lists/spreadsheets. Some of the changes for 2010 include: making the Linder/Pine intersection a higher priority (from #4 in 2009 to #2 in 2010); moving down the Pine, Meridian to Locust Grove project (from #7 to #14); moving down the Linder, Ustick to McMillan project (from #8 to #9); moving down the Eagle, Victory to Amity project (from #9 to #13); moving up the Ustick Road projects; adding Locust Grove, Fairview to Ustick to the priority list; and making two separate spreadsheets – one for roadways and one for intersections. A final recommendation from the TTF to the Council on the roadway and intersection priorities for this year is planned for the 9/16 meeting.

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 3 1b. Interim Intersection Request

Memo To: Transportation Task Force

From: Caleb Hood, Planning Manager

Date: 9/10/2010

Re: Interim Intersections

Earlier this year, the City sent a letter to ACHD asking them to evaluate four intersections for interim signals. The four intersections were: Overland/Linder, Ten Mile/Victory, Locust Grove/Victory, and Eagle/Amity. During the August TTF meeting, City Staff gave a verbal update on the interim intersection analysis that ACHD Traffic Services Staff performed on four intersections in south Meridian. The ACHD has since sent a letter to the Mayor on the interim intersections. ACHD Traffic Services Staff did an extensive analysis on the near and long-term traffic needs at these intersections. The following is a summary of ACHD’s analysis (from a letter to the Mayor, from J. Schweitzer, dated August 11, 2010):

 Overland and Linder street improvements have been constructed and the traffic signal is nearly complete. Traffic forecasts do not indicate this intersection will meet signal warrants in the immediate future (currently Level of Service {LOS} B) even after the completion of the interchange, but the ACHD Traffic Department will continue to monitor the intersection. When traffic volumes or other warrants are met, ACHD can complete this signal in an expeditious manner.

 Ten Mile and Victory intersection is forecast to still operate at LOC B/C during the peak hours after the interchange is completed. ACHD analysis supports an ultimate two-lane roundabout, but the cost, impact and traffic considerations favor an interim traffic signal when additional warrants are met. ACHD Traffic Department will monitor the intersection. The development process should be used to acquire the ultimate right-of-way for a roundabout. If one or more large developments adjacent to this intersection are proposed prior to the need to install an interim signal, ACHD may be able to forgo an interim project and construct the ultimate roundabout.

 Locust Grove and Victory intersection operates at LOS F during the two peak traffic hours and needs to be improved in the near-term. The cost, impact and traffic considerations favor a traffic signal as an interim control, with a multi-lane roundabout as the ultimate design. An effort will be made to fit this intersection

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 4 into the ACHD 2011 budget, as funding and staff workload permit. The development process should be used to acquire the right-of-way for the ultimate roundabout.

 Eagle and Amity intersection operates at LOS C/D during the peak hours. That may degrade somewhat with the construction of the signal to the north at Eagle/Victory, but the need for an immediate improvement is not anticipated. If an interim project is required, a traffic signal appears to be the best option. he intersection was evaluated using 2035 traffic forecasts with a two-lane roundabout; over a 24-hour period, a roundabout is expected to perform at LOC C during the peak hour and result in less delay than a traffic signal. The development process should be used to acquire the right-of-way for the ultimate two-lane roundabout. The opportunity to go directly from an all-way stop to the ultimate improvement may arise if development occurs at this intersection, which would be preferable to constructing an interim signal. The ACHD Traffic Department will monitor this intersection after the Eagle/Victory project is complete.

In summary, ACHD Staff will monitor the Overland/Linder, Ten Mile/Amity and Eagle/Amity intersections after nearby major construction projects are completed to see what develops. ACHD think these intersections will function at an acceptable level with the changes in traffic patterns we anticipate. The Locust Grove/Victory intersection already has problems that are not expected to improve. ACHD will be looking for an opportunity to work that intersection into their budget and workload schedule; it is a likely candidate for construction next spring or summer.

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 5 2a. Destination Downtown, Mobility Committee

Date: 9/10/2010

Re: Destination Downtown, Mobility Committee

Earlier this year, the Meridian Development Corporation (MDC) completed the Destination Downtown plan. Four sub-committees: Livability, Sustainability, Prosperity and Mobility, were recently formed and charged with implementing the actions called for in the plan. Julie Pipal, an MDC Board member and the Mobility sub-committee leader, has asked me to recruit additional committee members that are interested in the vitality of downtown and improving transportation downtown. Staff is hopeful that there are one or two (or more!) TTF members that would be willing to commit some time to serving on the Destination Downtown Mobility team. Right now, this committee is meeting once a month (fourth Wednesday), and is currently in the process of prioritizing next steps. If you are interested, the next Mobility team meeting will be held at City Hall on September 22nd, at 5 pm.

For more information on the Destination Downtown plan, and the four sub-committees, go to: http://www.destination-downtown.org/home

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 6 2b. Programming and Capital Improvement Plans

Date: 9/10/2010

Re: Programming and CIP’s at ACHD, ITD, VRT and COMPASS

Last year, ACHD, ITD, COMPASS, and VRT Staff presented their programming processes and timelines to the TTF. Transportation agency staff will once again present an overview of their programming processes and stand for any questions that the TTF members may have. Planning to be at and present during the September 16th meeting is:

Mark Wasdahl, ITD Sabrina Anderson, ACHD Toni Tisdale, COMPASS (possibly someone from VRT too)

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 7 2c. Transportation Priorities 2010

Date: 9/10/2010

Re: Finalize Transportation Priorities for 2010

During the August 5th, Transportation Task Force (TTF) meeting the members discussed the City’s priorities, but did not finalize priority recommendations to the Council for roadways, intersections or sidewalks (Community Programs). Due to time constraints, Staff is presenting the TTF’s draft priority project requests for 2010 to the City Council on September 14 th . Staff is seeking direction from the Council as the TTF will attempt to finalize a recommendation to the Council during the September 16th meeting. Staff will share with the TTF any comments that the Council makes regarding the draft priorities outlined below. Staff will then present the TTF’s final recommendations, for Council approval, on September 28th. The City must have a Council-endorsed list of community programs priorities completed by October 1st and roadways and intersection prioritized by the first part of November.

CP Projects: City Staff submitted 19 CP applications to ACHD last year. The only projects we did not fill out applications for were the six segments of the City’s pathway network (these type of projects do not tend to score well at ACHD. More on the pathway projects below.) As you can see in the table below, eight of the City’s top 10 projects are scheduled for construction in the next few years. Most of the rest of the City’s top projects have been scoped by ACHD and are also anticipated to make it into programming.

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 8 As you can see from the status table above, most of the City’s top projects are working their way through ACHD’s programming process. Therefore, during the August 5th meeting the TTF did not recommend many changes to the priority list from 2009. The TTF did discuss moving or removing the McMillan, Goddard Creek to Palantine project (#16). This request is for pedestrian access to/from Hunter Elementary across McMillan. Since the children in the subdivisions on the north side of McMillan attend Paramount and not Hunter, the TTF did not believe this is a high priority project. The TTF did discuss adding the projects listed below to the list of CP priority projects. The TTF should rank these NEW projects, and discuss if we support all of them. If the Council concurs with the TTF recommendation, Staff is prepared to submit applications for the following projects:

NEW Carlton, W. 1st to Main ACHD Core CP project for CN 2013. The project proposes a 5-foot-wide attached sidewalk with curb and gutter on the south side of Carlton Avenue from 1st to Main. The project seeks to increase sidewalk connectivity for pedestrians and will maintain on-street parking as a neighborhood amenity. The sidewalk will be built within ACHD right-of-way. This project will create a Safe Route to School connection for Meridian students by providing pedestrian facilities to Cole Valley Christian School. This was a School District request.

NEW E. 3rd and Ada St. Install HAWK signal at Franklin/E. 3rd (Storey Park) and stripe bike lane/route on both sides of E. 3rd and Ada Street to Main. Part of bicycle route for downtown. Public Works request.

NEW Pine Ave/Five Mile Creek Extension of CDBG project along the north side of Pine and Five Mile Creek (see Five Mile Creek Pathway – Fairview to Pine description below). Parks Dept. request.

NEW Linder, RR to Franklin Fill in the gaps in the sidewalk on the west side of the roadway, between the railroad tracks and Franklin Road. Joint School District #2 request.

NEW Linder, south of Franklin A citizen is concerned with students walking along the entire length of Linder (south of Cherry Lane to the south end of Linder) without sidewalks. They are walking to Arctic Circle, or home from High School, along Linder and are in danger of not being seen, and have nowhere safe to walk. The sidewalks are so intermittent and crossing the street is hazardous with the amount of traffic. Katy Keeton request.

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 9 NEW Pine Avenue, Merrywood There is a gap in the sidewalk on the north side of Pine Avenue, between Mineral Wells Avenue and Rotan Avenue. There are many children that walk to Meridian High in this area. This gap in infrastructure is about 850’ long. This is a Joint School District #2 request.

NEW 2695 McMillan Road Between Linder and Ten Mile there is a small gap in the sidewalk on the south side of McMillan (between Bridgetower and Caymus Cove Subdivisions). This gap is only about 30’ long and is part of the “flag” of a county-zoned parcel. This gap would create continuous sidewalk on the south side of McMillan between Ten Mile and Linder. TTF member request.

NEW Linder, Divide Creek There is a 200’ gap in the sidewalk on the east side of Linder, across from Divide Creek and just south of Rocky Mountain High. There are many children that walk to school in this area. This is a Joint School District #2 and TTF request.

CP Pathway Projects: Below is a list of the pathway projects that the TTF discussed in 2009, but did not direct staff to submit applications for. Staff recommends that 3 of the 6 projects (see green ovals below) be prioritized this year with the new projects mentioned above. Staff will continue to include all of these projects in the CP discussion for future years, but right now staff does not believe the Settlers Creek Pathway, the South Slough Pathway or the Five Mile Creek Pathway – Ten Mile to Linder projects (red ovals) would fare well in the ACHD scoping and scoring process.

Roadways and Intersections: During the August meeting, City Staff handed-out some information on how the prioritization process will work this year at ACHD. The TTF discussed amending the roadway and intersection priorities for Council approval. The TTF did not finalize a recommendation, but below is a summary of the changes the TTF discussed for the 2012-2016 FYWP requests to ACHD. Due to the changes in the way ACHD will be scoring and ranking intersections and roadways, the TTF recommends that the City send ACHD and COMPASS two priority lists – one for roadways and one for intersections. On September 16th, Staff would like the TTF for finalize a priority recommendation to send to the Council.

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 10 Roadway Priorities 2010 City's Priority Current Project 8/5 TTF Rank Project Status in ACHD Recommendation (DRAFT) Programming

CN 2011 Remove; remainder of Eagle, Victory to Ridenbaugh project is in 2011 budget. CN 2013 2011 & 2013 in TIP; Move project up to #1 1 Downtown Split Corridor 2 regionally significant roadway priority. project CN 2011 Remove, project is in 2011 Overland, Ten Mile to Linder budget. CN 2012 Franklin Road, Ten Mile to 2 NC Linder

CN 2015 (slip 3 Ten Mile Road, Cherry to Ustick project) NC

PD in FYWP Ustick Road, Locust Grove to 4 Moved up three spots Meridian

Ustick Road, Locust Grove to 2015 in FYWP 5 Moved up three spots Leslie Way (Eagle/SH-55) 2014 in FYWP (slip Ustick Road, Duane 6 project) Moved up three spots Drive/Eagle to Cloverdale

Not in FYWP 7 Linder Road, Ustick to McMillan Moved down 4 spots CIP = 2019-2027 Not in FYWP

8 Ten Mile, Ustick to McMillan CIP = 2019-2027 but Moved up two spots unfunded; ROW preservation only CIP = 2019-2027 Ten Mile Road, McMillan to but unfunded; ROW 9 Moved up 2 spots Chinden preservation only

Not in FYWP Linder Road Overpass* 10 CIP = 2019-2027 but NC (Overland to Franklin) unfunded; ROW preservation only

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 11 PD in FYWP Franklin Road, Black Cat to Ten NC project is regionally 11 Mile significant and in TIP/STIP

Noit in FYWP Locust Grove, Fairview to CIP = 2019-2027 but 12 NEW NEW Ustick unfunded; ROW preservation only Not in FYWP Recommend moving down 13 Eagle, Victory to Amity CIP = 2014 - 2018 9 spots; intersection should help Not in FYWP or CIP Recommend moving down Pine Avenue, Meridian to 14 10 spots; doesn't score Locust Grove well Not in FYWP Locust Grove, Ustick to 15 CIP = 2019-2027 but NC McMillan unfunded; ROW preservation only CN 2013 for center Fairview Avenue, Meridian to medians only; 16 NC Locust Grove widening is UF in FYWP

CN 2013 for center Fairview Avenue, Locust Grove medians only; 17 NC to Eagle widening is UF in FYWP 18 Linder Road, Franklin to Cherry UF in FYWP NC Not in FYWP Meridian Road, Ustick to 19 CIP = 2019-2027 but NC* McMillan unfunded; ROW preservation only Not in FYWP Meridian Road, Fairview/Cherry 20 CIP = 2019-2027 but NC to Ustick unfunded; ROW preservation only Not in FYWP Meridian Road, McMillan to 21 CIP = 2019-2017 but NC* Chinden unfunded; ROW preservation only Not in FYWP NC 22 Ustick Road, Linder to Meridian CIP = 2019-2027 ACHD priority corridor

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 12 Not in FYWP NC 23 Ustick Road, Ten Mile to Linder CIP = 2019-20127 ACHD priority corridor Linder Road, McMillan to Not in FYWP 24 NC* Chinden CIP = 2019-2027 CN 2011; Not in Ten Mile Road, Overland to 25 FYWP NC Victory CIP = 2019-2027 UF in FYWP NC 26 Linder Road, Cherry to Ustick scores well technically Not in FYWP or CIP Locust Grove, Overland to 27 NC Amity (2 miles) CN 2013 for center medians only; 28 Cherry Lane, Linder to Meridian NC widening is not in FYWP or CIP Not in FYWP Franklin, McDermott to Black CIP = 2019-2017 but NC 29 Cat unfunded; ROW I-84 detour route preservation only Not in FYWP or CIP recommend moving down 30 E. 3rd Connection toward bottom of list (was #6 roadway priority) Not in FYWP or CIP 31 Broadway Avenue NC Not in FYWP or CIP Rail Corridor 32 NC Preservation/Utilization CN 2013 for center medians only; 33 Fairview, Eagle to Cloverdale widening is not in NC FYWP or CIP Franklin, Touchmark to CN 2012 34 NC Cloverdale McMillan, Locust Grove 35 NEW to Eagle UF in FYWP NEW

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 13 Intersection Priorities

City's Priority 8/5 TTF Project Status Rank Recommendation

1 Ten Mile/Ustick CN 2012 #1 intersection CN 2012 #2 intersection priority. 2 Linder/Pine Must be done before Phase 2. (up 2 spots)

3 Ten Mile/Chinden Not in FYWP down 1 spot DSN 2015 4 Ten Mile/Victory ROW PD down 1 spot CN UF CN 2011 Remove; project is in 2011 McMillan/Locust Grove budget. 2015 in FYWP 5 Locust Grove/Ustick NC UF in FYWP 6 Locust Grove/Victory NC Removed from FYWP when temporary 7 Meridian/Ustick signal was NC constructed. CIP = 2019-2027 Not in FYWP, CIP or 8 Chinden/Meridian TIP NC

Not in FYWP, CIP or 9 Chinden/Locust Grove NC TIP Not in FYWP 10 Chinden/Linder CIP = 2014-2018 NC 11 Black Cat/Franklin PD in FYWP NC UF in FYWP 12 Black Cat/Cherry NC Not in FYWP CIP = 2019-2017 but 13 Black Cat/Ustick NC unfunded; ROW preservation only 14 Ten Mile/Amity UF in FYWP NC

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 14 Not in FYWP or CIP 15 Overland/Linder NC

NEW Eagle/Amity Not in FYWP or CIP NEW

ITD Projects: In 2009, the City prioritized ITD roadways as follows: 1) Meridian Road Interchange Rebuild, 2) Linder Road Overpass, 3) Widen 20/26, 4) Eagle Road Corridor Improvements, and 5) SH-16 Extension. The TTF recommends moving up the 20/26 project to number two on the priority list and moving the Linder Road Overpass down to number 3. Staff will provide any input the Council has on this potential change during the 9/16 meeting.

Meridian Transportation Task Force September 16, 2010 15