EASTHAMPTON 2019 HOUSING CHOICE CAPITAL GRANT BIKE SHARE Bike Share Easthampton Introduction The primary objective of this funding is to allow the City of Easthampton to rapidly deploy bike share in conjunction with the recent launch of a bike share program in five nearby municipalities. We are requesting $250,000 for the creation of five bike share locations within the City and deploy approximately 36 new electric assist bike share bicycles. The funding will allow the City to become a member of the existing five town consortium and the regional ValleyBike Share Program. The grant will cover the full cost of all construction, docking equipment, bicycles, and wayfinding, and which can be completed by June 2019. Operating costs for the program will be funded through local and regional sponsorships in line with the program established through the existing vendor and existing ValleyBike share program. The funding will allow the City to deploy the following: 2 3 36 City of Easthampton – 2019 Housing Choice Capital Grant – Bike Share The communities of Amherst, Holyoke, Northampton, South Hadley, and Springfield, along with the University of Massachusetts and the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission have contracted a collaboration and partnership with Bewegen Technologies and Corps Logistics to bring bike share to our region. The Pioneer Valley’s program is designed to promote short bike trips within core communities, where clusters of large employers, colleges, shopping, tourist destinations and residents can readily be connected. The City of Easthampton is supported in this request by the City of Northampton (Mayor and Planning and Sustainability Director) who is the lead municipality for the ValleyBike Share program and the Greater Easthampton Chamber of Commerce. Those letters are attached. In addition, the existing ValleyBike vendor has expressed support in expanding their services to Easthampton and the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, who secured the original grant for the initial launch fully supports Easthampton’s efforts and will work with us on implementation before June 2019. We strongly believe there is a direct connection between economic development and housing. We have seen a trend where more and more Easthampton residents are obtaining goods, services, and entertainment in their own City. Also, while likely not unique, Easthampton has seen an influx of resident-owned businesses. Some of the most popular business along the bike path (and in the City generally) are owned by residents. The owners and the employees have observed the higher quality of life and relative affordability and have chosen to reside and work in Easthampton. The opportunities for bike share to help support visitors and tourism can have the effect of supporting existing and new businesses. If those business owners and employees live in Easthampton, then we will be supporting a stronger housing market and demand. Project need Biking as Economic Development The City currently bolsters a popular set of activities available from the existing Manhan Rail Trail. From breweries to bagels, from the mills to the meadows, the rail trail has become a concentrated hub of activity for a wide range of bike users; from residents, visitors, families, students, and others. The direct connection of the bike path to Northampton and beyond to Amherst both of which launched bike share a few months ago - make Easthampton a logical choice to expand the recently launched ValleyBike-Share program. As part of goals identified in the Master Plan and Open Space and Recreation Plan, supporting and broadening activity on the bike path, b) expanding its use by a wider range of people, and c) creating linkages to existing parks and neighborhoods were identified as key goals and objectives. Interestingly, the advent of bike share is more recent than both the 2013 and 2008 Master Plan and therefore was not listed as a specific option to help accomplish these goals. We believe that an Easthampton bike share program can increase access to recreation by a diversity of users and be a catalyst to energize other bike-related initiatives in the City. Excerpts from the Master Plan and Open Space Plan are included at the end of the proposal. City of Easthampton – 2019 Housing Choice Capital Grant – Bike Share The Planning Department believes that implementation of bike share now, can coincide with and compliment a planned MassDOT 2021 TIP project along Union Street. That full reconstruction project will include bike amenities including a bike lane, sharrows, and an enhanced crosswalk over the busiest portion of the Manhan Rail Trail. The inclusion of bike amenities in line with the Commonwealth’s Complete Streets policies has been identified as goal for the downtown since 2010 and supports the broader community goals of increase bicycle opportunities in Easthampton. Access for diverse groups to Outdoor Recreation The awareness and popularity the path has increased tremendously. It has created a unique set of activities accessible to visitors and has the ability to support and sustain existing economic development activity and creates an easy link between the Downtown and the prospering Mill District. Supports a broader initiative We believe that this funding can initiate a broader set up community goals related to biking. Earlier this year the City of Easthampton became a Bike To Work community, the Mayor’s from both Easthampton and Northampton participated in a North to East Bike Trail Parade (to promote the connection between the two cities), and the City of Easthampton has begun to consider a feasibility study of extending the bike path from the Downtown to a newly designed K-8 school. We believe that supporting this bike share will allow Easthampton to provide a more diverse set of the experiences for residents and visitors which are free and exciting recreational opportunities along the bike path. Project Readiness The project would commence upon award of the grant because Easthampton can participate in the existing five town consortium and contract with the existing vendor. The project timeline is approximately as follows: . July, 2018 – Housing Choice Capital Grant application . September, 2018 – notice of grant award . October/November, 2018 – City and State contract preparation . November/December, 2018 – City and vendor contract preparation . October-December, 2018 – Final planning outreach and site selection . January -February, 2019 – Final construction planning schedule and logistic . February-June, 2019 – Construction and installation of bike share equipment; program launch The project schedule includes an opportunity for refinement of site selection and some community outreach. Where a non-city owner location is highly preferred, locations will only be chosen in partnership with the private property owner. As proposed herein, all sites are under municipal ownership. City of Easthampton – 2019 Housing Choice Capital Grant – Bike Share Financial Feasibility The project would be fully funded through the Housing Choice Capital Grant program. The ability to utilize the existing vendor and pricing proposal implemented by the five town consortium enables the City to provide an accurate project budget. The budget for the project is as follows: EASTHAMPTON BIKE SHARE UNITS PRICE PER UNIT TOTAL ELECTRIC ASSIST BICYCLES 40 36.00 $3,789 $136,404 250 watt nominal DynaMe motor 660 watt lithium-ion Battery BikeEmotion Module Standard Basket Internal Brakes 8-Speed Internal Gear Hub Customized Paint w/ Branding RECHARGING DOCKS 60 75 $525 $39,375 SmartRail Techonolgy Dock Housing Charger Wire Harness KIOSKS / PAYMENT TERMINAL / AD PANEL 2 $12,777 $25,554 Kiosk Housing & Components Retro-lit Wayfinding Panel Retro-lit Advertising Panel WAYFINDING & ADVERTISING PANEL 2 3 $7,600 $22,800 Kiosk Housing & Components Retro-lit Wayfinding Panel Retro-lit Advertising Panel DIRECT TO GRID STATIONS 0 2 $2,400 $4,800 Direct to Grid Connections PLANNING (Per Station) Travel Expenses Other Expenses 4 5 $2,000 10,000 INSTALLATION (Per Station) 4 5 $1,958 $9,790 Travel Expenses Other Expenses (Truck, Tools, Etc) CAPITAL TOTALS $248,723 City of Easthampton – 2019 Housing Choice Capital Grant – Bike Share Potential locations We have provided viable options for locations for each of the five bike share locations. However, in some cases the potential location may require shifting or relocation to accommodate in the field verifications related to accessibility and/or power sources. In considering the listed locations, we have had consultations with the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission and considered options that would be most likely to link and/or provide access to public transportation, parking, and/or overall visibility to tourists or visitors. If awarded, the City and other stakeholders would confirm the most viable and workable locations to meet these goals. In addition, we would work with the vendor to prepare locations schematics to confirm all elements prior to installation. This was done in other communities as part of the initial ValleyBike launch. The following represent the proposed five city-owned locations: City of Easthampton – 2019 Housing Choice Capital Grant – Bike Share #1 CITY HALL POTENTIAL LOCATION #2 UNION STREET POTENTIAL LOCATION #3 OLD TOWN HALL POTENTIAL LOCATION #4MILLSIDE PARK #5 HIGH SCHOOL POTENTIAL LOCATION Easthampton Bike Share ® Easthampton, MA 1 inch = 1075 Feet July 26, 2018 www.cai-tech.com 0 1075 2151 3226 Data shown on this map is provided for planning and informational purposes only. The municipality and CAI Technologies are not responsible f or any use f or other purposes or misuse or misrepresentation of this map. Housing Choice Capital Grant Evaluation Criteria FY 2019 The following responses (in RED) were prepared by the Planning Department to provide an initial assessment of the project and the grant criteria. The written narrative sections are the same text submitted in the online application form. Supporting material for the bonus questions have been uploaded into the online application form: Project Need (maximum total 33 points) (25) Project need is scored based on demonstration of one or more of the following: 1.