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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMin - TSP - 2014.02.131 The City of Burlingame CALIFORNIA 94010-3997 www.burlingame.org TRAFFIC, SAFETY AND PARKING COMMISSION Meeting Minutes - Approved Thursday, February 13, 2014 Commissioners Present: Nicklas Akers, Chair Jeff Londer John Martos Mark Noworolski Commissioners Absent: Howard Wettan Staff Present: Augustine Chou, Engineering Programs Manager, Public Works Andrew Wong, Transportation Engineer Sergeant Jay Kiely, Police Department Joanne Louie, Administrative Secretary Art Morimoto, Assistant Director of Public Works Visitors (Who Signed-in): Chris Bush Leslie Austere Steve Lamont Elizabeth Moore Drew Dora-Abrams Robert Bachrach 1. CALL TO ORDER. 7:00 p.m. 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG. 3. ROLL CALL. 4 of 5 Commissioners present. Commissioner Wettan absent. 4. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Chair Akers acknowledged the presence of Councilmember Ann Keighran in the audience. 5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - Motion: To accept the minutes of January 9, 2014 with corrections to the spelling of some last names and titles. 2 M/S/C: Londer/Martos; 3/0/1 (Commissioner Noworolski abstained) 6. PUBLIC COMMENTS None. 7. CURRENT BUSINESS 7.1 Burlingame Downtown Parking Structure Discussion Chair Akers stated that this was the second of three meetings on the Downtown Parking Structure discussion. He presented parts of the adopted Burlingame Downtown Specific Plan pertaining to parking; and, suggested that staff prepare to discuss the following downtown parking strategy issues in the April meeting: - Parking measures that have been implemented - Parking measures that are nearly completed or implemented - Concrete timeline for implementation - Indication of what resources or other needs necessary to move towards implementation Chair Akers reiterated that the Commission has been asked to provide Council with thoughts and consolidate public comments and provide information and input for consideration. He noted that since there currently is no funding for a parking structure, it was not appropriate for the Commission to provide a rank order list or a definitive answer regarding a specific location or structure type. Chair Akers clarified that he believed the Commission was to provide Council with a list of factors to consider and some thoughts on whether a parking structure was appropriate and where it might be located. Chair Akers proposed to his colleagues to defer asking staff for further reports at this time but instead, take public comment and hold questions to staff for next month. He also proposed that the Commission assemble two Commissioners to draft a discussion document for the next meeting. Chair Akers opened the floor for public comment. Steve Lamont expressed the desire for a “Town Square” setup to improve walkability, reduce traffic flow, and push cars to the periphery to make it a safer place for pedestrians. Robert Bachrach said his proposals are along the lines of the prior speaker. Mr. Bachrach said he has had informal discussions with mayors and Trust for Public Lands concerning the future development of the current Post Office parcel, which could be a Central Park and underground parking facility. Mr. Bachrach felt the parking lots farther down Park Road would be better sites for the Grosvenor project, which could also encompass parking. He said the combination of these approaches would give a better 3 community. Mr. Bachrach stated the need to maintain the vitality of the downtown shopping area by solving the parking issues. David Jackson asked for consideration regarding a shuttle to Caltrain, as opposed to a multiple story structure and suggested this be implemented as a test. Pat Giorni said the parking impacts in the downtown were spilling into residential neighborhoods. Ms. Giorni suggested that the ordinance that restricted parking from 10:00 pm to 6:00 am be possibly reinstated so that residents would use their driveways for parking. Chris Bush said the City needed to consider the congestion impacts created by adding additional parking; and, felt the need to better utilize existing parking. Another consideration he suggested was esthetic appeal and how a structure might impact the pedestrian experience. There was concurrence amongst the Commissioners to assemble a team to develop a discussion document. John Martos and Chair Akers volunteered, and stated that they would have some material to present to the rest of the Commission for final discussion at the next month’s meeting. 8. Information/Discussion Items from Commission and Staff 8.1 Engineering Division Reports – Reports and/or updates on Public Works project and activities 8.1.1 Requests/comments/responses to public traffic concerns (stop signs, crosswalks, speed control, parking) - Non-standard stop signs along Trousdale Drive Mr. Wong reported that the stops signs warrant studies are nearly complete; and, that it appeared like all the stops would become standardized installations. He added that a final report on the outcome would be present at the next meeting. - Adeline Drive/Cortez Avenue pedestrian crosswalk Mr. Chou reported that pedestrian studies were done and marked crosswalks will be scheduled for installation at a later date. He said that work orders would be submitted and the work would be done when the weather was warmer and dryer. Chair Akers opened the floor for public comment. Steve Lamont stated that the vehicles were travelling at a high rate of speed 4 on Adeline, and he felt the crosswalks may give an illusion of safety. Mr. Lamont requested extra patrols. Another resident/business owner (name was not given) reported that she saw a lot of pedestrians waiting at all four corners of El Camino Real and Cypress Avenue; and, that this was due to the traffic signal timing being too short. She also mentioned that there was a need for a stop sign at the intersection of Highland Avenue and Howard Avenue. - Floribunda Traffic Calming review Mr. Wong stated that he has been in contact with Mr. Eugene Zauber and has plans to setup a walking tour to meet with the residents and discuss what might be feasible on Floribunda. 8.1.2 Construction and Design projects - Burlingame Avenue Streetscape Project Mr. Wong reported that there were some delays on the 1400 block due to rain. - Bike Route Improvement Project Mr. Wong reported that this project has been completed. 8.1.3 School Traffic Issues - Walking Audit: Lincoln Elementary Mr. Wong reported that staff participated in a walking audit and met with the School District and their consultant. He stated that staff would be working with them to implement short-term and long-term measures. Chair Akers had some additional information from Caltrans regarding traffic signal timing at Ray Drive and El Camino Real, which he would try to provide to staff before the next meeting. Mr. Wong said the walking audit also determined that the turning restriction times on Devereux Drive need minor adjustments, such as extending the restriction times from 3:00 pm to 3:30 pm. Ms. Giorni spoke in support of extending the extra 30 minutes for this restriction. 8.2 Police Department Reports – Reports and/or updates on Police Department program and activities 5 8.2.1 General/Selective Traffic Enforcement Report Sergeant Kiely gave an update on the current OTS grant, which has allowed the Police Department to obtain a DUI/EOC trailer. Sergeant Kiely also reported that another grant application was submitted to outfit the trailer with all the required and necessary radio equipment. He said the trailer was primarily funded by the OTS grant, along with assistance from Central County Fire and Public Works. Sergeant Kiely reported that another application was submitted to renew their current grant to participate in the Countywide Allied Agency, with additional Burlingame specific traffic details. 8.3 Commissioners’ Comments and Concerns None. 9. COMMUNICATIONS 9.1 Stephen Hollman – Speeding on Florbunda Avenue 9.2 Syed Murtuza – Catch basin construction work on California Drive 9.3 Kevin Nelson – El Camino Real parking south of Mills/Peninsula Hospital 9.4 Ward Supplee – No Parking Signs on Newlands Avenue 9.5 Other Communications Chair Akers asked that on future Communications items a one sentence summary be included on a test case basis. 10. COMMISSION & COMMITTEE REPORTS 10.1 Burlingame Bicycle/Pedestrian Advisory committee (B/PAC) Mr. Wong reported B/PAC discussed potential locations for new bike racks at city parks, City Hall, the Rec Center, and the libraries. Funding for these new racks was obtained through a Congestion Relief Alliance grant. He stated that B/PAC was to report back next month with specific locations at these facilities. Mr. Wong reported that there was a brief discussion on best practices versus the highway design manual for the City’s bicycle facilities; as well as a brief discussion on Burlingame’s Complete Streets policy. Mr. Wong said that there was a lengthy discussion about Ray Drive/El Camino 6 Real/Rosedale Avenue. Ms. Giorni and Commissioner Londer had completed pedestrian counts last month indicating that twice as many pedestrians were using the Adeline crossing than at Ray Drive, possibly because of the presence of a crossing guard. He said that staff would follow up to see about the possibility of a crossing guard at Ray Drive/El Camino Real/Rosedale Avenue for the next school year. 11. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS 11.1 Howard Avenue Long-term and Short-term Parking (1400 block) 11.2 TSPC Areas of Emphasis for 2014 – March meeting 11.3 Electric Charging Stations 11.4 Downtown Parking Strategies – April meeting 12. Elections – Chair and Vice-Chair Elections for 2014 Commissioner Londer nominated Commissioner Wettan for Chair. No other nominations were offered. 4/0/0 Commissioner Londer nominated Commissioner Noworolski for Vice-chair. No other nominations were offered. 4/0/0 13. ADJOURNMENT 7:47 p.m.