Title
First Reading of Ordinance No. 14-1013, Approving the Linn Avenue / Leland Road / Meyers Road Corridor Plan (Planning File LE 14-04)
Body
RECOMMENDED ACTION (Motion):
Staff recommends that the City Commission approve the first reading of Ordinance No. 14-1013.
BACKGROUND:
This item was continued from April 15, 2015. The final revisions to the draft plan based on the April 7, 2015 work session with the City Commission have been completed. These include the addition of the roundabout intersection analysis, the recommendations of the planning commission and city commission, and all public comments.
At the work session on April 7, the City Commission encouraged staff to continue to work with abutting property owners to minimize impacts of the roundabout alternative (alternative 5) on three abutting properties - Verhaalen Painting, the Plaid Pantry commercial site (Savage), and First Presbyterian Church.
The Linn Avenue / Leland Road / Meyers Road Corridor Plan (Plan) is being developed to address deficiencies in the pedestrian and bicycle facilities along the corridor. The area of the plan is from 5th Street at Jackson Street to Meyers Road at Moccasin Way. Along this route there are very few existing sidewalks and designated bicycle lanes. The Plan will identify preferred street sections to address these deficiencies when future development occurs. The Plan will also look at connecting important features along the corridor (i.e. parks and schools) by means of paths, sidewalks and bicycle lanes. In addition, the Plan will address the needs of the Linn Avenue, Warner Milne Road, Leland Road, Warner Parrott Road and Central Point Road intersection by proposing an intersection improvement plan.
On August 25, 2014, the Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend approval of the Linn Avenue / Leland Road / Meyers Road Corridor Plan with the following recommendations:
- Consider the use of rumble strips or other visual methods to adequately separate bicycle lanes from vehicle travel lanes, particularly on inside curves;
- Minimize impacts to the Plaid Pantry commercial properties;
- Maximize the use of green techniques and landscaping to make the roundabout and intersection as visually attractive as possible;
- Recommend moving the center of the 5-legged roundabout north and west in order to minimize impacts to the Plaid Pantry (Savage) property;
- Look at options to improve the intersection with Electric Avenue with respect to stormwater management improvements;
- Utilize efficient street lighting to maximize safety along the right-of-way.
On September 17, 2014, legislative review of the Linn Avenue / Leland Road / Meyers Road Corridor Plan was requested. More public testimony was introduced and discussed, specifically related to concerns about the 5-leg roundabout proposed in the Plan for the Linn Avenue, Leland Road, Warner Milne Road, Warner Parrott Road and Central Point Road intersection(s). With the additional testimony, staff recommended that the topic be continued until November 19 so further determinations could be made.
On November 19, 2014, the corridor plan adoption was continued a second time until April 15, 2015 to allow the project team time to complete a detailed intersection control analysis. The agreement for professional services with Wallis Engineering was amended to include the supplemental scope to further ascertain the long term needs of
the intersection, but more specifically, to complete a detailed analysis of 5 intersection scenarios. This additional work was anticipated to require 15 weeks to complete.
Wallis Engineering and DKS Associates have provided the City with an Intersection Control Analysis Draft Report which on February 18th was presented to the Transportation Advisory Committee. Project stakeholders and interested public were also provided access to the plan.
The draft intersection control analysis considers 6 alternatives including a do nothing alternative. Considerations including traffic operations, construction and maintenance costs, safety, system context, and right of way / access impacts were all studied. The report also describes other costs that are more difficult to quantify such as construction delay costs, opportunity costs, impacts to private businesses, or right-of-way impacts.
Overall, the roundabout alternatives (alternatives 4 and 5) show the greatest benefit for operations and safety, but also have the largest construction cost, which includes right-of-way acquisition. Alternatives 1 and 2 have much more modest construction cost yet the operational benefits and safety benefits are not nearly what can be achieved with the roundabout options. Alternative 3, where both intersections are signalized, does not meet operational standards.
Based on future traffic operations and potential savings related to safety, Alternative 5 is recommended as the long-term preferred alternative for these study intersections. If a short term solution is desired, Alternative 1 or 2 could be implemented at a significantly lower cost.