METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION

Transcription

1 METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION A meeting of the Indian River County (IRC) Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) was held at 10:00 AM on Wednesday, December 14, 2016, in the County Administration Building B, Room B1 501, th Street, Vero Beach, Florida. Note: Audio and video recordings of the meeting can be found at MPO members present were: IRC Commissioners: Commissioner Susan Adams, District 1; Commissioner Joseph Flescher, District 2; Commissioner Tim Zorc, District 3; Commissioner Bob Solari, District 5; Laura Moss, Council Member, City of Vero Beach; Shawn Frost, IRC School Board; Ed Dodd, (alternate) Council Member, City of Sebastian; Sara Savage, Vice Mayor, City of Fellsmere; Dick Haverland, Council Member, Town of Indian River Shores; Hal Ofstie, Town of Orchid (non voting member). Absent was: Commissioner Peter O Bryan, District 4; Chairman Bob McPartlan, Council Member, City of Sebastian; Andrea Coy, Council Member, City of Sebastian, Lange Sykes, Council Member, City of Vero Beach. IRC staff present were: Dylan Reingold, IRC Attorney; Stan Boling, IRC Community Development Department Director; Rich Szpyrka, IRC Public Works Director; Phil Matson, IRC MPO Director; Brian Freeman, MPO Senior Planner; Andy Sobczak, MPO Senior Planner; and Sharon Schalm, MPO Staff Assistant 3 /Recording Secretary. Also present were: Victoria WIlliams, FDOT Turnpike MPO Liaison; Gerry O Reilly, Stacy Miller, Leslie Wetherell, Antonette Adams, Lisa Dykstra, Dan Hiden, Robin Busebois, FDOT; Alexandra Medina, Carlos Rodriquez, Paul Carballo, Maria Formoso, FDOT/ Metric Engineering; Teresa Lane, Janelle Cedeno, Christen Shadoin, South Florida Commuter Services; Richard Dreyer, William Ball, Tindale Oliver; Jason Nunemaker, City Manager, City of Fellsmere; Bob Auwaerter, Council Member, Indian River Shores; Laura Zorc, IRC School Board; Eric Menger, City of Vero Beach Airport; Barb Drndak, Vero Beach Airport Commission; Richard Krull, Sebastian CAC Representative (Alternate); Frank Watanabe, City of Sebastian Engineering; Bryan Corrigan, Corrigan Ranch; Ervin Cartwright, Eula Helpling, Wabasso Residents; Craig Leonard, Titan Concrete; Amy Speak, Jose Garris, Fred Mensing, John Maitner, Concerned Citizens. Call to Order Vice Chairman Solari called the meeting to order at 10:00 AM. 1

2 Approval of Minutes of the MPO Meeting of September 14, 2016 Vice Chairman Solari asked if there were any additions or corrections to the MPO minutes of September 14, There were none. ON MOTION BY, Commissioner Flescher, SECONDED by Commissioner Zorc, the members voted (9 0) to approve the minutes of the Metropolitan Planning Organization of September 14, 2016 as presented. Status Report of Other MPO Advisory Committees Mr. Matson reviewed his memorandum, dated December 5, 2016, included in the agenda packet and on file in the MPO Office. Review of Progress Report & Reimbursement Invoice #1 for the 2016/17 Planning Grant Mr. Matson referred to his memorandum dated December 5, 2016, a copy of which is included in the agenda packet and on file in the MPO Office. ON MOTION BY Commissioner Flescher, SECONDED BY Commissioner Adams, the members voted (9 0) to approve the Progress Report and Reimbursement Invoice #1 for the 2016/17 Planning Grant as presented. Request for Authorization to Enter into a Review of FDOT Draft Tentative Five Year Work Program for Fiscal Years 2017/18 through 2021/22 Mr. Matson, MPO Staff Director, gave a brief description and timeline of the Work Program and then introduced District Secretary O Reilly, of FDOT District 4, who introduced the FDOT staff and gave a Power Point presentation of the FDOT Draft Five Year Work Program cycle, a copy of which is on file in the MPO office. Secretary O Reilly spoke of the great working relationship FDOT and the Indian River County MPO maintains. He noted that customer service was very important to FDOT as well as safety. Secretary O Reilly gave a summary of projects completed and under construction. Council Member Moss asked what FDOT was doing to prevent the accidents on I 95. Secretary O Reilly introduced Mr. Hiden, FDOT Operations Engineer to address those concerns. Mr. Hiden noted that FDOT had improved the shoulders, slowed the speed, requested enforcement, 2

3 installed reflectors and digital signs and improved safety. Secretary O Reilly said that the completion date had been delayed until possibly April or May of 2017, depending on the weather conditions. He noted that Safety is the number one priority at FDOT. Secretary O Reilly also noted that FDOT will have a new Complete Streets manual and will be designing roads differently to include lane width changes for bicycles and pedestrians. He noted that all school zones in the State of Florida will be upgraded to have the same standards and poor lighting in pedestrian areas will be addressed. He introduced Ms. Wetherell who reviewed the priority projects for Indian River County and gave updates on each project. Commissioner Flescher thanked FDOT for the safety updates to I 95. He inquired about the timeline for updates to the school zones. Secretary O Reilly noted that District 4 was working to assess the need and were currently putting money aside to do the updates. He explained that FDOT was working to bring all school zones up to required national standards. Mr. Matson summarized the work program and noted that Indian River County is one of the faster growing jurisdictions in the district and how appreciative the MPO is for the great public involvement of the citizenry in Indian River County. Secretary O Reilly noted that he wished every MPO in the state was run like the Indian River County MPO. Discussion took place about the Vero Beach Airport being eligible to receive SIS funding in the future. Secretary O Reilly noted that the sooner the better to apply. Ms. Barbara Drndak, Vero Airport Commission Chairman spoke about the Airport Master Plan and the need to advance Aviation Blvd. Commissioner Zorc requested that the airport be on the next MPO agenda. Mr. Matson noted that he will update the Board on SIS qualifications at the next meeting. ON MOTION BY Commissioner Flescher, SECONDED BY Mr. Frost, the members voted (9 0) to approve the FDOT Draft Tentative Five Year Work Program for Fiscal Years 2017/18 through 2021/22, including the Florida Turnpike Enterprise Work Program, as presented. Presentation of CR 510 Widening Project Study Report Mr. Matson noted that the widening of CR 510 (CR th Avenue) is a key element of the MPO s 2040 Long Range Transportation Plan and is currently the top highway priority project. Mr. Matson introduced Maria Formosa, Project Manager of the CR 510 Project who in turn introduced the staff from Metric Engineering. Ms. Formoso gave the timeline, description, project limits, purpose and need, and four segment divisions. Carlos Rodriguez of Metric Engineering gave a Power Point presentation concerning the project schedule, design, and environmental study. Discussion took place about the design speed, connectivity to Vero Lake Estates, impact to schools, expected completion date, and cost. 3

4 Mr. Cartwright of Wabasso, inquired about putting a turn lane at the intersection at 58 th Ave and CR 510. Mr. Szpyrka noted that there is no County Right of way and the County cannot put a turn lane on private property. He explained that, until the property owner sells the property to the County, there can be no turn lane. He further explained that the County is trying to purchase the property and once the property belongs to the County, it would be 6 to 8 months before a turn lane could be completed. Consideration of Amendment to 2040 Long Range Transportation Plan Mr. Matson gave a Power Point presentation, a copy of which is on file in the MPO office. Mr. Matson explained that, after adoption by the MPO in December 2015, the LRTP was submitted to FDOT, the Federal Transit Administration, the Federal Highway Administration, and a number of other agencies for review and approval. He noted that, while these agencies expressed no substantial objections to the LRTP, FDOT requested that the MPO revisit the plan within one year with an amendment to ensure consistency with FDOT s latest funding guidance. Mr. Matson noted that, in response, the MPO staff reviewed the plan and proposed the amendment that has no net financial impact on federal and state funding in the overall plan (since funds are simply being transferred between local and state road projects in the 25 year plan). Mr. Matson noted that it did however, have an impact on the order in which certain LRTP projects are listed and whether projects are fully or partially funded in the Cost Feasible portion of the plan, especially in the out years (post 2030). ON MOTION BY Commissioner Flescher, SECONDED BY Mr. Frost, the members voted (9 0) to approve the Amendment to the 2040 Long Range Transportation Plan as presented. Presentation on FDOT Commuter Services Program Mr. Sobczak introduced Ms. Theresa Lane, Treasure Coast Outreach Specialist for South Florida Commuter Services, a program of FDOT. Ms. Lane introduced her staff and gave a Power Point presentation, a copy of which is on file in the MPO office, along with a brief summary of the organization and purpose, which is designed to educate motorists, cyclists and pedestrians through the FDOT initiative, Alert today/ Alive tomorrow. Ms. Lane noted the purpose of the Program was to help implement an educational campaign designed to meet the specific communication needs of Indian River County. She explained the 3 feet rule and noted that T Shirts with that information would be distributed in Indian River County during Bike Month in March. 4

5 Discussion of the North County Transit Hub Mr. Matson noted that MPO staff had been directed by the MPO to look for improvements to the North County Hub. He noted that the MPO contracted with their General Planning Consultant Tindale Oliver who assigned Mr. Dreyer to look at the site and do an assessment of the current site which has four buses that meet on Dryden Avenue one time each hour to transfer passengers, a total time frame of five minutes. Mr. Dreyer gave a Power Point presentation, a copy of which is on file in the MPO office. He presented a Draft Assessment, assessing sites and explaining what could be done to alleviate conditions at the North County Hub. He noted safety concerns, size, location, site access, impacts, and selected four sites with the greatest potential. Mr. Dreyer suggested looking for dual use, grant opportunities, and park and ride use. Mr. Krull, resident of Sebastian Crossings asked how long it would take to move the Hub. Mr. Matson noted that it would depend on the site. Mr. Dryer explained that enforcement has to be an important part of what takes place. Mr. Maitner of Fisher Homeowners explained that there were safety issues with preteen kids from the Middle School and kids from the High School crossing CR510 after school. Mr. Dryer noted that he had observed kids crossing the highway but they were not riding the bus. He explained that site development, ease of development, zoning, environmental impacts and impact on existing transit service had to be considered when making a decision where to locate the North County Hub. Consideration of Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) Amendment Mr. Matson explained that FDOT had requested the MPO approve an amendment to the adopted Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). He noted that the amendment enables the FDOT Turnpike District staff to allocate funding and begin work on minor resurfacing and guardrail replacement on the Indian River County Portions of the Turnpike prior to October 1, Discussion of Evacuation of Indian River County Residents on SR 60 Mr. Matson explained that, at the November 1, 2016 Board of County Commissioners (BCC) Meeting, the BCC passed a motion to seek the assistance of the MPO in investigating issues related to the evacuation of Citizens on SR 60 that occurred during Hurricane Matthew. Those issues pertained to both short term operational issues and long term construction issues 5

6 on sections of SR 60 west of the Indian River County line. Mr. Matson explained that signal failure at 441 and SR60 had contributed to the traffic back up. He noted that the Sheriff of Indian River County was contacting the Sheriff of Osceola County to try to resolve future issues that might arise. Discussion of All Aboard Florida Passenger Rail Initiative Mr. Matson introduced County Attorney Reingold who gave an update on All Aboard Florida. Attorney Reingold noted that Indian River County had moved for a summary judgment. All Aboard Florida had moved to dismiss the lawsuit and Indian River County had asked for discovery. Indian River County School Board Member Zorc asked if there were anything that the School Board could do to help. Attorney Reingold noted that he would be delighted to coordinate with the School Board. Quarterly Status Report Other Business There was none. Comments from the Public Ms. Helpling asked for assistance from the MPO to replace the missing Wabasso signs that designate Wabasso as a community. Mr. Matson asked if FDOT could help and Ms. Dykstra said she would look into it. Adjournment There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 12:20 PM. 6