MEETING NOTES DES MOINES AREA METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION (MPO) CENTRAL IOWA BICYCLE-PEDESTRIAN ROUNDTABLE (ROUNDTABLE)

January 18, 2011 12:00 PM

City of Des Moines, St. Etienne Room Des Moines, Iowa

Roundtable Attendees Present:

Marco Alvarez, City of West Des Moines Dana Conn, Transportation Management Association Dustin Delvaux, City of Bondurant Josh Heggen, City of Windsor Heights Ben Landhauser, City of Waukee Jim Lane, City of Norwalk, Chair Loren Lown, Polk County Conservation Mindy Moore, City of Des Moines Jim Priebe, Warren County Conservation Ruth Randleman, City of Carlisle/MAC Ted Tran, Congressman Boswells Office Stefanie Toftey, DART Ron Ward, City of Johnston Carol Williams, Story County Conservation

Roundtable Staff Present:

Dylan Mullenix, Senior Transportation Planner

I. Call to Order
Chair Jim Lane called the February 15, 2011, Roundtable meeting to order at 12:05 p.m., at the St. Etienne Room, Armory Building, 602 Robert D. Ray Drive, Des Moines, IA.

II.

Introduction
Participants introduced themselves.

III.

Approval of Agenda
Participants approved the January 15, 2011, Roundtable meeting agenda.

IV.

Approval of the Roundtables January 18, 2011, Meeting Notes

Participants approved the Roundtables January 18, 2011, meeting notes.

V. (A.)

Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Fund Amendment

Mindy Moore explained the City of Des Moines received a grant last year that was to be used on Bike Month, trail maps, to provide League Cycling Instructor (LCI) training, and to host a Bike Rodeo. However, the LCI class and Bike Rodeo did not materialize, and the City of Des Moines would like to reallocate those grant funds to be used for Bike Month 2011 and for bike education efforts. This amendment requires approval from the Roundtable.

Vern Willey asked about the amount of money in question. Ms. Moore responded that $4,000 is available for Bike Month and $3,650 is available for bike education. Discussion ensued about where within Bike Month the funds would be used. Discussion ensued regarding why LCI training and the Bike Rodeo never materialized. Ms. Moore noted LCI training required a minimum of 10 persons, which they did not get, and the Bike Rodeo did not meet the grant requirements. The Roundtable agreed with to allow the City of Des Moines to reallocate funds. Chair Lane directed MPO staff to draft a letter noting this approval.

V. (B.)

Update Unified Bicycle Ordinance Draft

Ruth Randleman explained the MACs subcommittee revised the draft ordinance, and the MAC is asking for comments on the revised draft before taking the final version to the MAC in March. Ms. Randleman emphasized that each local government, not the MAC, will need to adopt the ordinance. Discussion ensued about the various changes made from the first draft. Chair Lane asked whether a provision for a three-foot passing clearance should be added. Ms. Randleman noted the MAC subcommittee did discuss this but left it out as it would be difficult to enforce. Discussion ensued about ways the subcommittee tried to make the ordinance easy to enforce, which included the removal of specific measurements where applicable. Discussion ensued regarding the section regarding motorized devices on trails. Discussion ensued regarding provision for bike trailers. The roundtable suggested revising Section 16 of the draft ordinance to remove the phrase and shall not tow or be towed by another bicycle or vehicle. Marco Alvarez asked if the Roundtable and other communities could have additional time for review of the draft ordinance. Ms. Randleman asked for any comments to be made by the first part of March.

V. (C.)

Letters of Support for the Partnerships Washington, D.C., Trip Projects

Chair Lane asked for any comments to the letter drafted by Lisa Hein in support of continued Transportation Enhancement funds. No comments were provided. Chair Lane and MPO staff announced a meeting with Congressman Boswell on February 22, 2011, that will feature a discussion on transportation funding in the next fiscal year.

V. (D.)

Iowa Bicycle Summit

The Roundtable discussed highlights from the Iowa Bicycle Summit, held January 28-29 in Des Moines. Chair Lane noted he attended the Saturday events, which were good. Discussion ensued about the congressional forum held on Friday of the event. The point made by the congressional staffers was that there is a ban on earmarks in Congress, but that local entities could keep providing projects in case any funds do become available.

V. (E.)

Bike-Pedestrian Project Updates

MPO staff asked for Roundtable participants to send any updates about trails that will be constructed over the summer. This will allow staff to update its trail gaps map. Stefanie Toftey suggested it would be beneficial to collect this information now, while communities are developing their Capital Improvement Plans, so that any changes could still be made to those plans. Chair Lane noted the Roundtable used to review these maps regularly, and he would like to see the Roundtable begin reviewing these maps again to understand what links might be missing. Ms. Toftey noted that if there are any minor connections missing to transit facilities, DART may have funds that could be used to help make the connections.

VI. (A.)

Trails Marketing Meeting

Chair Lane noted a trails marketing meeting is scheduled for February 18, 2011, at the Greater Des Moines Partnership office. This meeting will feature Brian Leaders with the National Parks Service and Mark Wyatt who will discuss a program to develop tourism and marketing plans for Iowa trails.

VI. (B.)

DART Bike-and-Ride Counts

MPO staff reviewed the DART bike-and-ride counts for January. Staff noted counts for CyRide were not available at the time of the agendas publishing.

VII.

Other Items of Interest to the Roundtable

Loren Lown noted the US Department of Justice has released new Americans with Disabilities Act regulations that will allow persons with disabilities to use motorized mobility devices on trails with no limits on size or horsepower. Mr. Lown also noted the regulations make it difficult for trail managers to inquire about someones disability, potentially leading anyone to be able to use motorized vehicles, such as four-wheelers or even automobiles, on trails.

Discussion ensued regarding the potential problems this new regulation could pose on trail managers. Chair Lane noted this will be an agenda item at the next meeting. Ruth Randleman noted the Iowa Legislature is looking to cut funding for Vision Iowa and Great Places, both of which have provided trail funding in the past.

VIII.

Next MPO Roundtable Meeting Date

The next Roundtable meeting is scheduled for March 15, 2011, at noon.

IX.

Adjournment
The February 15, 2011, Roundtable meeting adjourned at 1:00 p.m.