HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012-09-04 Business and Economic Development Committee Minutes
BUSINESS & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
City Council Chambers
Minutes
Councilors: Gratwick, Longo, Blanchette, Durgin
Staff: Conlow, Vanadestine, Bolduc, Heitmann, Morgan, Wardwell
Regular Agenda
1. Discussion on Complete Streets
Chair Gratwick gave an overview of Complete Streets and the need for Bangor to look at it. He feels
Bangor streets are “incomplete” and this program can do the following: increase the safety of all,
increase the health of residents, save money, and have a significant community impact. It can also help
with reclaiming neighborhoods without all the traffic.
Art Morgan, City Engineer, described complete streets as roadways for all users – bikes, pedestrians,
private autos and public vehicles. This is a shift from the conventional thinking which was to reduce the
delays on the roads for private autos. It creates safer more user friendly routes for all users. Art gave a
PowerPoint presentation depicting what complete streets look like using photos and diagrams.
Morgan outlined the pros and cons. The pros: safer for bikes and pedestrians, encourages alternate
modes of transportation and reduces vehicular traffic, has health benefits and complies with ADA
planning standards. The cons are: there is less roadway, speeds would be reduced (this could also be a
pro), more pavement is needed, may be difficult to complete in built out areas (which is most of Bangor)
and it requires right-of-ways.
Rosie Vanadestine, Director of Community and Economic Development, discussed the importance of
public education and outreach. The first step is to assess the needs before jumping into a program.
BACTS did a study in 2009 which can provide some information. Complete Streets can be implemented
on existing roads by restriping and minor geometric changes. It can and should be done in conjunction
with planned road maintenance. It could require a design manual to be rewritten or created with this
concept. Putting it into practice from policies on paper can be challenging.
An implementation plan would need to be created. Some other towns have used steering committees
to focus on policy development. Identifying documents and process that need to be changed and
created along with assigning responsibilities for making changes would be an important component.
Encouraging community involvement and an educational campaign will also be necessary.
Creating street design guidelines for transportation planning with a process that is flexible, inclusive and
well documented and clear is also being done in other areas. Some also use checklists at the beginning
of every project that includes questions regarding bikes and pedestrians. A routine accommodation
policy is another option for construction and maintenance. This would ensure that multimodal
accommodations are considered for each project.
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Performance measures are very important with any new program and must be established to show
actual or potential performance. It must be determined how to measure the performance and how to
use that information. It could be used for: needs assessments, ranking projects for funding, impact
assessments or to evaluate the effects of a policy and if the goals are being achieved.
There also needs to be exception issues that are considered. This forces staff to be systematic and
consider all the options some include: when it creates a safety hazard, there is no identified long-term
need, or costs are prohibitive.
To successfully balance the user’s needs, planners must change the way in which automobile traffic
congestion is viewed. Most policies lack mandating equity for the needs of all transportation modes. It
is important to find the proper balance once the right to share the streets by other modes is recognized.
Solutions will need to be creative so when improvements are made for one mode it does not overly
burden others.
This can be a long process and staff needs to learn and be trained on new design techniques, new
procedures and new ways of thinking. To truly implement this complete street approach would also
require the support of community leadership.
City Manager Cathy Conlow said we can create evaluation tools to assist with this. She feels there is
merit to this; however, Bangor is built out. We would need to create a policy statement and look at how
to include bikes and pedestrians as we plan. Our approach will be to provide tools to look at against a
cost matrix.
Councilor Durgin said the proposal is intriguing however he has concerns. First, this makes sense for
planning projects in the future and helpful for new streets and neighborhoods. He is concerned it is very
costly as we are built out and it might not be as compatible for Bangor. He doesn’t envision we would
rebuild roads at a very expensive cost. We would need to evaluate individual streets and
neighborhoods. We would need to understand the true costs before moving this forward. Unless there
is federal funding or other sources of funds he feels this is a very expensive way to approach streets and
roads. We need to indentify well in advance how this is positive for the citizens. Nelson also is
concerned about maintenance and snow removal and the costs that this would create or increase.
Councilor Longo feels this is a good idea on paper and to bring new things up. He feels Bangor is lacking
in accessible bike trails. Bike trails increase the quality of life and the business climate. It is a staple in
some communities. Maybe we should look at paving trails to enlarge the trail system that we have here.
Councilor Blanchette said that Acadia National Park has many more bikes than Bangor and they have no
bike lanes there. She feels driver education with the State around bike safety and courtesy is important.
Bikes have as much right to be on the roads as cars do. However, there are some legitimate complaints
about bikers not needing a license or not paying excise taxes, etc. for maintenance. She is concerned
about creating more dangers to the biker as shown in the slides.
Dana Wardwell, Public Works Director, agreed with Councilor Durgin about the maintenance costs going
up. He said we always build well but we don’t consider the maintenance costs etc. in the future. Wider
streets are easier for snow removal because there is more space for the snow. Just the painting on one
of the slides would be over $100 annually in addition to the repair and maintenance costs in the future.
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Chair Gratwick said this is just the beginning of the process and the conversations. Councilor Durgin
suggested looking at other communities for best practices and what works and what doesn’t. Conlow
explained that Evan Richert has been hired as the consultant for the Third to Main area planning which
will include street designs that we can use in other areas of the city. He will look at one-ways, etc. It
isn’t hard and fast as we are already built out and are looking at how to improve. We can create
guidelines that we evaluate against and tools to determine what is best for Bangor while considering the
costs.
TASK: Staff will bring back policy guidance to the BED Committee in 6 weeks. The proposal will be an
outline of a policy with guidelines to evaluate new development etc.
Councilor Longo indicated that he is not sure if exact model will work for us or if he is in favor of it but
he is in favor of Bangor being bike friendly or using existing trails. Chair Gratwick said we can create a
Bangor Streets plan that isn’t as rigid as Complete Streets but have something similar for here. He also
would like the Planning Board to be included. Councilor Blanchette wants to see facts and figures from
other communities and how they approached it (if they left streets as now or changed them all or just a
few and what is the dollar figure for that)
#2 Discussion Regulation of Use of Median Strips
City Solicitor Norm Heitmann gave an overview of the ordinance that Portland tried to pass that was
stating median strips were only to be used to cross the street. Median strips are any strips that divide a
highway. That would mean that one could not go onto the median strip to place any signs.
What is the real issue in Bangor with median strips? Is there a problem? Is this an appropriate solution?
Councilor Durgin said Portland’s was to address panhandling in the medians. Keeping people out of the
middle of the road makes sense. Median strips are varied; some are concrete, some have vegetation,
and others are dividers at intersections. He is not sure what this is directed to.
Heitmann explained that there are two issues. What are you regulating – activity on the median strip.
One is a safety related issue – not only in the median strips etc. by cars being stopped by people so
there is a traffic safety concern. The second issue is panhandling. However, panhandling is legal and it
is constitutionally protected although some see it as abusive solicitation. States and municipalities can
regulate it by a time, place and manner. We can limit the places. People have more rights to express on
a sidewalk than they would in a city park or City Hall. We can designate areas where it is acceptable. If
the concern is safety that is easy to deal with as state law allows. If the concern is soliciting placing time,
place and manner restriction on it would work. The location would determine the restrictions.
Heitmann said we have no panhandling/solicitation ordinances. The challenge with them is the
enforcement. Councilor Durgin asked why we were addressing this if there is no issue. Conlow said that
concerns were raised in shopping areas where people stand and with the safety of the people doing the
panhandling.
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Councilor Longo noted it is a Freedom of Speech issue. If we apply reasonable time, place, and manner
restrictions etc. like during rush hour, atm machines, gas stations, public transportation and bus stops, it
would help with the safety of both the asker and the asked.
It is not a good economic development tool when people are asking for money. We need to narrow it
down to the real issue. There is a delicate balance to ensure people’s rights in these tough challenging
economic times. It would be difficult to uphold in a court of law, too. Heitmann said we can have an
ordinance about street solicitation based on safety, etc. with neutral content that regulates behavior not
status. Solicitation is behavior. It can have distances outlined for teller machines in the ordinance, etc.
in addition to banning it from airports etc.
Councilor Blanchette wants to pursue this as she feels a bad image is put forth and taking care of people
in need is not the image she wants of Bangor. We have no residency requirements and people complain
that we take care of the underprivileged and we dole out General Assistance under the state regulations
etc.
Councilor Durgin said it is okay if discussed as a public benefit and not anything to do with median strips.
He wants a focused issue brought back to the committee with a remedy. Heitmann said it is broader
than just panhandlers but they are the most common, others are religious or just passing out
informational flyers, etc. It will be a behavior not status direction with safety and accosting people
addressed to accomplish both to help people feel safe and pass unobstructed by others. He will draft an
ordinance to bring back that will maintain the balance. He also cautioned that this will not solve 100%
of the issue.
Councilor Longo moved to adjourn the meeting. Councilor Durgin seconded the motion. All in favor,
motion carried.
Meeting Adjourned at 6:16 pm