HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-03-09-WALKS-min
Minutes of the
Lexington Sidewalk Committee Meeting
March 9, 2009 11:00 a.m.
Selectmen’s Meeting Room, Town Hall
Present
: Jerry Van Hook, Suzie Barry, Judy Crocker, John Davies, Lucy Fletcher-Jones, Meg
Lotz, Francine Stieglitz, Wayne Brooks (DPW), Richard Canale (Planning Board), Elaine Celi
(LPS Transportation Mgr.), John Livsey (Town Engineer), Christine McVey (Town Planner)
Minutes. The minutes of the December 2008 and January 2009 meetings and the report of the
February meeting were approved.
Lexington Gardens Project. Jerry reported that were were two public meetings with the
Planning Board at which citizens spoke including Carl Oldenberg, an abutter and Lexington
architect, who presented an alternative plan to those presented by the builder, Homes
Development Corp. Jerry said there were two principal issues of concern to the SRTS and our
committee: (1) the need to evaluate the impact of residential development on school access and
safety at the adjacent Hancock St roundabout and (2) the advisability of a single entry onto
Hancock St away from the roundabout.
It was generally agreed that pedestrian safety is a primary concern in the area and that there will
be a significant increase in vehicular, bicycle and foot traffic with the new development, whether
the final plan is for an 11-home by-right project or a 26-home cluster development plan. The
developer has so far declined to help fund a professional evaluation of how the project would
impact bicycle and pedestrian safety in the immediate neighborhood. Christine McVay from
Town Planning said that the Transportation Safety Advisory Committee (TSAC) should be
involved in the process, suggesting that the developer cannot be expected to pay for all of the
study and suggested that a public/private cooperation would be best.
Richard Canale agreed that an organization, namely TSAC, is already in place and that the SWC
should not go it alone. He also said that the Planning Bd regulations would not trigger the need
for a traffic study, a 50 home development is the threshold, and that the regulations would not
require the developer on his own to address any unsafe conditions at the roundabout. The
Selectmen would have to find the money for the professional part of the study using the various
committees and boards in town to provide support and to help evaluate the findings. Jerry asked
where the money might come from if the developer will not contribute. Richard said to use the
is still
development as leverage and push the internal staff to do XYZ. Christine said the project
in the preliminary stage.
Jerry asked who will take the lead on the question of one or two road cuts onto Hancock St. and
Richard said that the Planning Bd needs to look at both designs. He said that there was no
overwhelming evidence that one design is less safe or more disruptive to traffic than the other.
Experts will offer different opinions, but with a compromise we should be able to avoid
confusion in the area. Richard said that abutters know where the problems are, and Jerry
countered that is why Carl Oldenberg, an abutter and architect, offered his plan..
John Livesey said that a third-party consultant might be the way to go. Richard said that the
developer could decide to build ”by right” if he is asked to contribute and that the Planning
Board wants the town to take the primary responsibility.
Judy Crocker, coordinator of Safe Routes to School, said she had written and invited the
developer to come to the SWC meetings and discuss the issues, but the builder had twice
declined, preferring to wait until the project plans were finalized. Suzie Barry said that both
biking and walking to school have increased dramatically in the last three years, so the proposed
increased traffic will be create a greater safety hazard.
In an effort to emphasize the shear volumeof traffic which occurs on an average school day
involving school activities-only at the Hancock rotary, SRTS offers these figures as rough
estimates. Given the Diamond Middle School population of 800 students and the two entrances
that the school has, the breakdown of traffic is approximately as follows:
> 20% walk or bike (100 students) x twice /day = 200 students Hancock St
> 30% bus (300 students) x twice/day = 600 students Hancock St only
> 30% car (150 students) X twice/day = 300 students Hancock St
The 20% balance of walkers, bikers, and cars use the Sedge Rd entrance (250 students). It should
be noted that the 8 Diamond buses can only use the Hancock St entrance. These figures do not
take into account other commuter and school traffic from the abutting neighborhoods and the
Estabrook School and Fiske Schools.
a sliver of project
The question was raised whether the SWC should ask for land to straighten
the school access road and thereby improve visibility for the path from Burlington St. Richard
said the PB has not heard from the school and Judy suggested the school does not think it's a
priority.
Website Changes. Lucy Fletcher-Jones reported on the website changes. Wayne Brooks has
completed the spreadsheets for all Lexington streets, including GIS information to be put on the
website. This will greatly improve information retrieval.
th
Spring Street Project. There will be another public meeting in Cary Hall on March 10. To
define the committee position there was a discussion on the alternatives of a traffic signal at
Spring and Marrett Rd versus the installation of two pedestrian-activated crossing signals at
either side of the intersection. Jerry said that if there was to be a single traffic light, there should
not be a long delay after pedestrian activation or the students would find other locations to cross
Marrett on the way to school. He also urged 10 ft side line striping on Spring St as a safety
factor for bicyclists and for vehicular traffic calming. Richard pointed out that Mass Hwy
guidelines suggest that level of service (time delay in crossing) should not exceed Level C (30
sec) to maximize compliance
Roosevelt Road. Wayne said that he intends to pursue resolution on which side of the street the
sidewalk will be constructed. The general funds for sidewalk work are restricted this year, but
since this project has been in waiting for some time, he felt he could find the funding to complete
.
the project this year, once the alignment question is resolved
The meeting was adjourned at 12:50 p.m.,
The next meeting of the Sidewalk Committee will be on Monday, April 6, 2009, at 11:00 in the
Selectmen’s Meeting Room.
Minutes prepared by Francine Stieglitz