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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-06-10-LBAC-min APPROVED MEETING MINUTES Committee Name: Lexington Bicycle Advisory Committee Date, Time and Location of Meeting: June 10, 2010, 7 pm, Room 111, Town Office Building Members Present: Peggy Enders (chair), Stew Kennedy, John Frey, Marita Hartshorn, Jerry Van Hook, Mike Tabaczynski, George Gagliardi, Richard Canale (Planning Board Liaison) Others Present: Bob Hausslein, Margaret Stebbins, Bob Dangel, Bob Hausslein, Terry Gleason Members Absent: Peter Kelley (Selectmen’s Liaison), Laurel Carpenter, Sandra Shaw (Recreation Committee Liaison), Abe Shenker Minutes : The May, 2010 minutes were accepted as corrected. Prior to the meeting we attended the ribbon cutting of the new pocket park on the Bikeway, which was landscaped by Nick Briggs as his Eagle Scout project Hartwell Avenue Traffic Mitigation : Richard Canale reported on the discussions by the Planning Board on the proposal by the consultants at Tetra Tech Rizzo. He said the current plan has features that include new bike lanes between Route 128 and a roundabout that replaces the jug handle on Bedford Street; a signalized pedestrian crossing at Eldred; new bike lanes on Hartwell Avenue; another roundabout at Maguire Road, four islands on Wood Street, etc. He said that the Massachusetts DOT insisted on the bike lanes on Bedford Street. Richard expressed concerns that the report does not treat all modes of transportation equally on the roadway. He urged the committee to participate in future hearings and meetings and would like to receive letters from as many groups as possible. After we discussed the pros and cons of the existing recommendations by the consultant, as well as about bicycle-friendly roadways in other countries and other parts of the U.S., we agreed to write three letters expressing our concerns and recommendations. One will be from Peggy Enders, Chair of LBAC; one from Stew Kennedy, representing the West Lexington Greenway and urging the plans to fully incorporate the Greenway; and one from Jerry Van Hook, Terry Gleason, and Jeff Roth, which will focus on the Wood Street component. Bikeway Intersection Safety Program : John Livsey is in the process of setting priorities for intersections and asked us for specific features, which would make intersections safer. Peggy will send an email to us and we should reply to her regarding our specific issues regarding intersections along the bike path. New Bike Map: Bob Dangel showed us his first draft of a new Minuteman Bikeway map. The new map will be 11”X 17” in color and feature access points, local business centers, and places to get water. Peggy mentioned that we will seek funding through Cambridge Savings Bank and is working with Joey Glusko in Arlington. Peggy clarified that the Tourism Committee is willing to support our efforts to produce a local map that directs bicyclists to historic sites and conservation lands. th Transportation Forum : Peggy attended the June 8 forum for seniors conducted by Charlotte Rogers and Gail Wagner. She mentioned that the transportation survey handed out to participants – asking for information about how people got around town – neglected to mention cycling and walking as modes. MAPC Bike Rack Program: Marita will call Bill Hadley to see if Dave Pinsonneault is still our go-to person for bike racks. Peg and Marita will determine good spots for singlets in the center, mainly on the south side of Mass. Ave. The singlets will need approval from the HDC. We will approach Susan Bennett about installing bike racks at historic sites. Other Business: We can view a virtual tour of the Scenic Byway on at the MAPC website: http://www.mapc.org/resources/battle-road-scenic-byway. There is a Google Earth tour. The MBTA will get 100% funding for bike racks on buses by 2012. The Town of Lexington is recommending bike racks on LexPress. The meeting was adjourned at 8:10 pm. Record of the Friends of Lexington Bikeways Discussion: Treasury: Bob Hausslein reported a balance of $5,293.59. Past month expenses included $75 for our new logo design, $50 for our domain name, and money of 20 trash bags. We approved a future expenditure for our website banner. Bike Donation Day : Marita will write a letter to the Minuteman thanking residents for their donations and reporting on the event. We collected 182 bikes for Bikes Not Bombs, just one fewer than Medfield. We are considering doing this again next year. Garlic Mustard Pull : Fifty plus young people from Grace Chapel pulled garlic mustard from the entire length of the bikeway. They collected 100 bags of garlic mustard. Farmers Market : We will host a bike corral on Tuesday, June 15. The Market is providing $2 coupons to be given to the first 100 people who ride their bikes to market. The Boston Sports Club is donating three-day passes to cyclists, and the Ride Studio Café will host a table. Lexington Bike Ride : Marita Hartshorn will lead the planning of this event: Date: Saturday, July 10. Route: Through various Boardwalks and Lower Vine Brook. We will plan for ordinary people with average cycling ability and use it as an opportunity to explore the town on bike. We may call it LEXINGTON RIDES. MassBike Summer Century : Bob Dangel said that on August 14 cyclists will converge in the parking lot of Lexington High School to begin one of the following rides: 100 mile century, a 62, a 35, or 10 miles in Lexington. Stew, George, Bob, and Mike volunteered to assist Bob Dangel, who is coordinating the event for MassBike. The LBAC/FoLB meeting is Thursday, July 8, 2010, 7:00 p.m. in Rm 111. Marita Hartshorn: Recorder Peggy Enders: Editor