2018/08/27 Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee Minutes ,¢0HNERT PAR*
19 62
Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC)
<g= ,A Meeting Minutes
5:30 PM, Monday,August 27, 2018
Rohnert Park City Hall, Conference Room 2A
130 Avram Avenue, Rohnert Park, California 94928
Members Present: Creighton Bell X Gary Gutierrez X Tim Hensel X
Shirley Johnson X Katie Musick X
Non-Voting Participants: Eydie Tacata, Management Analyst; Vanessa Garrett, Acting Deputy City
Engineer; Jerry Griffin, Parks and Recreation Commission Liaison; Sarah White-Ibarra, resident; Robin
Cook, resident; David Kosmala, resident
1. Call to Order
Acting Chair Tim Hensel called the meeting to order at 5:30 PM.
2. Introductions
Acting Chair Hensel commenced self-introductions.
3. Public Comment
Members of the public present had no comments on items not on the agenda.
4. Consideration of Approval of Minutes of July 23,2018
Committee Member Gary Gutierrez moved to approve minutes of the meeting of July 23, 2018; the
motion was seconded by Committee Member Creighton Bell and approved by a vote count of 4 ayes
(Bell, Gutierrez, Hensel, Johnson)—0 nays— 1 absence(Johnson)—0 abstentions.
5. Resident Concerns about Parking and Bicycle Facility on Country Club Drive north of Golf
Course Drive(Discussion)
Sarah White-Ibarra, resident of Coleman Valley Condominiums at Country Club Drive and Golf
Course Drive, spoke to the Committee about a lack of car parking. Ms. White-Ibarra said there is no
designated parking in her complex, however there could be more street parking if the bike lane was
removed. She said that the bike lane is not used, even with Hahn Elementary School nearby. She added
that her children are too young to use bike lanes; she only allows them to ride on the sidewalk. She said
talked to a City staff member who said that since the facility was constructed with State funds there may
be funding consequences if it was removed, however, there may be a way to revisit whether the could be
removed if it is not needed. Ms. White-Ibarra said that her complex's units have garages, but many have
columns in the middle that prevent larger vehicles from parking there. If the bike lane can't be removed,
she proposes parking to be marked on the other side of the street, so that more cars can fit.
Robin Cook, resident of Coleman Valley Condominiums, said that lack of parking is an everyday
problem there. She also said that car speeds on Country Club Drive make it hard to pull out of driveways.
Dave Kosmala, resident of Coleman Valley Condominiums, said that the problem cited by Ms. Cook
would be worse if the bike lane was removed and replaced with parking; the parked cars would prevent
seeing approaching cars as you pull out of the driveway. He said he came to the meeting because he was
concerned about any proposal to remove the bike lane. Mr. Kosmala said that he bikes for short trips, uses
Rohnert Park Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee
August 27,2018 Meeting Minutes
the bike lane himself, and also sees others use it, including kids. He said most residents in the complex
use their garages for storage and not cars, causing the problem of overflow parking onto the street.
Mr. Kosmala noted that a section of the bike lane berm close to the corner of Country Club Drive and
Golf Course Drive lane was removed, causing a dangerous condition. He noticed that cars now cut that
corner and speed; Ms. Cook agreed. Mr. Kosmala noted that the curb was painted red to designate a no-
parking area,but people still park in this part of the bike lane; he has had to swerve into the car lane to
avoid the parked cars. He asked what the remedy is to prevent cars from parking in the bike lane.
Ms. White-Ibarra said that regarding the safety of pulling out of the driveway, it is speeding on the
streets that is the issue, not visibility. She asked if speed bumps could be placed on Country Club Drive.
Committee Member Bell asked how many units are in the complex. Ms. White-Ibarra and Mr.
Kosmala responded with numbers between 102 and 120. Committee Member Bell asked how many
parking spaces could be gained if the bike lane was removed. It was speculated that maybe 30 or more
spaces could be gained. Committee Member Bell mentioned the Camino Colegio bike facility and parking
lane changes. Mr. Kosmala said that there would be sufficient parking if residents parked in their garages.
There was discussion about the fire lane restrictions in front of the complex's garages. Mr. Kosmala
said that the Coleman Valley Homeowners Association(HOA)received complaints about parked cars
blocking garages and the driveways. If the red paint designating the fire lane was removed, people would
again park there, causing problems. Ms. Cook said that this is an HOA issue,not a City issue.
Acting Chair Hensel said that he wants the Committee to visit the site. He also requested that staff
look at signage to address parking in the bike lane and whether speed bumps are appropriate. Committee
Member Gutierrez noted that parking appears to be the biggest issue. Ms. White-Ibarra asked that the tick
marks be considered, if the City will not remove the bike lane. Ms. Vanessa Garrett,Acting Deputy City
Engineer, said that they could be included in a future pavement maintenance project in the spring of 2019.
Commissioner Jerry Griffin proposed a long-term solution of widening the existing sidewalk in the
future for a multi-use shared facility for bicyclists and pedestrians. He cited the current effort by the HOA
to remove sycamore trees in the City right-of-way, as their roots cause sidewalk and road damage.
6. New Matters for Future Consideration
Ms. Tacata requested that the agenda item"New Matters for Future Consideration"be moved up as
Item#6 so that Ms. Garrett could leave before the end of the meeting.
Committee Member Bell asked if the City has considered implementing shorter pedestrian crossing
cycles combined with pedestrian safety islands as a solution to relieve traffic congestion on 5-6 lane wide
streets. Cars would wait a shorter time as pedestrians cross half of the street, with a wait at the median.
The"walk"phase would coordinate with the vehicular left turn. Ms. Garrett said that a pedestrian refuge
is being considered for Rohnert Park Expressway, and she agreed that adjusting the pedestrian cycle
length would help. She also said that similar cycle length adjustments have been made at the Redwood
Drive and Golf Course Drive intersection, and she would like to hear feedback about those changes.
Ms. Garrett reported on the implementation of the adaptive traffic management system, with the
vendor selection of Kimley-Horn for the system. She explained that the first implementation phase will
focus on the Rohnert Park Expressway and Golf Course Drive corridors. Committee Member Katie
Musick asked if the adaptive system will be expanded out to other parts of the city. Ms. Garrett said that
along Rohnert Park Expressway, the system will be installed all the way out to the east side of town, on
the intersections of Kerry Road and Karrington Road. Acting Chair Hensel said that it would be
interesting to see how the system does with Sonoma State University and Green Music Center events.
2
Rohnert Park Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee
August 27,2018 Meeting Minutes
Committee Member Musick asked if the City of Cotati was part of this implementation. Ms. Garrett
answered no. Committee Member Musick said that it would have been good for East Cotati Avenue if the
two cities' systems were synchronized. Ms. Garrett said that Rohnert Park's main focus has been to work
with Caltrans on synchronizing the Highway 101 ramps, which have been the major areas of congestion.
7. Staff and Committee Member Updates on Previous Matters
Ms. Tacata reported on the July 31 meeting with representatives from the City of Cotati, SOMO
Village, Sonoma State University and SMART, who met for a status update from Dana Turrey, Sonoma
County Transportation Authority(SCTA) about the SMART Corridor Based Bike Share Program. She
said that SCTA released a Request for Information to bike share vendors to find out about the recent state
of bike share, especially that the various models have evolved significantly, even from a few years ago.
Ms. Tacata said that the Sonoma State University representative relayed that she heard from other schools
about negative impacts to adjacent residential neighborhoods resulting from students' bike share usage.
8. Committee Bylaws/Guidelines
Ms. Tacata distributed the Committee Guidelines final draft and explained that since the last
Committee meeting, the only changes made were to the first page, to refine the description of the general
purview of the Committee; no changes to the bylaws or"operational guidelines" section were made.
Committee Member Gutierrez moved to approve Committee Guidelines; the motion was seconded
by Committee Member Shirley Johnson. Discussion on the motion was opened; Ms. Tacata requested a
friendly amendment to allow administrative edits. Committee Member Guitierrez agreed to the friendly
amendment to his motion; Committee Member Bell seconded the motion as amended. The amended
motion to adopt the guidelines and allowing minor administrative edits was approved by a vote count of 5
ayes (Bell, Gutierrez, Hensel, Johnson, Musick)—0 nays—0 absences—0 abstentions.
Committee Member Bell suggested putting the finished Committee Guidelines on the City website.
9. Staff and Committee Member Updates on Previous Matters
Acting Chair Hensel mentioned that junior bike racing teams have helped out in bike rodeos, in case
the bike progams recipient of the Rohnert Park Foundation Small Grants program needs assistance.
Committee Member Gutierrez asked about the status of the Trail to Crane Creek Regional Park. Ms.
Tacata said that there are complex issues on the site that likely will push out the construction another year.
Acting Chair Hensel reported a"Sidewalk Closed" sign on Southwest and Country Club Drive that
looks like it was forgotten and left.
Committee Member Musick reported damage to the Copeland Creek Path, adjacent to the Rancho
Cotate High School bleachers. She said it looks like damage related to the high school contractors' work.
10. Adjournment
The Committee adjourned the meeting at approximately 6:45 PM.
Eydie Tacata, Recording Secretary
Rohnert Park Bicycle and Rohnert Park Bicycle and
Pedestrian Advisory Committee Pedestrian Advisory Committee
3