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HomeMy Public PortalAbout2008_04_07 Council Work Session April 7, 2008 Council Chambers, 25 West Market Street, 8:00 p.m. Mayor Umstattd presiding. Councilmembers Present: Katie Sheldon Hammier, Susan Horne, Marty Martinez, Ken Reid, Kevin Wright and Mayor Kristen Umstattd Councilmembers Absent: David Schmidt Staff Present: Town Manager John Wells, Town Attorney Jeanette Irby Deputy Town Manager Kaj Dentler, Assistant to the Town Manager Kathy Leidich, Chief of Police Joe Price, Director of Engineering and Public Works Tom Mason, Director of Utilities Randy Shoemaker, Director of Capital Projects Management Nagi Elsewaissi, Acting Co-Director of Parks and Recreation Bill Ference, Zoning Administrator Brian Boucher, Economic Development Manager Marantha Edwards, Chief of Engineering Bill Ackman, Transportation Engineer Calvin Grow, Management Specialist/Deputy Clerk of Council Debi Parry AGENDA ITEMS 1. Questions on Tuesday Agenda Items Council Meeting of April 8, 2008 a. Public Hearing - Special Exception TLSE-2007-0006 Waterford at S. King Street Vice Mayor Horne asked staff to outline their concerns with the application. Brian Boucher stated the Planning Commission has recommended conditional approval of this application. He expressed concern that the developer's alignment of South Street will require right-of-way from two parcels including one entire parcel. Further, he also expressed concern for the loss of walkability in the area of the proposed river walk. b. Public Hearing - Approving the Drought Response Plan Council Member Wright asked staff to include information in their presentation tomorrow night regarding the changes that have been made in this version of the plan. c. Keep Leesburg Beautiful - Oaklawn Donation Mr. Wells stated this is a consent agenda item to appropriate funds from a donation received from Oaklawn. d. Declaring a Public Necessity to acquire land between Evergreen Mill Road and S. King Street Nagi Elsewaissi outlined the proposed alignment of this section of Battlefield Parkway. Council expressed concern regarding the alignment and stated they would not support an alignment that affected anyone's home. 2. Work Session Items for Discussion Town Council Work Session of April 7, 2008 Page 2 a. Committee Liaison follow-up discussion Council Member Hammier suggested voting on the resolution regarding the role of the Councilmanic Liaison tomorrow night and deferring the code changes to Mayor June. b. Meade Drive Stop Signs - Staff Recommendations Calvin Grow stated staff has looked at several options related to the removal of the stop signs on Meade Drive. He outlined three options as follows, Option 1 would remove two stop signs on Meade Drive at Lawnhil/ Court and Fairfield Way to meet separation criteria in the Residential Traffic Management Plan; Option 2 would remove two stop signs on Meade Drive at Lawford Drive and Fairfield Way and install two raised crosswalks at these intersections at a cost of $40,000 for both; and Option 3 would remove two stop signs on Meade Drive at Lawnhill Court and Fairfield Way and install a speed hump between the two intersections. Mr. Grow commented on the confusion that can be caused by removing stop signs and stated staff recommends Option 2. Vice Mayor Horne informed the public that safety is important and the Town would not remove the stop signs without putting another traffic calming measure in place. She stated she has received a number of emails on this issue and the problem of motorists rolling through the stop signs without stopping. Further, she stated this is a difficult situation and expressed support for the installation of raised crosswalks as they would force the traffic to slow down. Council Member Martinez expressed concern for the current situation in this neighborhood stating he was almost hit twice by cars rolling through the stop signs. He stated the raised crosswalks will ensure that cars slow down. Council Member Hammer expressed the need to ensure everyone is engaged in the process. She stated previous decisions regarding this issue were made hastily. Council Member Wright asked staff to provide information regarding the speed of drivers on Meade Drive before and after the installation of the stop signs. Mr. Grow stated a speed study conducted after the installation of the stop signs showed average speeds of 25 miles per hour. He stated there were two instances of drivers traveling 50 miles per hour. Further, he stated the Residential Traffic Management Plan requires average speeds of 31 miles per hour for the installation of traffic calming measures. Council Member Wright expressed the need for enforcement on Meade Drive. He stated this issue was created by a decision from a previous Council to waive guidelines and allow the developer to place driveways on a collector road. Further, he stated he would not support removing the stop signs without the installation of additional safety measures and expressed support for Option 2; however, he asked to see information on the consequences of any changes prior to making a decision. Town Council Work Session of April 7, 2008 Page 3 Council Member Martinez asked Council to consider the impact Meade Drive will face when the portion of Battlefield Parkway between Evergreen Mill Road and Route 15 is completed. Council Member Reid verified there are funds in the current Standing Residential Traffic Committee budget to cover the cost of the raised crosswalks. He asked why staff recommends the raised crosswalk as opposed to the speed hump. Mr. Grow stated the speed hump would be aligned in front of someone's home while the raised crosswalks could be located at the intersections. There was further Council discussion regarding the creation of additional fines for speeding and/or the installation of a driver feedback sign. Kim Berkev, Greenway Farm HOA President, addressed Council regarding the proposed removal of the stop signs on Meade Drive. Ms. Berkey stated there have been no problems with speeding since the signs were installed. She stated the stop signs are located at intersections that are also school bus stops and stated the removal of the stop signs would make the intersections less safe. Further, she urged Council to keep the stop signs in place. John Long, Greenway Farm Resident, concurred with Ms. Berkey's comments. He stated he just heard about the issue today and questioned why the neighborhood was not informed that this issue would be discussed. Further, he urged Council to keep the stop signs in place and expressed support for additional fines for speeding on Meade Drive. Josh Lee, 120 Meade Drive, stated the options presented are narrow and urged Council to consider more creative options. He expressed concern that removal of the stop signs would cause confusion. Misty Booker, Greenway Farm Resident, read the following statement from Ann Peterson into the record: "I am writing to ask you not to remove the stop signs on Meade Drive. I have lived on Lawnhill Court for almost nine years and am very familiar with the type of traffic on this stretch of Meade Drive. In the summer there is a constant stream of children walking and riding their bikes to the pool. During the school year it is full of children walking to and from their bus stops and it is always full of traffic. I have noticed that as our neighborhoods are aging there are also many teen drivers on the road, although they are certainly not the only drivers who run the stop signs, their presence is a factor. Please do not remove them and then have to answer to the community when a serious accident occurs. There are so many dangers that our children face that we cannot control, this is one that we can actually do something about. Town Council Work Session of Aoril 7. 2008 Page 4 Thank you for all the work you do for Leesburg and for your concern for the safety of our children. " Ms. Booker asked why Council continues to revisit this divisive issue. She stated there is currently no speeding problem on Meade Drive and urged Council to use the funds in an area of Town where they are needed. Council Member Reid asked if it would be appropriate to install a yield sign at the raised crosswalk or a traffic circle at the intersection. Mr. Grow stated State law requires motorists to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks. He stated traffic circles would slow down traffic at four-way intersections; however, they would not be effective at the three-way intersections. Council Member Reid asked how the Police Department's workload is affected by traffic enforcement issues on Meade Drive. Chief Price stated his staff responded to 31 special requests for enforcement along Meade Drive last year; however, they also responded to hundreds of other requests for special enforcement throughout the Town. Council Member Reid asked about the possibility of installing an elevated crosswalk on South King Street near the Safeway and asked if the traffic island at that location is slowing drivers down. Chief Price stated an elevated crosswalk could be located in that area. Further, he stated the island has lowered speeds in this area. Jeff Roderick, Greenway Farm Resident, stated he also just learned of this issue today. He expressed support for Option 1. He expressed concern that an elevated crosswalk would have little impact on drivers with large SUVs. Further, he asked for increased enforcement and stated he is opposed to traffic circles. Mr. Long stated it is clear from the speakers here tonight that there is no speeding issue on Meade Drive. He stated the elevated crosswalk may be nice in front of the Safeway grocery store; however, it is not acceptable for this neighborhood. Diane Pearson, Greenway Farm Resident, addressed Council saying she called the Police Department regarding the need for special enforcement due to motorists rolling through the stop signs. She stated she also alerted the television media to her concerns. She stated people are not obeying the law by refusing to stop at the stop signs and removing the stop signs to install raised crosswalks will not make motorists more inclined to obey the traffic laws. Further, she stated installation of raised crosswalks or speed humps will cause the misconception that there is a speeding problem in the neighborhood and will lower property values. Neely Law, Greenway Farm Resident, stated she read the staff report and asked Council what problem they are trying to address. She stated the stop signs do not meet the criteria of the traffic study; however, the traffic Town Council Work Session of April 7, 2008 Page 5 study was conducted eight years ago and was not specific to this neighborhood. She concurred with comments made by her neighbors and asked Council to consider the traffic impact Meade Drive will face when the Battlefield Parkway segment from Evergreen Mill Road to Route 15 is constructed. Mayor Umstattd thanked the residents for their comments and invited them to speak during the Council Meeting tomorrow night. It was the consensus of Council to address this issue in two weeks to receive further data from staff and to allow the residents the opportunity to address Council. c. Dog Park Update Bill Ference provided an update regarding potential short-term and long-term locations for a dog park. He stated he is currently working with staff to address the feasibility of each location and the land use issues. He stated he will be prepared to make a recommendation to Council at their next meeting. Further, he stated the cost of the short-term dog park would be approximately $25,000. Vice Mayor Horne asked the timeline for opening a dog park on a short-term site. Mr. Ference stated the dog park could be open in the spring. Mr. Wells stated the timeline could be dictated by any potential land use issues. Council Member Reid stated he would not support a dog park at Oatlands and stated he would prefer that the park be located in Town. He stated he could support Veteran's Park as a long-term solution and an interim location at Ida Lee Park or Izaak Walton Park. Council Member Wright asked staff to provide a briefing to the Parks and Recreation Commission at their next meeting. Vice Mayor Horne expressed the need for staff to continue working with the friends group. There was further discussion regarding potential interim locations. 3. For information only: Preview Topics for April 21-22, 2008: There was no discussion of the following items. a. ULI Study-DIA Report b. First Floor Retail Presentation c. Human Resources Manual Update d. Adoption of Budget and Tax Rates e. Flexible Zoning Waivers f. Public Hearing - Amending the Zoning Ordinance regarding Affordable Dwelling Units Town Council Work Session of April 7. 2008 Page 6 g. Izaak Walton Lease discussion 4. New Business Council Member Hammier asked staff to provide an update on the suggestion of placing a mobile message board at the fire station to alert voters to the change in polling place location. Further, she suggested strategically placing the message boards in Town to alert residents of the upcoming municipal elections as is done in Purcellville. Mr. Wells stated he and Ms. Irby will provide recommendations at tomorrow night's meeting. Mayor Umstattd expressed concern with potential civil rights issues from placing the signs in affluent areas and not less affluent areas. Ms. Irby stated she spoke with representatives from the Justice Department who approved using the sign board at the fire station, providing maps to the Ida Lee polling place and placing two ads in local news papers advising voters of the change. She stated she will not get an answer regarding the use of the shuttle until after the May elections. Council Member Hammier asked Ms. Irby if there are any legal concerns with placing the message boards in heavy traffic areas of Town to alert voters to the upcoming elections. Ms. Irby stated she would research the issue and provide an answer to Council. Vice Mayor Horne stated other polling places in the Town have changed as well. Ms. Irby stated additional ads could be placed in the local newspapers if that is the desire of Council. Mr. Wells stated staff will provide a report to Council tomorrow night regarding the Land Development Organizational Changes. Council Member Reid asked staff to send the press release on the Land Development Organizational Changes to business publications. Adjournment On a motion by Council Member Martinez, seconded by Council Member Wright, the meeting adjourned at 9:33 p.m. 2008_tcwsmin0407