HomeMy WebLinkAbout8/14/2018 Item 2, Cooper
Sheffield, Alexis
From:Allan Cooper <allancoope@gmail.com>
Sent:Tuesday, August
To:Fukushima, Adam; Advisory Bodies
Subject:Letter to SLO Planning Commission Regarding Anholm Bikeway
Adam -
Would you kindly forward this letter to the Planning Commission in time for the
Commissioners to see it tonight? Sorry for the late submittal!
- Allan
To: SLO Planning Commission and Adam Fukushima
Re: Anholm Neighborhood Bikeway
From: Allan Cooper, San Luis Obispo
Date: August 14, 2018
Honorable Chair Fowler & Commissioners -
As with 790 Foothill, you are once again being asked to force the hand of the Council by
reviewing a project that could in many fundamental ways be altered were the Council
allowed its discretionary right to do so. As with 790 Foothill, where the two zoning
concessions granted by the Director were “assumed” to be satisfactory to the Council,
staff is again “assuming” that the City Council will approve the installation of a traffic
diverter on Broad Street even after hearing opposing testimony from the public. It appears
that staff is driving this agenda at the risk of marginalizing input from the public and
undermining our Council’s final authority in this matter.
The Broad Street “diverters” at Broad, Ramona and Meinecke will dramatically increase
traffic volumes on Chorro and Lincoln as well as all side streets connecting Broad to
Chorro. Using the city’s own figures, this alternative would lower traffic volumes on Broad
St. considerably. However, traffic volumes on Chorro (Foothill to Palm) will rise to
approximately 8,500 and on Lincoln (Broad to Chorro) will rise to approximately 5,300,
without accounting for additional mode shift. With the proposed diverter on Broad Street
and neighborhood wide traffic calming, and in the worst case forecasted daily volume for
the Meinecke & Murray (Broad to Santa Rosa), street segments will rise to a range of
approximately 1,500 to 1,600. Because of the impacts of the diverters to shift traffic
volumes from Broad to Chorro and their side streets, staff previously deemed that such an
alternative was “infeasible”.
On May 10, 2018, the City hosted a “Neighborhood meeting” in the City/County Library
where those in attendance resoundingly opposed the introduction of traffic diverters but
rather proposed the introduction of partial diffusers. As of July 2018 an “Alternative B” was
developed by a group of neighborhood residents and represented by Broad Street
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resident Keith Gurnee. This alternative proposed partial diffusers (or diverters) on Broad
Street and Chorro Street with the ultimate goal of diverting most through traffic away from
Broad and Chorro Street to Santa Rosa Street. Your staff report includes a critique of this
proposal without allowing the residents an opportunity to respond. Hopefully you will hear
their response tonight. The initial study makes recommendations using a nebulous metric
assuring some level of “low-stress” for both pedestrians and bicyclists. It further critiques
“Alternative B” because it does not achieve its ultimate goal of diverting most through
traffic away from Broad and Chorro Street to Santa Rosa Street. Now one diverter is being
proposed by staff on a one year test basis. Staff will then return to Council with
performance test results and seek direction on whether to complete installation in a
permanent fashion or to remove it.
In conclusion, I urge you to reject the question staff has presented you with. Staff is asking
you the following: “Is accepting volume increases along effected streets, by virtue of their
reclassification, an acceptable tradeoff to improve the cycling environment along Broad
Street as a means to increase ridership?”. You should instead select a third alternative
which is to recommend that the neighborhood residents, staff and the City Council
continue to work together to further tweak “Alternative B” with the ultimate goal of diverting
most through traffic away from Broad and Chorro Street to Santa Rosa Street. After all is
said and done, what is the rush? Thank you.
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