HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-CAC-2010-07-12Collegetown Terrace Apartments DEIS
Magnolia House
Maguire Chrysler ,312 318 Elmira Road
Ithaca Water Treatment Plant site visit report
Miscellaneous Notes
DEIS REVIEW Collegetown Terrace Apartments
Stormwater Management
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Stormwater Management During construction
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Project Size
Occupancy
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Traffic
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Pedestrian Safety
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Parking
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City Infrastructure
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Vegetation
Energy Efficiency
Visual Impacts
Additional comments and correspondence:
E mail tx between CAC member and environmental consultant,Trowbridge and Wolfe.
Hi Kim,
Thank you again for sitting in on our meeting earlier this week and a couple months ago as well.
Michael asked me to put together some thoughts and questions that the council came up with regarding
pedestrian safety.
I am going to continue reading the DEIS, specifically portions about the increased shuttle plan as well
as lighting design along State Street. However, in the interest of time, below you can find some initial
thoughts that we have regarding section 2.7.5. If you believe my questions are already answered within
the DEIS, could you share the location of this information?
Thanks again!
Nathan Brenner
2.7.5 - Pedestrian Facilities Analysis
1) In section A, the proposal states that "...the pedestrian facilities within the study area are adequate
for the pedestrian volumes that use the facilities." Is there analysis from the data that points to this
conclusion? It is not clear to us what constitutes "adequacy" for the pedestrian volumes, nor is it clear
what the pedestrian volumes have been measured at.
This is mainly answered in the "Crosswalk Level of Service" section on page 192 and the
“Sidewalk Level of Service” section following that. Data regarding pedestrian numbers and facility
geometry (sidewalk width, crosswalk length, presence of a signal) was gathered and used were
required in the LOS methodology set forth in the 2000 Highway Capacity Manual.These
methodologies were approved for use by City staff. Pedestrian volumes can be found in Figure 2.7.c.
The volumes along this segment are relatively low when considering that HCM provides LOS analysis
for very urban areas (for example NY City crosswalks). Thus, the adequacy for pedestrian facilities at
this volume level, by the book, will almost always be acceptable, and engineering judgment on safety
and adequacy is used.
2) Regarding gap analysis(p. 193): Its not clear if this takes into account the grade and turns along state
street. Because state street is not perfectly flat and straight, pedestrian visibility may be hindered and
they will not be given necessary time to react to oncoming traffic. Has this been considered? And if so,
where can we find information about it?
There is not a standard “Gap Analysis” procedure set forth in the HCM2000. Instead, this section is a
combination of understanding what it takes for a pedestrian to cross the street, including walking speed
and distance and pairing that with the traffic volumes observed to determine the probability of an
acceptable gap. Although there are some relatively steep grades along State Street, at the Mitchell
intersection, sight distance left and right from a pedestrian stand-point is relatively unimpeded and
given that the average speed along this segment is just around 30 mph there is enough time for a
judgment to be made by a pedestrian whether or not crossing is safe. Grades and turns along State
Street, however, were not directly accounted for in the analysis as it was an exercise in determining the
probability that a break in traffic would be present. As mentioned in #3, below, a traffic signal at
State/Mitchell would provide protected crossings for pedestrians, eliminating some of the decision
making required of the pedestrian.
3) I'm not sure what the developer can do, but it seems there is a real need is to at least add one light
along this stretch of state street in order to provide ONE safe crosswalk, especially considering the
expected increase in pedestrian traffic. Can the developer encourage/put pressure on the city to add this
light?
I really don’t know how the road reconstruction will work itself out. The intersection has been failing
for the City of Ithaca for a very long time. John is open to conversations with the City, but as of yet,
they have not been initiated.
Benefits to this proposal:
1) By removing a series of driveways along state street, the planting strip will be able to expand in
longer consecutive strips without the interruption of driveway pavement. This will discourage
pedestrians from crossing at locations other than at designated crosswalks.
SITE PLAN REVIEW:
Magnolia House (308 320 N.Meadow St)
Maguire Chrysler (312 318 Elmira Road)
Scope of Work
Ithaca Water Treatment Plant July 10,2010 Walking tour Report.
Miscellaneous
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