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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-10-21 City Council (5)City of Palo Alto Manager’s Report HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL FROM:CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT: PLANNING AND COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENT DATE:OCTOBER 21, 2002 CMR:421:02 SUBJECT:DOWNTOWN NORTH TRAFFIC CALMING PROJECT- PREFERRED DESIGN FOR THE TRIAL IMPLEMENTATION This is an informational report. No Council action is required. The purpose of this report is to inform Council about the preferred design for the implementation of the Downtown North Traffic Calming Plan for a six-month trial period. BACKGROUND In its meeting of December 11, 2000, Council approved a six-month trial of a traffic calming plan for the Downtown North, with the following provisions: the design is acceptable to the Fire and Police Departments, and the Palo Alto Sanitation Company (PASCO); appropriate signage is provided and improvements implemented along Lytton Avenue at Alma Street and Middlefield Road; and the Lytton Neighborhood Traffic Calming study is conducted, as discussed by the Planning and Transportation Commission. The plan approved by the Council includes seven street closures, three gateway features and one bulb-out pair as shown in Attachment A. This approval was the result of an intense two-year study of traffic issues in the neighborhood, involving representatives from the City’s Transportation Division and the Downtown North Neighborhood Association. The purpose of the study and the resultant traffic plan approved by the Council is to reduce the volume of cut-through traffic in the neighborhood, especially on Hawthorne Avenue and Everett Street, and to reduce the occurrence of speeding. DISCUSSION During the past several months, the Transportation Division has been coordinating the design process for the trial implementation features. This process has required close coordination and cooperation between neighborhood representatives and representatives from the Fire, Police, and Public Works Departments, PASCO, and the Palo Alto Bicycle Advisory Committee (PABAC). Many alternative designs were developed and studied, and are shown in Attachment B. The street closure designs with gates and fences (pages 1 through 4) were too expensive to implement and had other issues, including bike and CMR:421:02:Page 1 of 5 emergency vehicle access. The other designs (pages 5 through 17) were found unacceptable to the neighborhood representatives because they did not meet the neighborhood character and had maintenance issues. While many alternative designs were developed, the designs for the street closures, gateway features and the bulb-out pair continued to evolve based on comments and issues raised by all parties. This eventually resulted in a final preferred design, which is shown in Attachment C, pages 1 through 3, taking into consideration the following points: 1.The trial implementation designs should have a reasonable aesthetic appeal. 2.The street closure designs should be 3 to 4 feet high for better visibility. 3 The installation should require minimal maintenance. 4.The design should be simple and somewhat temporary in nature, although durable, safe and pleasing, so it can be removed easily, if needed. 5.The street closure design should be non-permeable to all vehicles except emergency vehicles and bikes. 6 Bikes should have a minimum 6-foot wide and 8-foot high opening in the middle of the street. An opening next to the curb is not acceptable. 7.The opening for emergency vehicles should be 11 feet wide. 8.All features of the Council-approved plan should be implemented. 9.All features should have the same theme and not look foreign within the neighborhood. 10.Low fences are okay, but gates and locks should be avoided. The preferred designs for the street closures, gateway features and bulb-out pair have the same theme. They all include raised medians with 6-inch AC curbs and decomposed granite. They also include a white picket fence, except for the bulb-out pair. The street closures include an 11-foot opening in the middle of the street with a removable bollard for emergency vehicles, except the street closure located on Everett Avenue between High and Emerson Streets, which will have a pan basher in the middle of the street and a flexible post (a Fire Station is located atAlma and Everett, and the Fire Department has requested that we use a pan basher at this location). The pan basher design includes a concrete block that is low enough to permit high-clearance vehicles such as fire trucks, but too high for normal passenger and police cars. This design exists in College Terrace and there have been many complaints that too many unauthorized drivers drive over these blocks. Therefore, we have added a flexible post to discourage unauthorized drivers from using this street closure. If it becomes a problem, staff will work with the Fire Department and the neighborhood representatives to find a solution mutually acceptable to all. The removable bollard is a steel post that’ is locked in place with a City master lock. When it is in place, no vehicle except bicycles and motorcycles can pass through it. A driver with a City master key (fire, ambulance, police, PASCO) can unlock the bollard to pass through it, which will incur some delay and require physical effort to do so. This type of a design exists in Evergreen Park. CMR:421:02:Page 2 of 5 The gateway features and bulb-out pair have a 20-foot opening in the middle and will allow normal two-way traffic. Gateway features make a statement that a driver is entering a neighborhood. Therefore, it is desirable that they be visible to entering vehicles and not hidden by parked cars. Accordingly,. parking will be prohibited for about one car length between the gateway feature and the nearest intersection. This will mean the loss of three parking spaces, one at each location, because parking is already prohibited on one side of the street at these three locations due to existing red curb or the presence of a fire hydrant. Most of the features will be set back 20 to 30 feet from the cross street curb face in order to address a request from PABAC as well as. avoid conflicts with utility boxes and catch basins. The exception is the street closure on Palo Alto Avenue at Middlefield, which will be set back approximately 40 feet, to accommodate PASCO trucks at this location. "Not A Through Street" signs will be posted on all of the dead-end streets created due to street closures. Turn restriction signs shall be posted on Middlefield at Palo Alto Avenue prohibiting right and left turns from Middlefield onto Palo Alto Avenue. Two additional signs will be posted as suggested by the Planning and Transportation Commission, one on Middlefield and one on Alma before Everett and Hawthorne. These signs will advise drivers that Everett and Hawthorne are not through routes to Alma and vice versa. A general layout of all of the proposed signing and the Council-approved traffic calming features is shown in Attachment D. The preferred designs were discussed with neighborhood representatives, the office of Cordelia Hill, the town architect, and a sub-committee of the Architectural Review Board (ARB). Their comments have been incorporated and the designs meet their approval. PABAC members felt that the street closures should be set back 50 feet. Most of the existing street closures in the City are set back 10 feet. In order to address the request by PABAC without causing subsequent problems, the street closures shall be set back a minimum of 20 feet. Setting the closures back 50 feet would create operational and safety problems; for example, a driver on a cross street being unable to see the closure and turning onto the closed street, resulting in the need to make a u-turn. This would cause driver frustration. The ARB sub-committee primarily made several comments regarding the picket fence. Committee members suggested use of 3-inch vertical boards, back to back with flat tops rather than decorative tops. Flat tops were considered to be more cost effective and installing them back to back was suggested for aesthetic enhancement, since the fence will be visible from both sides. Staff will use 3-inch boards as suggested by the sub-committee, but with decorative tops. A review of the prices of available picket fences indicated that, generally, picket fences are standard items and the decorative tops make little or no difference in price. Since decorative tops look better than the flat tops and neighborhood representatives prefer the decorative tops, staff will use the decorative top style of a picket fence, as shown in Attachment E. However, adding vertical members on both sides would add substantial cost to the project, which cannot be accommodated within the existing CMR:421:02:Page 3 of 5 budget. Therefore, staff is going to use the vertical members only on one side. Neighborhood representatives also prefer vertical members only on one side since it will be similar to all of the existing picket fences in the neighborhood and fully support the designs of the street closures, gateway features, bulb-out pair, and the picket fence. If the trial were successful, the temporary designs would be replaced by permanent designs subject to Council approval and the availability of funds. While the permanent designs have not yet been developed, it is anticipated that they would include landscaping and other improved visual features. RESOURCE IMPACT A total of $95,000 has been budgeted ($85,000 in FY 2001-02 and $10,000 in FY 2002-03) for implementation of the six-month trial of the traffic calming plan, including before and after data gathering, construction of the traffic calming features, signage, and the two Lytton Avenue modifications. Sufficient funds are available to complete the six-month trial traffic calming plan. TIMELINE Currently staff is developing the final construction plans and specifications anticipated that the construction will be underway in spring 2003. and it is ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW A draft environmental assessment was prepared for the six-month trial traffic claming plan approved by Council in its meeting of December 11, 2000. Staff will gather traffic data before the trial .begins and at its conclusion, as well as gather all other pertinent information such as crashes, complaints, and observations, and update the environmental assessment. The assessment will be circulated for public review, and be considered by Council if Council approves the permanent installation. PUBLIC NOTICE A letter (Attachment F) was mailed to all residents and property owners in Downtown North informing them about the preferred designs and the approximate time line for trial implementation, as well as instructing them regarding where to obtain a copy of this informational staff report. Prior to beginning construction, another letter will be mailed to area residents and construction signs will be posted at street closure locations informing drivers about the street closures and to use alternative routes such as Lytton. CMR:421:02:Page 4 of 5 ATTACHMENTS A. Council-Approved Preferred Plan B. Alternative Designs Considered C. Final Preferred Design D. Map of Sign Locations E. Photo of Fence Posts to be Installed F. Letter to Residents Regarding Trial Installation PREPARED BY: DEPARTMENT HEAD: ic Engineer STEVE EMSLIE Director of Planning and Community Environment CITY MANAGER APPROVAL: FRANK City Manager cc:Planning and Transportation Commission Downtown North Advisory Group CMR:421:02:Page 5 of 5 ATTACHMENT A t I Closure Re.~mended Preferred Option ATTACHMENT B 17 pages I 5 CLOSURE A S|NGLE ROW SPHERES RECOMMENDED PREFERRED OPTION CLOSURE SHORT E,~O LLARD S RECOMP’,,,’IENDED PREFERRED OPTION CLOSURE C iitOLLARDS RECOMMENDED PREFERRED OPT~OP-~ CLOSURE D C O I~ E~, i NATal O N PLANTERS RECO-~Y~MENDED PREFERRED OPTION CLOSURE E ROUND PLANTERS RECO[vlMENDED PREFERRED OPTION J CLOSURE F PLANTERS AND FENCE 4 RECOMIVlENDED PREFERRED OPTION CLOSURE G PICKET FENCE !,,~CiTE: FRIIITED DP,,I-0~]/li’~GS ~]OT TO SCALE C~ty of P~o A~to RECOB4JMENDED PREFERRED OPTION PILASTERS GATEWAY A WiTH PLANTERS RECOM[V~EFtDED PREFERRED OPTION GATEWAY E) SQUARE PLANTERS J RECOMMENDED PREFERRED OPTt~ON G,~."~- EW~,Y C RUST|C WOODEN FENCE !,!OTE: PRINTED DR~,~NIH6$ City of PaSo A~to RECOMMENDED PREFERRED OPTION IBU LE~,-O UT A PLANTER RECOMMENDED PREFERRED OPTION BULB-OUT B BOLLARDS AND ROUND PLANTERS iIOTE: FR~I’,!TED DRA’¢a~GS i,]OT TO SCi’.LT: O~ty of PaSo A~to RECOIK/~fV’~ENDF__.E) PREFERRED OPTBON J R~CO~V~MENDED PREFERRED OPTION PLANTING STRIP SIDEWALK 36’ @ POST O.C.---~ , :~ PICK~ FENCE REk BOLLARD AND 4" WHITE STRIPE 11’ ~,/C CURBI ,-:-.~. - ...- .-:." ~ .-~. :.’-. : .: "_..~ DECOMPOSED GRANITE ATTACHMENT C 3 pages PLANTING STRIP SIDEWALK SIDEWALK BOLLARD __~8’ #_STRIP FSIDEWALK CLOSEDEXCEPT BIKE SIGNS ’ sc.~E : (24" X 36") PLANTING STRIP SIDEWALK 20’ 6" A/C CURE DECOMPOS~ PLANTING STRIP SIDEWALK SCALE SIDEWALK 1 CURB1 r [’--PLANTING STRIP ,n,,I rsIDEwALK EI.~VATION SCALE: : 1"~10’ CITY OF PALO ALTO DOWHTOWR i~ORTH TRAFFIC CALMING PROJECT PLANTING STRIP SIDEWALK 6~ # POST --PICKE’I"T FENCE 20’ 6" A/C CURE DECOMPOSED GRANITE PLANTING STRIP SIDEWALK "NO PARKING ANY TIME" SIGNS AND POLES (R28) SIDE3/VALK I --PLANTING STRIP I---SIDEWALK SCALE : t"=10’ CiTY OF P,~LO ALTO GATEWAY FEAT NE HAWTHORNE & EVERETT NOT THROUGH ROUTES TO ALMA MIDDLEFIELD ROAD BYRON STREET WEBSTER ATTACHMENT D MIDDLEFtELD ROAD BYRON STREET WEBSTER STREET TASSO STREET COWPER STREET COWPER COWF ~ STREET KIPLINGSTREET WAVERLEY STREET V [] A Street Closure Type A [] B Street Closure Type B Neighborhood Gateway Bulbout Pair Not A Through St Sign Through Traffic Guide Sign × Turn Restriction Sign BRYANT STREET EMERSON STREET ’BRYANT STREE EMERSON STREET RAMONA STREET EMERSON STREET ~ 8TRFFT ALMA STREET SOUTHERN PACIFIC RAILROAD ~=, ~ ~,P//"HORNE & EVERETT o ~ NOT THROUGH ROUTES SOUTHE~ PACIFIC RAIL oV~/I, TO MIDDLEFIELD City of Palo Alto Transportation Division Downtown North Traffic Calming Project Layout of Vadous Elements and Signs Drawing 1 of Approved Date ATTACHMENT E October 7, 2002 City of Palo Alto Department of Planning and Community Environment ATTACHMENT F 2 pages Transportation Division Dear Resident: In December 2000, the City Council approved a six-month trial traffic calming project for your neighborhood. This approval is the result of an intense two-ye.at" study of traffic issues in your neighborhood, involving representatives from the City’s Transportation Division and the Downtown North Neighborhood Association. The purpose of the project is to reduce the volume of cut-through commuter traffic in the neighborhood, especially on Hawthorne and Everett, and reduce the incidence of speeding. The project consists of seven street closures, three neighborhood gateways and one curb bulbout. The project also includes warning signs for the traffic calming features, as well as informational signs on Alma and Middlefield to guide through traffic around the neighborhood. The locations of all these features are shown in the enclosed plan. To help traffic flow around the neighborhood, the Alma/Lytton intersection is being redesigned with new turn lanes and a left-turn signal. Future changes could be made at Middlefield/Lytton, if feasible and necessary. During the past several months, the Transportation Division has been coordinating the design process for the temporary features. This process required close cooperation between neighborhood representatives and representatives from the Fire Department, Police Department, Public Works Department, the Town Architect, Palo Alto Sanitation Company (PASCO), the Palo Alto Bicycle Advisory Committee (PABAC), and a review by a sub-committee of the Architectural Review Board. Many alternative designs were studied. The final preferred design had to meet many requirements, including reasonable aesthetic appeal, simple and inexpensive, easily maintained, and (for street closures) non- passable by all vehicles except emergency vehicles and bicycles. The gateways and the bulbout allow normal two-way traffic in the 20-foot space between the two sides. The street closures will impede travel tl~rough the neighborhood from one side to the other in the. east-west direction. Through routes are still available from one side of the neighborhood to the other on certain streets, especially in the corners of the neighborhood. The plan purposely does not block all routes through the neighborhood, nor does it prohibit access to/from the neighborhood from surrounding streets. 250 Hamilton Avenue EO. Box 10250 Palo Alto, CA 94303 650.329.2520 650.617.3108 fax Downtown North Traffic Calming Project October 7, 2002 Page 2 of 2 Refer to the enclosed typical sketches showing the concept designs for the closures, gateways and bulbouts. All of the features have the same theme. They will all be constructed of six-inch high asphalt curbing with compacted decomposed granite (coarse sand) fill. The closures and gateways include a short white picket fence. Most closures and gateways will be set back 20 feet from the face of the cross street curb (some will be 30 feet due to conflict with utility boxes and catch basins). All features are five feet in depth. Gateway features make a statement that you are entering a neighborhood and, to that extent, it is desirable’to prohibitparking for one car length in between the gateway features and the nearest intersection so that the gateway features are visible to the entering drivers. It would mean a loss of one parking space at each of the three gateway locations since parking on one side of the street is already restricted due to an existing red curb or fire hydrant. If the trial is successful, the temporary designs will be replaced by permanent ones, subject to City Council approval and the availability of funds. While the permanent designs have not yet been developed, it is anticipated that they would include landscaping and other improved visual features. Construction of this project is expected to be underway by this coming spring. In the month prior to construction, numerous traffic volume and speed counts (using rubber hoses) will be made throughout the Downtown North Neighborhood, as well as the adjacent Lytton Neighborhood and some streets in Menlo Park. After the trial is over, these counts will be redone as part of the evaluation program..The evaluation will also include a resident survey and feed back from Fire and Police Departments, as well as PASCO. Future letters from the Transportation Division will keep you informed of this project. In the mean time, if you have any questions, please contact Carl Stoffel at 650-329-2552 or carl.stoffel@cityofpaloalto.org. Sincerely, Ashok Aggarwal City Traffic Engineer cc:City Council Planning and Transportation Commission