GTC Planning Committee - Minutes

You are here

GTC PLANNING COMMITTEE MEETING

Wayne County Courthouse

August 23, 2001

PLANNING COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT

James Brady, Highway Superintendent, Wayne County Highway Department

Joan Dupont, NYSDOT Region 4

Paul Howard, Chairman, GFLRPC

David Woods, Director, Livingston County Planning Department

ALTERNATE REPRESENTATIVES PRESENT

David Cook, representing Don Riley, RGRTA

John Czamanske, representing David Hartman, Superintendent of Highways, Yates County

Scott Leathersich, representing Terrence J. Rice, Monroe County DOT

Andy Moore, representing William Smith, Monroe County Legislator

John Thomas, representing George Stam, City of Rochester

OTHERS IN ATTENDANCE

Chris Downing, GTC Staff

Deborah Elliott, GTC Staff

James Fabino, Supervisor, Town of Lyons

Steve Gleason, GTC Staff

Brian Lakeman, GTC Staff

Lisa Smith, GTC Staff

James Stack, GTC Staff

PLANNING COMMITTEE MEMBERS ABSENT AND UNREPRESENTED

John Accorso, City of Rochester

S. William Baker, US EPA

Philip Birto, FAA

Glenn Cooke, Seneca County

Donald Cooley, Orleans County

Rocco DiGiovanni, Monroe County Planning

Stephen Ferranti, Member-At-Large, Monroe County

Steven Finn, Director of Planning, Ontario County

Glenn Guarino, Member-At-Large, Monroe County

Timothy Hens, Genesee County

Steve Hendershott, Monroe County Supervisors Association

Jonathan McDade, FHWA

Mark Scheuerman, Empire State Development

Thomas Skoglund, Wyoming County Planning Department

Larry Stid, City of Rochester

William Sullivan, Chief Legislative Assistant, City of Rochester

Clara Wallace-Douglas, FTA

(Vacant), Member-At-Large, City of Rochester

1. Call to Order

James Fabino, Lyons Town Supervisor welcomed the Planning Members to Wayne County on behalf of GTC Chair Marvin Decker.

Paul Howard called the meeting to order at 10:10 a.m.

2.                 Public Forum

No public comment was offered.

3.                 Approval of Minutes

David Cook made a motion for approval of the minutes from the July 26, 2001 Planning Committee meeting; Jim Brady seconded the motion. The minutes were approved as submitted.

Subsequent to approval of the minutes, Monroe County identified the following editorial changes:

        The County is working with SHPO, NYSTA, and NYSDOT on the pedestrian bridge component

        The design of Erie Station Road reconstruction project is on schedule

        Staff will begin moving into the Airport/Transportation Operations Center in November/December

4.                 Information Items

a.       GTC Staff and Committee Reports

Steve Gleason reported on GTC Staff and Committee activities:

        GTC offices have moved to CityPlace. Staff experienced some difficulties with e-mail during and after the move, but the office is now up and running smoothly. Steve expressed appreciation for everyones patience during the transition period

        GTCs newest staff member was introduced. Lisa Smith is a graduate of SUNY Albany where she was a dual major Urban Planning and Anthropology

        Erik Frisch will be back to join GTC fulltime in December

        The FY 2002-2003 UPWP, which becomes effective April 1, 2002, is ready to kick off. The Call for Projects letter will go out by October 1, 2001with proposals due back by November 2. A heads-up flyer will be sent out by mid-September. David Woods suggested that a pre-proposal workshop be held to help people with their project applications. The committee concurred that a pre-proposal workshop should be held

        GTC and NYSDOT staff will meet August 28 to debrief this years TIP process and prepare for next years TIP

        The final TIP will be published and available the first week of September

        The invitations to potential steering committee members for the Amtrak study have been sent out. The first steering committee meeting will be held in mid-September. Bergmann & Associates, the consultants leading the study, are collecting data and progressing the study

        A steering committee meeting for the Seneca County Public Transportation Study will be held on August 27. Stuart I. Brown Associates will present alternatives for improving transportation services

        The kickoff meeting for the Orleans County Strategic Plan for Rural Transportation will be held on September 5

        A scope of work has been developed for the Route 14 Truck Study in Geneva. The RFP is being finalized and will be sent out shortly. Two steering committee meetings have been held to-date

        A kickoff meeting for the Regional Trail Strategic Plan was held with Alta Consulting on August 15. Invitations to participate on the studys steering committee have been sent out. A high profile kickoff is expected in mid-September

b.      Participating Agency Reports

 

Wayne County

James Brady reported:

        The Maple Avenue Bridge project will be let on September 10

        Preliminary drawings for the Bear Creek/Lake Road project in the Town of Ontario have been sent to NYSDOT

Livingston County

David Woods had nothing to report.

He asked a question about how GTC will be affected by the bare bones state budget. Steve Gleason responded that the State funding component for the Amtrak study might be at risk. Joan Dupont noted that Federal planning funds are pass-through and will keep flowing but the bare bones budget does not include the automatic reauthorization of state funds. She noted that NYSDOT is looking into how this may impact projects.

NYSDOT

Joan Dupont reported:

        NYSDOT is putting together the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP), which reflects all of the TIPs in the state. The STIP must be balanced and presented to FHWA and FTA for approval. The STIP is out for public comment.

Town of Lyons

James Fabino, deferred to Steve Gleason for an update on the Lyons Amtrak station. Steve noted that over $1 million is available for the project, $250,000 of which will become available when the state budget is completed. He also noted that this money can be spent on design of the new station. The project is ready to go, pending the state budget.

Yates County

John Czamanske reported:

        He is looking forward to the Route 14A Corridor Study. He noted that a portion of Route 14A was recently resurfaced

Monroe County Legislature

Andy Moore had nothing to report

Monroe County

Scott Leathersich reported:

        The Woolston Road Bridge is currently under construction

        Scoping has begun on the Elmwood Avenue project

City of Rochester

John Thomas reported:

        Corbin Associates, the consultant selected for the Center City Way-Finding Sign Update Study, was in town for an initial meeting with stakeholders

        The Inner Loop project technical committee met to discuss next steps for this project

        Funding for the Fast Ferry project will be talked about at the August 23rd City Council meeting

RGRTA

David Cook reported:

        The Fare Structure Study report is at the final draft stage. He anticipates reporting on the consultants findings will be presented at the next Planning Committee meeting

        He hopes to be able to make a presentation on the Intermodal Freight Terminal Study at the next Planning Committee meeting

        The Genesee County Public Transportation Study should be completed by the end of November

        A draft of the RFP for the Wayne and Wyoming County Strategic Plans for Public Transportation will be sent to county officials for review prior to release

        Responses to the RFP for the Gates Chili Transit Study were due this week. Only one response was received

        RGRTA successfully completed four weeks of Buffalo Bills shuttle bus service. It provided some good exposure for the Authority

G/FLRPC

Paul Howard handed out a Status Report on G/FLRPCs UPWP activities. He reported that:

        Staff is starting the classification and analysis phases of the Satellite Imagery project (following training in Boulder, Colorado). This work should be completed in 6-8 weeks. He passed around samples of the satellite imagery coverages. David Woods asked when the counties will see products from the study. Paul Howard responded that products should be ready by the October G/FLRPC PCC meeting

        Zoning maps for all nine counties in the region are being generated as part of the Development Analysis project. These too should be ready for the October PCC meeting

c.       CMS Working Group Report

Steve Gleason reported that the CMS Working Group met on Thursday, August 16. They discussed the scope of work, schedule, and goals and objectives. GTC staff is finalizing the scope, identifying goals and objectives, and developing a Fact Sheet. Members of the Working Group decided to hold stand-alone meetings rather than meet at the end of Planning Committee meetings. The next meeting of the CMS Working Group will be held on September 20, 2001 at 9:00 a.m. at the GTC offices.

d.      TIP Regional Corridors Update

Steve Gleason asked that this information item be deferred to the next Planning Committee meeting. He noted that GTC and NYSDOT staff have met to discuss the initiative and wish to do more preparation prior to presenting an update. The committee agreed to defer this information item to a future meeting.

e.      Other Announcements

Steve Gleason noted that on August 17 Governor Pataki announced the awarding of funds for the Recreation Trails Projects. Four projects in this region were awarded funds (for a total of $196,000 out of the $1.9 million available statewide):

         $25,600 for culvert repair on the Genesee Valley Greenway

         $100,000 for the development of over two miles of additions to the Ganondagan Trails in Victor

         $50,000 for Irondequoit Creek Trail development a joint project between the Towns of Penfield and Perinton

         $20,000 for snowmobile trail maintenance equipment for use in Monroe and Wayne counties

Paul Howard announced that Steven Finn will be leaving his job as Planning Director for Ontario County. He has accepted a position in Raleigh, NC. Paul and Steve Gleason both noted the tremendous loss this represents to the region.

5. Planning Committee Action Items

a.       Proposed Planning Committee Resolution 01-6: Amendments to the 2001-2006 Transportation Improvement Program to allow the Rochester-Genesee Regional Transportation Authority to purchase four trolley buses in FFY 2001-2002.

David Cook noted that RGRTA wants to consolidate the funding for two projects and buy four trolley buses in FFY 2001-2002 (instead of buying two this year and two next year). He noted the advantages to RGRTA of doing this and noted that this will have no impact on funding levels.

David Woods motioned to accept proposed Planning Committee Resolution

01-6. John Thomas seconded. The motion passed unopposed.

b.      Proposed Council Resolution 01-14: Accepting the Strategic Plan for Public Transportation in Livingston County as completion of UPWP Task 8230.

David Cook handed out highlights of the Strategic Plan. He and David Woods reviewed the results of the study, focusing on Proposed Initiatives and the Action Plan. They noted that it was a collaborative effort between Livingston County and the RGRTA. David Woods noted that there was heavy interest in the study from Livingston County-area human service agencies, and one of the report recommendations is further exploration of the feasibility of fixed route service. Two public meetings were held to gather input. Don Riley presented the report to the Livingston County Board of Supervisors. The RGRTA Board has adopted the report.

One result of the study was the formation of a LATS Advisory Committee (which will hold its first meeting on September 26).

David Woods motioned to recommend Board adoption of proposed Council Resolution 01-14. Joan Dupont seconded. The motion passed unopposed.

c.       Proposed Council Resolution 01-15: Accepting the Stone Street Station Design Objectives & Community Needs report as completion of UPWP Task 8410.



 

David Cook handed out highlights of the result of this study of the Stone Street Station (aka Downtown Transit Center or Rochester Central Station). The study identified features to be incorporated in the station, how the station relates to the surrounding area, and possible funding sources.

Paul Howard asked whether access from the proposed ferry landing to the station was planned for. John Thomas suggested that the proposed airport shuttle could serve both.

Scott Leathersich asked whether RGRTA planned to move its offices to the new building. David Cook responded that they do not.

John Thomas asked who the City contact was for this study. David Cook responded that although he did not know everyone involved he knew discussions were held with Mayor Johnson, City Council President Lois Geiss, and Deputy Mayor Jeff Carlson.

David Woods motioned to recommend Board adoption of proposed Resolution 01-15. John Czamanske seconded. The motion passed unopposed.

d.      Proposed Resolution 01-16: Approving the MPO Self-Certification Document verifying that the GTC is meeting all Federal planning requirements.

 

Steve Gleason reviewed the requirements of the self-certification. He noted that this is an annual process in which GTC responds to a list of questions developed by NYSDOT Main Office concerning its planning process as it relates to Federal requirements . The responses to these questions form what is known as the MPO Self-Certification Document.

He also noted that this year GTC will undergo its triennial certification review by USDOT (this years self-certification is a placeholder for the full certification). The full certification review will take place from October 1-3 and will include a public meeting and an opportunity (on the morning of October 3) for Planning Committee and Board members to meet with members of the certification team to express any issues or concerns they might have. He noted that GTC sees the full certification review as an opportunity to improve how it operates and encouraged member participation.

Scott Leathersich motioned to recommend Board adoption of proposed Resolution 01-16. David Cook seconded. The motion passed unopposed.

6. New Business

There was no new business

7.                 Next Meeting

The next Planning Committee meeting will be held on October 25, 2001 at 10:00 a.m. at the new Livingston County Highway Facility, 4389 Gypsy Lane (just off of Rte. 63), in Groveland.

The next Board meeting will be held on September 13,2001 at 8:30 a.m. at the Radisson Inn in Henrietta.

8.                 Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 11:20 a.m.