Walkable Community Workshop Report

Transcription

1 Walkable Community Workshop Report Presented to New Prague City Council February 22, 2011

2 Carver-Scott SHIP Statewide Health Improvement Program Partnership with the City of New Prague Assessment Action Plan Implementation/Evaluation

3 Walkable Community Attributes Allows residents to use walking as a common mode of transportation Increases opportunities for physical activity Permits children to walk to school Attracts window shoppers to local businesses Offers increased safety to pedestrians Creates a pleasant street atmosphere Encourages social interaction among neighbors

4 Three key features Safe and accessible facilities Reasonable walking distances Connections

5

6

7

8 City of Shakopee City of New Prague Programs - Youth Sports Summer Rec. Community Pool Municipal 18-hole golf course Events in Parks- Community Events Tournaments Weddings Reunions Picnics Pedestrian / Bicycle Routes- 6+ Miles of Trails (Greenway Trail System) 22+ Miles of Sidewalk Parks - Memorial Park Sliding Hill Skate Park Foundry Hill Park Southside Park Plus 6 other parks

9 City of New Prague Policies in the 2030 Comprehensive plan include: Provide a transportation system that supports multi-modal transportation whenever and wherever feasible and advantageous. Insure that all areas of the City have equal access to parks and open space areas by providing for equal distribution of parks and open spaces throughout all sections of the City relative to user population densities.

10 City of New Prague Existing Ordinances and Practices for Walkability in New Prague: Subdivision Ordinance requires: An accessible 5 wide sidewalk is required on at least one side of all newly developed public streets (local residential). An accessible 6 wide sidewalk is required on both sides of arterial roadways (or a sidewalk and trail). Currently no ordinance or standard policy on sidewalk replacement or construction on street reconstruction projects. Zoning Ordinance requires that commercial projects provide a sidewalk connection from the public sidewalk/trail system to the front door of the building.

11 New Prague s Workshop New Prague s Walkable Community Workshop was held at the City Hall on September 15, 2010 from 5-8 pm. 33 people attended

12 Workshop Objectives Recognize health and environmental connections Create vision of a Walkable Community Develop a plan of action

13 Key Components Presentation 1 mile walking audit Discussion and recommendations Prioritization of audit results

14 Basics of a Walking Audit What: Technique to guide assessment of the environment for walkability How: Take a walk, observe surroundings, take photos, come back with ideas Tool used: Let s Go For A Walk tool provided by Minnesota Dept of Health to record Purpose: Identify problems and solutions

15 Factors assessed: Sidewalks Crossings Traffic Walking Safety Ambience Photos Regents of the University of Minnesota. Used with permission of Metropolitan Design Center.

16 1 Mile Walking Audit

17 City Hall, north and east passing Queen of Peace Hospital + Sidewalk present - Narrow sidewalk + Attractive pavers/entrance to Hospital

18 + Well-marked curb + Well-maintained sidewalk + Nicely maintained landscaping

19 Columbus Ave. towards the cemetery and west on 4th St. to the Central Education Campus. - No crosswalk - Difficult crossing due to large puddle in street - No sidewalk

20 South on 1st Ave. through the neighborhood, past Mill Pond Apartments before returning to City Hall. + Sidewalk present - Sidewalk not well maintained (upheaval from tree roots) - No curb cut

21 Small Group Discussions

22 Large Group Prioritization

23 The results of the workshop will be used to: Create a more connected New Prague ensuring maintenance and completion of the city wide system. Identify the potential of creating a sidewalk plan for New Prague which would identify locations for new sidewalks and replacement or addition of sidewalks in existing neighborhoods during street reconstruction. Work with the School District and St. Wenceslaus School to ensure safe routes to all the schools. Continue to facilitate open space acquisition and development. Continue to ensure that the City s requirement of sidewalks being installed on at least one side of all new public streets is being met.

24 Top Priority Issues Identified by Votes of Participants in Ranking Order Along Walking Audit Route: Finish Sidewalk on Columbus Ave. N. and near Queen of Peace Hospital (sidewalk on west side of Columbus was made part of the 2011 CIP project) Sidewalk maintenance planning (Working on Plans through SHIP Program) Sidewalk policy (where and when to replace on reconstruction projects) City-Wide: Sidewalk maintenance-- fix or remove broken sidewalks Address crosswalk painting that becomes very slippery when wet Busy streets should have sidewalks on both sides v. only one side; There is no facility on TH19 to connect to the school -- trail or sidewalk needed; (City has applied for MnDOT funding for 2 nd year in a how) Sidewalks are not all cleared in the winter.

25 Presented by Ken Ondich Planning Director Sarah Brainard-Marsh Scott County Public Health

26 Questions?