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02/05/2001CLEARWATER BEACH ENTRYWAY ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING CITY OF CLEARWATER February 5, 2001 Present: Commissioner Ed Hart Facilitator/Non Voting Chair Lucile Casey Committee Member – arrived 4:41 p.m. Bruce Littler Committee Member Dan Moran Committee Member Roger Schulman Committee Member Carl Wagenfohr Committee Member Bob Bickerstaffe Committee Member – arrived 4:02 p.m. Bill Jonson Alternate Absent: Herb Brown Committee Member Hoyt Hamilton Committee Member Arthur Lupien Committee Member Also present: Mahshid Arasteh Public Works Administrator Gary Johnson Public Works Director Paul Bertels Traffic Operations Manager Lt. Mike Waters Police Department Cynthia E. Goudeau City Clerk Patricia O. Sullivan Board Reporter The Chair called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m. at City Hall. To provide continuity for research, items are in agenda order although not necessarily discussed in that order. ITEM #1 – Approval of Minutes Member Littler moved to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of January 8, 2001, as submitted in written summation to each board member. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. ITEM #2 – Old Business – None. ITEM #3 – Discussion Items Draft – Overview of Roundabout Advisory Committee Meetings In reference to Traffic Operations Manager Paul Bertels’ January 31, 2001 memorandum, Commissioner Hart complimented staff for the outline and recommended the report be presented in matrix form and include action statements reviewed at the end of several meetings, committee conclusions, and recommendations, with reflection on the flavor of discussions. Public Works Administrator Mahshid Arasteh noted minutes of the meetings provide brief summarizations. During the course of its meetings, the committee voted on few issues. Discussion ensued regarding the best way to gather committee member conclusions. It was recommended staff gather individual committee recommendations and present them to the committee for a vote. After further discussion, it was recommended committee members review each issue before March. It was suggested the final report list actions taken at the behest of the committee, such as moving signage and the wind gauge, and note future actions unrelated to the committee such as the required new entrance to the Wings property. Also suggested for inclusion were accident statistics, traffic volume comparisons with previous years, and traffic counts of vehicular arrivals and departures to Clearwater beach. It was suggested the committee submit a majority and minority report, supporting opposing positions, especially related to close votes. It was suggested a member draft a minority report to report the concerns of the minority. City Clerk Cyndie Goudeau said the minority report could be attached to the committee’s final report. It was suggested the report indicate implementation of Barry Crown’s recommendations would cost between $1.3- and $1.5-million. Committee members had opposed several of Crown recommendations, but no consensus was determined. It was suggested an appendix to the report include all member summations. It was felt speeding causes most problems related to the roundabout. It was suggested devices, such as candlesticks or raised markers, be installed to separate lanes to force drivers to remain in their lane until their exit, and reduce their speed to negotiate the roundabout’s tight turns. It was stated large cobblestones in Washington D.C.’s neighborhoods have slowed traffic there significantly. In response to a suggestion, Ms. Arasteh said widening the roundabout would encourage motorists to drive two-abreast in one lane. Lt. Waters stated traffic coming off the causeway often ignores signs requiring motorists to yield to roundabout traffic. Concern was expressed staff never explained why the committee recommended plan to require outside lane traffic to exit to Coronado never was implemented. Discussion ensued regarding the Vail, Colorado roundabout. Barry Crown’s recommendation to mark two lanes in the roundabout to increase capacity outweighed staff’s recommendation to remove the lane markings. It was suggested it would be safer for pedestrians to jay walk rather than limiting their movement to crosswalks. It was noted residents had complained the crossing signal on south beach stops traffic too often. Mr. Bertels stated the light must remain red for 20 seconds. The sequence can be repeated once a minute. It was suggested the interval be extended to once every 3 or 5 minutes. Mr. Bertels said the City must provide this signal to meet ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) requirements and provide a reasonable accommodation similar to standard practices. It was suggested a sign on the traffic signal could explain the interval. In response to a suggestion, Mr. Bertels said signals that count down seconds require special permit as drivers sometimes rely on the count down to effect drag strip conditions. Commissioner Hart said he would present the report to the City Commission and report it is in draft form and will be available next month, that the committee had agreed to recommend no changes to the roundabout prior to this year’s Spring Break, and that the committee will make recommendations related to improvements after a review of data related to the high traffic levels. The committee did not prioritize Crown recommendations but did agree the least important recommendations were to lower the fountain walls and add a crosswalk on the Causeway, across from the Marina. Barry Crown had recommended the City adopt all or none of his recommendations. Staff will contact members to remind them to submit their reports. The format for the final draft will be determined at the next meeting. b) Educational Model Member Wagenfohr reported he had worked with staff and Jim Eubanks, with the Pinellas County School District, on a countywide curriculum related to negotiating roundabouts. Clearwater beach offers opportunities for students to experience a single and double lane roundabout. A teacher training session is scheduled for March for implementation in Pinellas County Schools’ drivers education classes. The School Board will fund costs of copying the videos. It will be necessary to develop a new module if changes are made to the roundabout’s design. It was suggested the program be expanded to Hillsborough County. Input from engineering experts and the National Safety Council also was recommended. It was suggested staff present the educational model draft to the committee for future review. It was stated a videotape for hotel guests also is needed. Brochure It was suggested errors in the roundabout brochure be corrected before it is reprinted. Errors relate to directions for exiting from the roundabout. It was suggested the brochure identify the single and double lane entrances/exits and explain the ingress/egress methods for each. It was recommended the roundabout drawing be large enough for hotel/motel owners to use as a diagram to highlight the roundabout movement necessary to access their property and forward it to guests prior to their visit. A new brochure cannot be designed until the City Commission makes a decision regarding changes. Ms. Arasteh requested committee members forward recommendations to staff. ITEM #4 – New Business Lt. Mike Waters reported a Citywide Police Department policy change now requires the issuance of a report for every accident, regardless of resulting damage. The number of accident reports issued will increase. Ms. Arasteh said the reports will help staff identify the location of all accidents. Concern was expressed the press not use this change to skew statistics related to the roundabout. Lt. Waters reported a recent dramatic accident outside the roundabout attracted heavy media attention when the vehicles were lifted out of the fountain. He said a medical condition was responsible for the accident, not the roundabout. Lt. Waters reported Pinellas County had sponsored a sand sculpture event at Sand Key Park in conjunction with Super Bowl. Although literature indicated the display closed at dusk, a considerable amount of traffic was attracted to onsite light shows after dark. The County did not provide additional personnel to deal with the resulting traffic jam. He said the roundabout was much more successful at moving traffic than traffic signals were in the past. Southbound traffic off the roundabout was shut down only three times, for one minute each, to allow traffic to dissipate. He suggested committee members consider advantages related to the roundabout. ITEM #5 – Next Meeting The next meeting is scheduled for March 5, 2001. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 5:22 p.m.