HomeMy WebLinkAbout11.13.19 UAPB MinutesMINUTES APPROVED
MPOJC Urbanized Area Policy Board
Wednesday, November 13, 2019 - 4:30 PM
Johnson County Health and Human Services Building, 2nd Floor Conference Room
855 S. Dubuque St, Iowa City, IA
MEMBERS PRESENT: Coralville: Tom Gill, Meghann Foster
Iowa City: Mazahir Salih, Pauline Taylor, Bruce Teague, John
Thomas, Eleanor Dilkes
Johnson County: Pat Heiden
North Liberty: Terry Donahue, Chris Hoffman
Tiffin: Steve Berner
University Heights: none
University of Iowa: Erin Shane
ICCSD: Ruthina Malone
STAFF PRESENT: Kent Ralston, Brad Neumann, Emily Bothell, Sarah Walz, Frank
Waisath
OTHERS PRESENT: Greg Parker (Johnson County)
1. CALL TO ORDER
Berner called the meeting to order at 4:30 PM.
a. Recognize alternates
Ruthina Malone was recognized as an alternate for Lori Roetlin of the Iowa City
Community School District. Eleanor Dilkes was recognized as an alternate for Susan Mims
(Iowa City).
b. Consider approval of meeting minutes
Motion to approve was made by Gill, Donahue seconded. The motion carried
unanimously.
c. Set next Board meeting date, time and location (January 29, tentatively hosted by Iowa
City)
The next meeting was tentatively set for Wednesday, January 29th, hosted by Iowa City.
2. PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF ANY ITEM NOT ON THE AGENDA
Ralston thanked Lori Roetlin and Rockne Cole, two outgoing board members, for their service
on the Board and presented certificates of appreciation.
3. ADMINISTRATION
a. Appoint nominating committee for Calendar Year 2020 Urbanized Area Policy Board
officers
Ralston indicated that a three-person nominating committee is responsible for nominating
the Urbanized Area Policy Board Chair and Vice-Chair. The current Chair and Vice-Chair,
Steve Berner of Tiffin and Terry Donahue of North Liberty, have reached their two-year
term limits. Ralston further expressed that it is preferred that the three members of the
nomination committee represent different communities.
Tom Gill, Mazahir Salih, and Erin Shane volunteered to serve on the nominating
committee. Ralston indicated that there is no defined rotation of communities which serve
as officers. The nominating committee will be contacted prior to the January 29th meeting
for their recommendations.
b. Confirm which entities will nominate Johnson County representatives to East Central Iowa
Council of Governments (ECICOG) Board of Directors
Ralston explained that each January, the MPOJC Urbanized Area Policy Board nominates
three representatives to the ECICOG Board of Directors as well as one citizen
representative. Appointments are made according to rotations identified in the MPOJC
Bylaws. One seat represents the two largest entities in Johnson County and alternates
every other year, with the 2020 seat scheduled to be filled by Iowa City. Another seat
represents the third through fifth largest entities in Johnson County - currently occupied
by Solon and scheduled to be filled by Coralville. A third elected official seat rotates
between the remaining seven entities in Johnson County - currently held by Lone Tree
and scheduled in 2020 to be represented by the City of Tiffin. The current citizen seat has
been held for two years by Randy Laubscher. There is no term limit for this seat. Ralston
indicated that he would reach out to each community scheduled to designate a
representative at the January meeting.
Taylor expressed that Laubscher is a prepared and effective representative and that an
offer to continue his status on the Board should be extended. This was seconded by
Donahue.
Ralston also stated that Rod Sullivan (Johnson County Board of Supervisors) mentioned
the year-long seat limits create an impediment to successful participation and
familiarization with board processes and that it may be advantageous to amend the bylaws
to extend term lengths. Ralston expressed, however, that such amendments would need
to be approved by both the UAPB and the Rural Policy Board which meets once annually.
This will be discussed at future Board meetings.
c. Preliminary discussion of FY21 MPOJC Budget
Ralston stated that MPOJC is under the administration of the City of Iowa City and follows
budgeting procedures regarding salary and benefit schedules as established by the City.
Capital expenses for FY21 are like past years and include expenses for equipment
replacement and software upgrades. Changes in staffing levels were made a few years
back and will be maintained.
Ralston noted an anticipated increase of 6.5% in the MPOJC budget to a total of $740,000
- $745,000 for FY21, primarily reflecting increases in employee salaries and benefits. As
in past years, approximately $230,000 in funding from the DOT will be used to supplement
the budget. Internal carryover from previous fiscal years will further supplement the
budget.
4. TRANSPORTATION PLANNING
a. Consider action regarding safety target setting for the MPO as required by the Federal
Highway Administration
Ralston established that the Federal Highway Administration requires each MPO to set
safety targets pertaining to five performance measures within the Highway Safety
Improvement Program and report them to the Iowa DOT by February 27th of each year.
For each measure, the Board will need to determine whether MPOJC is to follow the
State’s targets or if independent targets should be established.
Ralston indicated that staff recommends adoption of the State’s targets. However, the
opportunity to establish local targets is still possible before the February submission
deadline. The Transportation Technical Advisory Committee unanimously recommended
adoption of the State’s targets in their meeting the previous week.
Teague moved to adopt the State’s targets. Heiden seconded. The motion passed
unanimously.
b. Update on the Metro Area Bike Master Plan
Walz indicated that the MPO is currently in the process of updating the Metro Area Bike
Master Plan. Iowa City adopted their own Bike Master Plan in 2017, so this Metro plan will
focus on the rest of the metro communities. North Liberty and Coralville have worked to
establish paved trails and other bicycle facilities, and the update in the plan will focus on
providing linkages between the MPO communities. Walz further expressed that the update
to the plan will provide continuity guidelines regarding wayfinding signage, youth
education, and general municipal regulations concerning bicycle traffic.
Current infrastructure projects include a trail connection to Tiffin, which will complete trail
linkages between all MPO communities. This connection will follow the completion of the
I-80/I-380 interchange. Johnson County is currently completing trail connections north to
Linn County, providing connections to the Cedar Valley Trail. These larger-scale trail
corridors will provide the opportunity for bicycle tourism and increased recreational
opportunities between communities.
c. Update on the MPO Trail Count Program
Walz explained that counts of trail users are completed annually based on a list of
locations approved by the Regional Trails and Bicycling Committee. Counts are executed
at key trail locations every two to three years, scheduled between May and October. Points
are measured for week-long periods and observations are analyzed with consideration for
weather conditions and surrounding road and trail closures.
Walz indicated that there have been positive trends showing increased trail usage along
key recreational corridors, including at the Terry Trueblood Recreation Area and along the
North Dubuque Street Trail.
Hoffman inquired about the accessibility of trail count data for community members and
individual jurisdictions. Walz explained that trail count data is shared with the communities
and respective staff members and that count locations are generated by representatives
to the TTAC. Ralston further indicated that while UAPB members have not historically
provided input into prospective count locations, there is nothing prohibiting them from
suggesting locations for count scheduling.
d. Update on the CRANDIC Phase III Passenger Rail Study
Neumann explained that while Phase III was scheduled to be complete in December of
2018, there were issues surrounding the ridership models used by HDR Consulting which
required approval from the Federal Transit Administration in Kansas City. An on-board
survey will be performed over the coming weeks on bus routes serving the University of
Iowa to obtain origin and destination information. The Cambus Research Park route and
Coralville 10th Street, Lantern Park, and Express routes serve the same traffic market as
the proposed passenger rail.
Neumann noted that the study should be completed by February 2020.
5. OTHER BUSINESS
a. Update from Johnson County staff on significant community projects
Parker distributed the scheduling of construction projects for the coming fiscal years for
Johnson County. Funding source, expected completion, and project title were all included
in a spreadsheet shared with members of the Board. A map was distributed highlighting
the corresponding locations of projects enumerated in the spreadsheet. Parker noted that
the construction program has been approved by the Johnson County Board of Supervisors
and will be amended this coming March to include upcoming construction projects.
Parker identified the 120th St project as a carryover from last year due to weather issues
delaying the construction process. The Herbert Hoover Highway Project has combined
Phases 1 and 2 together to expedite construction, which is scheduled to be completed in
the coming construction season.
b. Discuss the ‘Severson Charity Challenge’ for this holiday season
Walz introduced the Severson Charity Challenge, established in memory of Linda
Severson. Ralston and Walz indicated that the MPO is happy to continue the challenge
for as long as the Board is interested. All Board members were in favor of continuing the
challenge.
6. ADJOURNMENT
Motion to adjourn made by Heiden; Foster seconded. The motion was approved
unanimously.
Meeting adjourned by Berner at 5:23 PM.