Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout5.26.21 UAPB MinutesMINUTES MPOJC URBANIZED AREA POLICY BOARD MAY 26, 2021 – 4:30 P.M. ZOOM MEETING PLATFORM APPROVED MEMBERS PRESENT: Coralville: Meghann Foster, Laurie Goodrich Iowa City: Pauline Taylor, John Thomas, Laura Bergus, Janice Weiner Johnson County: Rod Sullivan, Royceann Porter North Liberty: Terry Donahue, Chris Hoffman University Heights: Louise From University of Iowa: Erin Shane ICCSD: Ruthina Malone Iowa DOT: Cathy Cutler STAFF PRESENT: Kent Ralston, Emily Bothell, Brad Neumann, Frank Waisath, Hannah DeBruin OTHERS PRESENT: Barbara Beaumont 1. CALL TO ORDER Donahue called the meeting to order at 4:30 PM. The meeting was held online through the Zoom meeting platform in accordance with Iowa Code Section 21.8 due to complications preventing in-person meetings during the COVID-19 pandemic. a. Recognize alternates Ralston clarified that there are no alternates, but the phone number in Zoom is Louise From. b. Consider approval of meeting minutes Motion to approve made by Sullivan; Taylor seconded. The motion carried unanimously. c. Set next Board meeting date, time and location Tentatively scheduled for July 7th, expected to be held over Zoom. 2. PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF ANY ITEM NOT ON THE AGENDA None 3. ADMINISTRATION a. Consider approval of ‘American Rescue and Recovery Act’ funding allocations for local transit agencies Neumann explained that the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced a $30.5 billion total in federal funding allocations to continue to support public transportation systems through the American Rescue Plan Act. The funding includes $7,496,845 for the Iowa City Urbanized Area to be apportioned to Iowa City Transit, Coralville Transit, and University of Iowa CAMBUS. The FTA previously provided the Iowa City Urbanized Area with $8,331,763 in funding as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic MPOJC Urbanized Area Policy Board Minutes _________________ Page 2 Security (CARES) Act in 2020 and $1,532,506 in Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA) funding earlier in 2021. Like with the previous funding, the funding will be provided at 100% federal share and will not require a local match. The American Rescue Plan primarily directs recipients to prioritize payroll and operational needs. After discussion with the three transit managers, it was recommended to apportion the American Rescue Plan funding using the same multiplier as the CARES Act and CRRSAA funding. So far, over $17 million has been apportioned to the communities for transit since 2020 and will be used over next few years to get service back to normal. Staff asked for a recommendation to approve the apportionment. Neumann noted that once approved, MPOJC will provide the apportioned amounts to the FTA and apply for the funding on behalf of the transit agencies and noted the Transportation Technical Advisory Committee recommended approval of the apportionment at their May 18th meeting. Weiner moved to approve the apportionment; Sullivan seconded. The motion carried unanimously. 4. TRANSPORTATION PLANNING a. Consider a resolution approving the MPOJC FY2022 Transportation Planning Work Program Ralston explained that the MPOJC FY2022 Transportation Planning Work Program (TPWP) includes all locally-requested projects that were received by the MPOJC from member-entities as well as general projects and procedures as required by the Iowa DOT, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), and FTA. While required by the federal government, the TPWP also serves to organize data collection and project workflow for MPOJC staff. Staff sought modifications to be made before the program is sent to the DOT, FHWA, and FTA for final approval. Ralston added that MPOJC will continue to take requests for additional projects as they come up throughout the year and complete them as time permits. The projects listed only represent about one quarter of all projects completed by the MPOJC in a year, so new projects are free to be requested as needed. Ralston stated the Transportation Technical Advisory Committee unanimously approved the FY2022 TPWP at their May 18th meeting. Donahue clarified that the resolutions on page 11 and page 21 were the same. Ralston concurred. Taylor added that the list of projects is incredibly long and will greatly benefit the community. Hoffman moved to approve the program; Goodrich seconded. The motion carried unanimously. b. Consider approval of the Draft FY2022-2025 MPOJC Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) projects Neumann explained that the annual TIP document is used for all federally funded projects in both road and transit as well as all state and local projects in the urbanized area. Any projects that were scheduled for FY2021 but are not contracted with the Iowa DOT will carry over to FY2022 and another 4% will be added to the project cost. The Board previously awarded $7.8 million in Surface Transportation Block Grant funds for four projects programmed for FY2025-2026. The projects programmed in FY2025 were the Taft Avenue reconstruction project in Iowa City ($3,500,000), Highway 6 and Deer Creek Road improvements project in Coralville ($864,560), and Sunset Street pavement repair and pedestrian improvements project in University Heights ($115,440). There was MPOJC Urbanized Area Policy Board Minutes _________________ Page 3 not enough funding to complete all projects in FY2025, so the Ranshaw Way reconstruction project in North Liberty ($2,900,000) was programmed in FY2026 and will be included in next year’s TIP. The Board awarded Transportation Alternatives Program funding to the Highway 6 Trail extension project in Iowa City ($520,000) that will also be included in next year’s TIP. Neumann stated that the transit portion of the TIP includes operating funding and all capital projects that were approved earlier this year, primarily for bus and equipment replacement. In these TIPs, buses usually receive about 85% of federal funding. Iowa City Transit will be replacing all their buses with electric buses, which was a first for the Iowa DOT. Staff requested approval of the draft FY2022-2025 MPOJC TIP project list. The Transportation Technical Advisory Committee unanimously recommended approval of the FY2022-2025 TIP project list at their May 18th meeting. The draft TIP will be submitted to the Iowa DOT for review by June 15, 2021. MPOJC will begin the public approval process for the TIP in July. Bergus moved to approve the TIP draft; Hoffman seconded. The motion carried unanimously. c. Consider approval of the MPOJC Long Range Transportation Plan capital infrastructure project prioritization Bothell explained that staff has been working on the Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) since the last meeting in terms of gathering public input, developing federal funding estimates for 2022-2050, scoring proposed capital transportation infrastructure projects, and finalizing the base Travel Demand Model. A second virtual workshop was recently hosted by the MPOJC for the Bike and Pedestrian chapters of the LRTP. As staff is nearing completion of the Travel Demand Model, communities have been contacted to give input on where growth is expected. The Federal Highway Administration requires that projects in the LRTP do not exceed forecasted state and federal funds for the duration of the plan. As such, the MPOJC must ensure that the time bands are “fiscally constrained.” Staff evaluated and scored 115 projects submitted by MPO entities and developed a preliminary list of projects. The scoring criteria (used to prioritize projects) serves as one tool to help prioritize projects because there has always been more transportation needs than available forecasted funding. That said, this year the MPOJC fiscally constrained all but two road and bridge projects and five bike and pedestrian projects. These projects are both in the LRTP and the model, allowing communities to help understand growth in the future. Staff is seeking approval of the fiscally constrained list of capital infrastructure projects. The transportation Technical Advisory Committee unanimously approved the list at their May 18th meeting. Ralston added that this draft approval is primarily to help staff work on the LRTP this year, but there will still be a formal public input process in early 2022. Thomas moved to approve the list; Sullivan seconded. The motion carried unanimously. d. Update on Federal Functional Class designations for urbanized area roadways MPOJC Urbanized Area Policy Board Minutes _________________ Page 4 Bothell presented the Federal Functional Classification (FFC) system map recently updated and approved. Earlier this year, the Board unanimously approved the FFC changes submitted by local entities to include 7.12 miles of roadways to the map. These were approved by the Iowa DOT and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in April. Only 35% of total road mileage in the Iowa City Urbanized Area can be listed on the FFC system. With the approved amendments, the total road mileage listed on the FFC system is 33% with 167.04 miles classified. Roads must be classified on this system in order to receive federal funding. These changes are now posted on the Iowa DOT’s Highway Networks page. Shane asked for clarification of the 35% figure. Bothell responded that only 35% of the roadways in the urbanized area can be classified under the FFC to constrain the potential for federal funding. Ralston added that this classification is to guarantee that there is planning being done for the long term with regards to these federal funds and they are not being applied to any roadway without reason. 5. OTHER BUSINESS None 6. ADJOURNMENT Motion to adjourn was made by Taylor; Sullivan seconded. Meeting adjourned by Donahue at 4:53 PM.