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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005-09-08 SC MINUTES1 b MINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING OF THE CHULA VISTA SAFETY COMMISSION September 8, 2005 6:00 p.m. CALL TO ORDER Meeting called to order at 6:00 p.m. 1. Roll Call: Council Chambers Public Services Building Present: Chair White; Vice -Chair Perrett; Commissioners AI-Ghafry, Gove, and Lopez (late) Absent: Commissioners Rosario and Willett Also present: Frank Rivera, Principal Civil Engineer Benjamin Guerrero, Jr., Engineering Technician Lindsey Walters, Recording Secretary MSC (White/Gove) to excuse the absence of Commissioners Rosario and Willett. (4-0-3). (Lopez late, but called ahead to Vice -Chair Perrett) 2. Pledge of Allegiance/Silent Prayer 3. Opening Statement • Opening statement read by Chair White. 4. Approval of Minutes for July 14, 2005 There was no Safety Commission Meeting held for the month of August. MSC (Perrett/White) to approve the minutes of July 14, 2005 as submitted. (4-0-3) Rosario, Willett absent. MEETING AGENDA 5. Oral Communications 1. Philip Christensen 1656 Oleander Avenue, Chula Vista Mr. Christensen takes issue with the ongoing speeding problem and would like City staff to reevaluate the placement of a stop sign at the intersection of Tanoak Court and Oleander. Taken under advisement about 10 years ago. The solution to the problem at that time was a three-way stop sign at the intersection of Sequoia and Oleander. Citizen would like a reevaluation of the placement of that stop sign. • Safety Commission Minutes September 8, 2005 Page 2 6. Proposed on -street parking on Rancho Del Rev Parkway near Avamonte Way (Continued) Staff received a letter addressed to the City Council from Mr. Oscar Polster, 696 Ayamonte Way regarding parking issues on Ayamonte Way apparently caused by the Aspire -Encore Condominium Complex. He reported that a large number of condominium residents are parking their vehicles along Ayamonte Way due to insufficient parking facilities in the condominium complex. He requested that the City re -stripe Rancho Del Rey Parkway to provide on street parking adjacent to the condominium complex. This item was presented at the May 12, 2005 Safety Commission meeting where the Commission decided to continue this item to a subsequent meeting and directed staff to contact the Condominium Home Owners Association and to report back to the commission on the on-site parking within the complex. • Over the past few weeks, staffs has been trying to meet with the condominium's HOA in an effort to share the subject parking concerns and identify viable solutions for resolving this undesirable situation. Recently, the HOA board required the presence of their legal counsel at the proposed meeting, which triggered the need to have our City Attorney also participating in this discussion. In the meantime, Engineering, Planning & Building, and Fire Departments personnel have been researching the parking issue with the purpose of identifying alternative solutions to be presented at a meeting with the HOA. Staff anticipates presenting a detailed report which will include a discussion of the public street parking requirements, a summary of the meeting with the HOA board, detailed information on the parking within the Condominium complex and Ayamonte Way, together with staffs final recommendation on the subject item. Principal Civil Engineer Rivera gave a brief presentation. Item has been continued several times, • in order to allow for City staff to work with the neighbors and condominium project. We have vehicles parking illegally on a public street. We're trying to eliminate the illegal parking, therefore just retaining those legal parking spaces, about one in front of each house. Engineering Technician Guerrero spoke with residents, and found mood to be very positive. They felt it was long overdue, and they appreciated us marking up the spaces that were illegal to park in. Commission Discussion: Commissioner AI-Ghafry is disappointed with the HOA folks for not working together with the City staff or neighbors to resolve this issue. MSC (White/AI-Ghafry) to concur with staff recommendation to deny request for re -striping Rancho del Rey Parkway near Ayamonte Way and to accept the staffs report for the implementation of parking restrictions through red curb in order to eliminate illegal parking on Ayamonte Way. (5-0-2) Willett, Rosario absent. 7. Request for time-limited parking along Oleander Avenue (Continued) City Staff received a letter from Ms. Catherine Gray, 1142 Oleander Avenue, concerning issues about on -street parking along Oleander Avenue, and requesting time-limited parking along the west side of Oleander Avenue in front of the single-family residences. Apparently, employees of Greg Rogers Elementary School consistently park their vehicles along Oleander Avenue in front of these homes, causing inconveniences to the residents. Tonight, the Safety Commission will consider initiating the proceedings for the subject request and opening the public hearing for listening to comments from the public. 0 Safety Commission Minutes September 8, 2005 Page 3 Staff Recommendation: That the Safety Commission concurs with staff's recommendation to: 1. Implement certain measures for encouraging staff parking on the elementary school grounds and along the school's frontage on Oleander and Foxboro Avenues; and, 2. Take no action at this time with the request for time limited on -street parking along the west side of Oleander Avenue. Principal Civil Engineer Rivera gave a brief presentation. City staff has been working with Greg Rogers' School Principal on this item. Five additional parking spaces have been added just due to re -striping. Originally, this parking lot had all the disabled parking spaces, and since this time, more disabled parking spaces have been added throughout campus. While still complying with state regulations, the added width of a handicapped space, allowed the addition of five extra spaces. An additional 32 spaces can be added by simply utilitizing T spaces, so all of these added parking spaces could be more efficiently used. It was also explained to the Principal that it is not a good idea for school employees to be parked on left side of street. In the process of crossing to enter school, they jaywalk. This does not set a good example for the students. City Traffic Staff are also in the process of awarding a contract for a traffic signal at East Naples and Oleander, Avenue. Staff expects the work to start in about a month and a half and to be completed by January 2006, if not by the end of the year. Engineering Technician Guerrero stated that the Principal did speak about opening parking lot three and expanding that in the next year or two. That might add additional parking in that parking lot. • Commission Discussion: Vice -Chair Perrett concurs with the staff recommendation, and feels City Traffic Staff did a very good job meeting with the school, and being proactive on this issue. Commissioner White went by the area around noon today, and there were 12 cars on the east side, 5 cars on the west side, fewer in fact than what's displayed in report. On East Naples there were about a half dozen cars. Chair White is disappointed that the Church's input regarding parking was very ecumenical, particularly when looking at the fact that they park at the school on Sundays. MSC (White/AI-Ghafry) to concur with the staff recommendation to deny the request for time- limited parking along Oleander Avenue and accept staffs recommendation for the implementation of other measures for encouraging parking on school grounds and along the school's frontage on Oleander Avenue, East Naples, and Foxborough Avenue (5-0-2) Willet, Rosario absent. 8. Report on mitigation measures for Saint John's Episcopal Church/School traffic concerns There are specific issues of importance at the vicinity of Saint John's Episcopal Church/School, such as: safety of students and parents parking on the east side of First Avenue and crossing mid -block to/from the School, traffic congestion during school drop-off and dismissal times, and vehicle speeding along First Avenue. This item was initially presented at the July 14, 2005 Safety Commission meeting where the Commission voted against staff's recommendation to install an all -way stop at the intersection of First Avenue and Kearney Street and directed staff to meet with the school for exploring other ways of addressing current traffic concerns. On August 04, 2005, -J Safety Commission Minutes September 8, 2005 Page 4 staff met with Mr. Carlos Gonzalez, St. John's Parish Administrator and Ms. Frances Shorkey, Dean of Students, in order to identify viable solutions for the aforementioned concerns. The specific items that were considered are as follows: Traffic Engineering Measures 1. School Safety Patrol 2. Flashing Beacon 3. Parking Restrictions on First Avenue 4. Land Easement (South of St. John's, adjacent to 'V Street) 5. CIP project at First Avenue/Kearney Street Intersection Enforcement Measures: Staff will request the Police Department to. increase enforcement for speeding vehicles, double parking, and pedestrian jaywalking at First Avenue during students pick up/drop off periods. Furthermore we will request that the Smart Unit be placed out during peak hours to strongly deter vehicular speeding. Education Measures: School officials advised that the school would be warning parents about the danger and illegality of double-parking on Fist Avenue. In addition, City will supply educational material to distribute within the school's correspondence that is sent out to parents and school staff. The intent of these articles is to inform St John's Patrons on relevant traffic safety issues that will benefit not only school staff but also students and their parents or relatives. Staff Recommendation: Staff will revisit the need for installing an all -way stop traffic control at the intersection of First Street and Kearney Avenue once the sidewalk and pedestrian ramp • improvements have been completed and the new school vehicular and pedestrian traffic circulation is established. Commission Discussion: Chair White asked that the Commission pass over Item #8, what with it being an Information Item only. 9. All -Way Stop at the intersection of Clubhouse Drive & Silverado Drive City Staff received a request from Eastlake II Home Owners Association for an all -way stop installation at the intersection of Clubhouse Drive and Silverado Drive. The HOA feels that due to the increase of traffic volume and speeding along Clubhouse Drive an all -way stop should be considered. This is the second request received by the City for this intersection. At their Jan. 10, 2002 meeting, the Safety Commission denied the request for an all -way stop installation at said location because the intersection received only 33 points out of maximum of 100 points where 45 points are required to justify the installation of an all -way stop control. Two years have passed since this location was previously studied. Staff Recommendation: That the Safety Commission concur with staffs recommendation to install an all -way stop control at the intersection of Clubhouse Drive and Silverado Drive. Principal Civil Engineer Rivera gave a brief presentation. In looking at the stopping site distance on this street, we have 270 feet site distance in the eastbound direction, and 140 feet in the westbound direction. The westbound site distance is less than 50% of the required site distance. The traffic volumes have increased since the last time we evaluated the area. Commission Discussion: None. 0 September 8, 2005 Page 5 MSC (Perrett/Lopez) to accept staffs recommendation to install all -way stop control at the intersection of Clubhouse Drive and Silverado Drive. (5-0-2) Willett, Rosario absent. 10. All -Way Stop at the intersection of S. Greensview Drive & Silverado Drive City Staff received a request from Eastlake II Home Owners Association for an all -way stop installation at the intersection of S. Greensview Drive and Silverado Drive. The HOA would prefer an all -way stop due to the increase traffic volume and speeding of vehicles along S. Greensview Drive. Staff has conducted a study of the intersection and is forwarding this report to the Safety Commission for consideration. Staff Recommendation: That the Safety Commission concur with staffs recommendation to: 1. Deny the installation of an all -way stop control at the intersection of S. Greensview Drive and Silverado Drive. 2. Trim or remove the landscaping located at the northwesterly and northeasterly quadrants of the subject intersection to improve sight distance for the traffic entering S. Greensview Drive from Silverado Drive. Principal Civil Engineer Rivera gave a brief presentation. Public hearing opened. The following person spoke in opposition to staffs recommendation: ' 1. Rodney Caudillo, 1240 Bodega Bay Drive, Eastlake Speaker's biggest concern is that the high traffic time is not represented based on the time the studies are being taken. Concerned for the kids crossing the street, what with the high traffic, there are not enough crosswalks. Speaker feels resigning street, and adding some additional stop signs to make street safer for kids who cross street. Public hearing closed. Commission Discussion: Commissioner AI-Ghafry explained that the purpose of a stop sign is to assign right-of-way, not to control traffic, although that can be a by product of such. The best installation of a stop sign is when volumes of cross streets are really close together, but in this case, they greatly vary. Recommended for Traffic staff to consider extending the island on Silverado Drive up to that limit line in order to ensure that left turners stay in their lane, and not encroach into the extended left turn lane. Vice -Chair Perrett echoed a lot of the same comments, and asked Sergeant Munch about the possibility of mobile speed indicators. It was found that it was a possibility, and in that case, Vice - Chair Perrett agreed with the staff recommendation, to deny the all -way stop, in addition to the other measures listed in the staff report. Chair White brought up the connection between this item and previous one, and felt that the traffic volume might be improved in this case, simply by the approval of staffs recommendation for Clubhouse Drive and Silverado Drive. There are not enough points to justify the installation of an all -way stop at this location. P. September 8, 2005 rauc V There was some discussion of a mid -block sidewalk, to which Commissioner Gove commented, gives pedestrians a false sense of security. MSC (AI-Ghafry/Gove) to concur with staffs recommendation to deny installation of all -way stop at the intersection of South Greensview Drive and Silverado Drive and to approach the HOA regarding the removal of the landscaping located at the northeast and northwesterly quadrant to improve site distance for traffic entering South Greensview. Furthermore, add striping changes, per staffs discussion. (5-0-2) Willett, Rosario absent. 11. All -Way Stop at the intersection of Stone Gate Street & Duncan Ranch Road City Staff received a request from Andrea Crawford a resident of Eastlake Vistas for an all -way stop installation at the intersection of Stone Gate Street and Duncan Ranch Road. She stated in her request that an all -way stop should be considered due to high traffic volume and high number of pedestrians crossing Stone Gate Street and Duncan Ranch Road. The main issue in her petition is the safety of the pedestrians comprising mainly of students from Eastlake Middle School. The school is located at the northwest corner of the intersection. Staff has conducted a study of the intersection and is forwarding this report to the Safety Commission for consideration. Staff Recommendation: That the Safety Commission concur with staffs recommendation to install an all -way stop control at the intersection of Stone Gate Street and Duncan Ranch Road. Principal Civil Engineer Rivera gave a brief presentation 1 Commission Discussion: Commissioner Gove said she normally would not agree with a stop ' sign in this location, but the circumstances are different. Vice -Chair Perrett asked whether or not it was a school -related issue, with the traffic counts being high during school hours. Principal Civil Engineer Rivera estimated that half the cars are related to school traffic, but if you look at the all - way stop, 20 points were just due to pedestrians. With the volumes there, even if they had been half, we probably still would have been close to the 45 points required. Commissioner Gove asked whether it would be better placed further west around Silver Oak Place. Principal Civil Engineer Rivera answered that the issue with the all -way stop is that they are best placed on'the streets with the highest volumes. Silver Oak Place has only 20-30 homes, and will have traffic volumes of about 150 per day, compared to 3166 for Stone Gate Street. Commissioner AI-Ghafry voiced his disagreement with staffs recommendation, and wanted to prepare Chair White and the Commission for his vote. He felt it too close to a controlled intersection, and if you take away the school volume, you will undoubtedly lessen the traffic volumes drastically per day. He felt the same could be said for pedestrian traffic volumes, they would considerably lessen. Chair White did have hesitation what with the proximity of the two stop signs (less than 300 feet apart). However, there are several mitigating factors: 1) increased population will cause increased traffic, and 2) the park will attract both pedestrians as well as drivers. Therefore Chair White does concur with staffs recommendation. MSC (Perrett/White) to concur with staffs recommendation to install an all -way stop control at the intersection of Stone Gate Street and Duncan Ranch Road (3-1-3) Willett, Rosario absent; Gove abstained. Safety Commission Minutes September 8, 2005 Page 7 Since two Commissioners were absent, there was no majority, so item was not passed. MSC (White/Perrett) to revote on this item when more Commissioners are present (5-0-2) Willett, Rosario absent. 12. Traffic Accident Summary — June 2005 Brief presentation given by Sgt. John Munch. 13. Action Summary Update/Staff Comments March 10, 2005 Decrease the speed limit on Moss Street from Industrial Boulevard to Broadway: Safety Commission concurred with staffs recommendation to decrease speed limit to 30 mph, and installation has been completed. May 12, 2005 All -way stop at Main Street and Jacqua Street: Safety Commission concurred with staffs recommendation to provide additional signage and parking removal, and installation has been completed. 14. Potential Safety Commission Agenda Items • 1. Request for time limited parking — East Palomar Street near Santa Cora Avenue 2. Proposed increase of posted speed limit on Rutgers Avenue from East "H" Street to Otay Lakes Road 3. Proposed all -way stop at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Davidson Street. 15. Training — Traffic Engineering for Public Officials Commissioner Lopez expressed interest, while most others were going to be out of town, and/or had already attended. 16. Staff's Comments Changes in speed limit are going to change certain things for the Safety Commission, but other than that, Traffic Staff is simply trying to keep up with citizen requests. It was approved for the City Council to have assistants to help each Council Member handle citizen requests (Constituent Services Managers). They email requests to Traffic Staff, and this will inevitably generate more agenda items. 17. Commissioner Comments Commissioner Lopez inquired as to the nature of the aforementioned citizen requests. Principal Civil Engineer Rivera responded that the majority of them are related to landscaping and visibility issues. Vice -Chair Perrett asked a quick question about the Olympic Parkway Interchange, and when they were going to change the traffic to the middle. The contractor had told City staff that they had • some overnight closures planned from 11 pm-5am for next week. So probably within 2-3 weeks, Safety Commission Minutes September 8, 2005 Page 8 the traffic will be switched over to the north and south sides of the street. It is foreseen that this will help traffic issues, primarily the on- and off -ramps. Chair White took a moment to applaud City staff for their diligence in exploring a variety of options in solving each proposed item brought before the Safety Commission. He also informed the Commission that he would be gone for the October 2005 meeting. He went on to request something be done about the traffic signals around the area of LA Fitness in Eastlake, on Sundays. The left turn signal simply never changed. Principal Civil Engineer Rivera said that it had been repaired before, but it's possible that it's damaged again; assured the Chairman that it would be looked into. Adjournment at 7:55 P.M. to the next regularly scheduled meeting of October 13, 2005. Respectfully submitted, Lindsey Walters, Recording Secretary J:\Engineer\SAFETY\2005\090805—MIN.doc . -11J, C.]