Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-04-17 Minutes - Northeast Urban Renewal Board (NURB) NURB Meeting – April 4, 2017 1 Northeast Urban Renewal Board (NURB) Regular Meeting Tuesday, April 4, 2017 The Northeast Urban Renewal Board met in regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 4, 2017, in the Conference Room, Professional Building, 20 East Olive Street, Bozeman, Montana. Present: Absent: Voting Members: Jeanne Wesley-Wiese, Vice Chair Bobbi Clem Daniel Doehring Robert Pavlic Non-Voting Members: John Usher Tom Noble Commissioner Liaison: I-Ho Pomeroy Staff: Brit Fontenot, Economic Development Director Jessica Johnson, Neighborhood Coordinator Robin Sullivan, Recording Secretary Guests: Shane Strong, KLJ Engineering Chris Nixon, 719 North Wallace Avenue Maurice Quanbeck, 520 North 11th Avenue Karen Lindell, 416 East Aspen Street David Chambers, 224 North Church Avenue Charlie Kees, 411 East Aspen Street Kristin Griffin, 428½ North Church Avenue Call to Order – Vice Chair Jeanne Wesley-Wiese called the meeting to order at 6:32 p.m. Changes to the Agenda – No changes were made to the agenda. Public Comment – Jessica Johnson submitted documents for the file, including the letter she sent to residents around the pedestrian bridge with a map and copy of the agenda for this meeting, a list of people within the 200-foot standard notice distance and a map showing the properties, and a list of four property owners who live on East Aspen Street but outside the 200- foot boundary. NURB Meeting – April 4, 2017 2 Minutes – March 7, 2017. It was moved by Bob Pavlic, seconded by Dan Doehring, that the minutes of the meeting of March 7, 2017, be approved as submitted. The motion carried on a 4-0 vote. Discussion/Action Items – Discussion regarding Bozeman Creek Pedestrian Bridge. Karen Lindell, 416 East Aspen Street, reported she has talked to a few of her neighbors, many of whom are renters, about this project. She then reiterated the concerns she had voiced at last month’s meeting regarding the costs involved in constructing a bridge over the creek when other crossings are only a block or two away, at intersections where crossing North Rouse Avenue is much safer. Chris Nixon stated surveys were available at the recent NorthEast Neighborhood Association (NENA) meeting. He then noted that he also talked to Jenna Caplette and found she has concerns about people parking along the street. He suggested that having someone meet with residents along East Aspen Street to identify the street right-of-way could help to answer many questions. He concluded by stating he continues to be a proponent of the bridge and of extending the trail system. Jeanne Wesley-Wiese recognized that one of the issues in the district is that the public right-of-way is being used for private purposes, often making it difficult to walk through the area. Charlie Kees, 411 East Aspen Street, stated he is a proponent of the bridge, noting it will provide a safe connection for him and his children. He shared some of the concerns identified by others, particularly the congestion along that short street. He noted that it is a dead-end street, and people who drive on it find that they must turn around. He then asked if there are any designs for the bridge alignment and the location of the sidewalk. Responding to questions from Karen Lindell, Brit Fontenot stated the sidewalk will not relieve the congestion issues but will address pedestrian safety. He cautioned that installation of the sidewalk will impact any structures or personal belongings currently located in the public right-of-way. Jeanne Wesley-Wiese noted that the pedestrian bridge will provide a connecting route for residents on the east side of the creek to access businesses and residences on the west side of the creek. She then noted that every intersection on North Rouse Avenue is a legal pedestrian crosswalk, and suggested that those crossings may be better marked once the reconstruction project is done. She then expressed her preference for walking along the alley and the trail system with her young grandchildren, stating she finds walking along the streets is less safe because of the vehicular traffic. Bob Pavlic asked for the results of the survey; Chris Nixon reported there are 26 in support and 17 not in support of the pedestrian bridge. Bobbi Clem asked about maintenance of the bridge and whether someone will shovel it in the winter; Jeanne Wesley-Wiese responded that the annual budget includes monies for maintenance of the improvements made. Jeanne Wesley-Wiese suggested that the RUDAT team be asked to weigh in on this proposed pedestrian bridge during their event next weekend; Bobbi Clem responded that connectivity will NURB Meeting – April 4, 2017 3 be one component of their discussions. She then announced that the RUDAT team invites all NURB members to participate in discussion with them on Friday afternoon; and that would be an excellent time to talk about the bridge along with any other issues or concerns. Kristin Griffin, 428½ North Church Avenue, stated she crosses North Rouse Avenue only at the traffic signal because it is too difficult to safely cross in any other place. Responding to Bob Pavlic, Brit Fontenot stated that the bridge will be public infrastructure and, like the other bridges along the trail system, will become a part of the City assets and under its liability umbrella. Responding to questions from Charlie Kees, Brit Fontenot stated the proposed bridge is to be a metal span bridge like the ones currently along the trail. Responding to additional questions, Shane Strong stated the right-of-way for East Aspen Street is 60 feet wide, and the sidewalk is to be located one foot from the property line. He stressed that there will be no street improvements or driveways installed in conjunction with this project. He reported that, based on the results from the core samples taken at the creek banks, the estimated costs for the bridge are $80,000, with the sidewalks estimated at $12,000 to $15,000. Charlie Kees recognized there are no preliminary engineering plans at this time, but asked that the need for a turn-around at the end of the street be considered. Responding to questions from Maurice Quanbeck, Brit Fontenot acknowledged that the pedestrian bridge is listed as No. 5 on the priorities for the use of bond monies. He noted, however, that the Board can choose to install the bridge using other available monies. He noted that the $1.4 million in bond monies will probably cover only two or three of the projects on the list. Jeanne Wesley-Wiese asked that discussion on this issue be continued until next month’s meeting so the information from the RUDAT process is available. Update on RUDAT project. Bobbi Clem reported that the steering committee met prior to this meeting. Four architects are confirmed, and it is hoped another one will commit prior to this weekend’s event. The steering committee will meet with the RUDAT team on Thursday evening; on Friday, the team will meet with various groups from 7:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.; on Saturday, Sunday and Monday the team will work on the project; and on Monday evening, they will make a presentation to the community at the Ellen Theatre. She stated the Friday meetings include a meeting with members of this Board in the afternoon and a community meeting in the evening, where they hope to have 400 participants. Responding to questions from John Usher, Bobbi Clem stated there is a website for the Bozeman RUDAT project; and bios for each of the architects involved are on that website. She then confirmed that all of them have experience in this process and have been specifically been invited to participate in this process because of their experience and expertise. Updated cost estimate for projects to be bid this year. Shane Strong stated the latest cost estimate for the East Peach Street reconstruction is $664,000, with the total cost NURB Meeting – April 4, 2017 4 including utilities estimated at $1,060,000. He indicated that this estimate is slightly higher than the previous one. He then indicated he should have better cost estimates for the East Tamarack Street project by the next board meeting. Responding to Bob Pavlic, Shane Strong stated that advertising for the East Peach Street project will begin on Sunday, and the bids are scheduled to open the first week of May. Brit Fontenot stated that no bond papers will be signed until after the construction bids have been opened because that will determine whether construction is undertaken this summer. Update on respondents to bond proposal. Brit Fontenot reported that on Monday night, the City Commission authorized staff to enter into negotiations with Big Sky Western Bank for sale of the bonds. He noted the proposal is for bonds at 4.1 percent interest for 25 years; and the details to be negotiated include drawdown of those bond monies. He then stressed that the schedule previously submitted was an aggressive one; and the entire process has slipped only one week. Discussion regarding proposal to budget monies for preliminary landscape/ lighting plan for major streets in the district. Bobbi Clem suggested that, once the major streets in the district have been reconstructed, the Board consider consistent improvements along the street frontage, possibly including trees in the boulevards and a specific LED street light fixture that meets dark sky standards. She recognized that some work was done on the street light issue a couple years ago, and it was determined at that time that the existing street lights are owned by various entities; but she suggested it may be an issue worth revisiting. She noted that this proposal would improve the neighborhood visually and the lighting would help address the issues of safety and walkability. Jeanne Wesley-Wiese stated people have not indicated they want more street lights, but they do recognize the need to have them at the intersections. She stressed the importance of maintaining the dark skies, and stated she would like to see all lights within the district, including those in parking lots and on buildings, shielded. She noted that the ownership of the existing lights is one of the factors that brought discussions on this issue to a halt. John Usher stated that Liz Galli-Noble inventoried all of the street lights within the district, including who owned them and how they would need to be retrofitted to meet the dark skies requirements. He noted that the map she provided as well as the information was beneficial; however, several unresolved issues caused the discussion to end. One of those was the possibility of creating a special improvement lighting district to handle the retrofitting and to pay the annual energy costs. Responding to questions from Bobbi Clem, Brit Fontenot stated the City does not want to continue creating lighting districts that contain a few lights; rather, their preference is to create a city-wide lighting district. He then cautioned that NorthWestern Energy does not have LED lighting fixtures; and their policy is to not replace existing fixtures with higher standard fixtures. Bobbi Clem thanked everyone for the update on this issue. NURB Meeting – April 4, 2017 5 Updates on current projects. Shane Strong stated he will have the street reconstruction estimate for East Tamarack Street ready for the next Board meeting. He then reported that work on the punch list items for North Wallace Avenue is scheduled to begin this week, including the permanent striping. Staff updates on items of interest to the Board. Economic Development Director Brit Fontenot distributed copies of the economic profile for Gallatin County and Park County, noting that TIF districts are important to economic development in Bozeman. He noted the information also includes the most recently adopted economic development plan update. Update on financial status of NURB fund. Recording Secretary Robin Sullivan distributed copies of the revenues and expenditures for Fiscal Year 2016-17. Responding to questions from Bobbi Clem, Brit Fontenot stated the bond monies will be available immediately after signing the closing documents. He noted that billings for construction typically begin well after the construction begins, so the initial draw may not occur for a few months. Initial discussion on budget and work plan for 2017-2018 fiscal year. Recording Secretary Robin Sullivan distributed copies of the draft budget and work plan for Fiscal Year 2017-2018. She cautioned that the monies budgeted for the bond payment and bond reserve may not be adjusted. She then asked that the Board members review this information and be prepared to discuss it at next month’s meeting. Responding to John Usher, Brit Fontenot stated the budget is generally presented to the Commission in June. Set agenda for May 2, 2017 meeting or cancel meeting. Items to be included on the May 2 agenda, in addition to the standard agenda items, are continued discussion regarding the pedestrian bridge project, a report on the RUDAT process, a report on the bid opening for the East Peach Street reconstruction, and work on the budget and work plan for next fiscal year. Bob Pavlic reported that he will be out of town for the meeting. Brit Fontenot stated the documents for the bonds may be signed prior to the May meeting. FYI/Discussion (formerly Neighborhood News). Bob Pavlic noted that Peter Bronken has sixteen acres on Love Lane, and he plans to construct a 60,000-square-foot warehouse on the site and consolidate all of his operations at that location. He has received several offers for his current property, although it has not yet been placed on the market. He suggested that this change in use may impact the East Peach Street design. Bobbi Clem reported that the old Brewery site is on the market for $3.5 million. NURB Meeting – April 4, 2017 6 Adjournment – 7:54 p.m. There being no further business to come before the Board at this time, Vice Chair Wesley-Wiese adjourned the meeting. Jeanne Wesley-Wiese, Vice Chair Northeast Urban Renewal Board City of Bozeman