Morgantown Municipal Bike Board
Regular Meeting
Public Safety Building
November 2, 2006
New Action Items:
|
Due date |
Responsibility |
Action Item |
|
12/7/06 |
Reger-Nash and Gmeindl |
1. Finalize vision statement |
|
ASAP |
Shogren |
2. Bike Board minutes to Linda Little |
|
12/7/06 |
Hein, Pearson, Gmeindl |
3. Implement an email list for the easy communication between Bike Board members |
Meeting Minutes:
The monthly meeting of the Morgantown Municipal Bike Board was called to order at 6:35 p.m. at the Public Safety Building by chairman Frank Gmeindl with the following members attending:
Betsy Shogren, Nick Hein, Jonathan Rosenbaum, Bill Reger-Nash, Jim Rye, Don Spencer, John Lozier, Tyler Pearson, Marilyn Newcome, Sonitt Bhatt, Bruce Summers, and Frank Gmeindl. Members missing were Rick Martin, Greg Good, Don Dickerson, Nancy LaRocque, and Chip Wamsley, .
à Agenda Item 2 (agenda):
-All members present agreed to follow the given agenda.
à Agenda Item 3 (Open Action Items):
Ø Closed Action Items:
o Jonathon Rosenbaum’s question to the League of Women Voter’s.
o John Lozier talked to members of the MPO leadership (Justice, Kennedy) about the importance of the inclusion of plans for non-motorized transportation.
o Bill Reger-Nash sent a letter to WV gov’t officials regarding the MPO plan.
o Jim Rye sent a letter to the DA and Dominion Post regarding the MPO plan.
o Greg Good attempted to get a radio show going, but his phone messages were not returned. He suggested people e just call in during regular call-in hours to show their support for non-motorized transportation in the MPO plan.
Ø Open Action Items:
o SRTS plan (sub-board)
o Email List (Hein, Pearson, Gmeindl)
à Agenda Item 4 (MPO focus group report):
The draft of the final MPO plan is due to the planning committee on 11/16, with the final plan being presented to the public 11/30. Despite the looming deadline, Bill Reger-Nash reminded the Bike Board that it’s not over until it’s over… Comments need to continue to be sent to the Dominion Post, Daily Athenaeum, governor, and city council. He suggested that it might be especially effective to send am email directly to the city council from the city’s website, emphasizing the need to keep it positive.
à Agenda Item 5 (Safe Routes to Schools focus group report):
Nothing to report.
à Agenda Item 6 (Ripe Banana Issues):
John Lozier suggested that the Bike Board work to change laws in Morgantown to allow bicycles on sidewalks (with deference to pedestrians). Frank took a consensus of the present members of the board, and there was 100% consensus (with certain provisions). Further, there is a strong desire amongst Bike Board members to increase signage advocating biking (share the road, etc) in M-town. Don Spencer stated that if the Bike Board can make a recommendation to the traffic commission and provides specifics (where/what kind of sign), the Signs and Signals committee can have the signs made quickly.
à Agenda Item 7 (Bike Board Plan):
Morgantown Bike Board Vision Statements:
JR: M-town will be a community where its citizens, regardless of their place of residence, can travel safely and efficiently by bicycle to shop, work, recreate and any other purpose.
NH: Make bicycling safe and fun as travel or sport for the entire M-town community, including visitors.
JL: A community where anyone can travel anywhere by bicycle for any reason, at anytime.
BrS: To make bicycling in M-town safe, useful, enjoyable, encouraging, and growing.
BSh: M-town is a community that accepts and welcomes cycling as a form of both transportation and recreation.
MN: To provide a safe bicycling route through and around town to promote the health and safety of all citizens.
BRN: People bike in M-town for leisure, transportation and exercise because it is safe, convenient, inexpensive, and fun.
JR: M-town will become a city in which people will become enthusiastic about non-motorized transportation and will become the city with the healthiest citizens and air quality in the state.
TP: To make M-town a community where a resident would be just as likely, if not more likely, to travel by bike somewhere as they would by car.
FG: In M-town, more people ride bikes than drive cars.
In M-town, there are more bikes on the road than cars.
SB: M-town is a city that feels safe to ride a bike and a city in which people accept biking as a good means of transportation.
NH: Making bicycling the best choice for travel or sport, anytime, anyplace.
TP: M-town is a place where people are more likely to travel by bike than by car.
DS: The city in which people from each neighborhood can safely access all schools and all areas of the city by bike.
A discussion of the posted vision statements then ensued. It was agreed that key words to the vision statement could include: Morgantown, bicycle, travel, safe, fun, shopping. Other key issues included health, obesity, air quality, hooks for stakeholders, and removal of barriers (social, physical, cultural). Further suggestions included bike racks at key merchants, dollar-off coupons for bicyclists at restaurants, and having a “bikeable merchant of the month,” featured on the website, with outlined bike routes to this merchant from all areas of Morgantown. Possible goals include: increase in shopping and commuting by bicycle, creation of bike lanes, wide shoulders, improvement of bicycle parking, and trip generators.
Bill Reger-Nash and Frank Gmeindl volunteered to consolidate and finalize a vision statement (subject to review at the next Bike Board meeting).
à Agenda Item 8 (New Action Items):
(see table at beginning of document)
à Agenda Item 9 (Meeting Evaluation):
-Positives comments regarding the conduction of this regular Bike Board meeting included the following:
-Areas that could be improved included the following:
The next regularly scheduled meeting is December 7, 2006 at 6:30 pm, at the Public Safety Building.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:30 pm.
Betsy Shogren
11/09/06