Title
Resolution to Develop a Preliminary Design and Cost Estimates for Construction of Sidewalk along Newport Road between Wines Elementary and Riverwood Drive and to Appropriate Funds to Establish a Budget for this Design ($15,000.00) (8 Votes Required)
Memorandum
Attached for your review and approval is a Resolution to authorize City staff to prepare preliminary designs and cost estimates for the addition of new sidewalk along Newport Road as a special assessment project.
On November 3, 2012, staff received a petition requesting the City to provide a sidewalk along Newport Road from Riverwood Drive to Wines Elementary and to consider "taxing" the neighboring communities to help pay for the costs. The petition has 79 signatures and was signed primarily by citizens neighboring Newport Road (maps attached). This petition follows a public involvement process that began in 2011 in which staff sought to address the citizen-requested improvements of non-motorized access along Newport Road north of Sunset.
That public involvement process consisted of two neighborhood meetings where staff gathered feedback on various alternatives for extending non-motorized facilities from Sunset to the City limits at the north end of Newport (near Holyoke Lane). The alternatives proposed included adding a non-motorized path (8 to 10 ft wide), adding on-street bike lanes, and adding sidewalk to both sides. More details on the non-motorized needs, the history of the project, and the public involvement process can be found on the project webpage: www.a2gov.org/NewportRoad <http://www.a2gov.org/NewportRoad>.
The most recent public meeting was held in March 2012 and the general input from many in attendance was that extensive non-motorized improvements would not be worth the impacts to trees and the rural character of Newport Road. Many residents in attendance asked the City to be more flexible and investigate a narrower and/or shorter pedestrian path (i.e., a 5-foot wide sidewalk that does not extend the entire length of Newport). Some thought that if the City cannot minimize the impacts, then the City should just leave the corridor as-is and not add non-motorized facilities.
The petition's request to extend sidewalk only from Wines Elementary/Forsythe Middle School to the River Wood subdivision supports the general feedback received from the public meetings. Building a sidewalk at this location would provide pedestrian access between high need areas; between Skyline High School and the neighborhoods to the south and between Wines Elementary/Forsythe Middle School and the neighborhoods to the north. Limiting the extent of the sidewalk construction to south of Riverwood Drive is a shorter version of the original proposal and will have a lower impact on the natural features along Newport Road - e.g., the trees and grades.
The attached resolution will authorize City staff to proceed with preparing a preliminary design and cost estimate for building a sidewalk from Wines Elementary to Riverwood Drive. As part of this process, staff will investigate various funding scenarios, including the possibility of spreading special assessments to the surrounding neighborhoods as mentioned in the petition. Staff will work with the Ann Arbor Public Schools and MDOT in an effort to coordinate pedestrian improvements along school property and across the M-14 Bridge. Staff will also conduct outreach to gather public feedback. After receiving feedback from the public, City Staff will recommend scope and funding alternative(s) to City Council. We anticipate the following schedule for this work:
January 2013: Council authorization to proceed with preliminary design, cost estimates, and public engagement for extending a sidewalk along Newport Road from Sunset Road to Riverwood Drive.
February - May 2013: Obtain topographical information, prepare preliminary alternatives/cost estimates, and investigate special assessment and other funding opportunities.
June 2013: Public meeting(s) to garner feedback on alternatives.
August 2013: Council authorization to proceed with design, construction, and funding of the selected alternative.
September 2013 - February 2014: Design, Special Assessment Resolutions to Council, and bidding for construction.
Summer 2014: Construction.
This Resolution authorizes the appropriation of $15,000.00 from the City's General Fund to establish a budget in that amount for the purpose of preparing a preliminary design(s), cost estimates, funding scenarios, and public engagement for this project.
Staff
Prepared by: Nick Hutchinson, P.E., Interim Project Management Manager
Reviewed by: Craig Hupy, Public Services Administrator
Approved by: Steven D. Powers, City Administrator
Body
Whereas, A public sidewalk does not exist along Newport Road between Wines Elementary and Riverwood Drive;
Whereas, In November 2012, a petition was received by the Public Services Area Administrator's Office requesting the installation of a sidewalk along this section of Newport Road and the consideration of sharing the cost among neighboring communities; and
Whereas, City staff will need to evaluate alternatives for the design, cost, and funding of this proposed sidewalk;
RESOLVED, That the City Council authorizes City staff to prepare a preliminary design, cost estimates, investigate funding scenarios, and gather public feedback; and
RESOLVED, That the City Council approves a $15,000.00 appropriation from the General Fund, Fund Balance and establishes a project budget to be available without regard for fiscal year for purposes of said design.