HomeMy WebLinkAboutTBMinutes_2008_05_20Transportation Board
Brookings, South Dakota
May 20, 2008
OFFICIAL MINUTES
The Brookings Transportation Board was called to order by Vice-chairperson
Dennis Falken on Tuesday, May 20, 2008 at 2:00 in the City Hall meeting room.
Members present were Art Conners, Rob Jones, Andrew Natzel, Robb Rasmussen,
Terrell Spence, Teresa McKnight, Jerry Raabe, Nancy Hartenhoff-Crooks, and
Falken. Roger DeGroot, Michael Forgy, Dean Kattelmann, and Jeff Weldon were
absent. Others present were Charlene Carothers - Easy Cab, Brenda Schweitzer
and Mike Mullaney - BATA, SDSU State and Local Government Chair Tyler Luckhurst,
Park, Recreation, and Forestry Director Allyn Frerichs, City Engineer Jackie Lanning,
and City Clerk Shari Thornes.
Item #2 – (Conners/Raabe) Motion to approve the minutes from the April 15, 2008,
meeting. All present voted aye. MOTION CARRIED.
Item #3 – (Hartenhoff-Crooks/Natzel) Motion to approve the agenda. All present
voted aye. MOTION CARRIED.
Item #4 – Update on the Easter Seal Mobility Conference in Washington, SD – Falken
reported that Brenda Schweitzer, Nancy Hartenhoff-Crooks, and he had attended
the conference in April. He said the conference was very intensive and focused on
each team developing a transportation plan for their community. Their plan
included reaching all sections of the community (disabled, elderly etc.) and also
reaching to the outlying towns. He said their team needed to devise a plan to
better serve all the areas. Schweitzer said that their plan included having
vehicles/vans (that would be handicapped accessible) and available drivers
located in each community. The vans would be available for travel from the
smaller towns to Brookings and then returning. Falken said that they had yet to
decide on the funding for the plan. He added that their plan was not to have a
fixed day for the route but to have the vans and drivers available for transportation
at anytime. He said they also needed to survey the small communities to see what
they wanted and needed. Hartenhoff-Crooks added that this was a new plan that
they had devised and was not taken from somewhere else.
Item #5 – Update on the Safe-Routes-to-School grant application – City Engineer
Jackie Lanning displayed a map of the southern area of Brookings where the new
elementary school was to be built. She said that Allyn Frerichs, Amy Dunkle, Robb
Rasmussen and she had been working on the grant application. Rasmussen had a
handout explaining the program. He emphasized the five Es that are essential in the
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application. They are education, evaluation, encouragement, enforcement, and
engineering. Rasmussen said the grant application was due by June 6, 2008, and
would be 100% reimbursable. The City contributes the money first, and then is
reimbursed. The City’s main collector streets were shown on the map, and some
could be possible bike routes. A new street, 15th Street South, has yet to be
constructed. Frerichs explained that the present grant application is for the area of
the new elementary school only. Other grants can be applied for in the next five
years for others areas. Falken said that education would be very necessary
because the program was new. Falken asked what the dollar amount of the grant
would be. Frerichs said it hadn’t been determined yet. Rasmussen said that letters
of support needed to be included in the grant application. He said the committee
would like a letter from the Transportation Board and from the City Council. Falken
said he would see that the request was given to City Manager Jeff Weldon.
(Conner/Jones) Motion to direct City Manager and Transportation Board
Chair Jeff Weldon to write letters of recommendation to be included in the
application grant. All present voted aye. MOTION CARRIED.
Item #6 – Discussion on transportation planning strategy
• Fixed route service – Falken stated that the budget process begins in June,
and he would like the Transportation Board to recommend and/or support
the service providers. He asked Natzel if there was anything new happening
at SDSU regarding transportation. Natzel said now that the students are gone
for the summer, things have slowed down. Schweitzer added that she sees a
demand/response system and not fixed routes yet. Falken said he doesn’t
want things to stop during the summer. He wants ideas to be kept alive. State
and Local Government Chair Tyler Luckhurst said that talks will continue
during the summer months. Conners said he hoped funding opportunities
wouldn’t be missed because of lesser activity during the summer months. He
agreed that ideas need to be kept alive. Schweitzer said that she is aware of
the situation and will make their needs known.
• Large Event Planning – Falken said that BATA provides services for some
events but does not have enough vehicles for the larger events. Schweitzer
said charter buses can do shuttling. Conners said that when large events are
scheduled, arrangements could be made ahead of time. He suggested
getting event information through the Chamber of Commerce.
Falken said that he felt the committee is discussing too many ideas at once,
and the committee is going nowhere with them. He said it was his idea that the
Board should focus on one specific need and develop that need and work to
get it implemented and funded. Then move on to another topic. Conner
suggested designating one topic of transportation for each meeting, and
concentrating on that one idea. Rasmussen thought it was very important that
citizens know what is avai lable to them for transportation. He requested that the
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City let the media know about what is available for transportation within the
city. Jones said that utility bill stuffers reach everyone in the city. Rasmussen
asked if the Chamber of Commerce could publicize transportation available in
the City. Schweitzer added that people aren’t concerned about the availability
of public transportation until they, personally, have a need for it. Falken said the
demand/response method of city transportation is being met now. Falken also
said he would like to have an answer if the City Council asks for
recommendations from the Transportation Board as to where to use
transportation dollars.
Falken asked Schweitzer if it would be possible to discuss fixed routes at the
next meeting. He asked her to provide costs, projected numbers, maintenance
costs and any information pertinent to fixed routes. She added that fixed routes
in the City were different than fixed routes on campus.
Falken said each person has their own group of needs or niche concerning
transportation. This committee needs to know if people are satisfied with what is
available to them in their own group. In studying each group, hopefully, this
Board can determine that. Spence felt with the impending budget issues and
the timeline, it seemed best to him to concentrate on BATA first.
Falken said the topic for the next meeting would be the demand/response
and fixed routes for BATA.
Item #8 – The next meeting will be held on June 17th at 2:00 PM in the City Hall
Meeting Room.
The meeting was adjourned.
____________________________ _______________________________
Diane M. Spencer, Secretary Dennis Falken, Vice-chairperson