Downtown Sidewalk Committee Minutes

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Meeting date: 
Monday, February 12, 2024

Gardiner Sidewalk Committee Meeting Minutes

February 12, 2024

10am

 

Members Present: Tamra Whitmore, Gardiner MainStreet; Melissa Lindley, Economic Development Director; Claire Maron, Business owner and Gardiner resident, John Cameron, Public Works Director; Kent Cooper, DOT Landscape Architect; Brian Keezar, DOT Project Manager; Dakota Hewlett, DOT Active Transportation Planner; Brian ______, DOT Historic Preservationist; Julie Senk DOT Historic Coordinator; Linda Greer, of Fuss & O’Neill Project Manager; Robert ________ designer; Kelly Hare, Public Works Admin.

 

  1. Project Limits

Linda opened the meeting with a rundown of the project limits, explaining that a site walk will take place to ensure all parts of the project are ‘picked up’. The limits of the project are:

  • Segment 1 – one side of Water Street from Brunswick Avenue to Church Street
  • Segment 2 – the other side of Water Street from Brunswick Avenue to Church Street
  • Segment 3 – both sides of Water Street from Church Street to the south side of Wright Way and the Public Library Parking lot.
  • Crosswalks evaluation at Depot Street/Church Street
  • Evaluate access management of the city office parking lot on Church Street by extending the sidewalk to provide an appropriate drive entrance width with ADA compliant curb ramps.
  • Intersection of Brunswick/Water Street (J.M. Arbour corner)

 

  1. Design Approach

 

Wider sidewalks may be a good choice, but there are requirements to be met and the existing sidewalks “have many twists and turns”. In addition, there are no plans to make improvements to the road, for example, road grade and center line will remain as it is. Location and height of the back of the Water Street buildings will remain as they are as well, therefore, it will be important to get the correct sidewalk grades and curb reveal (curb reveal is how much vertical face of the curb is left between paving and the top of the curb) to meet the roadway.

 

 The survey results will give a clear understanding of what can and cannot be done. Some requirements are:

  • ADA sidewalk and curb ramps
  • Appropriate sidewalk cross slope
  • Appropriate sidewalk texture
  • Needs to meet ADA and Historic requirement.
  • Bump out/Crosswalk criteria – 20ft clearance.

 

The plan is to build one side of the road at a time to access businesses as much as possible. After road completion on both sides, they will come do a mill (mill is to remove the top couple of inches of pavement) and overlay of the pavement.

  1. Fact Finding Mission

 

a. Ponding Issues

  • In front of Monkitree there is a storm drain, however there is frequently ponding issues.
  • The river has been flooding more than usual so something to keep in mind with design and curb reveal requirements.
  • John Cameron will make note of any ponding issues he sees in the near future.
  • Make sure the radius within the bump outs is wide enough for the city plow trucks to access snow removal.

 

  1. Crosswalks
  • The crosswalk in front of the library is problematic due to the curve in the road and a big tree which blocks pedestrian/driver view. In addition, traffic coming from the direction of Richmond travels too fast for the area. This may be a good place for a rapid flashing beacon.
  • There are parking spaces right at the crosswalk in front of the library that will need to be removed because they obstruct the view of pedestrians who are trying to cross.
  • A bump out should be added at the crosswalk in front of the library.
  • Crosswalks at Church and Water Streets are challenging because they are at an angle. Traffic doesn’t always stop fully or see pedestrians crossing.
  • Placement of signs at the intersection of Church and Water Streets to discourage traffic from going the wrong way on Water Street.

 

  1. Which buildings do not have sprinkler systems? Or need water hookup from street?
  • Property owners will need to be notified of the upcoming project and given information so that they can best determine if they will need to access water lines while the road is opened up for construction.
  • The committee will discuss the details of this with the Gardiner Water District to determine who has access to water, who will need access to water, if the water lines going into buildings are adequate for sprinkler system requirements, and the best way to notify property owners.

 

  1. Gardiner’s Cobblestone Streets and their limits
  • There have been many cobblestones removed over the years with various projects, but it is unknown where any remain. It was suggested that the project manager contact Dawn Thistle at the library.

 

  • The concern is, if there are cobblestones, it could change the type of work the contractor has to do to complete the job.
  • DOT has a boring truck that can bore holes to check for cobblestones if there isn’t knowledge of stones within the project limits.

 

 

  1. Lighting
  • DOT has a subconsultant who is working with them on this project in regard to lighting. She has confirmed that the city and DOT have a dark sky requirement, which means lighting cannot point up toward the sky.
  • Some of our streetlights are either missing the cap across the top or need to be changed or adjusted. The consultant will do a site visit to help the city keep the lights that are in good shape and determine which lights need adjusting to meet dark sky requirements.
  • Julie, from DOT stated that when replacing lighting, due to the historic district, they want to be mindful of maintaining character by matching lighting aesthetically if possible.
  • A full study will be done to determine how many will be needed and if any existing lights need to be moved.

 

  1. Historic District

Julie will give a presentation at the next meeting to discuss regulations that are required when using federal money. It’s important to maintain the historic integrity of the district with feature such as lighting, sidewalks, trees, etc. by being cohesive to what is existing, updating without going overboard.

 

  1. Downtown Features – Kent Cooper Landscape Architect

Planters Benches and more

  • The trees in the downtown area were planted sometime in the 1980’s and could possibly be removed and replanted due to not being considered historic. A period of time is considered “historic” for a city when that period of time is considered significant.
  •  Dearborn Park – this park does not fall within the limits of the project due to the pedestrian and sidewalk nature of the project. The city is looking into grants at this time to fund the work for the park and should hear the answer in the next few months.
  • The committee feels that Dearborn Park will be a gathering place for Johnson Hall and there needs to be a plan in place for redevelopment.
  • Crosswalk treatments – Within historic limits there are a number of different treatments we can use, for example: granite.

 

  1. What is our timeline?
    •  There is nothing written in stone at the moment, however, there will be a public hearing, then a conceptual plan. The plans will be made available online for 3 weeks to allow people to view and comment.
    • Dakota and DOT will go after funding by the end of this year.
    • Public hearing could potentially take place August/September 2024
    • Gardiner Main Street will host a meeting for downtown business and property owners which will include DOT to present a conceptual plan in the spring.

 

Next meeting March 18 10am

 

Meeting adjourned 11:30am