04/11/1977 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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~-A-S D. Seneca Road Improvement--Recommended by Public Works Department Manager said this was an important stretch of road in an industrial area needing improvements, that Public Works Department had developed a design and distributed that design with map to Council. Don Allen, Director of Public Works, said the Council had in October 1975 authorized staff to proceed with initiating the improvements. In March 1977 staff held a hearing with opportunity for the affected parties to comment and ask questions on the preliminary proposal. He noted City Council had taken a tour of the area. The improvement is at Step 4, prior to final design, and Public Works was asking Council for authorization to proceed with the final design. He said Council had two alternatives: to stop the project, or to authorize for final design, with another public hearing required to award the contract. - He noted the paving of Seneca Road from West 11th to Roosevelt Boulevard would provide a 44-foot roadway with curbs, bicycle lanes, and travel lanes. An additional feature will be installation of railroad crossing gates and flashers at the crossing of the Southern Pacific Coos Bay line. Seneca was the only north-south arterial between Highway 99 and Bertelsen. The project would provide a smoother, wider surface for auto and truck traffic travelling to and from the industrial area, as well as connecting West 11th with Roosevelt and Highway 99. He noted the project will allow the road to be made safer for both auto, truck traffic, and bicyclists. He said the total cost of the project is estimated at $473,300 with the City paying $147,800 and the assessed share to property owners $325,500. He noted that bancroft assessments with installment payments over a ten-year period with a seven percent annual interest rate Were available, and a de- ferred assessment program available for the low-income and elderly. He noted at the recent staff hearing concerns had been expressed regarding the need for bike lanes,and this area was on the Bike Master Plan. Another concern expressed was regarding the east-west truck route, and that problem had not been resolved at this point. He said staff recommended the Council proceed with the project. e Mr. Obie asked with regard to the bike path whether there was another way to handle them, citing a safety aspect of mixing the bikes on a route with heavy truck traffic. Mr. Allen replied it was the standard procedure in the Bikeway Master Plan to incorporate it with a travel lane, and one purpose of establishing the 44-foot width of the street would be for greater capability in maneuvering large trucks. He said staff did not recommend a separate path be built as it would be an added cost factor, and he felt the plan was satisfactory as presented. Mr. Obie then asked Mr. Lieuallen, as a member of the Bicycle Committee, whether he would agree with the philosophy of building a bike path in a heavy industrial area. Mr. Lieuallen responded that any kind of delineation for bicyclists was helpful, not only to the bicyclists, but to motorists, in that it aided motorists to know that it was a designated bicycle route. He said it was best to do so in the streets to establish the legality of bike paths to be in the streets with traffic. Jf~ 4/11/77--3