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Home My WebLink AboutOUTBoard agenda 082014AGENDA Orange Unified Transportation Board August 20, 2014 7:00p.m. You can bring your laptops/tabletsif you would like to use them. Conference Room 004 (LowerFloor) Orange County West Campus 131 West Margaret Lane, Hillsborough Time Item Title 7:00 1.Call to Order and Roll Call 7:05 7:08 7:10 8:00 8:20 8:40 8:50 9:00 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Approval of Minutes Minutes from April 16, 2014 Consideration of Additions to the Agenda Regular Agenda a. Draft Parks and Recreation Master Plan 2030 – Presentation by Orange County Department of Environment, Agriculture, Parks and Recreation (DEAPR)staff. Pursuant tothe OUTBoard’s recommendation at its April 2014 meeting regarding emergency access for trail systems, Planning staff has held discussionswith DEAPR staff regarding thedevelopment of emergency access goals and objectives being included in the Master Plan. Attachedis a copy of the presentation and draft Goals and Objectives for Emergency Access to Trail Systems at Orange County Parks for the OUTBoard’s consideration (Attachment 1, pages11 - 24). OUTBoard Action: Receive information and provide input. b. Bicycle Safety – OUTBoard Vice Chair, Jeff Charles requested that thisitem be added to the agenda. Attached for informational purposes is related information and a history of prior discussions of bicycle safety asrelated to the OUTBoard since 2011 (Attachment 2, pages25 - 50). OUTBoard Action: Receive information and discuss. Staff Updates a. Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Action Planimplementation actions b. Protection options for Old NC 10 road corridor c. Review of selected private road and access standards d. Buckhorn EDD environmental and transportation contracts e. OUTBoard vacancies OUTBoard Action: Receive updates Board Comments OUTBoard Action: Receive comments Upcoming Agenda Items of Interest on Other Regional Transportation Related Board Agendas OUTBoard Action: Receive information Adjournment -The OUTBoard’s next meeting will be September 17, 2014 1 2 D R A F T MINUTES1 ORANGE UNIFIED TRANSPORTATION BOARD2 APRIL 16,20143 4 5 MEMBERS PRESENT: Paul Guthrie, Chapel Hill TownshipRepresentative;Jeff Charles, Bicycle Advocate6 Representative;Alex Castro, Bingham TownshipRepresentative;Ted Triebel, Little River TownshipRepresentative;7 Amy Cole, Transit Advocate; Gary Saunders, CFE Representative;Brantley Wells,Hillsborough Township8 Representative9 10 11 MEMBERS ABSENT: Don Wollum, Eno TownshipRepresentative; Sam Lasris, Cedar Grove TownshipRepresentative;12 Pedestrian Access & Safety Advocate - Vacant;Cheeks TownshipRepresentative- Vacant;Economic Development 13 Commission - Vacant;Planning Board Representative – Vacant;14 15 16 STAFF PRESENT:Abigaile Pittman, Transportation/Land UsePlanner;Tina Love, Administrative Assistant II17 18 19 OTHERS PRESENT:Chuck Edwards, NCDOT; Ed Lewis, NCDOT; Elizabeth Gregory, Orange County Assistant Fire 20 Marshall; Matthew Day, TARPO; 21 22 23 AGENDA ITEM I: CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL24 25 26 AGENDA ITEM II: APPROVAL OF MINUTES FOR FEBRUARY 19,201427 28 Alex Castro: Line 266 should read, “This has great implications for the County”.29 30 TheFebruary 19, 2014OUTBoard Minutes were approvedwith correctionby consensus.31 32 33 AGENDA ITEM III: CONSIDERATIONS OF ADDITIONS TO THE AGENDA34 35 Paul Guthrie: I have tried to let the committee have a free handin how we conduct business. We have made it 36 difficult to let the presenter finish the presentation. If you have a burning question, get an authorization from me to 37 interrupt. We will always have a question/answer time after the presentation. 38 39 40 AGENDA ITEM IV: REGULAR AGENDA41 a.Board discussion with NCDOT to include the following topics: 42 i.Issues with some bike and pedestrian projects within the county (i.e. the quality 43 of the two-foot widening on Dairyland, prioritizing the widening of Old NC 86 at 44 Calvander, and the destruction of road surfaces during the gas line construction 45 on Mt. Sinai and other connecting roads, and opportunities for improved 46 coordination with, or oversight of state contractors during project construction).47 48 ii.The status ofany state discussions/projects related to the feasibility of using 49 existing triangle region railway infrastructure for commuter rail purposes as part 50 of a multi-modal transportation system.51 52 iii.Issues related to private street conversions for acceptance intothe state 53 maintained system.54 55 3 D R A F T iv.Available resources for minor improvements at problem sites/intersections within 56 the county.57 58 v.Pedestrian safety concerns on (new) Hwy 86/I-40 bridge overpass.59 60 vi.Other topics as raised by the Board.61 62 OUTBoard Action:Receive information and participate in discussion.63 64 b.Review of selected private road and access standards from the Unified Development 65 Ordinance (UDO) Section 7.8 Access and Roadways.66 67 OUTBoard Action:Review selected standards and recommend to the BOCC that 68 planning staff review/revise and develop amendments.69 70 71 Abigaile Pittman had Jeff Charles describe photos. 72 73 Jeff Charles: I am the bicycling advocate for the Boardand I am also on the Chapel Hill Bike Ped Board andI’ve 74 been appointed to the new TARPO bike planningthat is coming up. Dairyland is a key bicycling route in the county. I 75 would like to give credit to the fine jobdone onNC 10 and that was our expectation as to what would happen on 76 Dairyland. I went to the intersection of Union Grove Road and Dairyland and drove up to Maple View Ice Cream 77 Store. Most of these photosare on the right side of the road going toward Maple View. (Displayed photos).78 79 Chuck Edwards: The issues with the PSNC gas lines goingin. Public Service gas has a large comprehensive 80 project to put in new gas lines and they are affecting a lot ofstate maintained roads. The instrument used is an 81 encroachment agreement that spells who is responsible for what. This is to be expected with the extent of the work 82 they are doing. Prior to a final inspection, we will look at areas like this and if there is damage that warrants repair, 83 we shouldrequire them to do that. Back to Dairyland Road, it was included on our secondary road construction 84 program presented to the BOCC. This was a time we were moving secondary road construction funds from their 85 primary purpose of paving unpaved roads to going toward paved road improvements because we have effectively86 paved out the available unpaved county roads in the county. Our project was to widen the pavement on the road two 87 feet and resurface. The existing pavement is variable. This is a low tech project. It is not intended to be specifically 88 a bike ped type of project, just a safety improvement. Because of that variability and the way the pavement is89 marked, the widthdoes vary.We are looking at doing Lebanon Road in the Mebane area and a portion ofNew 90 Sharon Church Road. All remaining unpaved roads were reprioritized by a competing statewide basis for $12 million 91 dollars total. 92 93 Jeff Charles: In the past, we have talked about Old 86, the Calvander section,as part of a bigger improvement of 94 taking Old 86 all the way to Hillsborough. Is there a way to partition it?95 96 Chuck Edwards: For the past few years, I was relying on the secondary paved improvements to deal with some of 97 these routes. A road like Old 86 is typically not going to be paved ina single year anyway.98 99 Jeff Charles: Our hope was that if the Hogan Farmarea would donate the right-of-way, it would reduce the cost.100 101 Chuck Edwards: Yes.102 103 Jeff Charles: How do you do that?104 105 Chuck Edwards: There are ways to do that and there may already be dedicated right-of-way.106 107 Abigaile Pittman: We recently had an Orange County Expo and the planning departmenthad to man atable for four 108 hours. We had of our bike map and I only got one comment consistently. They picked up the bike map and said this 109 is a hot issue for me because when I try to drive through the county roads, the bikers don’t have anywhere to ride.110 4 D R A F T 111 Chuck Edwards: That reflects in the list.112 113 Abigaile Pittman: Thenext topic on the agenda isa discussion of the status of any state discussions/projects related 114 to the feasibility of using existing triangle region railway infrastructure for commuter rail purposes as part of a multi-115 modal transportation system.Ms. Pittman showed the Board a copy of the 2008 commuter rail capacity study done 116 by HNTB. 117 118 Chuck Edwards: I tried to get information about this topic before tonight’s meeting and failed.119 120 Paul Guthrie: I was on the task force that looked at the Hillsborough Rail Station. There was a lot of conceptual 121 planningabout the railroad right-of-way. Is anyone paying attentionto the fact that we have a 300-foot right-of-way 122 through the county that could be used for transportational purposes?123 124 Ed Lewis: I had an opportunity to attend the TSS (Traffic Separation Study) workshop.125 126 Paul Guthrie: At some level, this project is not going to move becauseyou ask but for a lot of other reasons. As this 127 position comes out, this could be a good time for an opportunitythat this couldbecome the key ingredient in 128 beginning anintegrated transportation system in this county.129 130 Alex Castro: The Research Triangle Foundation which is doing a revamping of the RTP, in their presentation, they 131 have two commuter rail stations, one which will provide shuttles to RDU airport. 132 133 Abigaile Pittman: The next topic of discussion is issues related to private street conversions for acceptance into the 134 state maintained system.Typical issues are people in subdivisions with private streets and the burden of maintaining 135 that over years, and then they decide they want the state to take over maintenance of the state.136 137 Chuck Edwards: The process starts when the developer has to make a decision as to whether he wants to pursue 138 state maintained or privately maintained roads. The bottom line is if they choose state maintained, it has to be 139 designed by our standards. DOT is involved in the beginning.Once we sign off, the developer will take it, develop it 140 and sellhomes. Once he meets a certain threshold of a certain house count per mile he can petition the road for 141 state maintenance. There are times when usually the homeowners want to pursue state maintenance for a private 142 road. The issues are the private roadshave a private right-of-way so it is not eligible for that alone. So there has to 143 be a conversion. The typical issue that we deal with is school stops. School buses won’t go down a private road. 144 There are moderate subdivisions that are built to the design and construction standards of a state maintained road, it 145 is a matter of replating the private to public but we have learnedthat can create issues with the county as to whether 146 that developer was trying to circumvent the subdivision regulations.147 148 Abigaile Pittman: There is problem ifthe road has been constructed to our Class B standards and they have to 149 overcome issues such as the placement of utilities, road widening, ditching, and encroachments. It is almost 150 impossible to overcome and sometimes the maintenance cost on those roads becomes a huge burdenon the 151 property owners. 152 153 Chuck Edwards: The Class B road, we sometimes refer to those as a glorified driveway and it isnot be feasible to 154 bring them upto our standards.155 156 Abigaile Pittman: Another topic for discussionis if there are available resourcesfor minor improvements at problem 157 sites/intersections within the county.I have been in discussion with Orange County School Districts regarding several 158 sites. There are issues with intersections to their driveways, wherethey need minor improvements to help the flow of 159 traffic. We have a list of improvements, what do I do with that list and arethere any available funds?160 161 Chuck Edwards: There is a group within our traffic engineering branch called Municipal School and Transit 162 Assistance (MSTA)and their purpose is to help school systems solve existing problems and avoid future ones. 163 Funding is fairly low at this point butthere are ways to get funding and you need to ask.164 165 5 D R A F T Ted Triebel: One that comes immediately to mind is the Cameron ParkElementary and St. Mary’s Road;has that 166 been looked at?167 168 Chuck Edwards: It has been looked at. Recommendations have been made for internal improvements. We will be 169 glad to revisit that.170 171 Jeff Charles: The ChapelHill Bike Ped Board received a letter from a gentlemanthat lived of Whitfield and he walks 172 into Chapel Hill area and his concern was the new 86 and I40 Bridgefor pedestrians. We weren’t sure if it was in the 173 Town or County.174 175 Chuck Edwards: We received the same information. Our traffic folks are looking at that. An obvious thing was the 176 bridge was not designed for pedestrian walking. 177 178 Paul Guthrie:Are yougiving attention to the deteriorationof the old Kerr Scott Bridges? 179 180 Chuck Edwards: Absolutely. 181 182 Paul Guthrie: Some things tend to get overlooked. How are you approaching that issue?183 184 Chuck Edwards: One well-funded program we have is for the replacement of public bridges. 185 186 Paul Guthrie:I’ll give you one example, Old Greensboro Road and Phil’s Creek Bridge.There is more and more 187 heavy truck traffic using that road, 18 wheelers and every time they go down that hill they knock another hole in the 188 pavement. I assume you are doing regular inspection of these older bridges.189 190 Chuck Edwards: I wish I had brought my list, I will get back with Abigaile with more information.191 192 Jeff Charles: NCDOT worked on onebridge on Arthur Minnisnear Borland. There is another old bridge by that one 193 that was actually in worse shape. Do you know if that one is prioritized?194 195 Chuck Edwards: Yes. They are handled by a design contractor.196 197 Jeff Charles: That will hit the cyclingcommunity hard.198 199 Chuck Edwards: We do reach out to others on these projects to provide public information.200 201 Abigaile Pittman: In theBuckhorn Economic Development District, there is old bridge on the south perimeter. We 202 wouldn’t want it replaced as it is because the development in the areawill be industrial. When you look at these 203 issues with related land use changes involved,do you consider upgrading the bridge to accommodate industrial 204 traffic? 205 206 Chuck Edwards: Under this program, we are trying to get the best bang for the buck. At some point, if there is a 207 need to change that, that particular bridge may not fit this program but another program.208 209 Paul Guthrie: If there are no other topics, we can move on.210 211 Chuck Edwards: Abigaile is giving out information about resurfacing roads.212 213 Abigaile Pittman: Reviewed information.Elizabeth Gregory will tell us about some of the problems encountered with 214 emergency service vehicles on these 12-foot private road standards.215 216 Elizabeth Gregory: The main problem is the width because fire trucks are large and the ambulances also. People do 217 not realize the county has no hydrants so the fire truck cannot hook up to a hydrant. They have to shuttle water 218 which means trucks go to water sources and fill the truck that is on the scene of the fire. The main problem is the 219 trucks have to turn around, so if they can’t pass each other. Our standard when weget into a subdivision is 20 feet 220 6 D R A F T but we try to work with DOTwith their standard of 18 feet. When you get down to 12 feetas in the Class B roadway,221 they will need to send a smaller fire truck which holds less water. It is an access problem. Fire trucks are very 222 expensive. If there are roads they cannot get down; they need to wait for another fire truck to get additional hose. 223 224 Jeff Charles: What is the limit of length because of the pressure issue?225 226 Elizabeth Gregory: You can go as far as you want. We have learned who helps us the most with this issue is the 227 insurance company. They tell them itis important to have a driveway large enough to get a fire truck down. Also, 228 there are problems with ambulancesas a safety for both the patient and the workers. The biggest complaint we hear 229 from fire departments is access.230 231 AbigailePittman: What are some typical widths of the fire trucks and ambulances?232 233 Elizabeth Gregory: The ambulances are 12 foot. Fire trucks are usually that size but a latter truck is wider. 234 235 Abigaile Pittman: What is the width of the ladder truck?236 237 Elizabeth Gregory: I am not sure.238 239 Abigaile Pittman: We have a related issue that you may be able to comment on. There are types of subdivisions that 240 are exempt from the county’s subdivision regulations. The staff would like you to discuss doing away with the Class 241 B roads and only allow Class A and to develop a requirement that newly created lots have access to a compiling 242 road.243 244 Jeff Charles: This is all new construction.245 246 Abigaile Pittman: To allow reasonable and affordable options for small subdivisions, staff suggests consideration of a 247 revision that may allow three lots to share a driveway as long as they are designed so the emergency service 248 vehicles can turn around and it is not longer than a certain determinednumber of feet. There would have to be 249 discussion as to what that numberis.250 251 Elizabeth Gregory: A lot of it has to do with if it is a 20-foot wide road,or if it has a hydrant and it should be 26 feet 252 wide.What we ask for is a 96-foot radius because a fire truck does not run like a car. The money for fire trucks and 253 ambulances comes from the tax payer.254 255 Jeff Charles: How do you approach the condition of the surface for turning around?256 257 Elizabeth Gregory: If you hit bumps in the road in an ambulanceand it costs $250,000. That makes a difference.258 259 Jeff Charles: Over the coming years, there will be more of the Tobacco Trail situations where you need emergency 260 services, not a fire truck. Maybe we should add a fourth item of concern to staff’s list about emergency access to trail 261 systems. I am recommending you think about that.262 263 Paul Guthrie: I was comparing the Fire Code in Appendix D with the local ordinance and why is there a disconnect 264 when the Fire Code requires a much greater capability than this.265 266 Abigaile Pittman: We connect with the NCDOT standards for the Class A roadways. 267 268 Paul Guthrie: As Ms. Gregory mentioned regarding turn around, there is no way a fire truck could make use of that 269 turn around.270 271 Abigaile Pittman: I think it would tough to change the Class A since NCDOT has this adopted 18-footstandard. 272 273 Ted Triebel: I think the action you are asking for tonight is for us to suggest to the Boardof County Commissioners 274 that it is time for review these standards. 275 7 D R A F T 276 Abigaile Pittman: We are not asking you to decide what those standards are but to tell the BOCC what you think the 277 issues are they need to have staff reviewthemand bring back more detail.278 279 Ted Triebel: This problem has existed for decades in this county. My question is whether there would beany 280 documentation as to havethis proven to be a problem in 5 out of 100, etc. Is this a problem or not?281 282 Elizabeth Gregory: As far as documentation, I believe the fire departments, when they do their incident reports to 283 the state or fire marshal they documentif they had an access issue. We have not pulled the actual statistics. If we 284 can’t access one person, one house,itis a huge issue.We can research thatinformation. 285 286 Ted Triebel: Anytime we make a big change, thereneeds to be a data to back it up. 287 288 Paul Guthrie: As I understand the recommendation, you are asking this Boardto tell the BOCC to have staff to take 289 a look at this issue.290 291 Abigaile Pittman: We are saying if you agreewith staff’s recommendations,then recommend to the BOCC that they 292 have the staffcontinue to research it. 293 294 MOTION made by Jeff Charles to accept recommendations for the staff with the addition of the emergency access 295 for trailsystems. Seconded by Alex Castro.296 VOTE:Unanimous297 298 Ted Triebel: I live right by Little River Park which is a joint Durham/Orange County Park. We can look at those type 299 parks to say, this is what we accept as risks and this is what we think we shouldn’t accept.300 301 302 AGENDA ITEM V: STAFF UPDATES303 a.Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Action Plan304 OUTBoard Action: Receive updates305 306 Abigaile Pittman: Last night, the BOCC adopted the Safe Routes to School Action Plan. The next step is we will be 307 establishing a committee for implementation activities and they will be planning staff from Orange County, from the 308 Town of Hillsborough, someone from the School Board, the original steering committee and one or twomembers309 from the OUTBoard. 310 311 312 AGENDA ITEM VI: BOARD COMMENTS313 OUTBoard Action:Receive commentsand participate in discussion.314 a.Chair initiated a comment session regarding Board members’ thoughts on the 315 following potential topics:316 i.Critical transportation issues for Orange County, now and into the future.317 ii.The role of the OUTBoard in the examining of the difficulties in transportation 318 planning brought about by the programmatic fragmentation of current 319 transportation planning and funding.320 iii.Improved OUTBoard engagement of Orange County residents’ transportation 321 concerns.322 iv.Improving OUTBoard advisory service to the Board of County Commissioners.323 v.Agenda development.324 vi.The role of each member of the Board.325 vii.Meeting format, including presentations and member participation.326 327 OUTBoard Action: Receive comments and participate in discussion.328 329 8 D R A F T Paul Guthrie: I would like to pose several questions for the Boardto considerover the next several meetings:income 330 and housing locations, work locations, school locations, affordable housing, income diversity, a discombobulating of331 transportation planning and providers, public and private, a lack of resources in revenue and authority statutory for 332 the city and county, the state governments role and responsibility and the costs and uncertainty of the future. The 333 role of the OUTBoard in examining the difficulties in transportation planning brought about by the programmatic 334 fragmentation of our current transportation planning of funding in private and public. Also, improved OUTBoard 335 engagement of Orangecounty residentsand transportation concerns; how we can improve our advisory service to 336 the BOCC; how we want to be involved in agenda development;what we see asthe optimum role for each member 337 of this Board;and we should look at meeting format including presentation and perception.I want to ask a question 338 and I hope every member of this Board knows the answer to this. What is the largest single transportation 339 organization inthis county;public or private? 340 341 Gary Saunders: Chapel Hill Transit.342 343 Paul Guthrie: Actually it’s the Orange County Schoolsand Chapel Hill Schools.The Orange County schools have 72 344 bus routes, 70 buses plus activity buses operating. Chapel Hill schools have 50 buses, 16 mini-buses, and 19 activity345 buses operating; so we have 120, 16 mini-buses, and probably another 30 activity buses all operating under two 346 different but similar systems. Chapel Hill Transit is the largest public transit organizationbut it doesn’t approach those 347 numbers of vehicles.My whole point is that while we probably spend less time on this issue, I wanted to point out that 348 thereis a number of things on transportation that go beyond what we now think of as transportation systems and at 349 some point I will argue that we ought to at least make a passing comment on is there a way to better coordinate 350 school transportation and public transportation in terms of route structure and things like that as we grow?That’s the 351 key word as we grow. We become less and less rural and more and more urban. Do we need to look at those 352 interfaces?There are a lot of statutory problems of the school bus issue, and the financing issue but that is the kind 353 of issue I would hope at some point in time we pay attention to. Where are we going in five years or ten years? A 354 perfect example to me is the way in which we approach the Triangle Transit government’s transportation systems 355 that they are trying to put in place now. It’s a little piecehere, a little piece there, and division is really about two 356 things. Building a coordinated bus system and building a limited rail system. I would hope thatover the next few 357 months and probably even years, we could tackle some of those things. I will be glad to send everyone what I just 358 said, that’s where I’m coming from so that we can really give good solid long term advice and not just be reactive to 359 the current issue if we just reacted to the current issue we will never build a vision for the future and this County will 360 need it. I have been doing something lately that scares the dickens out of people, take Google Earth,now for those 361 of you who have Google Earth;it will show you the 1993 flyovers and 2014 flyovers in sequence. Take parts of the 362 county and just click up the number of 10 to 14 different views that you can get for those years. See what has 363 happened in 20 years and then think what is goingto happen in the next 20 years. So that my little sermon for the 364 day. 365 366 Alex Castro: The service provided by OPT (they call it Old People Transportation)and Chapel Hill’s Easy Rider the 367 criteria, the determination of who gets the service is different. Individuals that are customers get confused. That 368 should be seamless and it should be one for everyone.369 370 371 AGENDA ITEM VII: UPCOMING AGENDA ITEMS OF INTEREST ON OTHER REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION RELATED 372 BOARD AGENDAS 373 OUTBoard Action:Receive information374 375 Abigaile Pittman: On May 8, the BOCC will review recommended bus expansion services program. In late May and 376 early Junewe have scheduled meetings for public outreach for the recommended bus expansion route, asking for 377 input on recommended specific routes.On June 12, from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, there will be a Map 21 Funding 378 Program given by the Town of Carrboro and Carrboro Bicycle Coalition. The next OUTBoard meeting is May 21.379 380 Jeff Charles: I would be interested in meeting with the Orange County Sherriff’s Department to talk about a project I 381 am working on with respect to the bicycle safety rules and the non-cyclist perception of cyclists. 382 383 9 D R A F T Matt Day: The main information from TARPOis the project scoring for Strategic Transportation investments. We will 384 have a public hearing in early June to present draft scoring results.385 386 387 AGENDA ITEM VIII: ADJOURNMENT388 389 The meeting was adjourned by consensus.390 10 8/11/2014 1 Parks and Recreation Master Plan 2030 Orange Unified Transportation Board August 20, 2014 A Brief History Recreation programs since 1960s 1990s reports 1997 & 2001 Bonds 1988 Master Plan - Opened 1st park 1998 $WWDFKPHQW11 8/11/2014 2 Overview of System -2014 9 Facilities and Locations 5 Parks One Soccer Center 2 Recreation/ Community Centers One Greenway Planned Future Facilities 4 Future Parks (land-banked sites) 2 Nature Preserves with trails and access areas 1 New Community Center 12 8/11/2014 3 Recreation Programs/Services Programs offered for youth and adults Total program enrollment up 41% since 2009 Wide range of programs –sports, arts, life skills Special Events (Egg Hunt, Fishing Rodeo, etc.) All senior programs through Department on Aging Population –Current Snapshot Location2012 Pop. Carrboro20,433 Chapel Hill (OC)55,474 Hillsborough6,271 Mebane (OC)2,000 Durham (OC)32 UnincorpOC53,731 Total137,941 County population = 138,000 (2012) Around 60,000 in traditional “service area” 20% of County under 18 13 8/11/2014 4 Population –Future Trends? Top 10 nationally in education level Above-average median income masks 17% below poverty By 2030, County could have 173,000 residents Expect 70-80,000 people in service area? Community Needs Assessments Perhaps most important component of master plan How does public view current facilities/programs and future needs? Several components (youth, statistical random- sample, online, targeted groups) Statistical survey administered by UNC-G profs Total of 835 surveys received 14 8/11/2014 5 Summary of Survey Results Facility Usage and Experience Most used facilities: SportsPlex Central Rec Center Little River Park EurosportSoccer Center Safety, maintenance and operations of parks get high marks (89-96% approval) 93% agreed parks and programs enhance economic health. 96% agreed parks and programs enhance physical and mental well-being Summary of Survey Results Most Popular Programs/Events PROGRAMS Youth Soccer Youth Basketball Open Gymnasium Volleyball EVENTS Little River Trail Run Annual Egg Hunt Halloween Event Fishing Rodeo Earth Day Fair 15 8/11/2014 6 Summary of Survey Results Most Desired New Programs/Facilities PROGRAMS Hiking Swimming Walking Yoga, Biking, Camps FACILITIES Walking/hiking Trails Nature Trails Swimming Pool Greenways Sprayground, amphitheater Other Responses Expand outdoor recreation (82% agree) Expand low-impact recreation (79%) Trail system linking various areas of county (89%) Indoor athletic complex? (64%) Parks help reduce crime? (81%) 16 8/11/2014 7 Funding Strategy Responses Donations and Grants (95/94% agree) Use Existing Local Taxes (73% agree) Voter-approved Bonds (70% agree) Existing Property Taxes (70% agree) User Fees (68% agree) Increase New Local Taxes (34% agree) Focus Groups and Open Houses 7 Focus Groups Held: Soccer Facilities Trails and Connectivity Public Health and Parks Park Facility Needs Recreation Programs Nature/Env. Programs County/Town Coordination 6 Open Houses, etc. Main Themes Heard: More biking and hiking trails Artificial Turf fields When will new parks open? (Blackwood Farm) More soccer fields/centers 17 8/11/2014 8 Important Themes and Topics Linking to the Goals/Objectives in Comp Plan Synchronizing and coordinating with Town plans State parks, OWASA, Schools, Others Economic benefits of parks, rec and open space Important linkages to public health, opportunities Parks and conserving our natural resources Standards and Findings A number of changed conditions since 1988 Park Classifications: School Park Community Park (usually 40-75 acres) District Park (usually 75-125 acres) Regional Park (usually 150 acres +) Nature Preserve Access Areas Standards: Best Approach -use community needs 18 8/11/2014 9 Standards and Findings Proposed Guiding Principles for Park Standards Continue to Use Population-Based as Benchmark Service Areas Defined Existing plans and policies 4 Districts Overall –Set of 20 Findings Identified (pg. 9-13) Goals and Objectives Previously-created in Comprehensive Plan 5 Goals with objectives for each Plan strategies attempt to address these 19 8/11/2014 10 Recommendations Weighing all the data and findings Basis of Park Planning in place (districts, 1988 plan, CIP) Proactive acquiring of park sites = few “new” parks are needed Recommendations 1.Protect Investment in Parks and Open Space a.Multi-Million $ Investment b.Facility Renovation and Repairs c.Operating and Maintenance 2.Build Planned Future Parks (pp. 10-12) a.CIP and Lands Legacy Have “Set the Table” b.4 New Parks c.5 Future Phases at Existing Parks d.2 (3) Nature Preserves with Publicly-Accessible Areas 20 8/11/2014 11 Recommendations 3.Complete Nature Preserves, Provide Access 4.Structure for Multi-Partner Capital Facilities 5.Master Plan for Orange County MST Segment 6.Build More Trails, Connections Recommendations 7.Improve Access, Promote Healthy Lifestyles 8.Recreation Program Needs, Partnerships 9.Examine Role of Community Centers a.Types of programs, offerings b.Hours and usage expectations c.Facilities and amenities 21 8/11/2014 12 Issues for Further Study System Level of Service Review Land Dedication, P-i-L Coordination of County, SportsPlex Programs Need for Public Pool? Plan Updates (5/10 yrs.) Artificial Turf Playing Fields? 22 8/11/2014 13 For More Information On the Web: http://orangecountync.gov/deapr/ Look under “Breaking News” Email:deapr@orangecountync.gov Call: 919-245-2510 23 Draft#2–7/24/14Attachment 1 EmergencyAccesstoTrailSystemsatOrangeCountyParks DraftGoalsandObjectives Thefollowingaredraftgoalsandobjectivesforaccommodatingemergencyservicepersonnelneeding toaccesspeopleusingtrailsatOrangeCountyparksandnaturepreservesadministeredbytheOrange CountyDepartmentofEnvironment,Agriculture,ParksandRecreation(DEAPR). OrangeCountyparksthatcurrentlyhavetrailsareEflandͲCheeksPark,CedarGrovePark,FairviewPark, RiverPark,andLittleRiverRegionalParkandNaturalArea.TheJonesCreekGreenwayconnectsLake HoganFarmswithMorrisGroveElementarySchool.Futuretrailsarebeingdesignedforconstructionat thefutureBlackwoodFarmPark,HollowRockAccessArea,andattheSevenMileCreekPreserve. ThesedraftstandardsareintendedforreviewandcommentbytheParksandRecreationCouncil,the EmergencyServicesDepartment,andtheOrangeUnifiedTransportationBoard. OverarchingGoal:Trailsystemswillbedesignedandconstructedtoaccommodatethemaximum enjoymentoftrailusers,however,indoingso,therewillbeconsiderationsfortopography, sedimentationanderosioncontrol,theavoidanceofsensitivenaturalandculturalresources,public safety,andtheprovisionofstagingareasforvehiclestoaccesstrailusersintimesofemergency. Objective#1–Trailswillbeconstructedandmaintainedwithaminimumclearancewidthofsix feet(evenifwidthofthetrailtreadisnarrower)andaminimumclearanceheightofeightfeet. [SingleͲtrackbiketrailsatLittleRiverParkmayhavesectionslessthansixfeetofclearance.] Objective#2–Trailnetworksgreaterthanonemileintotallengthwillbemarkedwithperiodic signsthatspecifydistancesfromtrailheadsandwithGPSreferencepointsforuserstoidentify theirlocationalongthetrail. Objective#3–Trailswillbeshownonmapsdisplayedonkioskslocatedattrailheads,andmaps willbeavailablefromtheparkoffice(forparksthathaveanoffice)andfromtheDEAPRCentral RecreationCenterinHillsborough. Objective#4–EmergencyServicevehicleswillhaveaccesstotrailsinsuchawaythatlarger vehiclescanreachstagingareasidentifiedwithinthepark(andonmaps)andsmallerallͲterrain vehicles(e.g.,Gator)canaccessmostsectionsofthetrail.Stagingareaswillbelocatedwhere feasiblewithincloseproximity(approximately¼mile)toanypointalongthetrails.Keystoany gates/bollardswillbeprovidedtotheappropriateEmergencyServicesprovider(s)andwillbe availablefromtheparkoffice(forparksthathaveanoffice). Objective#5–EachparkcontainingatrailnetworkwilldevelopanEmergencyActionPlan, includingprotocolandproceduresfortrailͲrelatedemergencies. 24 $WWDFKPHQW25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50