|
|
Town of Ocean Ridge |
Town Hall: |
|
|
Town Hall Building & Zoning Police Department
|
SPECIAL MEETING HELD BY THE TOWN COMMISSION FOR THE TOWN
OF OCEAN RIDGE, FLORIDA, TO BE HELD IN THE TOWN HALL ON TUESDAY, SEPT. 30, 2003,
AT The meeting was called to order
and roll call was answered by the following: Commissioner Bingham Commissioner Pugh
Mayor
Aaskov It was noted that Comm Schulte
was absent with notice. Comm Kaleel
arrived at approximately PRESENTATION BY FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION RE:
WIDENING OF SR A1A Town Manager Dailey introduced the representatives from
FDOT. Jose Santiago, Project Manager for FDOT, commented that
the FDOT project consists of resurfacing SR A1A to enhance the surface life and
safety of the road to make it safer for the traveling public.
He stated that back in 1998 the Town and FDOT had conversations regarding
this project and an agreement was made with recommendations that 2’ feet be
added to each side where possible. Mr. Santiago stated that FDOT is proposing to make a
uniform 11’ lane width for both north and south traffic and have 3’ of
shoulder on each side of the roadway. He
stressed that the 3’ shoulders were not bicycle lanes. Tony Drescher, consultant for FDOT, commented that there
were a lot of rumors circulating regarding the extent of the widening of SR A1A,
however, they plan to abide by the spirit of the agreement by not adding more
than 3’ of land on each side. He
stated that FDOT owns 66’ to 75’ of ROW and the lane widths currently vary
from 11’ to 12’. He added that
any property owners impacted by the work would have their landscaping replaced. Mr. Drescher encouraged that the Town discuss any other
projects that could be jointly accomplished during this development stage.
He stated that drainage issues have already been discussed with Lisa
Tropepe and they would be willing to discuss other items such as swales or
raising roads, pedestrian crosswalks, etc. Regarding
the pedestrian crosswalks he commented that certain standards must be adhered to
but they could be investigated. Comm Bingham stated that she believed SR A1A was 66’
for the ROW width except for Mayor Aaskov stated that she was concerned that there
would be inadequate space for buses that travel the roadway if the lanes were
reduced and questioned the standard width of a bus.
Mr. Drescher replied that the bus count was low and therefore allows for
11’ widths. Comm Kaleel commented that he was glad that FDOT was
abiding by the spirit of the letter in 1998 but he had some concerns with the
safety aspect of the project mainly involving sidewalks.
He stated that his concerns included: 1) Vehicle traffic would be closer
to pedestrians and questioned what barriers would be between the road and
sidewalk to which he was advised that their intention is not to bring the
traveling roadway closer and he was also advised that a minimum of 6’ is
needed between the traveling roadway and sidewalks.
Comm Kaleel stated that he did not believe there was currently 6’ in
some areas now. Comm Bingham stated
that vehicles will still travel on any type of paved surface.
Mr. Drescher stated that if the sidewalks needed to be relocated further
west to achieve the 6’ they would construct them at their current width and
replace any landscaping if necessary. 2) The bend at Island Drive is very
dangerous and he foresees that vehicles would definitely travel into the
shoulder in this area and FDOT should consider this as a safety issue and supply
some possible solutions. 3) Traffic
calming such as pavers should be installed at areas such as Comm Pugh stated that the Town currently has only two
crosswalks and he would like to see more and possibly combine them with signage.
Mr. Drescher stated that they could investigate this request and present
it to the FDOT representatives and respond back to the Town.
Mr. Drescher inquired if the Town would be interested in signalizing the
crosswalks to which Comm Pugh stated that certain places should have them such
as the County parking lot that leads to the Hammock area. Comm Bingham stated that she doesn’t know why swales
have not been kept up all along SR A1A and asked if FDOT could supply the Town
with a survey. She added that it is
difficult for the Commission to visualize what FDOT is designing to which Mr.
Drescher commented that a survey would only show the existing roadway because
there will still be additional public involvement prior to final design. In summary Mr. Drescher stated that the proposed plan
includes 11’ lanes with 3’ shoulder and swales where needed. Director Hillery asked how the shoulders would be marked
to which he was advised that there would be one edged line and would not be
marked as a bicycle path because the width would have to be 5’ or 4’ as an
undesignated path. Mr. Drescher
stated that their goal is to achieve a similar standard throughout most of the
municipalities. Earl Jones, 14 Sailfish Lane, stated that as a resident
of Florida for 30 years he has seen the town’s traffic increase tremendously
and he felt that if the roadway is going to be widened it should include the
additional width to accommodate bicycle lanes to increase the safety for both
the bicyclists and vehicles. He felt
that the proposed 28’ paved surface width vs. the 32’ for bicycle lanes is
not worth the potential law suits that could be filed as a result of not
providing for both modes of travel. Comm
Kaleel commented that he felt the 28’ width would create more of a dissension
to go fast through Town and he did not feel that 3’ vs. 5’ is much
different. Mr. Jones mentioned that Bruce Gimmy, Rafael Clemente, Senior Planner for the Metropolitan
Planning Organization, stated that Mr. Jones has already reflected some of his
comments. He advised that he was
contacted by an attorney yesterday regarding liability issues.
He added if the roadway is designed with the 28’ width it would not be
to standard and the 3’ shoulder would be unsafe.
He stated that even the FDOT guidelines are 5’ and if it was 3’
anyone could use the shoulder, however, if it was 5’ bicycles must use the
bicycle lanes and violations could then be enforced. George Bierlin, The Commission thanked FDOT for their presentation. TOWN ENGINEER PRESENTATION ON STORMWATER PUMPS Lisa Tropepe, Town Engineer, advised that the agenda
package included a question and answer memorandum from inquiries made at the Ms. Tropepe displayed a drawing that showed a profile,
looking west, of the detention area at Beachway and A1A that showed 285’ from
Beachway to the 36’ (14’ high to top of the parapet) enclosure for the pumps
and an additional 226’ to the closest residence to the north.
She added that the structure comprises approximately 1% of the total
site. Ms. Tropepe advised that she needed direction on whether
to pursue above ground diesel pumps or the submersible electric pumps (which
would still necessitate a diesel back up pump).
She added that Mr. Morgan Reiser, president of FPI Pumps, was present to
answer any questions. Comm Bingham questioned whether any pump (electric or
diesel) would require an electric spark to which she was advised that diesel
would have batteries. She then
questioned how many homes would be flooded.
Ms. Tropepe commented that the amount of water in the detention area
would not be affected by the type of pump and the detention area was for storage
and once the water reaches a certain level the water will disperse.
Comm Bingham expressed her concerns that this area may not be adequate
for water detention and may become a detriment for area residents along with
mosquito problems. Comm Kaleel commented that the detention area is intended
to serve as a pass through and that is the purpose of the pump and added that
this has been years in the making and he was concerned with all this in
trepidation now that the shovel is almost ready to be placed in the ground.
He added that the Commission must decide whether they are behind this
project or not. He also stated that
he has spoken with several municipalities that have the diesel type pumps and
they advised they have not experienced any problems with this type of system. Comm Pugh stated that he went by El Brillo in Mrs. MaGruder, Comm Kaleel commented that the reason for this meeting
was concerns for the noise factor, however, everyone should keep in mind that
there are not a lot of choices. He
added that the pumps will only run for any length of time during storm events
and thunder is probably louder than the pump noise.
He stated that he felt the design, buffer and landscape should be
sufficient to cover the noise. Ms.
Tropepe added that there would be at least a 5’ buffer between the residences
and the pumps. Mrs. MaGruder stated that she was concerned with sounding alarms during a malfunction. She commented that she was fine with where the structure is but she questioned the noise. Earl Jones suggested that the Town Manager go to one of the other locations and listen to the pumps and then make final decisions. David Collier, 5 Waterview, stated that he was concerned
with the noise because he can hear the generator for the Regarding the prior discussion with FDOT Mr. Collier
stated that the Town should get their statements in writing based on their
promises in the past. He stated that
he has complained to the County and FDOT in the past regarding dumping into his
canal from a drainage outfall pipe for the bridge and flooding on his property.
He commented that Mayor Aaskov stated that this was the first she heard of
the problem with a drainage pipe for Mr. Collier’s canal.
Town Engineer Tropepe summarized the events involving Mr. Collier by
stating that there is a piping system on Comm Kaleel stated that the problem appears to be that
maintenance needs to be completed and the canal needs dredging.
Ms. Tropepe stated that she called the County regarding the system not
being pretreated and the canal being silted over the years and it should be
dredged. She stated that their
response was that they visited the site and their engineer’s opinion was that
the debris and silting was not caused by the improved road area but actually by
the wave action of boats traversing the ICWW and they don’t have a dredging
program and this information was relayed to Mr. Collier in writing. Mr. Collier stated that he doesn’t feel that the County
engineer ever came out and this has been an ongoing issue since the 1980’s.
He stated that there are approximately 3 million vehicles that travel
over the bridge annually. He added
that the cost to dredge to the canal is approximately $50,000 and the residents
would fund the majority of the project. Comm
Kaleel suggested that the Town join in the effort of those residents and get the
Town Manager involved to see what assistance could be made. Regarding the original agenda item, Comm Kaleel moved
that diesel pumps be used for the drainage project, seconded by Comm Pugh. Mr. Collier stated that since the structure will still
have openings for ventilation and the electric fans he hopes that the Town will
not shortcut the structure. Motion carried – Yea (4). Before adjourning Mayor Aaskov mentioned that James
Olejniczak is retiring after having worked for the Town for 25 years. She
suggested that the Commission discuss what could possibly be done to recognize
his retirement at the Gerald Mueller, ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at
approximately ______________________________ Mayor Aaskov ______________________________ Vice Mayor Kaleel ______________________________ ATTEST: Comm Bingham ______________________________ __________________ Comm Pugh Town Clerk |
