Neighborhood Traffic Committees were formed in each respective neighborhood segment to work with the City's consultant and staff to develop a traffic calming plan for their neighborhoods.  The Traffic Committees for Neighborhoods “E”, “C”, and “A” consisted of volunteer residents who met periodically beginning in March 2020.  Due to the COVID pandemic, the Neighborhood Traffic Committees each met three times over the course of one year in order to try to reach consensus on a plan to address traffic-related issues in their respective neighborhoods. 

Committee members considered resident input, traffic data, and collision history in order to develop a traffic calming plan.  The Traffic Committees in Neighborhoods "A" and "C," were able to craft proposed traffic calming plans, after which mailers were sent to all residents in both neighborhoods in May 2021 to gauge the level of support for the proposed plans.  The mailer included a cover letter, the proposed neighborhood traffic management plan, a description of the traffic calming devices, and a survey postcard to be completed and returned by each household.

The Traffic Committee for Neighborhood "E" was unable to reach a consensus on a plan during its three meetings, so staff hosted an additional meeting.  Despite the extra effort, the Committee was still unable to reach consensus on a single plan. Staff has attempted to find areas of potential compromise amongst the Committee members but, despite some progress being made, a plan has yet been approved by the Committee; therefore, staff will continue to provide support to the Traffic Committee to determine if a compromise is possible and return to City Council at a later date if consensus is reached.

The NTMP requires that, for proposed plans to be approved, there must be a minimum response rate of 50% of the households in the neighborhood, with a plan approval rate of 67% of those respondents to indicate sufficient neighborhood support for the plan prior to moving forward with implementation.  On August 31, 2021, staff concluded the survey process for Neighborhoods “C” and "A."  Both neighborhoods met the minimum response rate and approval rate to indicate neighborhood support for the plan.  Neighborhood “C” Traffic Management Plan received a response rate of 50.4% and an approval rate of 75.4%.  Neighborhood “A" Traffic Management Plan received a response rate of 52.1% and an approval rate of 85.2%.

As noted in the NTMP, a proposed traffic calming plan must be presented to the City Council for consideration.  The City Council may approve, modify, or deny a plan.  If a plan is approved, the City Council is then asked to provide direction to staff to proceed with the design and construction of the traffic calming project in that neighborhood.  Based on the sufficient level of neighborhood support for the proposed traffic calming plans in Neighborhoods “C” and "A", staff requests that City Council approve those plans and direct staff to proceed with the design and construction of traffic calming devices as indicated on the Neighborhoods “C” and "A" Traffic Management Plans.  Notices have been sent to the residents of Neighborhoods “C” and “A” regarding the City Council consideration of this matter.  Final approval of the costs for the proposed traffic calming plans for Neighborhoods “C” and A" will be brought back to City Council at a future meeting once the projects are bid out for construction.