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MATS - Policy - Committee





  



Here is the List of MATS-Regional Splost-Projects_as of March-30-2011






 

MATS POLICY COMMITTEE
       MEETING NOTICE



DATE:       Tuesday, November 29, 2011

TIME:        9:30 a.m.   

PLACE:     Bibb Co. Engineering Annex, 760 Third St., Macon, GA 31201   
         

--Roll Call – establishment of quorum
--Approval of meeting agenda & minutes
--Committee Reports
      -CAC
      -TCC
--Public Input (5 min./person limit)

Agenda Items

1. Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) – Presentation of draft UPWP
2. Transportation Improvement Program – Amendments to TIP
3. Project Status Report – Presented by Georgia D.O.T.
 --Old Business
 --New Business
--Adjournment


 




MATS POLICY COMMITTEE MEETING
ATTENDANCE LIST
   August 10, 2011


 Those Attending            Representing

 1.  Jim Thomas*            Sarah Gerwig-Moore, Macon-Bibb P & Z Chairman
 2.  Lindsay Holliday            CAC 
 3.  Steve Layson            Bibb Co. 
 4.  Robert Reichert*            Mayor, City of Macon             
 5.  Elmo Richardson*            Bibb Co. Commission
 6.  Ken North                Macon-Bibb Co. Planning & Zoning Comm.
 7.  Ken Sheets                Bibb County Engineer           
 8.  Jack Reed                Georgia D.O.T.
 9.  Tony Rojas*            Frank Amerson, Macon-Bibb Water Auth. Chairman
10. Rick Hutto*                James Timley, Macon City Council President
11. Lonzy Edwards*            Bibb County Commission
12. Michael Underwood*        Larry Childs, Jones Co. Commission
13. Van Etheridge            Road Improvement Program
14. Danny Tavakol            Bill Causey, Macon City Engineer
15. Greg Brown                Macon-Bibb Co. Planning & Zoning Comm.
16. Sam Hart*                Chairman, Bibb Co. Commission
17. Bert Liston*                Jones Co. Commission
18. Nigel Floyd                Macon-Bibb Traffic Engineer
19. Michelle Caldwell*            Vance Smith Jr., Georgia D.O.T. Commissioner
20. Dan Fischer    *            Chairman, CAC

*Voting Member




MATS POLICY MINUTES
August 10, 2011


A meeting of the MATS Policy Committee was held on August 10th in the County Engineering Annex. There were eleven voting members present, thereby establishing a quorum. The meeting agenda was approved along with the minutes of the previous meeting with a minor change. Under Committee Reports, Dan Fischer gave an update concerning the CAC meeting. He stated the statistics regarding pedestrian traffic fatalities had been discussed as well as the public comments regarding the TIP. Subsequently, Ken North gave an update concerning the TCC meeting. Under public input, Lindsay Holliday stated that he would like to have a vocal roll call for the Policy meetings in the future. In addition, he stated there were only two public comments in the TIP that were in favor of the Forest Hill Rd. project. Nigel Floyd stated that in terms of traffic accidents, the statistics do not separate between accidents on public and private property so the figures may be inaccurate.

The first item discussed on the agenda was the Transportation Investment Act. A list of transportation projects for each county in the Middle Georgia region was presented. Mayor Reichert stated a meeting of the Executive Committee would take place on August 10th in order to present the list of projects to the Regional Roundtable. In the future, there would be a series of public meetings held before the final project list is adopted. Jim Thomas reviewed the list for all the projects in Bibb County. Mayor Reichert remarked that the list doesn’t include the 25% local funding that is available and all the projects must be completed in 10 years. Subsequently, Lonzy Edwards inquired if railroad projects could be included on the project list and Mayor Reichert replied they could. Subsequently, Elmo Richardson asked if the federal portion for leveraged projects was guaranteed in the future. It was stated there was no guarantee of this for the projects on the list.

The next item discussed was the Bicycle/Pedestrian Plan presented by Greg Brown. He stated that the purpose of this plan is to update the bicycle/pedestrian facilities in Macon and Bibb County. Meetings had been held with bicycle and pedestrian advocates to include their recommendations in the plan. The draft plan will be presented at the next Policy meeting.

Jack Reed presented the Project Status Report to the Policy Committee. He distributed a copy of the report and reviewed it for the members in attendance. Lonzy Edwards had a question about the construction date for the Jeffersonville Rd. project. Subsequently, Rick Hutto stated that the construction date for this project has been moved back without any explanation. Jack Reed stated that the construction date was scheduled for FY 2015 and he would try to find out the reason for the delay. Elmo Richardson commented that one reason for the delay was that this project involved the use of federal highway funds.

Under Old Business, Ken North stated the UPWP needed to be revised to add a project description concerning the transit ridership study that will be done by a consultant. A motion was made to revise the UPWP to add the description that was approved by the committee members. In addition, he also stated that the Transportation Plan needed to be amended to add the TCSP grant to relocate the railway lines out of the Ocmulgee National Monument. A motion was also made to amend the Transportation Plan to add funding for this grant that was subsequently approved.

Under New Business, Tony Rojas discussed the problem of trash removal along streets and interchanges. This continues to be a problem even though the Public Works Dept. is involved in clean up efforts. Lonzy Edwards stated that once the litter is picked up it seems to accumulate at an even greater rate. Steve Layson says he has noticed improvements in some areas such as the I-75 interchange at Mercer University Dr. Chairman Hart stated that maybe this could be discussed more in depth in the future. Mayor Reichert also added that maybe an appeal could be made to the Keep Macon Beautiful Commission to clean up the major interchanges along the interstate.  He also stated that at the most recent meeting of the Clean Air Coalition, there was a discussion of shifting the emphasis of the MPOs more toward transit related issues. Chairman Hart thought a meeting should be held to discuss this with the MPO in the future. Being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned.








 


MATS POLICY MEETING NOTICE
From: Ken North <knorth@mbpz.org>
Subject: Reschedule of MATS Policy meeting
... in the Bibb Co. Engineering Annex, 760 Third St., Macon, GA 31201. We apologize for any inconvenience as a result of the meeting change. If you have any questions, please contact our office.
 
 
Thanks,
 
Ken North
Transportation Planner
Macon-Bibb Planning & Zoning Comm.
478 751-7462
 



 

DATE:            Wednesday, August 10, 2011

TIME:            9:30 a.m.

PLACE:          Bibb Co. Engineering Annex, 760 Third St., Macon, GA 31201

 

--Roll Call – establishment of quorum

--Approval of meeting agenda & minutes

--Committee Reports

      -CAC

      -TCC

--Public Input (5 min./person limit)

 

AGENDA ITEMS

 

1.      Transportation Investment Act (2010) - Executive Roundtable Project List

2.      Bicycle / Pedestrian Plan – Update of Draft

3.      Project Status Report – Presented by Georgia D.O.T.

-- Old Business

--New Business

--Adjournment

 








Official minutes emailed on 7-15-2011
  

 

MATS POLICY COMMITTEE MEETING

ATTENDANCE LIST

                 May 18, 2011

 

 

 Those Attending                                   Representing

 

 1.  Jim Thomas*                                   Sarah Gerwig-Moore, Macon-Bibb P & Z Chairman

 2.  Lindsay Holliday                              CAC 

 3.  Steve Layson*                                 Elmo Richardson, Bibb Co. Commission

 4.  Robert Reichert*                             Mayor, City of Macon                          

 5.  Tom McQueen*                              Vance Smith Jr., Georgia D.O.T. Comm.

 6.  Ken North                                       Macon-Bibb Co. Planning & Zoning Comm.

 7.  Ken Sheets                                     Bibb County Enginneer                         

 8.  Greg Floyd                                      Macon-Bibb Planning & Zoning Comm.

 9.  Tony Rojas*                                    Frank Amerson, Macon-Bibb Water Auth. Chairman

10. Michael Ryan                                  Caution Macon

11. Lonzy Edwards*                              Bibb County Commission

12. Bob Rychel*                                    Tom McMichael, Chairman Middle GA RC

13. Van Etheridge                                 Road Improvement Program

14. Stephen Adams                               Cliffard Whitby, Macon-Bibb Industrial Auth. Chairman

15. Greg Brown                                                Macon-Bibb Co. Planning & Zoning Comm.

16. Sam Hart*                                       Chairman, Bibb Co. Commission

17. Agnes Donaldson                             Citizen

18. Carmine Carpenter                          Citizen

19. Michelle Caldwell                            Georgia D.O.T.

20. Ray Shell                                         Macon Water Authority

21. Miriam Paris*                                  Macon City Council

22. Kevin Ellis                                       Georgia D.O.T.

23. Dan Fischer *                                  Chairman, CAC

24. Don Tussing                                    Macon-Bibb Co. Planning & Zoning Comm.

25. Nigel Floyd                                      Macon-Bibb Traffic Engineer

26. Bill Causey                                      Macon City Engineer

27. Mike Stucka                                    Macon Telegraph

 

*Voting Member

 

 


 

 

MATS POLICY MEETING

May 18, 2011

 

             A meeting of the MATS Policy Committee was held on May 18th in the conference room of the County Engineering Annex.  There were 10 voting members present, thereby establishing a quorum. The minutes of the previous meeting were introduced and approved. Under Committee Reports, Dan Fischer gave an update on the last CAC meeting and presented a memorandum. The CAC recommended revisions to the Jeffersonville Rd. and Forest Hill Rd. projects. Jim Thomas gave an update on the MATS Technical meeting. Under public input, Michael Ryan stated that part of the Jeffersonville Rd. project did not include facilities for bicycles as suggested in the bike plan and advocated by the CAC.  Also, the center lane for the proposed Jeffersonville Rd. project should be eliminated and a bike lane should be included. Van Etheridge stated that the Jeffersonville Rd. projects did include sidewalks as well as bike facilities that were part of the bike plan.

 [later in the meeting, Van Etheridge clarified that only 2 of 3 sections of this project have bike facilities] 

The first item on the agenda was the adoption of the final UPWP. Greg Floyd stated that the final UPWP did not contain any revisions from the initial draft that was presented. Therefore, a motion was made by Tony Rojas and seconded by Mayor Reichert to adopt the final UPWP which was approved by the committee members. The next item on the agenda was the presentation of the draft Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). Ken North reviewed the changes to the TIP document. He presented the road projects and stated there had been changes to the project phases for Jeffersonville Rd. and Forest Hill Rd{what kind of changes?}

  The airport and transit projects were also discussed. The new Section 5316 and 5317 transit programs were presented for inclusion in the TIP. Mayor Reichert stated that the earmarked bike/pedestrian projects should be put back into the TIP because efforts to redirect the funding had not been successful. These bike/ pedestrian projects were the Riverside Dr., Pierce Ave., Wimbish Rd. and Rivoli Dr. projects. The Riverside Dr. and Pierce Ave. should be placed in the TIP for FY 2012 and the others should be in FY 2015. A motion was made by Mayor Reichert and seconded by Dan Fischer to include these projects in the TIP which was approved. Dan Fischer stated that all segments of Jeffersonville Rd. should include bike facilities and the center turn lane should be eliminated as proposed by the CAC. Van Etheridge stated that the elimination of the center turn lane would pose problems for residents that live on this road. {more of a problem than speeding traffic? and fewer transportation choices? } Subsequently, a motion was made to approve the CAC proposal to eliminate the center turn lane on Jeffersonville Rd. but the motion failed due the lack of a second. Also, a motion was made to scale back the Forest Hill Rd. project according to the CAC proposal. The motion also failed due to the lack of a second. Lindsay Holliday stated that the project history section of the TIP should include information concerning the ongoing opposition to the Forest Hill Rd. project.  Finally, a motion was made by Mayor Reichert and seconded by Tony Rojas to adopt the TIP that was approved by the voting members except for Dan Fischer.

            The next item that was discussed was an amendment to the Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP). Ken North stated that a new bridge replacement project on SR 49@Norfolk Southern railroad in Jones County had been approved by Georgia D.O.T. The proposed construction date for this project was 2016. After some discussion, a motion was made by Tony Rojas and seconded by Dan Fischer to amend the LRTP and TIP to add this project. The motion was passed unanimously by the members in attendance. Kevin Ellis of Georgia D.O.T. briefly discussed the road project status report.  

            Under Old Business, members of the CAC stated that a meeting should be held in the future to discuss the noise barriers along the interstate. Agnes Donaldson of the Huggenien Heights area stated that the removal of tress along the interstate had created a problem of noise pollution in her neighborhood. Therefore, noise barriers are an important consideration for residential areas adjacent to the interstate. Michael Ryan inquired about the type of noise barriers that will be constructed along the interstate as part of widening project but this information was not available. Mayor Reichert thought that noise barriers should be an item on the agenda for the next series of MATS meetings. He commented that he is still waiting to hear from the Transportation Board on the subject of noise barriers for areas adjacent to the interstate projects. Finally, Van Etheridge stated that Georgia D.O.T. will conduct a public meeting this summer concerning sound barriers. Being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned. 

                                                                                                      ________________________   

                                                                                                            MATS Project Director
  

 

Policy Committee


Chairman – Sam Hart, Chairman, Bibb County Commission 

Vice-Chairman – Robert Reichert, Mayor, City of Macon


Miriam Paris - President, Macon City Council - came late and left early... contributed nothing to any discussion.

Lonnie Miley -Chairman, City of Macon Public Works Committee - absent

Plea to City Council:
 - Please create and automatic sytem for transfer of Proxy so any member of Council can attend and represent the Citizens of Macon at these important meetings. (handout to Council on 3-15-11)           
                       

   


  MATS  Committee 

 

  Other Stories from The Meeting:
  





 




More Topics Discussed
 

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News occuring after the meeting






 

 

 





 
 










  






From  NYT - February 14, 2011, 10:30 am
http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/14/to-get-america-growing-again-its-time-to-unleash-our-cities-a-guest-post-by-ed-glaeser/

To Get America Growing Again, It’s Time to Unleash Our Cities: A Guest Post by Ed Glaeser

By STEPHEN J. DUBNER
Stop subsidizing suburbs. We don’t need housing and highway policies that push people away from our productive cities.  Brown economist Nathaniel Baum-Snow found that every new highway built into a city reduced that city’s population by 18 percent.  Our pro-homeownership policies, including the financial fiascos of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, implicitly push people out of urban apartments into suburban homes.  The great housing bust reminds us that the government shouldn’t be bribing people with the Home Mortgage Interest Deduction to bet everything on the swings of the housing market.
 
 
  

 

 


  The City of  

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Bibb

Georgia

U.S.A.




 
 

   CAUTION Macon   


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