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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05/09/2005 SC minutes Director Deputy Director Glen R. Andler Sean P. Dorsey Mount Prospect Public Works Department 1700 W. Central Road, Mount Prospect, Illinois 60056-2229 MINUTES OF THE MOUNT PROSPECT SAFETY COMMISSION CALL TO ORDER The Regular Meeting of the Mount Prospect Safety Commission was called to order at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, May 9, 2005. ROLL CALL Present upon roll call: Chuck Bencic Chairman John Keane Vice Chairman Susan Arndt Commissioner Kevin Grouwinkel Commissioner Carol Tortorello Commissioner Anthony Addante Police Department Representative Matt Lawrie Traffic Engineer – Staff Liaison Absent: Mark Miller Commissioner Buz Livingston Fire Department Representative Paul Bures Public Works Representative Others in Attendance: See attached list. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Commissioner Keane, seconded by Commissioner Tortorello, moved to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of the Safety Commission held on December 13, 2004. The minutes were approved by a vote of 6- 0. CITIZENS TO BE HEARD Mr. Conrad Bartels, 1103 Wheeling Road, asked who enforces the permit parking along the west side of Wheeling Road near the Boxwood neighborhood. Officer Addante responded that a private security firm hired by the Boxwood Association monitors the overnight parking and tows those vehicles that do not have Phone 847/870-5640 Fax 847/253-9377 www.mountprospect.org a permit. Mr. Bartels also commented on large construction vehicles using Wheeling Road. Traffic Engineer Lawrie explained the Village’s overweight vehicle ordinance and encouraged Mr. Bartels to let the Police Department know of specific construction vehicles that are using Wheeling Road. Office Addante said he would also pass along this information to his supervisor. Mr. Kevin Bolger, 510 N. Prospect Manor Avenue, made the Safety Commission aware of a sight obstruction concern at the corner of Prospect Manor Avenue and Isabella Avenue. Traffic Engineer Lawrie said he would investigate and follow-up with Mr. Bolger. OLD BUSINESS None. NEW BUSINESS A) WHEELING ROAD PARKING STUDY 1) Background Information The request is to prohibit parking on the east side of Wheeling Road between Euclid Avenue and Kensington Road. Wheeling Road is a north-south collector street at the north end of the Village. It is an asphalt street, 35’ wide (back-of-curb to back-of-curb) and has parking allowed on both sides of the street except for the first 300’ south of Euclid Avenue (adjacent to Euclid Elementary School). The west side of the street has multi-family housing known as the Boxwood neighborhood. Because of the density of the housing and the need for parking, the west side of Wheeling Road has permitted overnight parking for the Boxwood residents. Parking is evident throughout the day and overnight. The east side of the street has single family housing. Because of the long driveways at these houses and the fact that Wheeling Road traffic is shifted off center due to continual parking on the west side and the narrowness of the street, parking is not evident on the east side. This section of Wheeling Road is currently being resurfaced by the Village. During the planning stages of the work, Staff discussed the need to add a double yellow line to separate the northbound and southbound lanes. As mentioned above, the center of the road does not represent a true separation of northbound and southbound lanes. With a daily volume of over 6000 vehicles, the double yellow line will enhance safety by reducing the potential conflict of oncoming vehicles. Excluding the curb and gutter, the asphalt pavement is 32’ wide. The parking lane along the west side of the street will be 8’ wide. This leaves room for a 12’ wide northbound lane and 12’ wide southbound lane. The existing pavement width cannot accommodate a parking lane on the east side and budget constraints with the street resurfacing project will prevent any widening. Curb and gutter removal and replacement, driveway work, storm sewer relocation, street light relocation, and parkway tree removal and replacement would all be associated costs with widening Wheeling Road. Phone 847/870-5640 Fax 847/253-9377 www.mountprospect.org With the addition of a double yellow line, parking on the east side will have to formally be prohibited. There are only 11 driveways along Wheeling Road. Their lengths and widths provide for ample off-street parking. Streets that intersect Wheeling Road such as Cedar Lane and Hackberry Lane are short distances from the single family homes that front Wheeling Road and provide on-street parking that is chosen over Wheeling Road. While the request to prohibit parking on the east side of Wheeling Road is Staff’s, residents and motorists over the years have suggested adding a double yellow line to enhance safety. The resurfacing of the street is a good opportunity to now make this change. Staff sent out 70 surveys to properties that abut both sides of Wheeling Road between Euclid Avenue and Kensington Road to get their opinions on adding a double yellow line and prohibiting parking on the east side. Five surveys were returned. Three owners supported the proposal, one owner believes the Village is catering to the Boxwood neighborhood with this proposal and one owner commented on an unrelated issue. Should the proposal be approved, the addition of the double yellow line will be made later this summer by the Village contractor working on the local street resurfacing program. Signage prohibiting parking will be done by a Public Works crew. 2) Recommendation Based on the Engineering Staff’s review of this issue, the Village Traffic Engineer recommends: Adding a double yellow line to separate northbound and southbound lanes along Wheeling ?? Road between Euclid Avenue and Kensington Road Prohibiting parking on the east side of Wheeling Road between Euclid Avenue and Kensington ?? Road 3) Discussion Mr. Conrad Bartels, 1103 Wheeling Road, asked if parking would be allowed on the east side of the street with this request. Traffic Engineer Lawrie reminded Mr. Bartels that the request is to prohibit parking on the east side. Chairman Bencic asked Traffic Engineer Lawrie to present the report to the Safety Commission. Traffic Engineer Lawrie provided an overview of Staff’s study of the issue. Chairman Bencic noted that there are private driveways along Wheeling Road. With installation of a double yellow line, would owners be able to legally cross the line to turn into their driveway. Traffic Engineer Lawrie and Officer Addante both commented that the double yellow line would prohibit passing but would legally allow owners to turn into their driveway. Commissioner Arndt said it would be a good idea to let the school know of the proposed changes. Commissioner Keane, seconded by Commissioner Tortorello, moved to approve the recommendations of the Village Traffic Engineer. The motion was approved by a vote of 6-0. Phone 847/870-5640 Fax 847/253-9377 www.mountprospect.org B) SEMINOLE LANE PARKING STUDY 1) Background Information The original request was to restrict parking on the south side of Seminole Lane between Park Drive and River Road. Staff has considered another option as part of our study. Seminole Lane is an east-west collector street at the northeast corner of the Village. It is an asphalt street, 46’ wide (back-of-curb to back-of-curb) and has parking allowed on both sides of the street. The north side of the street is part of the City of Prospect Heights. Between Park Drive and River Road, the Village border is along the centerline of the street. The City of Prospect Heights has jurisdiction over the north half of the street and the Village of Mount Prospect has jurisdiction over the south half. There are five properties on the south side that abut Seminole Lane along this block. The eastbound direction has both a right-turn lane and left-turn lane near River Road to accommodate both turning movements at this signalized intersection. As is typical practice, the existing pavement markings channel the eastbound direction to the right before creating both turn lanes. On-street parking is not always evident on this block of Seminole Lane. However, when vehicles are parked on the south side of street, they occasionally park within the channelization segment. This forces thru vehicles to cross the double yellow line to avoid the parked vehicle. The request from the motorist who brought this to Staff’s attention asked that parking be prohibited along the south side of the street for the entire block. While on-street parking is not always evident, Staff has considered another option to address the concern of crossing the double yellow line while still allowing for some on-street parking. Rather than prohibiting parking along the entire block, Staff has proposed to modify the pavement markings. By removing the channelization and providing a left-turn taper, on-street parking can be provided in front of 2103, 2105 and 2107 Seminole Lane without forcing thru vehicles from crossing a double yellow line. It would be necessary, however, to prohibit parking from the beginning of the left-turn taper to River Road so as to not block the turn lanes. Staff sent out surveys to the five properties that abut the south side of Seminole Lane between Park Drive and River Road to get their opinions on this consideration. One survey was returned. The owner supported the proposal. Should the proposal be approved, the pavement marking changes will be made later this summer by the Village contractor working on the local street resurfacing program. Signage will be done by a Public Works crew. 2) Recommendation Based on the Engineering Staff’s review of this issue, the Village Traffic Engineer recommends: Modifying the pavement marking as shown on the attached drawing to better accommodate on- ?? street parking on the south side of Seminole Lane between Park Drive and River Road Prohibiting parking on the south side of Seminole Lane from River Road to a point 200’ west. ?? Phone 847/870-5640 Fax 847/253-9377 www.mountprospect.org ) Discussion There was no one in the audience to speak on this issue. Chairman Bencic asked Traffic Engineer Lawrie to present the report to the Safety Commission. Traffic Engineer Lawrie provided an overview of Staff’s study of the issue. Commissioner Tortorello asked if those vehicles parked on the south side of Seminole Lane belonged to the single family homes or the condos on the north side of the street. Traffic Engineer Lawrie stated that he believed they were associated with homes on the south side. Commissioner Arndt inquired as to the daily volume on Seminole Lane. Traffic Engineer Lawrie estimated 4000-5000 vehicles per day. Chairman Bencic asked if the Police Department had any issues with the proposal. Officer Addante said he was not aware of any parking issues on Seminole Lane and didn’t object to the proposal. Commissioner Tortorello, seconded by Commissioner Keane, moved to approve the recommendations of the Village Traffic Engineer. The motion was approved by a vote of 6-0. COMMISSION ISSUES There was some general discussion about the resurfacing project along Central Road. Commissioner Grouwinkel wanted to make the Police Department aware that cars were illegally parked on a regular basis on William Street at Prospect Avenue making it difficult to see oncoming vehicles at the intersection. ADJOURNMENT With no further business to discuss, the Safety Commission voted 6-0 to adjourn at 7:40 p.m. upon the motion of Commissioner Keane. Commissioner Tortorello seconded the motion. Respectfully submitted, Matthew P. Lawrie, P.E. Traffic Engineer x:\engineering\traffic\safecomm\recs&min\may05min.doc Phone 847/870-5640 Fax 847/253-9377 www.mountprospect.org