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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSPJT Minutes 1984-02-06SRRA/SRCC Minutes (Special Joint Meeting) 2/6/84 Page 1 In the Council Chambers of the City of San Rafael, Monday, February 6, 1984, at 7:45 P.M. Special Joint Present: Lawrence E. Mulryan, Mayor/Agency Chairman Meeting: Dorothy L. Breiner, Councilmember/Agency Member Gary R. Frugoli, Councilmember/Agency Member Richard Nave, Councilmember/Agency Member Jerry Russom, Councilmember/Agency Member Also Present: Robert F. Beyer, City Manager/Executive Director; Jeanne M. Leoncini, City Clerk/ Agency Secretary; Peter J. Muzio, City/Agency Attorney RE: DESIGN ALTERNATIVES FOR THE TRANSPORTATION CENTER (PW) - File R-81 x (SRCC 112-2) City Manager/Executive Director Beyer commented that Council/Agency Members, at the previous meeting of January 16, 1984, had directed staff to review the proposed schemes for this project and various alternatives. This has been done and the staff report incorporates nineteen (19) design conditions to be considered in the final design of the center. Additionally, there are two letters from the Downtown Parking District Advisory Committee and Downtown Retail Committee expressing concerns about parking for bus and van storage, employees, etc. Public Works Director Bernardi stated that Scheme C was selected be- cause it most corresponds to the use of the railroad right-of-way in the north/south orientation, as well as with the goals of having as little impact on the streets as possible, and future uses of the right-of-way. Traffic Engineer Gerth stated that Scheme C is very workable. One of the key elements is the use of Iietherton"Street for the bus stop, which is one of the conditions recommended for approval. The goal is to avoid having people walk several blocks to reach the bus. Further evaluations have been done with the Police Department whose recommenda- tions will be submitted to the consultant for reinforcement of the conditions. Mr. Gerth explained further in detail how the different vehicles, including Greyhound, park & ride, etc., would enter and exit the center, and how some vehicles would be parked. At the present time, it seems that some of the parking spaces would be lost. Council/Agency Member Frugoli inquired how many 10 hr. spaces would be lost, and how many are available right now. Mr. Gerth replied that there are 8 spaces available on street and they would all be lost. There are 6 park and ride spaces available on-site,with the possibility of increas- ing the number of spaces to 10. Council/Agency Member Breiner asked how many employees are expected to be on the site, and Mr. Gerth replied one or two; a Greyhound employee and a District employee, possibly one employee performing a dual role. Council/Agency Member Breiner then referred to Condition Q which states that the existing commuter parking lot may be converted into an unre- stricted facility. Mr. Gerth said that this responds to some questions that have been raised from members of the community. Currently, the parking is assigned to commuters, and is underutilized. One goal is to redesign the way the lot is controlled so that it won't displace the commuters, but use the parking in a better fashion. Another parking facility could be built; there are several options, but there will still be demand for commuter parking downtown. Council/Agency Member Breiner further inquired about the question of Marin Airporter using the facility. She felt that it would create in- creased traffic and will interfere with persons who must leave their cars all day. Traffic Engineer Gerth replied that the questions at the end of the staff report addressed these concerns and asked that limitations be redefined; that there is no convenient location for the commuters as all the parking areas are metered. SRRA/SRCC Minutes (Special Joint Meeting) 2/6/84 Page 1 SRRA/SRCC Minutes (Special Joint Meeting) 2/6/84 Page 2 Discussion was held regarding the availability or non-availability of space for parking, the distance people would have to walk to ride the bus, the lack of provision for handicapped facility and the hazards posed by the fact that people would have to cross heavily traveled streets to reach the center. Mr. Jerome Kuykendall, representing the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District, stated that the Bridge District did not address the parking issue as part of this project. Referring to the reduced amount of parking, he said that what is shown on the drawing is what is available in space at the present time. Additional parking could probably be made available by covering the creek, and the whole parking situation could be made to work better. He felt that there are two things to be considered, (1) the policy matter for the Bridge Board to consider, covering the creek or perhaps going to the south to where the,Coip-oration Yard or Shell Service Station sites arelocated, and other locations which could be developed, and (2) funding, getting the funding that is required for an expanded project including parking. Mayor/Agency Chairman Mulryan asked Mr. Kuykendall if he had any con- cerns about=the conditions recommended by staff, and Air. Kuykendall replied that he had some concerns about some of the conditions, but he recognized that a statement in the summary said that these are design conditions which should be addressed, that they are not absolute conditions that would prevent the project from going forward. He would be willing to review this and come back later and explain further some of the alternatives. Council/Agency Member Russom asked whether funding for parking would be available from the Bridge District, and suggested that this policy issue be addressed by the Bridge District. Mayor/Agency Chairman Mulryan asked that the subject of parking be made part of the project. With no further questions, Mayor/Agency Chairman Mulryan asked when this would come back to Council/Agency, and Mr. Kuykendall replied that a month would probably be needed. City Manager/Executive Director Beyer asked Council/Agency to clarify whether they would support parking off site and the 19 conditions of the report. Council/Agency Members conceptually approved Scheme C subject tolthe 19 conditions as presented, with emphasis to be placed on additional parking. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:00 P.M. to the City Council meeting immediately following. JEANNE(fl-. LEONCINI, City `C erk/Agency Secretary APPROVED THIS DAY OF , 1984 LAWRENCE E. MULRYAN, Mayor/Agency Chairman SRRA/SRCC Minutes (Special Joint Meeting) 2/6/84 Page 2