2016-0121 Regular City Commission Meeting

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Summary Minutes:Regular City Commission Meeting January 21,2016 City of Sunny Isles Beach,Florida Mr. Rathore said as part of the analysis, they looked at the future conditions which was the current traffic + Citywide growth + proposed project traffic. They considered future and anticipated enrollment of the school which is going to be about 2,300 students, plus the Mixed-Use Project and they identified mitigation. Two (2) scenarios were analyzed for mitigation, in his report he calls it Scenario 1 and Scenario 2. Scenario 1 is the current arrival and departure time,we leave it as is, and then traffic on top of it. Scenario 2 is where we have the best option which is the staggered option in which K-1 arrives at 8:20 a.m. and leaves at 1:50 p.m.; grades 2 to 5 arrive at 8:35 a.m. and leaves at 3:05 p.m.; grades 6 to 8 proposed to arrive at 8:45 a.m. and leave at 3:25 p.m.. except on Wednesdays, when they leave at 2:25 p.m. Again the results were about the same with the five (5) intersections that showed at least one approach failing, and so we have to identify mitigation. For two intersections Collins Avenue and 178th Street,and Collins Avenue and 183`d Street which are both signalized, can be improved by modifying the signal timing. We don't have to do physical improvements. For Atlantic Boulevard and 178th Street,and Atlantic Boulevard and 183`d Street which are not signalized, we are proposing that it is further evaluated to see if a 4-way stop sign can be provided or maybe a signal is warranted. For the existing vs. Scenario 2 the Staggered School Shifts, they are proposing that it remains the same for K-1 and grades 2-5, the only place where it will be different is for Middle School grades 6 to 8, arrival at 8:45 a.m. and departure at 3:25 p.m. except on Wednesday when the departure will be at 2:25 p.m. It is important to keep in mind that these timings were discussed not only with the Miami-Dade County School Board but with City Staff and especially with the Police Officers so we can get a good idea as to what is the most appropriate and continuous time that can be provided. That will eventually be smooth operations as far as traffic is concerned. Mr. Rathore said they came up with some additional proposed mitigation: school staggered hours is one he already mentioned; physical improvements like a crosswalk on Atlantic Boulevard;educational programs for parents and community so they can send their children to the buses; Police and traffic control presence needs to be there and probably increased; increase bus service,currently there are three(3)buses being used and they are proposing to increase 100% from 3 to six (6) buses, and so 450 to 500 students will be utilizing that facility and that would make a big difference in traffic impacts, congestions, etc. They also encourage the City to participate in the Safe Route to School (SRTS) Program. Mr. Rathore reported on the Shared Parking Analysis.to analyze the advantage of the Mixed- Use nature of the project and implications to shared parking usage. How much shared parking for this land use is required, individual land uses have different timing as far as the peak parking demand is concerned but as a whole we have to come up with shared parking. For this project we calculated and came up with 153 number of spaces that needs to be provided for school, office, retail and for all the other land uses. Mr. Rathore said in conclusion for traffic our professional opinion is the staggered timing approach, additional mitigation needs to be provided for crosswalks, a bus lane, the parents and community needs to be educated about sending their kids to buses,the number of buses should be increased, and the City should participate in the SRTS Program, and most importantly the presence of Police and crossing guards is a must for a smooth pedestrian and traffic operation. For Shared Parking Analysis as he had indicated, 153 shared parking spaces will have to be provided for this project. 16