Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan

May 18, 2012 by AOttesen · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Action Alerts, Advocacy

THE BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN STEERING COMMITTEE INVITES YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THE PREPARATION OF LA CROSSE’S “Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan”.

Public Participation Meeting

All Bicyclists and Pedestrians are Welcome

Radisson Ballroom

200 2nd Street S in La Crosse’s Downtown

Monday, June 4th from 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Valet Bicycle Parking will be Available

Come see the Preliminary Concept Plan and help provide your input. Open House: 5pm to 6pm. Presentation at 6:00 with questions and discussion.

Additional Information about the Bike/Ped Plan is available at http://www.cityoflacrosse.org/index.aspx?NID=2553

Download flyer here: Bike Ped Master Plan meeting

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ACTION ALERT: La Crosse Bicycle Pedestrian Plan 2012

April 9, 2012 by AOttesen · 1 Comment
Filed under: Action Alerts, Advocacy

We are in need of 2-3 DRBC members to attend the Bike and Ped workshops on April 14th and 15th, respectively. Check out the City’s website for more details here. If you are able to attend, please send an email to info@driftlessbicycle.org.

APRIL 14, 2012 BIKE WORKSHOP AGENDA

9:00 am – Presentation on Bicycle Design Issues

Bicycling principles
Basics of bikeway design
Intersection design
Shared use paths

10:00 am – Bicycle Tour of City

Noon – Discussion of Bike Tour over a Box Lunch

12:30 pm – Small Group Bike Workshop

Destination mapping
Good cycling route mapping
Fill in the gaps mapping
Identify issue locations

3:00 pm – Adjourn

APRIL 16, 2012 PED WORKSHOP AGENDA

Noon – Presentation on Pedestrian Issues over Lunch

Ped safety parameters
Basic ADA requirements
Need for connectivity
Access to transit

12:30 pm – Pedestrian Plan Workshop

Identify walking hotspots
Confirm sidewalk gap map
Discuss routes/gaps for runners
Identify transit access issues

2:00 pm – City-wide Walk Accessibility Plan

Introduce Chris Seegar (Iowa State University)
Describe proposed GIS inventory
Present data collection form/process
Short field exercise using form/process
Plan to organize volunteer force
Data submittal deadline: Monday, May 7, 2012

4:00 pm – Adjourn

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Action Alert: Transportation Bill Moving!

January 26, 2012 by AOttesen · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Action Alerts

Ask Your Representative to Preserve Biking and Walking	Take Action!
Transportation Committee votes on biking and walking funding next week

On Thursday, February 2, we expect the House Transportation Committee to vote on the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act, a bill that eliminates crucial funds for biking and walking. As a Member of the Committee, your representative is in a key position to save dedicated funding for biking and walking. Please contact them today and ask them to vote to preserve biking and walking.The American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act, the long awaited multi year Transportation bill, eliminates the two largest programs that fund biking and walking infrastructure—Transportation Enhancements and Safe Routes to School. Without these programs, communities all over the country will lose resources to build the sidewalks, crosswalks, and bikeways that make biking and walking safe and accessible in your community. We can’t let that happen. That’s why we’re working to introduce an amendment that will preserve funding for biking and walking. During Thursday’s vote, your representative could be the key to making sure that this amendment passes in the Transportation Committee. Will you contact them today to ask that they vote to preserve funding for biking and walking in the transportation bill? Tell them: Biking and walking make up 12 percent of all trips, but only 1.5 percent of federal funding. Two out of three pedestrian deaths take place on roads built with federal funding. Ensuring funds for sidewalks, crosswalks, and bikeways help end preventable deaths and make roads safer for everyone. When town centers are biking and walking friendly, business and economic development improves. Thank you for all that you do to keep bicycling and walking safe and accessible.

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Action Alert! I90 Bridge Bike/Ped Accommodations

January 25, 2012 by AOttesen · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Action Alerts, Advocacy, Bike Paths

It’s finally time to weigh in on the importance of MnDOT following through on providing access for bicycles and pedestrians on the upcoming I-90 Bridge at Dresbach. As you may have learned, MnDOT has agreed to design the new bridge so that accommodations can be attached in the future, once WisDOT has upgraded some bridges on their side of the river with bike/ped accommodations. So, it’s all about commitments for “future” accommodations, and it would be good to show, by lots of people in attendance, how important those future accommodations ARE to us.

On Wednesday January 25th, 2012 5 pm to 8 pm there will be a Public Open House on the Dresbach Bridge. The Open House will be held at La Crescent High School Cafeteria. This open house will cover all aspects of the Bridge including the recently added future accommodation for Bicyclist and Walkers.

There will be 20 minute presentations at both 6:00 PM and at 7:00 PM by MnDOT. Following the presentations there will be an opportunity to ask questions or offer input for about 20 minutes and then MnDOT will be manning ‘poster stations’ to answer individual questions. There will be 2 court reporters to take oral testimony and forms for written comments.

The Working Group will be submitting testimony on the need for the completion of the bike trail when the I-90 bridge decks over Round Lake and French Slough are replaced. These decks will likely need replacement within the 15 years following the completion of the Mississippi River Bridge and planning for design, approval and funding should begin immediately.

To achieve the capacity to install a trail over the Mississippi River it was necessary for the community to interrupt last June MnDOT’s plan for approval, without a bike trail, and insist on a successful reassessment.It is now appropriate for the Bike Riding Community to show up and endorse the inclusion of structural elements to support the future trail. This is your opportunity to endorse the outcome and reinforce the need to complete the trail as soon as is practical.

We encourage you to show up and complete a form supporting the need. It is our responsibility to show that after 7 months of work; resolutions by the LAPC and 2 Counties; 3000 miles and 3000 hours of community advocacy—that the right decision has been made!!

Please make time for this meeting; 15 minutes can make a difference. Wednesday January 25th, 2012 open house 5 pm till 8 pm.

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ACTION ALERT: Park or housing? City weighs Upper Hixon Forest use

December 15, 2011 by AOttesen · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Action Alerts, Advocacy

Important meetings that will decide the outcome:

Steps of the park legislation resolution #75 at the city government level:

City Plan Commission Meeting –
Tue, Jan 3rd at 4:00 in City Hall 3rd floor conference room-Committee to recommend to Committee as a Whole approval, refers or not approve. We need this committee’s approval.
HPU (highways, properties and utilities) Meeting -
Wed, Jan 4th @ 7:30pm in City Hall council chambers 1st floor- committee to recommend to committee as a whole approval, refer or not approve. We need this committees approval
Committee as a Whole -
Tue, Jan 10th at 7:30pm in Council Chambers 1st floor- committee to recommend to committee as a whole approval, refer or not approve.
Council Meeting -
Thu, Jan 12th at 7:30pm in Council Chambers 1st Floor-Final Vote

The first three meetings all allow for public input. The process is to show up 10 minutes early and sign up to speak at the meeting or register in favor of legislation. It is critical to have a good number of people at the first two meetings and a large crowd at the 3rd meeting.

Suggested Talking Points:

Explain how you use the resource and what it means to you! For example: “I choose to live in La Crosse because of the access to magnificent natural resources like this park, and I understand that sometimes we need to pay higher taxes to offer these outstanding amenities. Parks like this also add economic value to our tax base that cannot be ignored.
Active parks like this keep me in our community. Recreational activities are important to me and it is a major reason why I have chosen to make La Crosse my home.
Personal health benefits to you and/or your family.
Economic benefits:
- 217 million dollar tourism economy in the La Crosse region, driven by our natural beauty and access to resource. This benefits our restaurants, hotels, convention center and small businesses locally.
- Tourism is a job creator and brings new revenue to a local economy.
- This amenity adds tax base value to the rest of the community. If we take away this amenity we will decrease the existing tax base.
- Having outdoor recreation opportunity is an attractive hiring benefit for our local companies; these benefit helps in hiring the best and brightest locally.
By creating a park this generation leaves an everlasting gift to future generations.
It is important to me that I engage in activities close-by to where I work and play that challenge me physically.

Background:

The La Crosse city council is considering whether to designate a city owned track of land on the bluffs above the city, Upper Hixon Forest, as a park or to use the land for housing developments. This petition is to encourage them to designate as a city park. This will protect the land and the shared use trails that have been built there by HPT volunteers. These trails already provide a greater positive economic impact for the community than any housing development would likely provide. Please send a message to them in support of the park designation before January 10, 2012. This petition will be delivered to the mayor and every city councilor.

This petition will be sent to Andrea Richmond, Al Wagner, Chris Olson, Jai Johnson, Eric Schmidt, John J. Satory, Jim Bloedorn, Robert J. Seaquist, Richard P. Becker, Audrey Kader, Sara Sullivan, Francis Formanek, Paul Medinger, Douglas Happel, Marilyn Wigdahl, Richard Swantz and Mathias Harter, Mayor, which says:

“The Upper Hixon Forest track significantly contributes to the quality of life and economy of La Crosse. This land should be designated as a city park to protect it. This is in keeping with the reason the land was sold to and purchased by the city and it is in the best economic interest of the city to designate this track as a park. The Upper Hixon Forest tack, which includes the Human Powered Trails shared use trail system, already supports jobs and brings tourism into our community by attracting thousands of visitors to its trails each year. The potential benefits of protecting this tract of land far out weight and benefits a small exclusive development might provide. We the undersigned encourage you to vote in favor of designating this piece of land as a city park.”

Article in La Crosse Tribune: http://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/park-or-housing-city-weighs-bluffland-use/article_d0812c9c-26db-11e1-9e8d-0019bb2963f4.html?mode=story#ixzz1gdIK41z1

There is also a petition you can sign here:

http://signon.org/sign/park-not-development?source=s.em.cp&r_by=1828717

Thanks!