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Marquette Township, Ispeming and Oakland Township adopt complete streets resolutions.
Holland, East Lansing and Lansing Township close.
First meeting scheduled for Complete Streets Advisory Council.
Complete streets continues to gain momentum around the state. Last week, two Upper Peninsula communities, Marquette Township and the City of Ishpeming both passed Complete Streets resolutions. “Marquette Charter Township has been a leader in providing for the health, safety, welfare, and ease of mobility for those preferring non-motorized modes of transit. In 2003 our Planning Commission required that all new or substantially reconstructed roads must provide an adjacent non-motorized alternative. So, moving forward with the Complete Streets process was a natural for us,” said Randy Girard, Township Manager for the Charter Township of Marquette.
We have learned that the City of Marquette is also working on a policy and should be bringing it before City Council within a month or two. When passed this would make three policies withing Marquette County. Our hats off to our partners at the Marquette County Health Department for all their great leadership in moving these policies forward.
According to the Oakland Township Patch, the Oakland County Board of Trustees voted last night to pass a resolution “supporting Michigan Complete Streets program.” We have not seen the actual language of the resolution yet, but are honored to have the official endorsement of the Board of Trustees for our work to advance complete streets across the state. We look forward to working with the Township in helping to advance their efforts to safely accommodate all roadway users.
Oakland Township becomes the second Oakland County township, after Milford Township, to adopt a Complete Streets resolution. As with Milford Township, Oakland Township does not have jurisdiction over roads. It is the Road Commission for Oakland County who owns, builds, and maintains them within the county. The Complete Streets state law passed last August, however, does state that a “county road agency shall consult with the municipality and agree on how to address the respective complete streets policies.” Other townships that have adopted complete streets include Marquette Township, Union Township and Atlas Township. We will be keeping a close eye on these communities to see how the road commissions and townships work together to implement complete streets.
Oakland Township wasn’t the only municipality busy last night advancing complete streets. We learned via our Facebook Page, that the City of Holland Planning Commission passed a complete streets draft resolution which will be sent to the City Council for approval within the next few months. “The Michigan Association of Railroad Passengers (MARP) feels that a complete streets policy will assist in the City of Holland becoming the friendliest city in America,” said John D. Langdon, Governmental / Public Affairs Coordinator for MARP.
Additionally, a steering committee composed of community leaders and local residents in Lansing Township are guiding a process of developing a complete streets ordinance and non-motorized transportation plan. They are hosting townhall meetings tonight and tomorrow evenings (April 13 & 14) to discuss the proposed ordinance. They have also launched a public survey for community members to provide input.
Just down the road, the City of East Lansing is planning to bring their draft ordinance up for a vote within the next couple of months. Hearing news of the progress in Lansing Township and East Lansing to adopt complete streets, Meridian Township Trustee Veenstra expressed interest in following suit. Also in Mid-Michigan, the City of Mason is showing signs of support by featuring complete streets on the front cover of their latest newsletter.
In statewide news, we are pleased to report that the first meeting of the Complete Streets Advisory Council has been scheduled for April 27, 2011, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. in the VanWagoner Transportation Building, 425 W. Ottawa Street, Lansing. The meeting will be held in the Lakeshore Learning Center Conference Room, located near the first floor lobby.
National bicycle and pedestrian expert, Michael Ronkin, was yesterday’s keynote speaker at the Michigan Transportation Planning Association and Michigan Association of Regions conference titled “Planning for Change in an Uncertain World.” The 34th annual conference started on July 13 and will conclude on the 16 and is being held in East Lansing.
Yesterday’s speakers focused entirely on designing walkable and bike-able communities. Rory Neuner, State Network Manager for the Safe Routes to Schools National Partnership presented on Complete Streets while League of Michigan Bicyclists’ Executive Director Rich Moeller presented a Bikeability Assessment Guide for communities. Additionally, Meridian Township Treasurer, July Brixie highlighted her communities new Bicycle Parking Ordinance while MDOT’s Josh DeBruyn debunked liability concerns many communities have about putting in pedestrian and bicycle facilities. The nonmotorized sessions were rounded out by Dave Morena who discussed Road Diets and Wes Butch of DLZ Corp talked about roundabouts and the need to balance pedestrian mobility against motorist safety.
Following these breakout sessions, Tim Potter, manager of MSU Bikes Service Center, led a group of about 15 bikers on a tour across campus and through E. Lansing and Lansing.
The group of bikers included not only Ronkin and Potter, but also a number of engineers, planners and politicians. Rich Moeller, Executive Director of the League of Michigan Bicyclists, said “It’s different when you see it by bike versus in your car,” “It’s hands-on (and) it allows them to get on their bike and see some of the issues bicyclists are facing. It helps them as planners and engineers to design things.”
A short interview with Michael Ronkin was featured in today’s State News.
Michigan Complete Streets Coalition 