The Public Facilities Committee voted to approve the following (see Report and watch the video on NewTV):
- Request for a grant of location to install and maintain a gas main in Parker Avenue (6-0, Councilor Danberg not voting). There are two Grade 3 leaks in the area, and no new services are being connected during the complete pipe replacement. National Grid representative Mary Mulroney explained that National Grid does not do pipe repairs, only complete replacement, adding that one reason is that repair of the pipes would take out service for an entire neighborhood while the project is under completion. Two residents spoke. One raised concern regarding an ongoing gas leak on Walnut Street, urging that this area should be prioritized for leak repair. Another raised concern regarding the timing of the project. Councilors requested that the work be completed during the summer months due to this being a bike and pedestrian school route.
- Approval on roadway infrastructure improvements, which includes vertical elements placed on or in the roadway such as speed humps and speed cushions and angular back-in parking for the Albemarle Traffic Calming Project (4-3, Councilors Gentile, Laredo and Kelley abstaining). Director of Transportation Planning Josh Ostroff provided the committee with a presentation including a project overview, safety improvement features, design review, current feedback received, and next steps. In response to questions raised regarding angular parking, Director Ostroff said the Planning Department will be working on educating the public on how to maneuver, and he acknowledged there was negative feedback received on the Homer Street trial. He also reported that were a couple dozen incidents/accidents in the past 10 years and added that the grant needs to be spent by December 31, 2023. Councilors had concerns about the safety of angular back-in parking. “It was noted that this is a pilot and adjustments will likely be made.” The committee report suggests there are two outstanding questions: the number of crash incidents and which other communities are instituting head-out parking.
- Reappointment of Robert Hnasko to the Design Review Committee (7-0)
The Public Facilities Committee voted to hold the following:
- Discussion on the Transportation Network Improvement Plan (6-0, Councilor Danberg not voting). The Commissioner of the Department of Public Works, Jim McGonagle, provided the committee with its annual update, which was presented by Environmental Partners. The presentation included information on program goals, work history, pedestrian infrastructure network, and planned construction and traffic calming for 2023. With regard to the budget, the Commissioner explained that they are still discussing funding, but he indicated there would be an upcoming docket item that may provide funding due to attrition. With regard to damaged sidewalks and tree roots, the Commissioner said that unfortunately they have to remove the tree entirely but sometimes they can ramp over the roots if it complies with accessibility requirements and said they are still using concrete for ramps. In response to questions raised during public comment regarding the status of Waltham Street, the Commissioner said it had been moved to next year’s schedule to accommodate work.
