[This transcript was generated automatically from audio using AI and hasn't been reviewed by a person -- it can contain mistakes, including plausible-sounding sentences that were never actually said. Treat it as a starting point, not a verbatim record.]

[0:30] It's not a Spanish woman.
[0:35] It's a Spanish woman.
[0:38] It's a very popular motion of public hearing.
[0:42] A deaf person.
[0:42] It's not a language.
[0:46] It's a bad person.
[0:51] It's a good person.
[0:51] It's a good person.
[0:52] This is good.
[0:53] You guys, you're good.
[0:54] You're good.
[0:55] It's a good person.
[2:08] We're going to go ahead and get going so if I ask everybody to take seats and you'll
[2:16] play the time to look at the boards and they'll be up here too in a minute so this is kind
[2:24] an update meeting on the Highway 9 project, they'll be more of them because it's going to be
[2:30] a long project that takes quite a while. I think you'll probably hear this when they show
[2:36] the schedule, but we probably won't actually start construction till the middle of 2027.
[2:44] So there'll be a lot of planning, a lot of discussion with you guys and folks downtown.
[2:49] So without the kind of two things we're trying to do today is one is Chris is going to give an update on kind of where we are what we've been doing over the last few months and what's coming up.
[3:03] And then specifically going to talk about some of the just get some input on some of the options for what the street scape looks like.
[3:12] the first street Plaza how that looks like just to get input so we find out more what's
[3:21] important what's not important so with that I'm going to turn it over to Chris and then
[3:25] so afterwards then I'll be time for questions and then after that you can go look at the
[3:31] boards ask questions a staff will be over there so thank you mayor I'm Chris Klein with
[3:39] influence of landscape architects and planners with me tonight is Anthony and Andrew both on our
[3:47] staff as well as GBA staff Sam and Lucas. So afterwards if you have questions about specific
[3:54] things we can go over to a board and try to answer questions one on one if you'd like if you're
[4:01] not comfortable asking a question in front of the whole crowd you're going to have time to talk with
[4:05] up by the boards as well so thank you for all of you attending here in person and those of you
[4:11] at home online watching appreciate your input and taking time to provide your thoughts and ideas for
[4:19] improving downtown. Tonight we'll we'll give an update on where we are overall with the project we'll talk
[4:27] about some of the decisions that we're already made and then the decisions that need to be made going
[4:32] forward. A lot of what we're going to be talking about tonight are the things that happen
[4:37] above the ground. Last time we talked about roadways moving around and that issue has been
[4:43] settled. I'll walk through a lot of the coordination that's continued to happen on that front.
[4:49] But tonight and going forward the the input on the things that you're going to see above the ground.
[4:54] What do we want the streetscape to look like? How does that reflect downtown Parkville?
[4:59] it's character, it's history, and then some new spaces that we have in downtown to work with
[5:05] and we want to get some input on those as well. Everything that we're presenting tonight is
[5:10] loaded online, the same interactive website that folks have been used to providing input throughout
[5:17] this process. You'll continue to go to that same site. We do have QR codes up here so you'll be able
[5:24] get there, go online, give us your comments, and I'll walk through and answer, give you a
[5:31] primer of what is included in that engagement website, and we'll talk about next steps.
[5:36] As a reminder, the three goals for the project that we're set up at the outset were to provide
[5:42] an enhanced pedestrian-friendly environment in downtown, support downtown economic development
[5:48] community events and then third improved traffic flow to and through downtown
[5:54] Parkville. So those were our three goals, everything that we're doing with
[5:59] regard to decisions on the roadways and the streetscape and the aesthetic
[6:04] considerations all support one or more of those three goals.
[6:13] We aren't starting the
[6:13] process right now, we started this process almost a year to the day. So December 9th
[6:18] of 2024 was our first public meeting where we started talking about the roadways and what could
[6:25] happen.
[6:26] We had two other public meetings, one in March, one in June, to follow up on those ideas and
[6:32] concepts.
[6:33] We had the engagement website up, we had lots of public input throughout that process.
[6:39] There were a number of options being considered.
[6:42] We took that decision to the Board of Alderman, they weighed all the pros and cons of all
[6:46] decisions and move forward with a concept B. And I'll go over that in a second. So this is
[6:53] the aerial view of downtown. So North is up, Main Street here, East Street, First Street,
[7:01] Second Street, railroad tracks. And then the farmer's market is just right here. So our project
[7:08] encompasses this area. We're trying to work on nine highway and improve the traffic flow of nine
[7:15] way, but if you recall, we also had the amount of east-west traffic that cuts through downtown
[7:22] and the number of growing developments and new housing that is happening out west this.
[7:30] Increasing the amount of traffic using FF cutting through downtown and how that's going to continue to grow over time as those properties continue to develop, like thousand oaks and other neighborhoods out to the west.
[7:45] This was concept B. It was approved at the end of the last session of public meetings. It involves re-aligning nine highway here just a little bit and then creating a brand new intersection.
[8:01] This is the train depot, the fountain, and then a roadway connection, a new road that will
[8:08] come in here behind the fire station, and then continue behind level builders and Bentley
[8:14] guitar in this block here to connect the main street, and then you'll have this short
[8:19] jog over to River Road and FF Highway.
[8:24] That allows East Street to become a right-in right out here with nine highway.
[8:28] This will be a divided median out here for nine high weight. We're looking at options for this stretch of the median
[8:37] We don't want there to be a break there, so it's likely that it's gonna be a continuous median
[8:42] But this portion of the median will be able to be driven over by the fire trucks to get out and head to the north
[8:50] And so we're still working through some of those options for what that looks like
[8:56] because of the the rewark here and most of that east-west traffic flow
[9:01] cutting through here east street as an opportunity to turn into a new
[9:06] pedestrian plazin park space and so we're we're looking at some options for
[9:13] that that we want to get input on tonight.
[9:18] So our overall schedule and this is on
[9:20] the website as well. We've got two public meetings during this portion of the
[9:25] planning process. Tonight, where we're going over the information related to some of these decisions,
[9:33] we're going to come back in the summer of this year and come back with, here's what we heard
[9:38] from the community, here's the types of events and the input that you've all given gives us time
[9:44] to go back and create some drawings and some additional concepts and change what you see here
[9:48] to reflect the input that you give us tonight. We'll come back and share where we are in that
[9:53] and say, here's the recommendations based on all that input for streetscape for the Plaza space for the overall project.
[10:01] And we'll share that as a design update.
[10:04] We've finished the preliminary plans, which we finished last fall or this fall.
[10:10] And then we're getting ready to go to right away plans, which is the next step in the mode-up process.
[10:15] We're anticipating submittals sometime in the spring of this year, so in the next two to three months.
[10:21] We do have some initial plans that we've already submitted to Modot for them to look through and coordinate with, as well as the railroad.
[10:30] I'll talk about that in a second.
[10:32] Once we get comments back from them, we can tighten up the drawings a little bit.
[10:36] Create those right away plans and understand exactly what properties are impacted, where we need construction easements,
[10:43] where we're going to need permanent easements, where we might need some additional right away.
[10:47] There's a handful of properties along a couple of these roots that might have an impact here or there.
[10:53] And so there will be some initial conversations that happen with those property owners as part of the separate process that's combined with this effort.
[11:03] After spring, the right-of-way plans are approved.
[11:07] We're going to start working on final plans.
[11:09] And again, the input that you give us tonight will help us to craft those final plans.
[11:13] Those are anticipated to be submitted in early 2027.
[11:18] So when we come back in the summer and say, here's what we heard.
[11:22] Here's how we interpreted it, did we get it right?
[11:24] We've got an opportunity to make some final little adjustments
[11:27] and get those plans ready to submit in early 2027.
[11:32] Then we anticipate going out for bid for the project
[11:34] in the summer of 2027.
[11:36] There's some final steps you have to go through with modots process
[11:39] and then begin construction in the fall.
[11:42] maybe summer of 2027, but we're anticipating fall at this point.
[11:52] On the project overview, so as the projects continue to take shape,
[11:57] there's been a lot of work on the roadway side.
[12:01] The roadway infrastructure, there's a lot of issues that we have to work through,
[12:04] the street geometry, all the turning radius,
[12:08] we have a lot of discussions about trucks and being able to turn
[12:11] and make certain movements.
[12:12] We've been working through all of those issues.
[12:16] We're looking at intersection bumpouts throughout the downtown area.
[12:21] These are very similar to what a lot of
[12:24] Towns have been doing over the last 20 years
[12:28] in terms of improving the street infrastructure to serve downtown
[12:32] and I'll share some examples of that here next.
[12:35] But the placement of these bumpouts is generally at those intersections
[12:40] where right now the curb line might be right here on both sides and it's a lot longer
[12:48] for pedestrians to cross over the street because you're walking the full length of the
[12:53] parking stall then the roadway and then the parking stall and then the sidewalk so
[12:58] you're walking on a 60 feet across the road from one sidewalk to the next whereas if you
[13:10] You get this down to about 24 to 25 feet.
[13:13] It's just a lot less area to have to navigate as a pedestrian.
[13:20] And the good news is there's not really much
[13:22] if any impact to existing on street parking stalls.
[13:26] It doesn't come at the expense of parking.
[13:29] But if you'll recall it, the very first round of public meetings
[13:33] we ask folks, do you want more parking it
[13:36] or do you want more pedestrian space?
[13:39] where we have those options and folks really came in almost in the middle and
[13:44] said we really want a blend of both we want as much parking as we can get but we
[13:48] want the sidewalks to be comfortable to accommodate shoppers and make it feel
[13:53] comfortable for folks to spend more time and downtown. So right now as we look
[13:58] at all of the parking spaces that are out here today in this area there's about
[14:03] sixty-seven. Within that whole area, I was almost going to make a six-seven joke and I decided
[14:09] not to. So, sixty-seven stalls and then proposed sixty-six stalls. So, as we've gone through
[14:19] and tightened things up here and there, refined, tried to eat out as many parking stalls
[14:25] As we can, we've got 66 stalls here and that includes the ramp areas that need to occur.
[14:33] You've got to stripe out one of those stalls for handicap or accessible stalls.
[14:38] And so taking that into account with one of those at each one of these locations,
[14:44] don't know if there'll be two handicap spots in each for just one,
[14:48] but it impacts one of those parking spaces in both spots.
[14:52] We're getting 66.
[14:53] So pretty good. I mean, it's as close as existing as possible.
[15:00] So, good news is, with all those bumpouts, with the ability for folks to cross the street at those locations, it makes downtown a lot more pedestrian friendly.
[15:10] It has opportunities for green space and pedestrian use, and we still accommodate as much parking as we can get throughout the entire area.
[15:21] There's been work on the culverts, you know that Al-O-Wai-Dallow Creek runs down here
[15:27] from Risley, in the nature sanctuary, it runs down here through this culvert underneath
[15:33] nine highway today, and it makes its way over to a small culvert that's underneath the railroad
[15:38] tracks right behind the fire station. What we're proposing to do is to build onto that
[15:44] over it and then build this roadway on top so this will act as one overall
[15:50] covert and then we'll have a driveway access going over here to the the
[15:56] train depot area and I'll show you that next.
[16:01] Mode.coordination we've been working with them on all these turning movements
[16:06] what what their thoughts are on these intersections with the new signal we've been
[16:12] working with the railroad on everything related to their property edge along with some right
[16:18] away issues and I'll touch on those here in a second and then fire district, coordination,
[16:24] you'll recall previously we've talked about what the fire stations plans are for improving
[16:31] the fire station they want to eventually build another bay of the building over here and
[16:37] have the ability to put in garage doors on both sides of this bay, the existing one, and then
[16:44] the new bay. So there would be two bays that would have doors on the front and the back.
[16:49] And that would allow fire trucks to then pull in from the rear and pull straight in and then be
[16:56] ready to go once there's an event. They could do that in either direction if they if they chose,
[17:01] But they've got enough room out here to park their fire trucks and to accommodate those those uses and then FEMA
[17:10] We've got a coordinate with FEMA on all of the stormwater issues and any environmental issues as a part of the project
[17:20] I mentioned the bump outs
[17:22] There's lots of examples throughout the metro area
[17:26] One of the first ones that I worked on was in downtown Lee Summit and that was scush
[17:31] almost 25 years ago, so at that point we looked at bumping out at the intersections, it
[17:40] helps to better define those parking stalls that are on the street so that folks aren't
[17:45] just driving right into the back of one of these cars that's parked, helps to define that
[17:49] drive lane as well as the defines the public space that happens at the bumpouts.
[17:55] And so we went from these kinds of drawings to actually build images.
[18:03] Again, that reduced crossing with is very helpful.
[18:07] And then you can see historically, here's one of the buildings there at third street
[18:11] and market back in the day before the bumpouts were built.
[18:17] And then this is it after they were built.
[18:19] You can see those bumpouts on either side, see the same building.
[18:23] They had some cladding up here that they tore off and went back to a more historic look for that building on the corner
[18:28] but it just creates
[18:30] nicer space here for pedestrians to use
[18:34] for a stroller to pull off and take care of something that if they need to and not block the flow of traffic on the sidewalk
[18:42] and it's just a nice place to place amenities and other things that make it more conducive to downtown shopping.
[18:50] A similar example in North Kansas City, a little closer to home, and a little more recent.
[18:57] These are the bumpouts that were out there previously.
[19:00] This is what's proposed and what got built.
[19:03] And so we let the design work out there as well to refresh and redefine some of those bumpouts
[19:11] throughout their downtown area.
[19:13] So again, you're trying to find that balancing act between pedestrian usage and safety
[19:17] as well as the definition of those parking stalls.
[19:25] So this is a snapshot of what some of the engineering drawings that are currently underway
[19:29] for the downtown area. You can see we've got a three lane section for this portion of the roadway,
[19:37] and then it converts to a two lane section here, just south of Bentley and level builders.
[19:45] this three lane section allows for a center turn lane that's shared for folks that
[19:50] are coming up here to either turn right or turn left to head north on nine
[19:55] highway so there's a lot of stacking there and then someone coming down here
[20:00] that wants to go to the park or an area to the south and need the shops that are
[20:05] down here they'll make a left turn at this location and so there's room for
[20:10] stacking to occur and we can adjust that stacking lane in whichever way we need to
[20:17] based on the traffic needs but this is where the traffic modeling shows that it should
[20:21] be to balance the turning movements. Then there are also those folks that are going to be turning
[20:27] left and potentially waiting for a train will stack up here. The folks that are heading through
[20:34] or turning right will use this lane and then they'll either turn right or they'll continue on
[20:39] straight through here, and then turn right here,
[20:43] either head north on main or over to FF.
[20:48] We can see the culvert here,
[20:51] and then this area in yellow,
[20:53] you'll recall there was some discussion
[20:55] about the right away limits and what the railroad
[20:59] has in their right away plans versus what the city has
[21:02] in their right away plans.
[21:04] And those went back to the 1800s.
[21:07] There was a lot of back and forth
[21:08] between GBA surveyors and the railroad. We've confirmed with them that this area in yellow is the
[21:17] area that both parties agree. This is where the right away is and then we've confirmed with the railroad
[21:25] working through a use agreement. They're going to still have this as their right away,
[21:31] but they're going to grant the city ability to use portions of that right away.
[21:36] One of which is for the depot, there's a brick patio back there that's between the depot building and the tracks and that was historically used for people to go out and get on the train.
[21:49] While the fence line is down here next to the tracks, the right-away line and it cuts halfway through that patio.
[21:58] And so if we don't get a use agreement, the railroad would say, hey, you shouldn't use that other half of the patio.
[22:04] So, the user agreement will cover the ability for whoever's in this building to use the full patio
[22:10] for us to be able to make a connection for a driveway so that this whole facility here feels like it's part of the rest of downtown
[22:19] and you can get there, you don't have to go to the highway and then come back.
[22:25] So that connectivity as well as the roadway that's being built here.
[22:30] And the culvert that goes underneath, we're going to be connecting to that existing culvert. You can see it angles up here a little bit and the throat of that culvert will allow this water to come in here a little bit more efficiently than it does today.
[22:45] There's a slight decrease in the amount of water that will be in this area because this
[22:55] is a little bit more efficient for that water to get in there so it's a slight
[22:58] betterment of the drainage flow through that area, but there's been a lot of coordination
[23:03] on that issue as well.
[23:05] Then the placement of that three lane roadway allows for plenty of room here for the driveway
[23:10] length so that the fire station can park their vehicles here and make their way through their
[23:17] facility the way that they want to. And then you can see the rest of how the bump outs are
[23:23] starting to work through and be located where we're confined on street parking spaces. Main street
[23:31] we pretty much kept the number of stalls the same. There may be one stall difference between
[23:37] existing and proposed, but there might be a spot where we might be able to capture another
[23:43] stall.
[23:44] So we're still working through that as we think about where that handicap or the accessible
[23:49] parking could occur here in the same token, some accessible parking that could happen
[23:54] here.
[23:55] But you can see we've captured a lot of additional on-street parking on east street that
[24:01] could support uses and activity that are happening in that area.
[24:08] And then the fire district coordination, we did have a meeting with the representatives from the fire district showed on these diagrams.
[24:17] These are their larger truck and how it can make its way out of the facility to go in whichever direction they want to go.
[24:25] And they can come from whichever direction they want to to come back into the facility on the south and still park the whole vehicle out here on the driveway.
[24:35] So these were some of the diagrams that we shared with them.
[24:40] We also talked about the parking lot here.
[24:43] Currently people can drive all the way through this parking lot,
[24:47] whether you're with the fire district or not.
[24:49] You could just follow somebody and cut right on through.
[24:53] Decided we don't want that to happen.
[24:55] We don't want people to use that as a cut through.
[24:58] So the intent here is to get rid of this driveway,
[25:01] access up here, extend that sidewalk and put some additional green space up here, which
[25:07] will allow them to park a couple cars there that they can't do right now, because that's
[25:11] a drive lane, and so they'll come in from the south, and that'll clean this area up a
[25:17] little bit on the north side. I think they still have plans to expand the building, but they
[25:22] haven't designed anything that they've shared with us yet, but just what happens on this
[25:28] property, there's a lot of room here available to accommodate their expansion and some building
[25:35] of some kind that could happen here as a result of that.
[25:41] Is there anyone here from the fire district or no, okay, I know we did meet with them and
[25:48] had a good meeting with them, they were supportive of this concept and again the coordination
[25:56] with the railroad and mode out. All of those things were things that we heard loud and clear from
[26:01] the Board of Alderman. They said, we like concept B, we wanted to move forward, but if
[26:06] there's some fatal flaw in it that's going to keep it from happening, if we're going to fail,
[26:11] let's fail fast. Go find those answers out. We've been working diligently with all of those agencies.
[26:18] We've gotten the green light from all of them so far. We're continuing to work on those
[26:22] details to tie up the paperwork that goes with all of that, but the good news is we've
[26:29] gotten the green light to continue on with that, and that's what we're doing.
[26:36] I mentioned the right away process existing and proposed, so that involves temporary construction
[26:46] easements and permanent easements.
[26:49] This is just an example of what one of those plans looks like.
[26:54] You kind of go in and highlight the areas of additional right away that you would need,
[26:59] permanent right away, where you might need temporary construction easements,
[27:03] where you might need some permanent easements, that process.
[27:08] Again, we anticipate that starting in early 2026.
[27:13] There will be a initial contact with any affected property owners,
[27:16] related to the scope and estimated project limits just what's that impact going to be.
[27:23] So they'll have initial discussion.
[27:25] The plans will continue to develop.
[27:28] We'll dial in the dimensions of the work and the amount of right away and easements needed.
[27:32] And then the property owner will be contacted again with the final designs along with the discussion about acquisition.
[27:39] But there's a full process that we have to follow from modots perspective to go through that.
[27:45] and we're almost ready to start having those formal conversations.
[27:50] So if you are impacted in any way,
[27:53] you will be contacted, you'll be notified,
[27:55] that will have those conversations that occur.
[27:58] It just doesn't occur in a big open process like this
[28:01] because it's part of mode-outs process
[28:04] for projects like this.
[28:09] And then the public realm, the streetscape,
[28:12] the way finding the promenade itself,
[28:14] which is out here where first street is,
[28:16] All of those things are things that we want to input from the rest of you and and from the the entire public and so
[28:23] We know we're not starting from scratch. You you probably recognize some of these images from the previous
[28:29] Round of public engagement. We talked about site furnishing options paving landscaping lighting
[28:37] We had
[28:38] Place making elements art elements and we had everybody rank those and tell us which ones were most important
[28:47] We, it's likely that we're not going to have the full budget and be able to afford everything that we want,
[28:53] day one, but the goal is to design all of the things that we think are needed out here,
[29:00] so that we can easily plug and play the things that we can afford today.
[29:05] That we can afford those in the future.
[29:07] And a case in point is way finding signage or something that needs lighting or electrical.
[29:13] Well, if we don't design all those elements now, and we just, we put pavement out everywhere,
[29:20] and then two-year-ish and now three-year-ish and now we decided, you know what, it's
[29:24] a good idea.
[29:25] Let's put some way-finding signage in or let's, let's have some lights and things.
[29:29] Well, if we don't think about where those conduits need to run and where the wires need
[29:33] to go, we're going to be out there tearing up stuff we just built to put in new things.
[29:39] and we don't want to do that. The the prudent things to design those things now. Let's
[29:46] think about that as a part of this process, how all these pieces and parts come together.
[29:51] And then let's put in the infrastructure and the things underground to support where those things could
[29:56] happen. And then if
[30:00] Things like signage, which was lower on the list, or art elements. If those things are things that we could add later, a will have a cost bid from a contractor that said, if we'd have built it, here's what it would have cost.
[30:15] We've got all the infrastructure put in as a part of the base bid and then we can eventually go out and get some funding from a grant or something that could help to build some of those things in the future.
[30:26] But lighting, landscape, site furnishings, paving, those were the top four that the public said.
[30:32] We really want those things and then if we can get some of these other elements in the
[30:36] base project, great, and if we can't, let's try to put them in in this order.
[30:41] So that was the grant results and we're planning on still using that as we go through the process.
[30:48] Now the point is, well what do we do with the streetscape, what do we do with the
[30:56] We've, none of these designs that we're sharing are perfect.
[31:00] We don't think these are ready to build today.
[31:03] What we wanted to do is to create some concepts,
[31:07] share them with you and say,
[31:09] what do you think of this approach versus that approach?
[31:13] And then we can go through and do all the final design of everything.
[31:16] So three concepts for streetscape one is a fairly small area of decorative papers, maybe
[31:27] a foot long or foot wide band of papers right at the back of curb.
[31:32] The rest of the sidewalk would be concrete and then you can see placement of trees and
[31:38] lights and things that will happen.
[31:40] So, that one's kind of a bear bones, a little bit of decorative paving, mostly concrete,
[31:48] or do we expand that out to a three-foot section of pavers with concrete adjacent to it,
[31:57] or do we try to build the entire sidewalk at a brick pavers?
[32:01] What's out there today has a reminder, concrete pavers that fade over time, and they start
[32:09] to degrade a little bit over time as well.
[32:12] And we're kind of at that point where they're starting to show their age and their wear.
[32:18] What we'd recommend is to go in with clay pavers, like we did in downtown Lee Summit.
[32:24] If you have a chance to go to look at downtown Lee Summit, look at those pavers that are
[32:28] out there.
[32:29] They look almost as good as they did the day they went in.
[32:32] They don't degrade, they don't fade, they hold their color.
[32:37] And so they cost a little bit more to put them in, but they're going to last a long time if we build it right.
[32:46] So that's what we're proposing is clay payers throughout the downtown.
[32:50] This question is, do we want to spend a lot of money on replacing the entire sidewalk with brick or do we want to use concrete and some brick?
[32:59] And then the money we would have spent on full sidewalks, maybe we can spend that on lighting or more trees and more landscape for those kinds of things.
[33:07] So that's that's one of the questions.
[33:12] We think about the the promenade space and what could first
[33:16] street turn into. Again, we're gonna have three concepts that we want to share with you. None of them
[33:22] is right. None of them is perfect. They're just a stimulate thought. What do you think of this one?
[33:28] What do you think of that? Tell us what you like and you don't like. But we want to think about a theme
[33:33] And we want to think what makes Parkville different and more unique than other communities in the Metro.
[33:40] And at least one of the things that drew us to want to move here and live in Parkville was the proximity to the river and the best riverfront park in the entire Metro.
[33:51] If not the Midwest, this is a great location and this connection to the river.
[33:58] That's the smooth flowing lines, there might be some inspiration that we could draw from that could make its way into the design of that plaza space as a nod towards that connection to the river.
[34:12] The other one that we started thinking about was Park, the founder of Park University, George Park, and the namesake behind Park University in Parkville.
[34:24] I haven't really seen a connection to Park in the downtown area, but he was an influential
[34:34] figure.
[34:35] Is there an ability to maybe do something that honors him and strengthen that connection
[34:42] between the university and Parkville in the downtown area?
[34:46] That's somehow there's a celebration of that connection.
[34:49] So, do we think about a statue as of him, as an art element,
[34:58] the interesting thing about
[34:59] him and out in front of the VFW Hall, you see the printing press that's out there.
[35:08] That was the name of the newspaper that he put out back in the day, the industrial luminary.
[35:14] It was the name of that paper and that's what, you know, they threw the printing press
[35:20] In the river, there's a whole history and story about that whole connection, but the name
[35:27] industrial luminary kind of popped up, we said, well, what does that mean from, you know,
[35:32] lighting, it creates some angular lines, is that something that we might want to play off of?
[35:38] How does that work as a design concept?
[35:41] There's lots of other inspirations out there as well, so that's why we wanted to ask the
[35:46] question, here's a couple things that we're using as inspiration, are there other things
[35:51] that you want us to consider and think about.
[35:56] You think about that industrial luminary concept and just the use of materials in the area
[36:05] stone and brick, the use of the railroad tracks, metal, maybe some wood that warns it up
[36:14] a little bit, makes it feel fairly traditional in the downtown area, integrating art.
[36:22] But one of the things we found was interesting in looking at some of these elements, there's
[36:27] lots of examples of carts or seating that could be put on wheels that could be flexible
[36:35] and be able to be moved around on the site, and so we're thinking about those.
[36:42] So, some early renditions of how to interpret some of those ideas into the design of the
[36:48] plaza.
[36:49] So, I mentioned that Missouri River kind of connection that concept, this smooth flowing
[36:55] lines of the water, and then this other side of the plaza space might take on this more
[37:03] curving, undulating shape, where the waters maybe have receded from the bank a little bit
[37:09] and create these areas for people to sit and gather, have conversations, large open plaza space
[37:17] that could be used for events, festivals, things like that that could happen in the downtown
[37:24] and be an extension of that sidewalk environment. But then we're also thinking about the
[37:30] Distance, and the businesses that are adjacent to this area today, we pretty much have what a five-foot sidewalk or so on each side, and then just that two-lane street, but we could allow for some of those restaurants to spill out into that plaza space and use that for restaurant seating.
[37:51] There's a whole host of policy decisions and discussions that the city needs to make decisions
[37:59] on on how that space is managed, how that relationship works with those adjacent property
[38:06] owners.
[38:07] We're finding some examples to share with the city as well and just how other communities
[38:12] that have converted a street into a public-plazza space, how have they made those decisions,
[38:18] how they managed it?
[38:19] some communities like to put a designated fence with the self-locking gate and customers could
[38:28] buy food in alcohol within that area but they can't take it outside of that space.
[38:34] Other communities have said well maybe we designated certain zone that allows folks to carry
[38:39] a drink from one place to another. There's lots of different ways to do it and there's pros and
[38:45] to all of those. So that'll be part of the discussion and we're doing some more research on that
[38:50] and just what are the best practices, what are lessons learned from some other communities
[38:55] to help guide that. But getting back to the design side, what do we want to see happen
[39:01] with these? Do we want to allow those businesses to expand out? So in some cases it could just be
[39:07] movable seating and others. This could be like a high table or something like a drink rail
[39:12] that could help to define that edge.
[39:16] So again, we're just kind of thinking about what those spaces could become and what they might look like.
[39:23] So here it is put into more of a simulated model that we're developing and some visuals of what that looks like,
[39:31] what that could look like. It looks a lot different than what it could look like, which is the street there today.
[39:38] But we wanted to give everybody a sense of scale of how big that space is, what we think
[39:44] some of the opportunities are for that there for integrating landscape and a hard
[39:49] scape.
[39:50] And some other views from down more to pedestrian level of that particular concept.
[39:57] These next two kind of playoff of that angular light pattern.
[40:03] In this case, we've got sidewalks up adjacent to the street to those businesses, and then pretty much
[40:11] planters out here that take on that angular form.
[40:14] They're straight on the back to help define that existing sidewalk line.
[40:18] But out here in the middle of the plaza, they take on these undulating angle forms to create another way to get through in the middle.
[40:28] And then potentially a large green space,
[40:31] some astrater for something that could accommodate
[40:34] wear and tear and allow folks to play yard games and things like that.
[40:38] And then some integrated seating and areas of shade.
[40:43] And again, what that looks like once we start taking it into
[40:46] some modeling and how that would feel.
[40:53] In all cases, we're thinking of lights that hang over the street
[40:56] connect from one side to the other, likely on their own set of poles instead of trying
[41:03] to connect to the buildings and just how that space would function.
[41:10] And then this last one, the third one, plays off of that angular concept a little bit, but
[41:18] kind of creates more of a hard-scape area on one side where we take those seeding elements that
[41:24] roll together. So this is an example and there's several examples we found where these could
[41:31] have wheels on them and could roll and lock in place to kind of create a stage but then you roll
[41:37] them apart and you can lock them back in place where they go so they just look like seats out here
[41:43] during the day. So something that would have some flexibility it still feels like it's built all the
[41:49] time but is designed to be modular and flexible to be able to be moved and
[41:55] recrafted to make that space function for whatever that event is. Again,
[42:01] seating out here adjacent to the existing businesses. Maybe you have landscape
[42:05] touch. Some of those businesses where we don't have doors, encourage these to
[42:11] feel a little bit more private and not people trying to walk through each area.
[42:16] So, so you'll see somewhere we keep that sidewalk all the way, consistent across, others
[42:22] where we touch some of the landscape and try to push folks to come back out to the middle.
[42:28] So again, just testing the concepts a little bit, thinking about how that space might be used
[42:33] and want to get your input on that.
[42:35] And then think about how that space relates to pocket park over here,
[42:40] and the crossing over to existing pocket park where Mark Twain and Bill Griggs
[42:44] you're welcoming everybody. And then over here to the east, does it come across east
[42:51] street over to that corner at nine highway? Do we do something over there to begin
[42:57] that or continue to tell that story? Whatever that story is.
[43:03] And again, how this
[43:03] one looks like once you start building it into some models you get a sense of what
[43:09] that space might feel like. It is a little bit more open down here and then those
[43:14] things could roll together.
[43:20] We think about way finding signage.
[43:24] Right now there is some way finding signage out there.
[43:26] It's a little bit hard to read.
[43:28] I think we want to work on the lettering size to make it legible for cars and then smaller
[43:33] in areas that are more pedestrian friendly and just building off of the signage that the
[43:39] cities are already invested in.
[43:41] There's new signs out there along the highway over by the police stop and coming into downtown
[43:48] by the fire station. So, playing off of that look and feel how do we build something for
[43:54] way finding signage that plays off of that and creates a pallet that the city can work with.
[44:01] So, this one we looked at more curving lines that kind of pick up the river feel.
[44:10] This one
[44:11] looks a little bit more of an angular approach that again trying to play off of the city's colors,
[44:17] the green and the blue, the park and the river downtown and the park, some interesting geometry
[44:24] that could make its way into some of those elements, or something a little bit more traditional
[44:32] with the curved top to it, a little more ornate,
[44:38] or something that's kind of a hybrid between
[44:40] those two. So we've got four different examples there. Again, none of these are exactly right,
[44:45] But we put four options out there for folks to tell us what overall direction do you like and what would make it better.
[44:55] And then place making opportunities.
[44:58] There's not a lot of spots in depth.
[45:00] Town Parkville right now other than in the alleyway. I mean, we've got the wings. We've got the murals that are on the walls there. And a lot of folks post this on social media. A lot of folks know where this is when they see it. And they're like, oh, Aunt Judy's over at the downtown Parkville. We should go back up there. We had fun time or it looks like they're having a fun time. Now, like cats are playing. We should get up there. So any time we can create these kinds of, we used to call them code act moments.
[45:31] We don't do filming anymore, but if we could find those places where people would want to take pictures when they're in downtown Parkville, that's free advertising for all the downtown merchants.
[45:44] Hey, look who's over in downtown Parkville there. So, you know, these are things that we've just generated ourselves as initial ideas, but, you know, they're safe.
[45:53] Missouri sign with a heart where Parkville is and we make the letters see through so people
[46:00] could get behind it and get a picture. People like to climb on these. This is one we did at the
[46:05] city market. We see a lot of folks posting from there and you see it on money and I football and
[46:12] some of those elements. We awesome to see downtown Parkville on money and I football one of these days.
[46:19] But how do we how do we do something out here that speaks to who we are as a community
[46:25] and encourages folks to have that great experience and want to document that with a picture
[46:31] and it just creates more activation in some of those public spaces.
[46:39] Again, the website,
[46:40] there's a QR code. If any of you want to follow along tonight, you can use your phone right now and take a picture of it.
[46:49] All the input will happen through this website.
[46:52] If you don't have a phone, or if you don't have access to a computer, we do have paper copies
[46:58] of all of these questions that are on the website, and you can pick those upstairs at the
[47:03] information desk if you're in City Hall starting tomorrow.
[47:07] And you can fill that out by hand and just submit that.
[47:11] And so if that's how you need to do it, there's an opportunity to do that.
[47:16] we'll capture all those, bring them back,
[47:21] and we'll enter all that information into to keep track
[47:24] of all of it. So again, it's the same website that we've been using. It's been updated.
[47:31] There's
[47:32] several activities to do. One of the activities is to look at the promenade spaces and those
[47:39] three different ideas and tell us, you know, overall, which one is your favorite.
[47:46] So, you zoom into the area, you'd like to make a comment, you add a marker right here.
[47:52] There's a little green box, you can add a marker as an idea or something and put it in there and type it in and say,
[47:59] here's what I want to see happen here, here's what I like, here's what I don't like.
[48:03] I like this tree, I don't like that tree, whatever it is.
[48:06] You can make your own comments on there and then submit after you've made all of your comments
[48:12] Your comments are going to be private this time
[48:16] Want to make sure that when somebody goes if they wait three weeks and then they go to the website
[48:21] But didn't want to see
[48:23] Tonic comments all over it and you couldn't see the image underneath so we wanted everybody to
[48:28] It's as like your first attempt to walk in
[48:32] Unfettered what it what would you want let you go ahead and make your comments will capture
[48:36] all those and then we'll create a summary of all of that. Tell us what stories you want
[48:46] to feature so again when we think about storytelling and the use of artwork or history
[48:53] moments or anything there's there's been discussions about well how do we tell Parkville
[48:59] story in the streets? Could we do some things in here really connect people to our history? Connect
[49:06] people to what makes Parkville unique. There's lots of cool things that we could integrate into
[49:11] the streetscape into some of the common elements that that already need to be made. So if we're
[49:17] putting a bench in, we've done things like take one of the slats of the bench and go to get a
[49:22] special manufacturer and maybe work in a story into that slat and replace the slat in the bench
[49:30] as a way of taking a functional element and also using it to tell a story.
[49:35] So don't know what those all those stories are.
[49:38] We've shown a couple of things, you know, the printing press and others.
[49:42] But there's lots of things that we don't know about that the community knows about Parkville.
[49:48] And so we'd like to know you could take in this portion of it.
[49:51] Again, you add a marker as your idea and you could put an idea out here and say,
[49:56] Hey, why don't we tell the story about what happened at that intersection one day or
[50:01] the special thing that this building represents? Tell us what those stories are that
[50:06] that you want us to explore as a part of that.
[50:11] And then the overall streetscape character,
[50:14] we had those three options for the streetscape itself. Do you like the full brick? Do you like the
[50:20] One foot brick, tell us which one is your favorite and you'll do that by ranking these.
[50:28] So you'll just drag these over and reorder the number, your most favorite to your least
[50:33] favorite.
[50:37] The next option, do we want to create an enhanced gateway into downtown?
[50:45] Right now, you've got the columns on either side of the highway that's a downtown park
[50:50] and they've got the little lights on them, right before you cross into downtown, do you want
[50:56] to further embellish that some communities of built, you know, archways over some of the roadways
[51:02] like downtown North Kansas City, we did that one a few years ago, other larger monuments or signage
[51:11] or art installations or don't explore any additional enhancements. Where are you in that
[51:19] process, what do you think, or do you have other ideas of what you'd want to see as a gateway
[51:23] element?
[51:24] So you can type that in and tell us what you like and don't like.
[51:29] The lighting itself on the streets, there's several different lights being used throughout
[51:36] these lights out here in front of Park University, where recently installed there, there's
[51:42] number of new kind of acorn lights with some gold adornments here at the top as this protective
[51:51] cage and banners. So the thought was that we would use those same lights on the rest of
[51:57] nine highway and bring them around the curve and up. But Ebrgy is the electrical supplier for
[52:06] for the downtown area, and they have a few different fixtures that we can choose from.
[52:14] So if we stay within their menu, which we need to, this one is one that we could match
[52:19] and carry that consistently up.
[52:22] These are the existing downtown lights that are more of a globe or an acorn that doesn't
[52:28] have that ornamentation on it.
[52:30] So we could do something similar to what's in downtown now. It's not exactly the same, but it's really close.
[52:38] So we could try to emulate that in the rest of the downtown area, or they have a couple of different concepts.
[52:44] One is more of an angular kind of an octagonal, shaped light, and one's more of a round light.
[52:52] They haven't used those anywhere in the metro, but they're in their system, so I'd like to point out where those are, but there aren't any of those other two out here as an example to look at.
[53:05] But any of those other three would you want to see us continue with these in the downtown and have them be different than the ones on nine?
[53:14] That's what this question is about, or do you want to see us use the exact same light that
[53:19] we're using on 9 highway and use it all through the downtown?
[53:23] So think about that and give us a input.
[53:26] And then crosswalks, how we cross over the street at those designated locations.
[53:32] Do we want to integrate decorative pavers into the crosswalks?
[53:36] Do we want to raise the crosswalk a little bit so it's at the sidewalk level and cars
[53:41] drive up and then back down, not a speed, ramp, or anything like that, but something that
[53:47] is a little bit of a traffic calming device as well, and makes it easier for pedestrians
[53:53] to cross the street. Do we integrate scored colored concrete into the sidewalks instead
[53:58] of pavers? Or do we just go to standard lines painted striping at the crosswalks? If you
[54:06] preferences on those, you can put them over here in your order, your most favorite, to your
[54:11] least favorite.
[54:15] And then what types of everyday activities do you envision for the new pedestrian
[54:20] promenade space? So we put a few ideas in here, designated dining, beverage areas,
[54:27] for adjacent businesses, just seating areas, do we put a kid-friendly feature, or area, small
[54:33] climbing, or balance, or something? Do we do a performance turf, green space, for yard
[54:38] games, do we have a flexible, plasma space that's hard scape, do we accommodate event
[54:44] performances from music, dance, or something, a portable stage, do we leave an area
[54:50] for food trucks, for larger events, or the restaurants we've got here support that, arts
[54:57] and craft fairs that we want to have portable tents that could be set up, do we want to
[55:02] think about having an art fair or something like that or
[55:07] or are there other activities.
[55:09] And you'll go ahead and put in your other activities,
[55:12] rank these again, put them on your order of most favorite to least favorite.
[55:17] Tell us what kinds of things you envision happening in that space.
[55:21] What types of future community events would you like to see planned for the new prominent space?
[55:26] It's a space we don't have today.
[55:29] And I don't think we have Mayor's Christmas tree anywhere.
[55:34] Not really.
[55:35] I mean, it could be a spot for Mayor's Christmas tree.
[55:38] It could be a spot for seasonal events.
[55:42] October Fest, those kinds of things.
[55:44] Think about what kinds of things might we do with that space
[55:49] that would make this even a better destination to draw people
[55:53] and your family and friends that would want to come visit you
[55:56] and go spend time down there.
[55:57] But what other events do we not hold in downtown
[56:01] that might be able to be accommodated to hear in this space?
[56:06] What types of amenities do you want to see
[56:08] and integrate it into that promenade?
[56:10] We've got permanent walls with planter edges,
[56:13] movable seating and tables, artwork, decorative lighting,
[56:17] decorative pavement, landscapes, faces, shade trees,
[56:20] high top tables or lean rails,
[56:22] place making feature like the Parkville signage,
[56:25] or other features.
[56:27] What other things do you think about?
[56:29] Put those in your order, rank them from most favorite to least favorite.
[56:37] And then tell us more about you.
[56:39] So who's giving the input?
[56:41] Are you a Parkville resident?
[56:42] Are you not a Parkville resident?
[56:43] Are you a student at Park University?
[56:45] Do you own property in downtown?
[56:47] You own a business?
[56:49] I shop or down?
[56:50] Shop or dining downtown?
[56:52] Parkville?
[56:52] Check all of those that apply.
[56:54] And if someone checks all those boxes,
[56:56] we should probably do a certain prize for them. How often do you visit downtown Parkville?
[57:03] Daily three to five times a week, one to two times a week, twice a month, once a month,
[57:07] once a year, only special occasions wanted to get a sense where the inputs coming from.
[57:12] We were handing out flyers for this meeting and for the input at the Christmas on the river event
[57:19] on Friday night. It was a little chilly, but the fireworks were amazing and there were a lot of folks there.
[57:25] like hey I don't live here but I love to come down here and spend time we always come to this
[57:32] event. Give us your input. If you're coming down here that's our customer base. They're
[57:38] coming down here already to enjoy what Parkville has to offer whether they live here or not.
[57:45] It's important to hear from everybody and this is a way for us to know where that input's coming
[57:50] from. So if they're folks that are just visiting you once a year, we can take that into
[57:56] account. If they're folks that live here all the time and they're down there every day,
[58:00] we can take that into account. So we want to know more about where the input's coming from.
[58:06] And then again, here's the QR code. I just wanted to provide that quick update and overview
[58:12] for the benefit of everybody that's at home that's going to be going through this survey effort.
[58:16] our plan is to leave this up through the middle of January and we'll put that in the website there
[58:22] when we're going to take that input down but that gives everybody about a month and a half of
[58:29] of input time and then middle of January will pull that down and report back to the Board of
[58:35] Alderman in January with where we are with process at that point. Thank you again for being here.
[58:42] We'll be happy to answer some general questions and then we'll be able to assemble around the boards
[58:46] for some one-on-one conversations.
[58:48] And this video of this meeting will be online, too.
[58:53] So if anybody wants to go back or a neighbor
[58:55] didn't get to come down, let us know.
[58:58] So yeah.
[58:59] How much of the community input is factory to you?
[59:05] That's probably a question for me, Red.
[59:08] Then, Chris.
[59:09] The reason I asked, I don't want to make this important,
[59:11] but I would probably understand because we got to a point
[59:15] here with this plan B, and what people can understand is that there were six options presented
[59:21] in the plan that we were moving forward with, the actions were the least support, right?
[59:27] And it's been sold to the open end of the public using a data from plan B2, as one of the
[59:32] 10 is supported when we call the plan B. So, firstly, everything that's been presented so far
[59:37] had the least public support based on the communication from the original surveys.
[59:41] No, I think concept B was more popular than content B2, but there was
[59:51] a line to the public when you say that concept B had public support, because it was time for the last amount of public support.
[59:59] But B2.
[1:00:00] Which what did have the most support? B2 was the most important. It was the most supported that took out the VFW and there was a lot of input to us. Don't take that building in particular. Don't take any buildings. So B was a compromise. And there will be a lot of compromises.
[1:00:25] The second place finished was not remotely being what you're talking about, as I was saying.
[1:00:31] Because we could hold the data, it's been a shame as far as how we got here, right?
[1:00:37] Plan B and low teens in public support.
[1:00:43] The concept B's, the concept B's were all had to do with the brand new roadway.
[1:00:49] The only difference between them was whether or not it took down buildings.
[1:00:52] we heard loud and clear don't take down the buildings but there was support for the new roadway
[1:00:57] connecting through. And I think that's what we heard, that's what we shared. We've been open
[1:01:04] and transparent throughout the entire process and we shared all that with the Board of Alderman.
[1:01:10] There was a lot of discussion about that. It wasn't fine-tuning and nitpicking each one but we
[1:01:15] did spend a ton of time on each one of those.
[1:01:22] Well, all I can tell you is the Board of Alderman
[1:01:24] took in all the input, we got, and from the engineers,
[1:01:31] they can account very preliminary cost estimates,
[1:01:36] and we felt that B was the best option,
[1:01:40] both for the short term and for the long term.
[1:01:44] And so the answer to the public end, but doesn't matter much.
[1:01:48] I think that's absolutely untrue.
[1:01:52] We listen to the public.
[1:01:53] But then we have to, in the end we have to take all this information that we have a representative democracy, and I'm sorry, we can't just take a vote on every little thing we do.
[1:02:06] So the
[1:02:13] promenade is a part of the overall ops.
[1:02:16] What all happens, what gets funded in that,
[1:02:21] we're hoping it'll happen, but we have to get more better estimates next month.
[1:02:30] And then we'll start to make some decisions about,
[1:02:34] there'll be more trade-offs.
[1:02:36] We don't think we have enough money to do pay-verse.
[1:02:39] So, sorry, the pavers are real popular, but we won't be able to do them because at least
[1:02:46] not right now because we don't have the money.
[1:02:49] We'll have to make those decisions.
[1:02:51] But I think by picking Plan B, we did pick the option that closes first street.
[1:03:02] So that decision sort of been made unless we just totally abandon B and start over again.
[1:03:10] So now what happens to first street and to what extent and all that, some of that will depend
[1:03:17] on costs and that and what folks would like to see that was some of the questions today.
[1:03:24] I'm sorry you feel that way.
[1:03:26] I know you're more affected than most people are providing.
[1:03:32] Right.
[1:03:32] Yeah.
[1:03:33] I know you're a big B2 fan and that's because it does fix the
[1:03:49] traffic.
[1:03:49] I personally think it's better.
[1:03:52] I think there are at least six people on our seven people on the board of
[1:03:57] Alderman thought it was better now
[1:04:28] we're not keeping it as a street as long as we
[1:04:30] go with this plan because we don't want two streets going into downtown that would
[1:04:37] that would that would be a worse than anything we do so that's not kind of
[1:04:52] We absolutely agree, and I think there was a lot of support on the Board of
[1:04:57] Aldermen for B2, but we did never money and to be honest there was a lot of
[1:05:05] opposition to B2, for taking the B2 but for taking the BFW, right?
[1:05:18] And we haven't eliminated that vision, but it may be as put off to the future.
[1:05:24] I'm sorry, other people.
[1:05:29] Yeah, it's not, it's principally be about input on the aesthetics and the streetscape.
[1:05:36] We wanted to bring everybody up to date.
[1:05:39] I apologize to people like you, Jim.
[1:05:42] We've made the decision on be.
[1:05:44] That was made six months ago pretty confident that we're not going to go back on that decision,
[1:05:52] unless it's just not ends up not being feasible, which doesn't seem to be the case.
[1:05:59] Okay, 1, 12.
[1:06:02] Oh, I'm sorry.
[1:06:04] We need to have you guys on the microphone so the folks watching can hear you?
[1:06:07] Yep.
[1:06:08] Most people are not.
[1:06:11] So where I'm getting that, I live it on the west side of town.
[1:06:14] Well, Doug Bias, Jr., I live at 123-10, Northwest River Road at the Danger Center section.
[1:06:23] Anyhow, when you guys made the decision as a group to run the road the way you decided to,
[1:06:30] because as the gentleman responded, it wasn't.
[1:06:33] You took consideration, but at the end of the day, it wasn't made on the public.
[1:06:38] And when I say the public, it should be the citizens of Part Bill, because we're the one paying the tab.
[1:06:42] At the end of the day, did you take an account for the extra acreage of 1,000 Oaks just bought and put in all these homes in an extra traffic that's now going to come through downtown Parkville, the aesthetics is one thing.
[1:06:56] We shouldn't be developing aesthetics until we get a plan to get that traffic move through.
[1:07:02] There's not been but one study I've seen out by me where you guys, but the little tabs see how much traffic went through there.
[1:07:08] But on a daily, not only do you have all the traffic coming out to the west side to get to 1000 Oaks.
[1:07:14] You got all the traffic that's going over to 11 more than an Acheson that has picked up now that they know this is a clear thoroughfare.
[1:07:20] The 45 and Maca Cross over to 92 and into that side of town.
[1:07:25] The traffic in the five years I've lived in that house and for anybody questions I've lived in Parkville.
[1:07:30] Twenty-some odd years, and I was in a landlocked pine crest across the street with one way in one way out.
[1:07:37] How do we fix that problem before we get the aesthetics of downtown Parkville?
[1:07:41] We've got to fix that traffic.
[1:07:43] I don't think that that land was purchased by thousands of oaks until after you guys made that decision.
[1:07:49] I could be wrong, but I know when the gentleman moved out of the farm, and I was just here recently.
[1:07:55] So, in the last six months or so, so I'm looking to see, did you make that decision prior to that?
[1:08:01] And they are looking to, the notes even more with the farmers that are selling out because the families are not taking on the farm and they're selling it.
[1:08:11] The next thing is 1000 Oaks will pick up another 100, 200 homes.
[1:08:15] How do you get that traffic out of downtown Parkville? And it is a problem for me.
[1:08:19] And my two older men and you have been invited to come sit on my porch and watch that.
[1:08:23] And none of you have inclined that in bite-tee dinner and watch the traffic.
[1:08:32] Please.
[1:08:35] So first of all, I believe 1000 Oaks and Stephen, they've had that plan for a long time.
[1:08:45] Didn't they even own that land?
[1:08:47] They just allowed someone to live in the farmhouse.
[1:08:55] So we're well aware that 1000 Oaks plans to continue
[1:09:00] you to develop out there and that that'll increase the traffic coming through downtown unless
[1:09:08] some other things happen, you know, like if there was an intersection of a river road with
[1:09:15] a 435 or something like that that might draw some of that up. That's honestly way in the
[1:09:22] future. Pardon? No time soon. No time soon. Absolutely.
[1:09:27] So, we believe, and I believe the engineers believe, this is a better, not the best, a better approach within our capability to do it this moment to getting traffic through the downtown.
[1:09:45] But it's still going to be slow going.
[1:09:49] We're not creating an expressway past the downtown.
[1:09:53] I want to make everybody clear on that.
[1:09:56] They'll be stop signs.
[1:09:58] It's still the downtown.
[1:10:02] So
[1:10:08] they slow down when they get past you because the mode dot
[1:10:13] part of the highway is so in such bad shape that you're
[1:10:18] probably at 65 miles an hour, you're probably
[1:10:20] me flipped off the road. That's another thing to ask that. I would like, I know you have
[1:10:29] strong opinion stuff. I would like to get back to the object of this meeting. You had
[1:10:36] a question.
[1:10:44] Well, first of all, I'd like to thank you guys for the time and effort for public
[1:10:47] It's very important as is future proofing.
[1:10:50] But just two things I wanted to ask since they were kind of gaps for me.
[1:10:56] You know, wish lists are great.
[1:10:57] But have you caucused over, you know, maintenance and facilities of what's proposed.
[1:11:03] Number one, number two, have there ever been a time since I'm new to the area,
[1:11:08] where you've actually closed that area off and just organically learned what people would do in that area or had something there.
[1:11:15] you know over a period of time so you kind of have a right the streets where they would be
[1:11:22] permitted to be closed for something and then you would watch you know people and you would
[1:11:26] see how it felt versus maybe creating something that would be permanent and then might not work.
[1:11:33] So just those two questions. I'm going to let Chris answer some of that. First of all as we
[1:11:39] make our selections for what we do.
[1:11:43] We will have to take an account maintenance,
[1:11:45] like Chris mentioned, clay pavers are better
[1:11:48] than other pavers because they last longer.
[1:11:51] And maybe we don't want to do all pavers
[1:11:55] the whole sidewalk because that'll be more of a maintenance
[1:11:58] headache down the road.
[1:11:59] We'll have to make those decisions.
[1:12:02] And you can address, right, we'll have to be taken into account.
[1:12:09] But we don't want to do things that are going to create lots of costs for us for the city
[1:12:16] down the road and lots of problems.
[1:12:19] To the other thing on your, we haven't,
[1:12:25] possibly, depending on what the maintenance is for.
[1:12:29] The other thing on closing first street, we've never closed first street because it's the only
[1:12:34] through downtown and we occasionally close Main Street for events like the parade every year or
[1:12:47] a couple of parades every year. So we do have some sense on that. We close the alley just to the south
[1:12:55] of the first street that's a little different space. Pardon?
[1:13:19] But we'd have to close it for quite
[1:13:21] some time to get a real sense, unless you just close it for a week and wouldn't do anything
[1:13:28] to it and see if anybody, I personally wouldn't hang out just on first street when it
[1:13:34] was closed without the amenities, some of the amenities, anyways we talked about. That's the
[1:13:41] problem with closing it to see how it works, you have to really do the whole thing.
[1:13:57] Well,
[1:13:58] we know having sanded down and fireworks and that does draw a lot of people down town.
[1:14:04] I assume if we did it in first street, they'd be there too.
[1:14:09] There's just a lot of questions to that.
[1:14:12] Yeah, just that's part of why we're asking these questions now is what ideas do you have?
[1:14:20] What things do you want us to consider?
[1:14:22] I think what would give it the most chance of success long-term is for it to be flexible.
[1:14:29] And so trying to build that flexibility and so that the space can accommodate the types of things that the community is thinking about.
[1:14:38] So it's important for us to ask those questions now just what could those things be and how do we plan a space that accommodates that?
[1:15:10] We'll talk to you in a minute.
[1:15:13] Brent or Marker's 641 North Lake Drive, here in Parkfield. Just a couple of different things. One on the
[1:15:19] accessible spots north of the tracks. How many are you looking at?
[1:15:28] Sorry, that's only one. Yeah, well, I'll give it back to you.
[1:15:31] The grades in downtown, there's some really steep areas. The areas that we're looking at are the areas
[1:15:38] we think we can get accommodate spaces. We're trying to do that balancing act of how many
[1:15:43] do we put there versus how many parking spaces do we need to have to support the businesses?
[1:15:50] So we haven't determined the final number yet, but it's in those two areas that we're
[1:15:56] looking at.
[1:15:57] Well, in conjunction with the numbers, keep in mind that both the route 9 is up through
[1:16:02] force street on the project, on the scope, on the study. Also the ADA transition was also
[1:16:13] through that, so through the 400 block. So another piece of this is, what are we doing
[1:16:19] north is second to accommodate ADA, where all those new businesses are, along there,
[1:16:25] and in conjunction to make it a, you know, ADA compliant. I understand on the great on the
[1:16:31] and second to first basically, you know, is going to be probably never happened as far as,
[1:16:38] you know, the right grade there. Okay? But I'm looking at below and above because all the
[1:16:45] legal documents from the study or from the ADA transition plan all call for that. The reality is
[1:16:53] we've got commercial businesses up through sixth, therefore whatever reason there was some line
[1:16:59] on for some of these studies. The other thing on pavers, if you incorporate pavers in any fashion,
[1:17:07] please ensure that those are non-slip, either with coding and dormitoryials. I think it looks
[1:17:14] aesthetically great, but it may not be good for the customers out there. There's probably more
[1:17:23] things about it better let somebody else, but I'd love to hear some numbers because I think when
[1:17:27] count the numbers, your ratio is if you only put two spots there, you're going to be low.
[1:17:33] You got 117 spots up through 4th Street, and I know you're representing 67 here, and
[1:17:41] therefore the ratio is up to 38 would look appropriate.
[1:17:45] I'm not saying they all have to be down there, but you probably need to figure out something
[1:17:50] for some of those upper main street.
[1:17:52] We
[1:17:55] do have additional ADA, it's not just these spots, as a part of the project we have folded in the transition.
[1:18:05] So, somebody else?
[1:18:08] Any other questions?
[1:18:14] One question about the use of pedestrian seating and stuff like that in that area.
[1:18:20] I mean, I drive through Parkville a lot, but what I don't see is we have a pocket park that
[1:18:27] has pedestrian seating now, and I don't know that I ever see anybody sitting there.
[1:18:32] So I guess what I'm thinking is having just pedestrian seating to be pedestrian seating may
[1:18:40] not be that useful where I see Parkville Coffee, I see Stone Canyon, I see Prima Fachi, all of
[1:18:47] being able to provide a level of seating that has a purpose besides just sitting that might be more useful
[1:18:54] and might be occupied more.
[1:18:58] Thanks for that input.
[1:19:04] Thank you, Dean. I'm a resident of Park
[1:19:06] Villain, but down here since 1992, just prior to the flood of 93, and I know that this entire study
[1:19:15] started off as the nine highway through for project. And now it has evolved into the first
[1:19:24] street promenade. There's a huge contingency of businesses and property owners in downtown
[1:19:31] Parkville that do not want to see first street closed. I know that you guys have already
[1:19:36] voted on that. But many of them have not weighed in. I talked to the fire district yesterday
[1:19:44] And no discussions have been held with the three-fired district chair persons. I know you guys have met with the fire chiefs
[1:19:54] The assistant fire chiefs
[1:19:57] Yeah, so
[1:20:04] So I know you guys are going to be holding meetings with them. I'm looking forward to that
[1:20:08] my biggest concern
[1:20:09] after having lived
[1:20:11] eight
[1:20:12] slept on Main Street
[1:20:14] the last 30 years and different projects that I've done
[1:20:19] What determines a traffic throw to down to downtown Parkville, the traffic flow is the train.
[1:20:25] When the train is there, everything comes to a stop.
[1:20:28] Whether you're on first street, the new road proposed by the railroad tracks,
[1:20:34] I've witnessed many an incident down there, some serious, some non-serious,
[1:20:38] some almost an accident.
[1:20:42] Majority of traffic accidents happen at intersections.
[1:20:46] And we've had our fair share it first and main, first and east, and now you want to put
[1:20:51] that intersection at first in the railroad tracks.
[1:20:55] What happens when there's a car accident, and they end up on the railroad track, and the trains
[1:21:00] coming through at 45 miles an hour, they don't have time to stop.
[1:21:05] It takes a half a mile to a mile for train to stop, and I just think that putting a road
[1:21:11] by the railroad tracks is extremely dangerous and hazardous to the general public.
[1:21:18] And again, many of the merchants and prosecutors in downtown Parkville
[1:21:21] not want to see first, or closed.
[1:21:24] They're saying, let's not do anything at all.
[1:21:26] Let's concentrate on the triangle on nine highway.
[1:21:30] Let's concentrate on working with the post office.
[1:21:34] It would cost 10 times less money to relocate the post office
[1:21:38] and maybe come up with another solution.
[1:21:40] I'm really concerned about the future traffic flow from the north of the tracks to the
[1:21:47] south of the tracks because I own property down there and we need access at E Street and
[1:21:54] Main Street equally at the same time.
[1:21:57] And when a train's coming through we're stopped for 15 minutes, I'm sorry, five minutes.
[1:22:03] And once that train gets through at 45 miles an hour, everything opens back up again.
[1:22:09] But if the railroad ever comes back and says we're going to put two tracks in like they did 15, 20 years ago, what are we going to do then?
[1:22:17] Because right now there's a four mile stretch of the railroad that only has one set of tracks, three miles west of Parkfield and one mile to the east.
[1:22:27] That's if that comes through the pipe and what are we going to do?
[1:22:30] Through them with two sets of tracks in downtown Parkfield. So I just want you to maybe rethink and maybe
[1:22:37] there's another plan. But I'm anxious to work together with the city and all the organizations
[1:22:42] in downtown Parkfield to see what is, you know, holds for the future force. Thank you.
[1:22:49] Thanks Tom. Anybody else to kind of follow up with what Tom had indicated? I use the part on
[1:22:57] daily basis, and the concern that I have is that when people or just patrons are using the parking lot near the farmer's market, they have to cross the tracks.
[1:23:10] And then you have, so now they're going to be crossing the tracks along with crossing the road at the same time.
[1:23:16] There will be a time when people are going to be basically pigeonholed between the traffic and the train at the same time.
[1:23:23] You know, that's going to be uncomfortable for a lot of people because now they have to navigate two aspects rather than just one
[1:23:30] And so that is my number one concern. Thank you very much.
[1:23:39] It is not an idea.
[1:23:43] So, no, no, that's fine. I appreciate that.
[1:23:46] But I'm just curious, right? We got the public here, public needs to hear some of this.
[1:23:52] They haven't been here week after week, you know, B-O-A meetings and things like I have, you
[1:23:58] know, I'm taking a break, I'm sure you guys enjoy that.
[1:24:02] But anyway, I'm wondering where the monies are at this point, okay, and here's my understanding
[1:24:09] and recall, correct me if I'm wrong, that is approximately, early July.
[1:24:15] We were looking at the B option being approximately $7.5 million, $8 million, somewhere right
[1:24:25] in there.
[1:24:26] And then we were looking at about 30 to 40 days later, in early August, at a B-O-A meeting,
[1:24:34] it came up, but it changed between Thursday and Tuesday, and it went up to 15.4 million.
[1:24:42] And so I'm wondering, in August, late August, I believe there was a request for 2.1 million
[1:24:50] and of which was going to be some of the early engineering and money spent for that, for a variety,
[1:24:59] whether it's for confluence or bylare, et cetera.
[1:25:03] And I think 30% of that was approved.
[1:25:05] So they said by mid-October, we'll have engineering specs in 30 percent, you know, done to give us a better understanding of the total cost.
[1:25:18] So the last number I have in my mind is 15.4 million, where we added this point.
[1:25:27] I think we're still there that what we had hoped to do in October, we're going to do in January.
[1:25:33] We have, they've done 30% of the plans and they've submitted them to Modot and I believe
[1:25:41] to be in SF2 and so we're waiting on them to say, yeah, that looks okay or no, it doesn't
[1:25:48] or it has this problem.
[1:25:51] Once we get that, then they'll be able to sort of finalize those estimates and we'll see if
[1:25:57] we're still at the same amount or more or less.
[1:26:00] So, but that's, that effect, we've scheduled it for a work session on January, nope, not sure.
[1:26:13] First Tuesday and February.
[1:26:16] It's up, sorry.
[1:26:20] Sure.
[1:26:22] Right.
[1:26:23] And how we're going to pay for it?
[1:26:25] Yeah.
[1:26:26] And how we're going to pay for it?
[1:26:27] I agree.
[1:26:28] I agree.
[1:26:34] Part.
[1:26:35] Yeah.
[1:26:50] I'm sure there's quite a few people that can do that.
[1:26:53] There are other any questions about what we've covered tonight.
[1:26:58] I understand there's people in the room that just paint this, you know, and, but if we're going to,
[1:27:07] this is my feeling,
[1:27:11] you're stuck with me for a couple more years.
[1:27:13] I just feel we need to do these things to move Parkville forward, and we're making the best decisions
[1:27:20] we can, they're not necessarily the decisions you agree with, or everybody agrees with,
[1:27:26] but we're doing the best we can, and we're going to work over the next year and a half
[1:27:31] with all of businesses downtown in particular to make sure this not only that the construction
[1:27:38] goes as smoothly as possible, but that we accommodate everybody to the greatest extent we can.
[1:27:49] Okay, my name is Rosa, and I'm a owner now of the K-Tacos.
[1:27:54] I'm a Ryan the Corner, or whatever it is going to happen.
[1:27:58] And I hear a lot of beauty, and a lot of good things
[1:28:01] Right that can happen to Parkville.
[1:28:03] I don't hear any efforts, more than what I'm having right now,
[1:28:09] Support Safety.
[1:28:11] And that's the main concern.
[1:28:13] And I think not only me, I invite Chris several times
[1:28:16] And then he's stem to see down on the corner with me,
[1:28:20] have dinner and show what happened,
[1:28:22] and see what happened, actually happened.
[1:28:25] I'm not against progress, and I want to encourage you
[1:28:28] dean also to have a primal meeting with business owners,
[1:28:33] only.
[1:28:34] Do you hear the feedback?
[1:28:38] And that would be a deal between the government.
[1:28:41] I understand, and sometimes it's overtalking.
[1:28:45] Just the business owners in Main Street, so you can hear that feedback. So just they're they can not be a fool
[1:28:54] Room of people, but just people who seem in the daily basis what happened and I think that's with me
[1:29:00] Send that point and I see a lot of beauty and I I agree with the progress and I agree with all that but safety
[1:29:08] Safety is number one.
[1:29:12] Thanks. I agree with that and we're we're committed
[1:29:15] Well, meet with just the main street businesses because they're going to be affected by this, especially
[1:29:22] the retail businesses that are there.
[1:29:27] Oh, I'll get you back.
[1:29:30] Get you back to the United States subject.
[1:29:32] As far as the fire station is concerned, I would think they would be more than happy to
[1:29:38] change their entrance to the rear and go in and out strictly from the rear.
[1:29:42] They wanted it, that's, that's when there's, even if we didn't do this plan, they were going to try to figure out a way to get up to a drive or something.
[1:29:53] I agree with that. What I'm, what I'm asking is why wouldn't they be more happy with only a r...
[1:30:00] Her entrance in exit.
[1:30:30] parts either had an order or had a child to facilitate their operate.
[1:30:37] I was just envisioning that they would pull in from nine highway, head first, and then exit
[1:30:46] through.
[1:30:47] Yeah, that's a fire.
[1:30:48] No, I know.
[1:30:49] It just seemed that would flow traffic even better if they always think about it and what
[1:30:55] groups think they could take.
[1:30:58] but that'll be their decision.
[1:31:00] Anybody else on this, otherwise I will encourage everybody
[1:31:05] to go to the website if you want to weigh in
[1:31:09] on all the stuff we've talked about and keep posted.
[1:31:16] We're going to do everything we can to keep communicating
[1:31:18] with both the community and of course the downtown folks.
[1:31:24] Thanks for coming.
[1:31:26] If you want to stay and ask, like Chris mentioned, just a particular question up at one of the boards or why is this here or something, he's happy to meet and do that.
[1:31:41] Okay, martini night at Prima might be a good way to end, so we'll see you all down at Prima's that.
[1:31:49] So thank you all for coming.