Changes to the Beaverton BAC Meetings

[K'Tesh]

The City of Beaverton's Bicycle Advisory Committee meetings are moving to the 2nd Thursday of the month (was the first Tuesday of the month)

The Tuesday, September 7, 2010 Bicycle Advisory Committee meeting has been
CANCELLED.

The next meeting is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. THURSDAY October 14,

3rd Floor Engineering Conference Room
Beaverton City Hall
4755 Griffith Drive, Beaverton

If you have questions, please call Margaret Middleton at (503)526-2424
or email her at mmiddleton@ci.beaverton.or.us.

[K'Tesh]

The changes to the schedule are unfortunately incompatible with me being able to attend due to private matters (permanently).

I urge folks to step up, so the everyday rider can have a say in this venue.

God Bless!
K'Tesh

[lynnef]

how long do the meetings last? what are the bike parking accomodations? can you take your bike in with you?

[wsbob]

Originally Posted by lynnef

how long do the meetings last? what are the bike parking accomodations? can you take your bike in with you?

I've gone to the BAC meetings a few times. Often, they've been held on the main floor City Council meeting room. They have been permitting people in attendance to bring their bikes into the meeting room. There's a couple racks out front of the building entryway though. Meetings seem to last one and a half to two hours.

[lynnef]

although I suppose one shouldn't worry about one's bicycle vanishing where there are many police cars parked

[wsbob]

Originally Posted by lynnef

although I suppose one shouldn't worry about one's bicycle vanishing where there are many police cars parked

Maybe...maybe not. Thieves can be wily, brazen critters. Did you remember reading the story from a couple weeks back, about the two thieves that decided to shoplift at Fred's while the police were doing there Shop With a Cop for kids needing school supplies? They got caught, but still...goes to show what their up for.

Sounds as though you're familiar with the city hall layout. I always enter the building from the east side. I thought that was the main entrance. All the cops park on the back 40. The times I went to the meetings, I don't think I ever saw more than 7 bikes in the room.

Been doing any more thinking in the way of ideas for a Millikan Way extension over to Lombard? I live nearby, so I've walked over a couple times to check it out. Options for it to connect with something past Lombard seem a bit messy what with all the mass transit commotion centered across the entire frontage of the undeveloped property. I'd like to see it happen though. Pretty much looked to me like at least some lighting would be required...3-4 lamp posts, smaller scale, closer to the ground, less bright than what's on Lombard.

Just got the City of Beaverton newsletter in the mail today. Fancy insert detailing the city's efforts to develop a 'Beaverton Civic Plan'. During the month of September, part of that effort will be a series of specific meetings open to the public as well as an info booth at the farmers market. Might be some potential during those events, to get a lead on someone with the city having an interest in extending Millikan. The schedule for the meetings are posted on line too:

Beaverton Civic Plan/current events

People that are interested, really need to press city officials for basic improvements to basic walking and biking connectivity between key parts of the city that are split by the thoroughfares.


And now, fair warning...I feel like rambling off topic:

In terms of weaknesses in Beaverton's connectivity, a prime example (there's easily more than one) that comes to mind is the situation that people wanting to walk or bike from Beaverton Town Square to Home Depot and Target are in.

Big issue, is that people representing this travel mode have to negotiate narrow sidewalks and bike paths directly next to very noisy, fast moving, dirt scattering motor vehicles. This includes crossing under the 217 overpasses. I can't imagine but that the experience one finds under the overpasses is one that would discourage most gentle people from ever wanting to walk there.

Seems to me, one of the most notorious examples of poor pedestrian planning in the 217 overpass complex, is on the east side Beaverton Hillsdale Hwy end. Emerging from the underpass (on the north side of Beav/Hillsdale), pedestrians have to cross roads coming from two directions; the south...vehicles exiting 217 heading north to Canyon...and vehicles on Beav/Hillsdale, coming from the east and turning north to also go to Canyon.

Just short of where those two roads join and where pedestrians are intended to cross, there's a very small pedestrian island. There's a crosswalk signal, but it's only set up to take pedestrians across one of the roads. Pedestrians have to 'wing it' across the other. Tons of fun, especially in Oregon's dark, rainy winters. Pedestrian Hell. At least one of the tall overhead lights for this intersection usually seems to be out, leaving Pedestrian Hell in darkness. In a sense, I suppose that's fitting.

A couple decades ago, before Fred's and Home Depot was built, if the city had been lucky to have some very visionary leader and planners, they might have been able to avert this situation. A 50' wide, maybe wider...100', bike pedestrian thoroughfare, laid out east-west from Beaverton Town Square to where Target is, running straight through where Fred's and Home Depot sit, could have made connectivity in Beaverton...at least this part of Beaverton...great today. Grade for the 217 exit/entrance traffic would have had to be dealt with in some way; tough, but perhaps doable.

[lynnef]

I was thinking of getting the interested parties together (and we really want one of them; he's a land-use lawyer sort) in a few weeks; right now is a busy time of year for me, for the next two weeks.

I live pretty close to the proposed path as well; rode over it going home from Bike Gallery on Friday evening.

Your ramble is understood, believe me. I have walked from my house to Home Depot, into Beaverton proper, and also from my house to Michael's and AAA (I live faintly east of the Walker Rd overpass). Yuck.

[wsbob]

Originally Posted by lynnef

I was thinking of getting the interested parties together (and we really want one of them; he's a land-use lawyer sort) in a few weeks; right now is a busy time of year for me, for the next two weeks.

I live pretty close to the proposed path as well; rode over it going home from Bike Gallery on Friday evening.

Your ramble is understood, believe me. I have walked from my house to Home Depot, into Beaverton proper, and also from my house to Michael's and AAA (I live faintly east of the Walker Rd overpass). Yuck.

. Sounds good. Glad for you that you're busy. Maybe I'll get over to one of the meetings I mentioned....keep my ears pitched for anyone potentially interested.

[wsbob]

Anybody ever check out the transportation section of the City of Beaverton's website? I was doing that tonight. Here are a couple projects that were interesting to me:

Beaverton Creek Trail (Hall-Lombard)

Rose Biggi Ave Extension (Crescent St to Hall Blvd)

Noticed the map for the Rose Biggi project was dated: Doesn't show that Millikan way goes all the way to Hall Blvd. The Beaverton Creek trail should be nice to use.

[lynnef]

bump. BAC meeting is tonight.