Left to Right: Jerry Norquist, Jenna Stanke, Chris DiStefano, Stephanie Routh.
(Photos by J. Maus/BikePortland)
The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) has just announced who will sit on the Policy Advisory Committee that will help them with an important update of the Oregon Bicycle and Pedestrian Mode Plan. The 16 person committee was chosen to guide the development of the plan and to “reflect input from stakeholders across the state.”
Out of those 16, there are five names we recognize from the world of local and statewide bicycle advocacy (boldfaced below): Jenna Stanke is special project manager for Jackson County and she’s also worked with the Bear Creek Greenway Foundation and she was recently named Chair of the Oregon Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee; Chris DiStefano of Rapha is a veteran of the bicycle industry with previous stints in marketing roles with Chris King Precision Components and Shimano America (he’s also a major off-road cycling advocate); Jerry Norquist had a long career in sales with Specialized Bicycle Components before taking on the role of ride director at Cycle Oregon; Dennis Mulvihill is a political consultant, Bicycle Transportation Alliance board member, and well-known figure in Washington County; and Stephanie Routh is the former director of Oregon Walks who recently left that position to start Hopscotch Town which is a “consulting and small publishing firm that inspires and celebrates fun, lovable places for everyone.”
The rest of the members include five elected officials, three transportation agency staffers, and one rep each from Disability Rights Oregon, the Oregon Trucking Association, and AAA Oregon/Idaho. Check out the roster below:
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• Mark Labhart, Tillamook County Commissioner
• Sid Leiken, Lane County Commissioner
• Sally Russell, Bend City Council
• Phil Warnock, Oregon Cascades West Council of Governments
• Peter Fernandez, Public Works Director, City of Salem
• Steve Dickey, Director of Transportation, Salem-Keizer Transit
• Jenna Stanke, Special Project Manager, Jackson County
• Bob Joondeph, Disability Rights Oregon
• Bob Russell, Oregon Trucking Association
• Craig Campbell, AAA Oregon/Idaho
• Dan Thorndike, General Council, Medford Fabrication
• Chris DiStefano, Rapha
• Jerry Norquist, Cycle Oregon
• Dennis Mulvihill, Bicycle Transportation Alliance (BTA) Board Member
• Stephanie Routh former Executive Director, Oregon Walks
• Jerry Breazeale, formerly City Manager, City of Irrigon
• Policy Advisory Committee Chairperson pending
As we reported back in May, this mode plan update has potential to be a big deal. When complete it will be adopted by the Oregon Transportation Commission and it could hold important sway over policy, funding, and project design decisions.
This committee’s first meeting is next Tuesday (12/10) in Keizer and they will meet once a month until the plan is updated. We’ll be watching their progress and reporting back here on the Front Page.
Learn more about the mode plan update on ODOT’s website.