VILLAGE OF COLONIE THOMAS TOBIN 2 THUNDER ROAD DEPUTY MAYOR COLONIE, NY 12205 PATTY SCHWARZ LOCKART (518) 869-7562 FAX (518) 464-0389 TRUSTEE EDWARD F. SIM, MAYOR JACK MURPHY TRUSTEE villagehall@colonievillage.org JAMIE BLOT CLERK www.colonievillage.org Traffic Advisory Committee September 10, 2020 6:30 p.m. There was a meeting of the Village of Colonie Traffic Advisory Committee, held on September 10, 2020 at the Village Hall, 2 Thunder Road, Albany, NY 12205. The meeting started at 6:30 p.m. Chairman Prevratil called the meeting to order with a salute to the flag. Roll Call: Chairman, Mr. Frank Prevratil Present Mr. George Lashoff Absent Mr. Daniel Hornick Absent Mr. Les Samiof Present Mr. Dan Judge Present Mr. John Gillivan Present Secretary, Julianne Okun Present Colonie PD Officer, Jason DePaulo Present Liaison, Mayor Edward Sim Present Kevin France, DPW Traffic Advisor Present Ms. Mary Pasko – 36 Killean Park Ms. Mary Derenches – 26 Killean Park Ms. Mickey Angier – 21 Woollard Avenue The minutes from the July 9, 2020 meeting were reviewed, amended, and approved. Ms. Okun stated there had been communication from a Ms. Mary Pasko regarding speeding on Killean Park. Ms. Okun noted to the Committee that Ms. Pasko was present at the meeting. Ms. Pasko stated that speeding was an issue before COVID but has become a much bigger problem after COVID. Ms. Pasko stated the speeders are both rude and confrontational, describing one incident of her neighbor yelling at a speeder truck and the driver turning around to give her the finger. Ms. Pasko stated she spoke to Officer DePaulo, noting he informed her that the Town of Colonie does not have enough officers to cover the entirety of the Village to solve the problem. Ms. Pasko stated that she handed out literature to her neighbors about the meeting tonight, stating her biggest fear is that someone will eventually be hurt or killed. Chairman Prevratil thanked Ms. Pasko for coming to the meeting and sharing her concerns. Chairman Prevratil noted that the Village is doing the best that they can, encouraging residents to 1 obtain vehicle information and report it to Officer DePaulo. Chairman Prevratil noted that while the Committee itself does not hold authority to act on these issues, they can advise the elected officials to do so. Officer DePaulo stated he has the information for certain vehicles in the Killean Park area with which he will be following up with and also asked residents to try and pin-point at what time of day these vehicles seem to be traveling so there is a better chance to try and solve the problems. Mayor Sim also stated that he would have the radar trailer out on Killean Park the next day. Mr. Judge stated he is interested in sending the residents of Killean Park a “fed-up” letter, letting them know the Traffic Committee has received numerous complaints about their “shameful behavior” and note to them the Traffic Committee will no longer tolerate speeding. Mr. Judge asked Mayor Sim if that were something they could do. Mayor Sim stated that if Mr. Judge wanted to draft something, he would have the Board review it. Mayor Sim also advised Mr. Judge to be educational in his letter, as opposed to accusational. Ms. Mary Derenches of 26 Killean Park stated she was also concerned about speeding on her street. She has a young son in high school, but in years past there have been cars going up and down the street at dangerous speeds while he waits at the bus stop. Mayor Sim stated that unfortunately there will always be a small group of violators, no matter the efforts the Traffic Committee puts forward. The Traffic Committee reviewed a traffic study done on Devoe Drive. Chairman Prevratil read and analyzed the information for the Committee as well as members of the audience. Noting there were about 200 trips per day, the Committee agreed that this was mostly local traffic, as Devoe is not a cut through street. The average speed was between 25-30 MPH, with 85% of the cars going at or below the speed limit. Mr. Samiof, who resides on Village Park Drive, noted that this data seems to be incorrect, stating he witnesses speeding cars fly down his street and turn onto Frances Drive. Mr. Samiof suggested the counter tubes were placed in the incorrect spot. Mayor Sim stated they were specifically placed in front of the home of the resident requesting the traffic counters. Ms. Mickey Angier of 21 Woollard Avenue wanted to thank the Mayor and the Traffic Committee for the 4-way stop signs at the intersection of Harriet Street and Holland Avenue, noted they work great. Ms. Angier did mention, however, Woollard Avenue has become a speedway, noting specifically trucks from Kassleman Solar, located on Walker Way, have been using Woollard Avenue as a cut through at dangerous speeds. Mayor Sim stated he would talk to the owner of the business about this situation and have Officer DePaulo follow up. A discussion was held regarding the potential Rosetti Development off Vly Road. Mayor Sim stated there was a recent public hearing regarding this topic. Currently, Capital Church owns the land behind their property. An application was recently before the Planning Commission seeking approval for a subdivision for the land behind the church. The Traffic Committee discussed that potential development that would come about should the subdivision be approved. Mayor Sim stated the proposal included a connector street at Chris and at Hillside, so there would not be any cut-through traffic through other streets. Mayor Sim stated that if the Traffic Committee had any questions or concerns regarding this project, they should direct their concerns to Mr. Chris Dennis, Chairman of the Planning Commission. 2 Ms. Angier wanted to thank Officer DePaulo for his job on cracking down on speeders on Sand Creek Road ever since the Town of Colonie agreed to change their portion of the street from 40 MPH to 30 MPH. Mr. Gillivan asked Mayor Sim the legalities of installing a crosswalk onto Sand Creek Road, specifically at Bauer Park. Mayor Sim stated that a crosswalk cannot lead into nothing, it would need to go from sidewalk to sidewalk. Mayor Sim stated he reviewed the photos Mr. Lashoff submitted at the last meeting of “Kross Keys” off Everett Road. Mayor Sim stated he went to visit the location and noted the crosswalk is, in fact, is connected on either side by a crosswalk. Mayor Sim stated that the Village of Colonie must comply with the New York State Department of Transportation regulations or risk funding being cut. Mayor Sim stated he did not doubt that Sand Creek was a concern, but a complete traffic study of the area would be about $40,000.00 - $50,000.00, and it is something the Village cannot afford, especially during the pandemic. Mr. Gillivan stated that the state is still funding projects such as bike paths and noted there still needs to be a crosswalk on Sand Creek Road. Mayor Sim reiterated they cannot legally put a crosswalk onto Sand Creek road without sidewalks on both sides. A discussion was held regarding a meeting between Mayor Sim, Trustee Tobin, and Mr. Hornick with the CDTA Chairman. CDTA stated there is going to be a 3-billion-dollar study on Central Avenue, although it has yet to be approved. Mayor Sim asked the CDTA chairman if they would investigate the bus stops in the Village, particularly the stops at Locust, Central, and Jupiter and the issue of blockage and back-ups, especially at rush-hour. The chairman said they would investigate the situation. Mr. Judge mentioned the installation of a new pole in front of the firehouse so that the trucks may get out to calls easier. Mr. Judge made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 7:45 PM. Mr. Samiof seconded the motion. VOTE: All in favor. Respectfully submitted, Julianne Okun Traffic Safety Coordinator 3