EDWARD SIM Village of Colonie DEPUTY MAYOR VILLAGE HALL PATTY SCHWARZ 2 THUNDER ROAD LOCKART COLONIE, NY 12205 TRUSTEE (518) 869-7562 FAX (518) 464-0389 ART WHITE THOMAS J. TOBIN TRUSTEE MAYOR JAMES RUBINO TRUSTEE villagehall@colonievillage.org www.colonievillage.org JAMIE BLOT CLERK MINUTES VILLAGE OF COLONIE TRAFFIC COMMITTEE THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2023 The Village of Colonie Traffic Committee meeting was held on Thursday, September 14th, 2023, at 2 Thunder Rd, Albany, NY 12205. Chairman Prevratil opened the meeting with the pledge of allegiance at 6:30 p.m. Roll Call: Chairman, Frank Prevratil Present Dan Hornick Present John Gillivan Present George Lashoff Present Les Samiof Present Michael Normandin Present Liasion Ed Sim Present CPD Liaison Investigator DePaulo Absent Kevin France Present Coordinator Hannah Curran Present The minutes from the regularly scheduled July 13th meeting were reviewed by the present members of the committee. Mr. Hornick made a motion to approve the minutes as amended, and Mr. Normandin seconded this motion. Vote: All in favor. OLD BUSINESS: Liasion Sim provided an update on the current CDTC study that is taking place on Sand Creek Road. Over the past 2 months, there have been multiple meetings with focus groups, with one large public forum that was held at the end of July. It was well attended, and lots of good feedback was received. The draft concept plan is still being developed, and it will be presented to the public once it’s approved by the study advisory committee. The final report is expected to be completed by the end of the year. Then, the Village will be able to use the study to apply for funding for the changes to be implemented. Mr. Lashoff asked if there will be an opportunity to give input after the final presentation is made, and Liasion Sim responded yes. Mr. Gillivan Page 1 of 4 asked if a date has been set, to which Liasion Sim replied no, but it would likely be later this year since the report should be presented to the Board in December. Mr. Gillivan stated that he was surprised to see the survey was taken off of the study’s website, since he was advising other cyclists to take the survey. He asked how long the comments page would be available for. Liasion Sim mentioned that the study committee has been accepting comments for over 4 months, and at some point, they will likely remove the comments page as well. He suggested this will probably be after the draft report is presented to the general public. Mr. Gillivan stated that when he sees a bicyclist, he advises them to leave their comments on the study’s website, and he will continue to do this to spread the word. He asked Liasion Sim if he would be able to see how many responses the survey had. Liasion Sim said that all of that information has been compiled, along with all of the suggestions and feedback that have been made through the input sessions. Mr. Gillivan also asked Liasion Sim if he had any information regarding the property/business at the end of Sunset Boulevard, and if he had been present at any of the meetings they’ve had with the town. Liasion Sim explained that the property is unique, as it is a property in the Town of Colonie, but Village streets are used to enter the property. He stated that zoning/planning issues with the property are being handled by the Town attorney. Mr. Gillivan asked if the issues are with traffic and noise from the trucks, and Liasion Sim said yes. NEW BUSINESS: A resident had reached out to Village Hall expressing concern about speeding on Devoe Drive, and she had requested speed bumps. She was not present at the meeting to further explain her concerns. The committee mentioned that speeding on Devoe Drive hasn’t come up before, but the traffic counter can be placed on that street to further investigate. Liasion Sim asked Mr. France to do this next week. Investigator DePaulo can also be made aware of this issue. Mr. Lashoff requested that annual traffic counts be conducted on either side of Sand Creek Road to see the volume of cars on the corridor. Liasion Sim said that this may not be accurate, since there are multiple cut through streets that cars may turn off or on from. He also mentioned that they have been doing these counts in the Fall, and they can continue to do that. He also reminded the committee that we are in the middle of the complete streets study, and we should wait to see what the results of that suggest before doing any more work on Sand Creek Road. Chairman Prevratil asked if there had been any discussion at the CDTC meetings about the work being done on Watervliet-Shaker Road. Liasion Sim said that the same engineer is working on that project as our study, and they stated that the utilities are backing the project up. It is now expected to be completed in the Summer of 2024. DISCUSSION: Chairman Prevratil reminded everyone that school is now back in session, and it is important to be aware of children and increased bus traffic. With Fall coming, he added it is also crucial to be conscious of safety around piles of leaves, and they can cause traffic and safety concerns. All of this information will be included in the next Fall Villager, which will be going out in the Page 2 of 4 beginning of October. Mr. Hornick mentioned that some of the businesses on Central Avenue have put messages on their electronic signs regarding back to school, and he especially liked the Colonie Fire Company’s message. Mr. Lashoff added that he went out to all of the businesses, and even had a new business, CubeSmart, participate this year. The electronic sign at Cook Park is also a new addition and has a message on it about stopping for school buses. Liasion Sim also added that many tickets have been written with the installation of the stop arm cameras on school buses, and he could gather some information about this for the next meeting. Mr. Lashoff stated that the cameras are a good idea, and Liasion Sim agreed. He added that he would like to see cameras for other violations, such as oversize trucks and speeding, but needs further legislature support. Mr. Gariepy, from Sand Creek Road, was present in the audience, and Liasion Sim acknowledged that he would like this as well. Mr. Lashoff mentioned that recently a portion of Central Avenue was closed due to an accident, and traffic was being routed through the Locust Park neighborhoods. He asked if “No Outlet” signs could be posted around Winston Place and Cottonwood Place so that traffic wouldn’t come through those neighborhoods. Chairman Prevratil stated that these signs would have to be deep onto the street, because those streets can be used to access other streets, like Kimberly Street. Liasion Sim said they have communicated with emergency services, and that permanent signs wouldn’t be necessary to mitigate this problem. Mr. Gariepy, from Sand Creek Road, was present in the audience. He wanted to ask Investigator DePaulo how many tickets have been issued on Sand Creek Road within the last month or two. He stated that the volume of oversize trucks traveling along the road has not changed. Liasion Sim asked if it appears to be the same people, and Mr. Gariepy said no, they are many different companies. He said not only are these trucks not supposed to be on Sand Creek, but they are traveling very fast. Liasion Sim said that he will call and have a conversation with Investigator DePaulo. Resident Jack Casavant, from Myers Court, was present in the audience to observe the meeting. He did ask if the use of electric bicycles on the sidewalks has been brought up yet, and many members of the committee agreed with the problem of their speed. Mr. Casavant added that he is a frequent walker, and they often come up behind him at a high rate of speed. Chairman Prevratil agreed that he has observed this as well. Mr. Gariepy added that he cannot use his powered scooter due to the condition of the sidewalk but would be worried about these bicyclists using the sidewalks as well. Liasion Sim reported that the 4 solar speed signs are still on back order, once again due to supply chain problems. Mr. Samiof asked how many we currently have out, and Liasion Sim stated 4, with 2 on Locust Park and 2 on Lincoln Avenue. He has generally gotten good feedback, but Mr. Lashoff stated that after talking with residents on Lincoln Avenue, they’ve reported that speeding hasn’t really changed. Liasion Sim stated that we are doing our best to make changes, and the signs at least help drivers bring their attention back to the road and the speed limit. Liasion Sim also reported to the committee that the Village has launched a new emergency alert program to deliver news through email and text messages. He encouraged all of the members and audience members to sign up, as the link is posted on the website. It is important to keep our Page 3 of 4 reisdents informed, and this will be particularly helpful in a time where we need to notify residents of emergencies, such as a water break or boil water advisory. Mr. Lashoff shared that this is the last weekend for the “Slow Down” signs to be placed, and they will be picked up in 2 weeks. The program will then resume again in the Spring, and he will have a report at the next meeting of how the signs held up. Mr. Gillivan and Mr. Lashoff also shared that some of the signs have gone missing after they are placed on the lawns. Mr. Gillivan reported to Liasion Sim that the storm drains on Walker Way are starting to erode, and Liasion Sim stated that it is being worked on. He also asked Liasion Sim where the Village line is on Central Avenue. He explained that the line goes directly down Wolf Road and across Central Avenue, with some of the businesses in Northway Mall being included in the Village. Mr. Gillivan reported that the Department of Transportation cleared brush near the Southbound entrance to the Northway. A motion was made by Mr. Hornick to adjourn the meeting at 7:26 p.m. This motion was seconded by Mr. Samiof. Vote: All in favor. Respectfully submitted, Hannah Curran Traffic Advisory Committee Coordinator Village of Colonie Page 4 of 4