[Ord. 1233-2016, 4-18-2016]
A.
Complete Streets Serving all Users: The City of Tahlequah expresses
its commitment to creating and maintaining complete streets that provide
safe, comfortable, and convenient travel along and across streets
(including streets, roads, highways, bridges, and other portions of
the transportation system) through a comprehensive, integrated transportation
network that serves all categories of users, including, but not limited
to, pedestrians, bicyclists, persons with disabilities, motorists,
movers of commercial goods, users and operators of public transportation,
emergency vehicles, seniors, children, youth, and families.
B.
Complete Streets Infrastructure: The City of Tahlequah recognizes
the importance of complete streets infrastructure and modifications
that enable safe, convenient, and comfortable travel for all categories
of users, including, but not limited to, sidewalks, shared use paths,
bicycle lanes, bicycle routes, paved shoulders, street trees and landscaping,
planting strips, accessible curb ramps, crosswalks, pedestrian islands,
pedestrian signals, signs, street furniture, bicycle racks, public
transit stops, traffic signals, and other features assisting the safe
travel for all users, such as traffic circles, raised medians, dedicated
transit lanes, transit bump outs, and road diets.
C.
Context Sensitivity: In planning and implementing street projects,
the City of Tahlequah shall maintain sensitivity to local conditions
in residential, commercial, and rural districts and shall work with
residents, merchants, and other stakeholders to ensure that a strong
sense of place continues.
[Ord. 1233-2016, 4-18-2016]
A.
Complete Streets Routinely Addressed by Relevant Departments: The
street department, maintenance department, and office of planning
and development of the City of Tahlequah shall work toward making
complete streets practices a routine part of everyday operations,
approach every relevant project, program, and practice as an opportunity
to improve streets and the transportation network for all categories
of users, and work in coordination with other departments, agencies,
and Tahlequah public works authority to maximize opportunities for
complete streets, connectivity, and cooperation.
B.
Complete Streets Required:
1.
All Projects and Phases: Complete streets infrastructure sufficient to enable reasonably safe travel along and across the right of way for each category of users shall be incorporated into all planning, funding, design, approval, and implementation processes for any new construction, reconstruction, retrofit, maintenance operations, alteration, or repair of streets (including streets, roads, highways, bridges, and other portions of the transportation system), except that specific infrastructure for a given category of users may be excluded if an exemption is approved via the process set forth in Subsection C of this section.
2.
Office of Planning and Development Consultation: Transportation projects
shall be reviewed by the office of planning and development early
in the planning and design stage prior to seeking funding or commencing
environmental review, in order to provide an opportunity to allow
comments and recommendations regarding complete streets features to
be incorporated into the project.
3.
Complete Streets in Routine Work and Projects: The street department, maintenance department, parks department, and Tahlequah public works authority shall improve complete streets and street functionality for all categories of users as part of routine work or projects involving pavement resurfacing, restriping, accessing or relocating utilities, signalization operations, or maintenance of landscaping or other features, unless an exemption is approved via the process set forth in Subsection C of this section.
4.
Plan Consultation and Consistency: Maintenance, planning, and design of projects affecting the transportation system shall be consistent with local pedestrian, bicycle, transit, multimodal, comprehensive and other relevant plans, except as approved via the process set forth in Subsection C of this section.
C.
Leadership Approval for Exemptions: Specific infrastructure for a
given category of users may be excluded where all of the following
conditions are met:
1.
Supporting data and documentation are assembled indicating one of
the following bases for the exemption:
a.
Use by a specific category of users is prohibited by law; or
b.
The cost for specific infrastructure would be excessively disproportionate
to the need and probable future use over the long term (costs in excess
of 20% of project total may be regarded as evidence that cost is excessively
disproportionate, as set forth by the United States department of
transportation in its policy statement on accommodating bicycle and
pedestrian travel); or
c.
There is an absence not only of current need, but also of future
need (absence of future need may be shown via demographic, school,
employment, and public transportation route data that demonstrate
a low likelihood of bicycle, pedestrian, or transit activity in an
area over the next 10 to 20 years); or
d.
Significant adverse impacts outweigh the positive effects of the
infrastructure; and
2.
The proposed exemption, as well as the supporting data and documentation,
shall be made publicly available prior to approval by the City council;
and
3.
The planning and zoning commission shall review the proposed exemption,
as well as the supporting data and documentation, during the planning
and design phase of the project and make a recommendation to the City
council on whether or not the exemption is appropriate, the City council
shall make the final decision whether the exemption will be approved
after hearing the recommendation of the planning and zoning commission.
D.
Street Network and Connectivity: As feasible, the City of Tahlequah
shall incorporate complete streets infrastructure into existing streets
to improve the safety and convenience of users and to create employment,
with the particular goal of creating a connected network of facilities
accommodating each category of users, and increasing connectivity
across jurisdictional boundaries for existing and anticipated development.
[Ord. 1233-2016, 4-18-2016]
A.
Revising Policies and Plans: The street department and office of
planning and development are hereby directed to assess additional
steps and potential obstacles to implementing complete streets in
the City of Tahlequah and to recommend proposed revisions to all appropriate
ordinances, zoning and subdivision codes, policies, procedures, regulations,
guidelines, programs, templates, and design manuals, in order to integrate,
accommodate, and balance the needs of all users in all projects within
180 days of passage and provide the recommendations to the City council.
B.
Studies: All initial planning and design studies, health impact assessments,
environmental reviews, and other reviews for projects requiring funding
or approval by the City of Tahlequah shall:
[Ord. 1233-2016, 4-18-2016]
The following steps shall be taken to support implementation
of complete streets goals:
A.
Performance Standards: The office of planning and development and
the street department shall work together to put into place performance
standards with measurable outcomes to assess safety, comfort, actual
use, and functionality, particularly with regard to the development
of a bicycle and pedestrian network, for each category of users.
B.
Evaluation: The office of planning and development and the street
department shall work together to perform evaluations of how well
the streets and transportation network of Tahlequah are serving each
category of users by collecting baseline data over the next three
years and collecting follow up data on a two year basis, including
data that:
1.
Tracks performance standards, including new miles of bicycle lanes,
sidewalks, and street trees or plantings, number of new curb ramps,
improved crossings, and signage;
2.
Measure latent demand and existing levels of service for different
modes of transport and categories of users, including public transportation
ridership;
3.
Tracks collision statistics by neighborhood and mode of transportation,
and bicycle and pedestrian injuries and fatalities;
4.
Assess the safety, functionality, and actual use of the neighborhoods
and areas within the corporate limits of Tahlequah by each category
of users;
5.
Assess the number of bicycle, pedestrian and transit users and the
changes over time as more multimodal infrastructure is developed.
C.
Reporting: The director of the planning and development and the street commissioner shall work together to provide a report to the City council annually summarizing how well the City of Tahlequah is implementing complete streets, with the report including: the performance standards and goals from Subsection A of this section; the evaluations from Subsection B of this section, with an assessment of the evaluation data; and a list and map of street projects undertaken in the past two years, with a brief summary of the complete streets infrastructure used in those projects and, if applicable, the basis for excluding complete streets infrastructure from any projects.
