Upwards of 125 people attended Coronado’s Active Transportation Workshop last evening. This was the second public meeting to help the city develop a master plan to make it safer to walk, skateboard, roller skate, Segway or bicycle around Coronado.
It was one of the largest turnouts for a public meeting in recent memory. It far surpassed the bicycle master plan workshops held five years ago. “We never had a turnout like this,” said a city engineer, who oversaw the development of the first bicycle master plan.
As someone charged with approving the final product, City Councilman Mike Donovan was heartened by the community’s interest. “I am happy to see such a good turnout, and public input so early in the process,” he said.
By engaging the public early on, this master plan may avoid the problems that beset the previous bicycle master plan. When the council approved a feasibility study to look at a multi-used path adjacent to the beach, it launched a protest that drew national media attention. The outrage was so stifling that the council reversed itself and cancelled the study.
There is nothing quite as audacious being proposed this time around. Many of the ideas are familiar — safe routes to school, bike paths and sharrows.
Others ideas were new to Coronado, such as neighborhood greenways and flashing yellow beams. These alert drivers to pedestrian crosswalks. The City of San Diego installed one at Sixth and Fir. Residents thought beams were needed at the intersections of C and A and Fourth and Fifth.
Neighborhood greenways add greenery, pavement markings and curb extensions to an already quite street to slow traffic, making it more comfortable for children or adults not comfortable in high traffic areas to ride.
City Councilman Whitney Benzian was particularly impressed with these. “I like the idea of calming traffic with landscape instead of concrete.”
At the workshop, individual stations with different subjects/ideas were set up so people could discuss these, and other proposals, with representatives from Chen Ryan, the firm the city hired to help develop the master plan. In this regard, the workshop was as much about education as it was about taking the public pulse.
A full list of the proposals at the workshop are available at the city’s Active Transportation Plan website.
A few attendees at the workshop were not pleased with arrangement and wanted to hear what their neighbors had to say. “This is a poor excuse for a community forum,” Brad Gerbel said. He would have preferred a traditional meeting where people sit in a large group and discuss the issues openly. At those types of workshops, “people who are more verbal will dominate,” City Manager Blair King said. “This format allows more people to participate.”
Gerbel was not alone in arguing for more transparency. Some wondered if the comment cards people were filling out would be made public. “Are we going to be able to see all of the suggestions or are they just going to publish the ones they like?,” Jane Mitchell asked.
Comments cards from the workshop have posted on the city’s website, according to Allie Scrivener, the Active Transportation Planner. Respondents names and contact information has been redacted.
“This is not the end of the conversation,” King said. “At the end of the day the master plan will be a list of ideas to pursue.” Before any are enacted they will be vetted and voted on by the city council. As with any council action, the public will have ample opportunity to voice concerns or make suggestions.
If adopted, the plan will not be implemented immediately. Each idea will be fully evaluated and voted on before it is actualized. “It’s not like we’re going to adopt the masterplan and put all the projects out to bid,” King said.
