INDIANAPOLIS GREENWAYS DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEEREVISED MINUTES OF PUBLIC MEETING -- January 20, 2005 City County Building -- Room 118 Voting Members Present: SILVER, HICKS, VOLLMER, MYERS, HENNEKE, Shikany, MASON and BARTON Voting Members Absent: Dorsa, JOHN, MOONEY, PAPENMEIER, Payne, SOMMERS, and QUINN Others Present: Ray Irvin, Terri Van Zant, Lori Keys (Indy Parks Greenways) Meeting called to order at 5:01 PM The Minutes from the December IGDC subcommittee meetings were approved. SUBCOMMITTEE UPDATES Subcommittee Chairs and December attendees reported on the following December 2004 Subcommittee meetings: Arts Subcommittee -- As part of the Indianapolis Arts Center's Grand Re-opening in Summer 2005, five foot square pedestals will be installed to display rotating art sculptures. The committee suggested that these sculptures could potentially be utilized on Greenways after being displayed at IAC. Pogues Run Art and Nature Park would present a great opportunity for these sculptures. The committee will work on getting needed art murals for the greenways, DPR Greenways staff will supply an inventory of walls that need murals. A dedication for the O'Bannon sign on 16th and the Monon is in the works. Maintenance and Design -- This subcommittee will solicit donations for used equipment needed by DPW Greenways Maintenance, e.g., a landscape scraper box. They will write a letter in conjunction with the Greenways Foundation seeking contributions. IRVIN met with Greenways Maintenance Manager Frankie Tibbs regarding team efficiency. Maintenance crews will carry lock boxes with all necessary tools for daily repairs and improvements in their trucks. Marketing -- Subcommittee members will team up with the Greenways Foundation in a marketing and fundraising initiative. Ideas include sponsorships and annual events. Property -- Subcommittee members will assist in land acquisitions. In the near future they will assist negotiations for the Pennsy Trail. Safety and Security -- IPD North District bicycle patrol moved back into the Boulevard Station office on 38th and the Monon. Action steps from the December meeting focused on enhancing the presence of law enforcement on the trails, such as encouraging IFD to hold fitness activities on the greenways. PROJECT UPDATES: KEYS, VAN ZANT and IRVIN reported on the following: Eagle Creek Greenway -- This 16-mile corridor transects the B&O, White River Greenway, and Pleasant Run Trail. Construction is on hold for the winter for the 1.8-mile trail piece that will connect 56th and 46th Streets. The binder coat of asphalt is installed at the south end; the parking lot at north end is installed, and soccer fields have been seeded. Gradex is progressing with trail construction from South to North, and the trail will be fully complete in 2005. Storrow/Kinsella combined the trail plans with the Pike Youth Soccer development plans, thereby reducing the total project cost. An informative sign was installed at 56th Street, containing partner recognition and a large visual of the plan of the area. DPW is improving the connection along 56th St. from Lafayette Rd. to Guion with off-street sidewalks. Fall Creek Greenway -- Phase I (Monon to Keystone Ave.) is now complete. Indy Parks needs to install small retaining wall at Millersville Rd. to repair erosion from the railroad tracks. Plans for Phase II from 56th to Skiles Test (Shadeland Ave.) were submitted to INDOT for review; currently awaiting bid. Construction should begin in 2005. Monon to Central -- Butler Fairman and Seufert has completed the trail design. A TEA grant was re-submitted to INDOT in Dec. for $1.2 million to fund this phase, and if awarded, construction could begin in 2006. Meridian to Stadium Dr. -- This reach of Fall Creek was scoped as part of the Central Waterfront Masterplan Update by the Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE). The ACOE will continue to work on this trail's development. A potential for partnership exists with the team of engineers aiming to eliminate CSOs along the Fall Creek Reach. South White River Trail -- Greenways submitted a TE grant application to INDOT for $1.8 million to fund this project. INDOT awarded $850,000 in October 2004. Ninebark completed construction documents for this 2-mile trail piece from the Zoo to Raymond St. The trail will include several interpretive signs at the trailheads. Partnerships with National Starch, General Motors and Eli Lilly continue to facilitate trail development. Pogues Run -- Pogues Run Art and Nature Park officially opened Nov. 5, 2004 when a Memorandum of Understanding between Indy Parks and DPW was signed. Parks Rangers will regularly patrol this 40-acre site, encompassed by a 1.5-mile loop trail. In partnership with DPW, the Caleb Mills Organization, IUPUI, the Indianapolis Foundation, local neighborhoods, schools, and local arts groups, Indy Greenways will develop and manage the basin as an art and nature park. DPR Greenways is working with trail neighbors to develop trail amenities, and with DPR Planning to hire a design firm for a site master plan, install a sign recognizing partners, and resurface the trail. The Caleb Mills Organization just received a $5,000 grant from the Noyes Foundation for Pogues Run, and they raised $1,200 at their second annual Pogues Run fundraiser September 18, 2004. The IGDC recommended meeting with INDOT to discuss an informational Pogues Run sign on I-70. Pennsy Corridor -- The Pennsy Corridor runs from Arlington, 6-7 miles east to the county line, south of Washington St. The future Indianapolis Pennsy Trail will connect to the existing Pleasant Run Greenway Trail, the Town of Cumberland's future Pennsy Trail, and eventually east to Greenfield. Fifty percent trail design plans are complete. Nine adjacent property owners agreed to support the trail in July 2004. The city continues to focus on land acquisition, which could begin this year, as the MPO has designated money for such needs. Development could begin as early as 2006. Upcoming Volunteer Projects 17th Annual White River Cleanup -- April 2, 2005 1st Annual Pogues Run Corridor Cleanup -- May 21, 2005 Keys and Van Zant gave a year-end presentation of 2004 greenways projects. New business: National League of Cities Conference -- 5,000 participants attended this conference, hosted by Indianapolis in December 2004. Participants, including many elected officials, toured the Indianapolis Greenways as part of the conference agenda and gave rave reviews of the trails system. Warfleigh Levy -- This $20 million dollar flood control and pedestrian trail project was completed by the Army Corps of Engineers in 2004. The levy follows a 1.8-mile segment of the White River and connects to Broad Ripple at the College Ave. bridge. Future developments will connect pedestrians to College Ave., the Indianapolis Arts Center and the Monon Trail. MASON and other committee members requested a list of Indy Parks Greenways Partners. Meeting adjourned 6:20 Respectfully submitted by Lori Keys, Indy Parks Greenways *All IGDC meetings are recorded and aired on WCTY Channel 16, copies available through WCTY. |