Weekly Status Report - 7/30/09

MEMORANDUM

TO:               City Council

FROM:         David J. Deutsch, City Manager

SUBJECT:  Status Report

DATE       July 30, 2009

Status Report

  1. Election 2009

    2. As of today, the following have filed:  Mayor – Mayor Robinson; At-Large – Councilmember Brady, Councilmember Valentino-Smith; District 1 – Councilmember Marcos; District 2 – Councilmember Polangin, Mr. Piero “Pete” Mellits; District 3 – Councilmember Turner; District 4 – Councilmember Trouth. 

  2. Senior Needs Survey

    3. A Senior Needs Survey was distributed to residents in July through the Bowie Spotlight.  It has also been advertised through the City webpage, message boards, local media, and is available at the Senior Center.  To date, over 450 completed surveys have been returned.  Staff expects to have the data entered and a report to Council by mid-September.

  3. Parks and Grounds Facility

    4. The United States Green Building Council (USGBC) has approved the awarding of the LEEDS Silver for this facility.  The review of engineering and architectural data by the USGBC took almost a year.  A formal announcement regarding the City’s first LEEDS certified building is expected soon.

  4. Traffic Calming Signs

    5. As you know, we originally put the traffic calming signs out on Pin Oak Parkway and Belair Drive.  On January 22, 2009 we moved them to Pointer Ridge Drive and Millstream Drive and on April 29th, we relocated them to Jennings Mill Drive and Stonybrook Drive.  We downloaded the data from the sign memory cards and have the reports from the manufacturer's software.  It was a challenge to pull and process this data.  The units unexpectedly blocked out data for hours or sometimes days at a time.  When we reviewed weather data, the data loss corresponded with rainy, overcast days.  Apparently, the solar panel fails to keep up with the electric demand when there is no sunshine for an extended period.  The Stonybrook Drive memory card was completely corrupted and we have no data from that recent installation.

    The sign radar records the high speed, generally when the radar first detects the vehicle.  Then it records whether the vehicle speeds up or slows down and shows this speed.  The sign vendor’s software takes the raw data and shows the 85th percentile "peak" speed and the 85th percentile "low" speed.  As a reminder, the 85th percentile speed is the speed at which 85% of the drivers are going at or below. Below are the results for the locations that we have data.

    Pin Oak Parkway   9/29/08  -  1/21/09
    50,000 vehicles
    Peak 85th percentile speed             37
    Low 85th percentile speed               32

    Belair Drive      9/19/08  - 1/21/09
    49,926 vehicles
    Peak 85th percentile speed             37
    Low 85th percentile speed               32

    Pointer Ridge Drive   1/22/09  -  4/19/09
    75,102 vehicles
    Peak 85th percentile speed             35
    Low 85th percentile speed               30

    Millstream Drive   1/22/09  -  4/14/09
    28,047 vehicles
    Peak 85th percentile speed             36
    Low 85th percentile speed               33

    Jennings Mill Drive   4/29/09  -  7/21/09
    94,496 vehicles
    Peak 85th percentile speed             33
    Low 85th percentile speed               27

    From the above, it shows that approaching traffic slowed, on average, three to six miles per hour within the range of the traffic calming signs.  This confirms that the signs have a traffic calming effect in the areas where they are installed.

  5. Synthetic Turf Field

    6. The synthetic turf field project at Murtagh field at Allen Pond Park is progressing extremely well.  You may want to stop by and note its progress.  It looks as if the entire project will be completed in two or three weeks, which is about two months ahead of schedule.

DJD/JLF/asf