City of Jacksonville: Trails and Greenways Commission: April 20th Notes
The City of Jacksonville Trails and Greenways Commission met Monday, April 20th.
The minutes from the March 16th meeting were approved.
There were no presentations, but Mr. Mike Wetzel reminded Commission members that City staff (as well as outside agency staff (i.e. JUMPO, NCDOT, contractors, etc)) could be requested to provide presentations on on-going projects.
Mr. Wetzel reinforced the need for Commission Goals and Objectives. The Trails and Greenways Commission will be making a presentation to the City Council at the November 3rd Council Meeting. Mr. Wetzel requested that Commission members provide their ideas before the June meeting so the list can be discussed and finalized. My list of proposed goals and objects can be found here. Also discussed was the need for current Commission by-laws and a request for distribution of the City’s Municipal Code which details duties and responsibilities for the Commission.
Mr. Nick Irrera provided a review of the Trails and Greenways-sponsored Jacksonville 5 and 10 kilometer road races held on April 18th. There were about 150 participants and results can be found here. The was an issue with the electronic timing system which caused some confusion. There was cross-talk of using a manual scoring system, which would save several hundred dollars. There was also cross-talk about exploring the purchase of an electronic scoring system by the City of Jacksonville and whether that would be more const-effective in the long run. The City could share the cost and usage of the scoring system with other municipalities/local organizations. The lack of police escort and traffic and the need for safety banners for escort vehicles were identified. A potential issue with an intersection may be corrected by re-measuring and slightly altering the course. Altering the race start times may help with scoring issues. Unfortunately, the City lost approximately $375 supporting the event.
The Commission was provided an update on the Highway 24/Lejeune Blvd trail project. This project will connect Downtown Jacksonville to the Rails-to-Trails greenway from the Beirut Memorial area to Camp Knox Rd. A meeting has been scheduled on April 29th for stake-holders. During this meeting, the planning consultants will provide several examples and alternatives for the trail.
A question was raised about missing Adopt-a-Trail signs. Mr. Wetzel was informed that all sponsor signs have been put up, but there is a shortage of the Adopt-a-Trail signs. Once more Adopt-a-Trail signs are received, they will be put up.
The new Trails and Greenways brochure is still pending.
The need for better and more effective marketing of Jacksonville’s trails and greenways. Options were discussed for a new video commercial to air on G-10. Mr. Wetzel will be recording a new feature on G-10 to be aired in coming months.
The City of Jacksonville Beautification and Appearance Commission sponsored an Arbor Day celebration at Meadow View Elementary School. Trees were planted and the City received a designation as a Tree City and received the Sterling Growth award.
I initiated a discussion on the City’s efforts to build crosswalks along the most dangerous thoroughfares. The City of Jacksonville has exhausted all options and has reached an impasse with the NC DOT. City officials have been in contact with State officials regarding the danger to pedestrians and have received no authorization or funding to construct crosswalks at the most dangerous intersections. I asked if the Trails and Greenways Commission had the authority to send letters to Representative George Cleveland (14th District, (R) and member of the NC House Transportation Committee, Senator Harry Brown (6th District, (R) and member of the NC Senate Transportation Committee and Mr. Lanny Wilson (Division 3 representative on the NC Board of Transportation). Mr. Tim Chesnutt, Director of Jacksonville’s Parks and Recreations Department will research our authority to send letters outside of the City of Jacksonville. It was discussed that, even if the Commission did not have authority, individual members could send letters. It was also noted that efforts by residents of Jacksonville may have more impact than City government or the Commission.
I also discussed the safety concern caused by torn welcome home signs along Camp Lejeune’s fence-line next to the Rails-to-Trails path. I informed the Commission of the crash caused by a sign and my efforts to get Camp Lejeune’s Safety officials to do something and their response. Mr. Chesnutt has spoken with safety officials from the base and they have promised to take the torn signs down.
All sections of the Rails-to-Trails Greenway were cleaned by their sponsors.
Mr. Wetzel had a booth at the Camp Lejeune Earth Day expo held on April 22nd. He had photocopies of the new Trails and Greenways brochure to distribute.
Mr. Wetzel is working to establish a booth at the National Night Out event on August 4th. He asked for volunteers to occupy the booth, distribute brochures and be available to answer questions. I volunteered.
The next Trails and Greenways Commission meeting will be May 18th and will be the joint meeting of all Recreation and Parks commissions (Recreation and Parks, Trails and Greenways and Beautification and Appearance).
If you’ve got ideas, suggestions or questions regarding the City of Jacksonville Trails and Greenways programs or facilities, please comment.
