New bicycle paths are coming, a mile at a time.
Lynn Burnett, Holmes Beach city engineer, presented a first draft of the Holmes Beach Master Bike/Pedestrian Plan at a March 22 city forum.
Mayor Bob Johnson opened the gathering, welcoming Commissioners Carol Soustek and Marvin Grossman, along with parks and beautification committee member Zan Fuller, Police Chief Bill Tokajer and more than a dozen residents who provided ideas and feedback on the proposal.
“This is a gathering of input,” Johnson said. “This is more listening for staff, quite honestly.”
The city has been working with the Sarasota/Manatee Metropolitan Planning Organization in conjunction with the Island Transportation Planning Organization, reviewing the comprehensive plan and long-range transportation goals, to rethink the safest route for bikers and pedestrians in the city, and connecting to Anna Maria and Bradenton Beach.
Burnett said the city’s old 5-foot-wide sidewalks are subpar.
“All we’re doing is playing catch-up at this point,” Burnett said. “We can’t just keep doing things the way we’ve always done them. We need to be thinking a bit outside of the box.”
Also, as Florida is one of the least safe states for walking and biking, the Florida Department of Transportation is pushing its “Complete Streets” approach. The state is investing $25 million annually for five years, Burnett said, to improve pedestrian and bicycle pathways and accommodate all users, including people pushing strollers and walking dogs, cyclists, Segway users and motorists.
“In order for us to accommodate them, we obviously need to rethink how we do our streets and our sidewalks,” Burnett said. She added the island cities need to work together to identify a safe route that can be mapped, signed and striped.
“We really need a main route that gets from point A to point B and makes a good, safe connection to Longboat Key and Manatee County via our … bridges,” Burnett said.
Another need, Burnett said, is for a safe route for traveling east-west across the island. Existing bike lanes are also inundated with floods during a rain or are too narrow, and there’s encroachments from motor vehicles.
The plan Burnett proposes includes an 8-foot-wide path specifically for bicycles and pedestrians and identifies locations for crosswalks with flashing beacons, which would be solar-powered, amber-colored and turtle-friendly.
“We’ve looked at and identified roads that would safely accommodate where we already have a crosswalk,” Burnett said. “We have enough funds to put all of the share-the-road signage, striping and marking in, so it’s in a position of strength in terms of funding.”
Tokajer said the proposed path would be a lot safer than what exists and lighted crosswalks would get people’s attention.
“One of the main things we’re been trying to do is to make it a safe path,” Tokajer said.
Residents voiced concerns with two-way traffic on the proposed path with a mix of bicycles and pedestrians.
A bicycle is legally defined as a vehicle in Florida state law, and cyclists still have the option of riding in the street, Burnett said.
“This isn’t an invitation to the bike clubs out east or in other counties,” Burnett said. “It’s really to try to provide a safe facility for our residents, our kids and those who vacation on those streets.”
Bart Bartelsman of Holmes Beach said he was impressed with the detail in the plan, which would be funded by local half-cent sales taxes and gas tax.
“It’s very well done,” Bartelsman said. He also offered ideas for “townie short cuts,” through neighborhoods to improve the path for locals.
Resident Tom O’Brien commended Burnett for her work.
“I’m in favor of something,” he said. “Something really has to happen because, you know, it’s the human lives that are the most important thing. We can’t just have people come here and take their money.”
Kim Rash of 7216 Holmes Blvd. said the majority of residents on Holmes Boulevard do not want the bicycle path on their street. Rash said he walked and talked to people at every house on his street March 16.
“We sure don’t want a bunch of bicyclists that don’t live out on the island going up and down through our neighborhood,” Rash said.
A second bike forum is scheduled for March 29.
Following public input, Burnett will revise her plan for commission consideration. Construction could begin by summer, with portions of the path completed by the end of the year.
“There is a phased-in approach that we have to do,” Burnett told city commissioners at the March 16 meeting. “We have to be able to provide a safe place for people to bike and right now I don’t think that we have any that are really safe.”
Officials seek opinions, feedback at 2nd bike forum
The second of two bike path forums will be at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 29, at city hall, 5801 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach.
The public is encouraged to attend and discuss proposed improvements to bicycle and pedestrian safety with the city engineer and other officials.
Safer streets should be priority
A “Dangerous by Design 2016” study released in January by Smart Growth America ranked Florida as the least safe state for walking and biking.
Of the top 10 most dangerous metro areas for walking in the United States, eight are in Florida and the North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton area is No. 10.
“We are the least safe, walkable state out of the whole entire United States. We are in the bottom 10,” city engineer Lynn Burnett said. “We have an issue.”
Since 2014, traffic entering the island has increased about 2,000 cars on average per day, according to Burnett.