A committee to recommend sidewalk and other projects for pedestrians in town held its first meeting Tuesday, elected a chairman and started researching information to help walkers, cyclists and others to get around town safely and easily.
Members of the new Pedestrian Infrastructure Advisory Committee (created on Monday by the Board of Selectmen) will start gathering information on sidewalks in town, proposals for fixing or extending them and other ideas (like additional crosswalks) already proposed.
Beth Harmon, just-elected Chairman of the Pedestrian Infrastructure Advisory Committee and Frank Adelman, chairman of the RTM Pedestrian Infrastructure Subcommittee, who helped set up the advisory panel. Adelman is not a member of the new committee.
The nine-member panel elected Beth Harmon as its new chairman (she was the only member who offered to take on the position) as well as Ted Hawkins and Pat Morrissey as co-clerks (to keep meeting minutes at alternate meetings).
The committee expects to meet on Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m. and perhaps other times as it tries to come up with recommendations for town spending.
The Board of Selectmen would like a list of recommendations for where to improve or install new sidewalks or other pedestrian-friendly projects by the last quarter of 2015.
First Selectman Jayme Stevens, who attended the meeting, said getting the recommendations in by Nov. 1 would be a good idea.
To do that, the committee will have to gather information on what proposals for sidewalks and other projects have been made, what else they might find out about what pedestrians need in town and come up with a system to rank projects by priority.
Various committee members will ask the Police Department, town Department of Public Works and the Planning & Zoning office for information on previous suggestions for sidewalks and other proposals.
RTM Member Holly Schulz-Amatruda, a member of the new panel who in the past has strongly advocated sidewalks for Hoyt Street near the Talmadge Hill Railroad Station, offered to share information she’s already gathered about which streets in town have sidewalks, along with information on Hoyt Street and other information on sidewalks in town.
Stevenson said that once the committee gives the Board of Selectmen its recommendations, selectmen can then go over the list and see what they can afford to add to the 2016-2017 town budget and what might wait for future town budget decisions.