Paradise Valley Town Council to set new rules for CIP roadway project process
By Terrance Thornton | Digital Free Press
The product of a collaborative effort at Town Hall, 6401 E. Lincoln Drive, appears to be a formal process coined the ‘Significant Roadway Capital Improvement Project Process’ that Paradise Valley Town Council is expected to sign into ordinance later this month.
Paradise Valley Town Council Thursday, Oct. 10, hosted a work study discussion where Town Manager Andrew Ching outlined changes to the emerging roadway CIP guidelines meant to, among other things, provide formal policy direction on how the public is informed, how and when vendors are paid and how major roadway improvements unfold within municipal bounds.
Akin to the ‘Statement of Direction,’ the CIP roadway improvement proposal framework being devised by Paradise Valley Town Council is meant to ensure better communication with both elected leaders and the general public meanwhile driving the best value for the municipality by the creation of a more thorough vetting process, town officials say.
Paradise Valley Town Council in late September hosted a preliminary policy discussion focused on the development of the CIP roadway proposal framework spurred by frustrations over the timeline, scope and delivery of roadway improvements along Mockingbird Lane — north, south, east and west directions.
“Each member of council provided quite a bit of input we synthesized and we have made the changes that we hope captures council’s intent, direction and consensus,” Mr. Ching said.
Tenets of the Significant Roadway Capital Improvement Project includes:
- Maricopa Association Governments street design standards and specifications.
- The mobility map, street classifications and standards, and typical street cross-sections from the 2012 Paradise Valley General Plan and the ‘Visually Significant Corridors Plan.’
- Examples from various locations in town of chicanes, drainage facilities, medians, traffic calming, and other elements.
- Define expectations for concept design plans, traffic counts and studies, traffic control devices, and landscaping.
- A timeline for CIP project design and construction including public outreach, Town Council review and direction, plan approvals, and construction contract approval.
Paradise Valley Town Council identifies key updates to CIP roadway process
Mr. Ching points out Paradise Valley Town Council has asked for language to be included in ordinance that would take into consideration — and in certain cases require the data points — a formal traffic impact analysis including speed information and other relevant information.
Furthermore, Mr. Ching explains public notification requirements are spelled out in ordinance along with a formal call out to be part of the forthcoming ordinance of an annual evaluation of how the Significant Roadway Capital Improvement Project process is working.
“Process versus the project itself,” said Paradise Valley Vice Mayor Mark Stanton during the Oct. 10 work session discussion following a clarification request from Councilman Scott Moore.
“The process of the annual ‘lookback’ would be a review of things we felt were — if it was flawless, which hopefully it will be — so great. If not, we’ve got some ability to do a ‘lookback’ and potentially make some changes to the process.”
Of note: read the language proposed for the new roadway improvement process HERE.
Paradise Valley Mayor Jerry Bien-Willner, who spearheaded the policy pursuit, says he has been pleased with the final result of work done to formalize a sometimes technical, and tedious process.
“I want to recognize and thank our town manger, and I was fortunate with the council’s blessing, to be able to take a look at this after the town manager did an excellent job working through the consensus changes. I acted as a council set of eyes to try to make sure we captured everything, which is always a challenge,” he said during the work session discussion.
“I am very pleased with what we were able to capture here.”
Paradise Valley Town Council is expected to adopt the new Significant Roadway Capital Improvement Project Process at its Thursday, Oct. 24 regular meeting at Town Hall.