Mayor's Neighborhood Advisory Commission
April 18, 2012
Topics
- Quiet Zones for Railroad Traffic
- Neighborhood Updates
Quiet Zones
Quiet Zones are areas where train crossings are considered safe enough for trains not to have to blow their horns. Gene Shannon, owner of the Fairhaven Village Inn, has had quite a bit of experience trying to negotiate quiet zones with B&SF. They successfully did it in Montana, but it took 8 years and the assistance of 2 senators and 2 representatives.
Previously, the whistles on train engines blew at 90 decibels. But in January, 2011, railroads began installing horns that blow at 110 decibels. So if you think that the horns are louder than they used to be, you are right! With the potential of more trains coming through Bellingham, it seems like the right time to investigate this issue.
Railroad engineers have a high degree of concern about railroad crossings. Many have had accidents or close-calls, and they blow their horns to try and warn people. The safety of the public is their primary concern. If they had their way, all railroad crossings would be closed, and trains could travel through their right of way safely and without interference. But of course, that isn’t practical.
Gene explained that there are ways to make crossings safe. One of the most common is to install quadrant gates. Those are intersections where automatic gates bar both traffic lanes in both directions. Vehicles seldom try and weave their way through quadrant gates. Fencing the railroad right-of-way is also frequently done. Both of these solutions are extremely expensive.
Gene recommends that the city hire a consultant (for about $25k) to fine-tune a study previously done by Bellingham (on the Public Works website, but I couldn’t find it). This would give us a good idea about what it might cost to create a quiet zone through Bellingham.
Mayor Linville had heard that railroads were required to pay 10% of the cost of improving crossings, but Ted Carlson explained that most frequently, their contribution isn’t in the form of money. Someone else pointed out that 10% is the maximum contribution the railroads are allowed to provide, and they aren’t required to contribute anything.
Neighborhood Updates
Barkley – Construction on the Cineplex is scheduled to be completed this fall. Neighbors on the west side of the site are concerned about water that is coming off the berms, and solutions are being investigated.
Sunnyland – They have an issue about some land on Sunset near the Greek church. There is a dispute between the builder, who wants to put in 70 multi-family units on the property, and the neighborhood, which wants to keep it single-family zoning and limit the development to 28 homes.
Samish – The discussion about the Padden Trails development continues.
South Hill – They have the same problems all the neighborhoods have about contacting local residents. They investigated the Post Office’s program “Every Door Direct Mail” and found that it costs 4.5-cents per item to deliver. Torhil will investigate and send out information to the neighborhoods.
South – There will be a voluntary cleanup effort on 4/28 to work on cleaning up as many as 20 transient camps that have left “mountains” of trash in the 100-Acre Woods. They have also been working on figuring out how to repay the $3.2 Million borrowed to purchase the land. They have proposed that the area be established as a “Metropolitan Park District,” which is a state-sanctioned organization. Once that is done, they suggest that putting a referendum on the ballot to levy a 28-cent tax on residents for 10 years would pay for the loan and provide for some stewardship funding. Mayor Linville is working on other ways to repay the loan and is somewhat concerned about the effects of introducing a Metropolitan Park District.
Sehome – They are frustrated by a building permit that was recently granted. They were investigating what could be done about a permit that they felt didn’t include sufficient parking. Suddenly, the project was permitted, and work has begun. If they want to appeal, it will cost the neighborhood $1,300 to file.
King Mountain – They are still working on their Urban Plan and are struggling with the possibility of zoning changes that will change from 900 units to 3,200 units.
Cordata – They really want some parks!
Downtown – There has been a recent rash of bike thefts, even from 3rd floor balconies. They are also seeing more homeless and active camps along the trail system.
York – They are pursuing getting 2 areas designated as historic districts. They are also concerned about a development on Lakeway that will have insufficient parking. They are having their annual Dumpster Day, which coincides with students moving out of WWU.
Whatcom Falls – They have submitted their Neighborhood Plan to Planning and hope to be able to present it to the City Council in June. They have concerns about Cemetary Creek, which in the summer becomes dried up and dirty.
As always, if you have any questions, please contact me any time.
Diana McKinney
MNAC Representative – Puget Neighborhood
