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In
March 2007, Island County Public Health and the City of Oak Harbor
with the support of EHAT co-hosted the
“Short Course on Planning for a
Walkable Island County” sponsored by
the Planning Association of Washington
and the Washington State Department of
Community, Trade, and Economic
Development.
The short course was held to
generate support for some of the
walkability forum priorities,
specifically, enhanced interagency
cooperation and communication, increased
public support, and assistance to
policymakers in establishing funding and
setting goals and priorities.
On
April 10, 2007, the Active Communities
Task Force in Skagit
County
conducted an Active Communities workshop
to gather input on connections within their cities, city to
city, city to county, and with
neighboring counties, and on improving
the overall livability of Skagit
County. Participants
from
Island
County, which included
Island County Public Health and a county
commissioner, formed a working group, and developed
their top five priorities and action
items for enhancing the connection
between Island
County
and neighboring counties.
On
April 30 and May 1, 2007, Island County
Public Health and EHAT
sponsored walkability workshops for
communities in
South Whidbey
featuring Dan
Burden, a nationally recognized
walkability expert.
Dan lead participants
on walks in the communities of Bayview,
Freeland, Langley, and Clinton,
observing current streetscape
infrastructure.
He facilitated a wrap-up
discussion in each community that
included a user-friendly introduction to
walkable communities, and a hands-on
public forum to help staff and officials
gain consensus on potential revisions to
streetscapes based on results of the
walking audits.
Additionally, Dan provided
recommendations that address the
specific needs of each community:
-
Freeland – Dan made
recommendations on best practices
for acquiring property landowners’
easements and implement street
improvements (i.e. crosswalks,
clearing, grading, surfacing,
ADA
compliance, bollards, culverts,
shoulder widening) for priority
projects in the downtown Freeland
central business district.
Dan also offered
recommendations on how best to
provide connections to existing
trails north to Greenbank as
outlined in the Freeland Vision 2025
Charter: Trails, Walkability,
and Pedestrian Safety.
-
Langley
–
Dan recommended specific design
elements for shared-use roadways
that could be incorporated into the
code.
He offered ideas on how to
work with private landowners to
construct trails.
Dan also offered ideas
regarding local transportation
alternatives between
walking/bicycling and the automobile.
-
Bayview
–
Dan made recommendations on how best
to connect non-vehicular trails with
Freeland, Langley, and Clinton at
the centrally located Park and Ride.
Dan offered suggestions on
how to provide adequate provisions
for pedestrian, bike, and other
non-vehicular uses along
Bayview Road
between SR525 and Langley.
He made recommendations on
whether to, and how to, increase
horseback riding trails.
-
Clinton
–
Dan made recommendations on how best
to provide pedestrian/bike access
and enhance safety across SR525,
along SR525 through the main
downtown area, and to the ferries.
Copies of the event flyers, minutes,
presentations, and special reports are
available below:
-
Short Course on Planning for a Walkable
Island
County
—Flyer,
Presentations (1
& 2), and
Pictures (1,
2,
3,
4,
5)
-
"Connecting
the County" workshop—Flyer
and Minutes (COMING SOON!)
-
South
Whidbey Walkable Communities
Workshops—Flyer
& Reports
(Bayview,
Clinton,
Freeland,
Langley)
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