Two meetings remain:
Thursday:
Sunnyside High School, 5:30-7:30pm.
June 23:
Malloch Elementary School, 5:30-7:30pm.
This morning I attended an outreach meeting in City Hall. I wasn't expecting much, and I almost didn't go. I was expecting another boring meeting with dubious connections to the reality of riding in the City of Fresno. I couldn't have been more mistaken. Immediately I saw the bike racks outside the building, I new that energetic cyclists were in attendance.
Inside, I signed in and was greeted by the friendly staff. Not only City of Fresno staff, but representatives from Quad Knopf and Fehrs and Peers, who are working on the Bicycle Master Plan as consultants. Staff from other organizations, such as the County Public Works, were also present. Everyone was labelled with their name and affiliation, and the meeting was organized into activity zones. Cyclists, advocates, and officials were mingling together, sharing ideas and brainstorming how to make Fresno a bicycle-friendly place.
The activity zones includes tables with giant aerial photographs of the City. Attendees were armed with markers and instructed to mark up the maps with details of their favorite routes, danger zones, biggest frustrations, and all kinds of details for changes they would like to see on the street.
In another area, examples of various bicycle facilities, such as trails, lanes, lockers, racks, and bike boxes were portrayed in large color photographs mounted on easels. Attendees were given sheets of little sticky stars and told to give stars to the facilities they would most like to see in Fresno. It was very satisfying to put stars next to things I like, such as bicycle boulevards.
In yet another area, attendees were invited to sit down and fill out surveys. The data from these surveys will be used as input, along with all the other data collected at this meeting, to provide input into the Bicycle Master Plan.
Hopefully, with this level of input, the final document will reflect reality and will be designed to produce policy that accurately reflects the needs of local cyclists. Can you imagine if official government policy was programmed to produce useful and effective infrastructure? As the tax money is spent over the next two decades, the built environment will begin to reflect this ideal, shaped by the wants, wishes, and fondest desires of real everyday cyclists.
How can you help this project succeed? You can make your voice heard by attending one of the two remaining meetings. They will be the same in format and content. Please attend one.
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