SUMMARY OF PUBLIC INPUT
In an effort to gain as much input from the members of the community, there were several meetings provided throughout the course of the plan development. Additionally, a master plan website was created to provide information to the public to provide information and to allow further input.
A Steering Committee was created consisting of several town staff members and key members from the community. The Steering Committee's role was to guide the plan and act as a sounding board for the Town. There were a series of 5 steering committee meetings held to review the major stages of the design and planning process.
Three stakeholder meetings were held during the inventory and analysis stage of the project. The groups were split into government stakeholders; private organizations; and local retail, dining, and major employers.
During the inventory and analysis phase of the project, the city held a public open house at the Town Hall to give as much opportunity for the public to express its desires and needs for the project. The open house allowed for citizens to come and go at their leisure and on their schedule. The public was allowed to participate in the process by allowing attendees to place stickers on a board designed to find out the bicycle and walking programs that they would be interested in. Aerial maps were provided so the attendees could to highlight the roadways they use to walk, run, or bike through their community, and so they could identifying dangerous roadways and intersections from their personal experience. Members of the consultant team and city staff were able to interact with the public in "one-on-one" sessions.
There were two public presentations of the Lebanon Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan. The first presentation was given on October 14, 2015 at the Town Hall. This presentation was given while the plan was in a draft stage, and the public was encouraged to provide feedback at the meeting. A comment sheet was also provided to allow citizens time to digest the plan and send the comment sheet back by the end of the comment period. The final presentation of the plan was given at the Town Council Meeting on December 16, 2015.
MEETING SCHEDULE
DESCRIPTION: | DATE: |
Kick-off Meeting | June 24, 2015 |
Public Input Open House | July 16, 2015 |
Government Stakeholder Meeting | July 29, 2015 Private |
Organizations Stakeholder Meeting | July 29, 2015 |
Retail, Dining, and Major Employers Stakeholder Meeting | July 29, 2015 |
Steering Committee Meeting - Inventory Phase | July 29, 2015 |
Steering Committee Meeting - Analysis Phase | August 26, 2015 |
Steering Committee Meetings - Draft Plan Review | September 30, 2015 |
Draft Plan Presentation | October 14, 2015 |
Steering Committee Meeting - Final Plan Review | December 2, 2015 |
Final Plan Presentation | December 16, 2015 |
SUMMARY OF PUBLIC SURVEY
As mentioned previously, the public survey for this master plan was administered through the Town of New Palestine's website. The survey was advertised through the newspaper, social media, and fliers handed out at various public events. The survey consisted of 20 questions. In total, there were approximately 410 responses. Below is a summary of some of the responses. For a detailed breakdown of the responses, see Appendix x.
• Top 3 goals identified by respondents:
- Enhance community connections to neighborhoods, parks, schools, businesses, retail and dining, and governmental facilities.
- Increase the number of people who exercise daily by providing safe walking and biking experiences for citizens of all ages and levels of ability.
- Improve the quality of life in the Town of New Palestine in an effort to retain current citizens and attract new citizens.
• The age group with the most responses were from both the 35 - 44 and 45 - 64 age groups.
• Only 9% indicated they would use network to commute.
• 32% would use network for their daily routines, such as running errands.
• 33% would use in the winter. Fall was the most popular ranked season for use.
• 43% of respondents do not bike on a regular basis. 54% would not use an on-road bike facility, and would prefer a separated path.
• Majority of respondents walk or jog 2 to 3 times a week. They walk between 1 - 10 miles in a week's time.
• Only 3% of children currently walk or bike to school.
• The most favorable time to use the network is weekday evenings after 5:00 PM.
• Change of personal behavior for enhanced bike and pedestrian network:
- Only 5% of respondents would not change their behavior.
- 75% would increase their walking and bicycling for wellness.
- 55% would support public funding for improving bicycle and pedestrian networks.