HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/09/2018
DRAFT
Traffic Summit Follow-Up Meeting
Southold Town Hall
March 9, 2018 Meeting
Called to Order: 12:08 PM by Transportation Commission Chairman Neb Brashich.
Attendees
Supervisor Scott Russell, Councilman William Ruland, Town Engineer Jamie Richter, Police
Chief Martin Flatley, Planning Director Heather Lanza, Jim Kalin, and Tom Fox.
Discussion of the Traffic Summit of February 28, 2018
In addition to the above Southold attendees, the Supervisor and a Councilwoman of Riverhead,
the Mayor and a Trustee of Greenport, representatives OF NYS and SC legislators, NYSDOT
and SCDPW, Riverhead Police, NY State Police and Suffolk County Sheriff were in attendance.
The summit focused on North Fork weekend traffic issues during the peak tourist season.
Attendees at the Summit will be provided with the minutes.
Attendees at this meeting had previously been provided with draft minutes of the Traffic Summit.
Chairman Brashich called for this meeting to discuss the Traffic Summit and to solicit the
Supervisor’s thoughts concerning short term solutions to the traffic problems.
The Supervisor observed that citizen complaints about Main Road traffic problems are now
about equal to those about the North Road. He also asserted that a four-lane reconstruction of
the North Road was not a workable solution to current traffic issues.
Chief Flatley noted that traffic congestion on the Main Road largely arises from traffic overflow
from Sound Avenue in way of the Harbes venues. He also advised that Harbes had paid for
Southold PD costs for traffic control over the 2017 Columbus Day weekend.
The Supervisor noted that SPD Traffic Control Officers should be employed longer into the
autumn farm and winery tourism season. He also contrasted the hourly cost for a TCO with that
of a Police Officer.
Tom Fox endorsed the suggestion of the Riverhead Police Chief concerning east-bound only
left turns from the Harbes parking lot on the south side of Sound Avenue.
Neb Brashich noted that Suffolk County is the largest agricultural county in NYS and is now
moving into “agritourism”. The congestion traffic congestion arising from that development has
had an impact on other farmers.
The Supervisor suggested that the Town Code should be amended to allow for the assessment
of any extra costs to a business associated with traffic control at their venues.
Jamie Richter suggested that TCO’s should be utilized for more effective traffic control.
Chief Flatley reported that in September 2017, he had observed bumper to bumper traffic on
Peconic Bay Boulevard from South Jamesport Avenue to Hubbard Avenue and onward to
CR105. He also noted that two four-way stop signs at Peconic Bay Boulevard at South
Jamesport Avenue adversely impacted traffic flow.
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DRAFT
The Supervisor observed that the owners of the Lavender Farm in East Marion do not own any
property on the north side of SR25.
Councilman Ruland suggested that the Polo Grounds on Moore’s Lane in Greenport might be
used for off-site parking for Lavender Farm, with shuttle buses providing access to the venue.
He also noted that local school boards should be contacted concerning the use of their parking
lots to alleviate parking problems.
Neb Brashich noted that the Strawberry Festival in Mattituck had been successful in
encouraging visitors to use designated off-site parking and Jim Kalin reported that 10 shuttle
buses had been used in that service.
Chief Flatley reported that he had been working with the Riverhead PD on solutions to the
parking problems at the Harbes’ venues on Sound Avenue. Moreover, although there may be
the possibility for the use of Harbes property on the south side of Sound Avenue for additional
parking, that property is owned by a different Harbes entity and consent from that entity would
be required. The Supervisor noted that the Harbes venue in Jamesport could accommodate
about 1,300 cars.
Heather Lanza suggested that the usage of traffic cones on Sound Avenue might provide an
extra vehicle travel lane. However, Chief Flatley noted that the absence of meaningful
shoulders on that roadway did not lend itself to that solution.
The issue of using school parking lots was again discussed. Chief Flatley noted that Greenport
school parking lots have been widely used for local events. It was agreed that local school
boards should be invited to future meetings.
Chief Flatley suggested that the best short term solution to control traffic flow is the increased
use of TCO’s by Southold and Riverhead PD’s. Councilman Ruland questioned whether CSF
traffic could be diverted from Sound Avenue to SR25. The Chief replied that GPS routing is a
big problem in creating traffic congestion. Mr. Ruland and Tom Fox also suggested that a
legislative solution should be considered.
Tom Fox noted that Suffolk County Transit had not been invited to the Traffic Summit. Jim Kalin
noted SCT routinely adjusts its schedules seasonally.
The attendance of the business community at the next Traffic Summit was discussed and that
the Commission’s next meeting of March 19, 2018 would consider that issue. The Supervisor
will provide Neb Brashich with a list of representatives of the business and farming communities
for invitations. However, another meeting of Riverhead, Southold and Greenport government
and police representatives should be convened with business and farming invitees.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 1:32 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Thomas F. Fox
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