San Luis Obispo City Council is moving forward with a plan to improve bicycle infrastructure across the city.
On Tuesday, council members voted 4-1 in favor of the staff recommendation Anholm Bicycle Plan.
The bikeway would start at Monterey and Chorro. It would then turn into a buffered lane with a raised curb from Palm Street to Lincoln.
Pavement markets and street signs would mark the bikeway through the Anholm District. It would then turn west down Mission Street to Broad Street, ultimately ending at Foothill Boulevard and Ferrini Lane.
Tuesday’s city council meeting was full of a variety of voices. Many people spoke in favor of the project, while others cited many concerns about the project’s cost and impact on parking availability.
"We need to encourage (bicyclists) by giving them a safe corridor, and the best way to do that is to either give them a protected facility or somehow get cars off the streets," said Garrett Otto, who lives in the neighborhood and supports the plan.
"I am against anything that eliminates any of the parking over there," said David Schlossberg, who also lives in the Anholm neighborhood but opposes the project. "Parking is a problem, and doing anything that gets rid of the existing parking in front of houses on both sides of Broad in the whole Broad Street Boulevard bike path is a bad idea."
City documents say the project will be built in phases and could start construction as soon as Fall 2018.
Phase one, which would build a bike lane and pedestrian crossing at Foothill and Ferrini, is expected to cost $900,000. Phase two through Broad Street is expected to carry a $475,000 price tag. The city says it has secured funding for part of the first phase and is looking at other methods of funding later, including possible state funding.
City staff are expected to hold a community meeting sometime next month to refine the design options for the segment on Broad Street. The Active Transportation Committee Review is scheduled to review the project on May 17. The Planning Commission is scheduled to review it on July 25 before it goes to City Council for a final review on August 21.
