Farmington residents who walk, hike and bike in the city want improved safety, increased connectivity between neighborhoods and trailheads, and improved access to schools and stores.
That was the conclusion of residents’ input presented Nov. 7 at a meeting at the Farmington Civic Center. The meeting, organized by the Farmington Municipal Planning Organization, introduced representatives of two Albuquerque-based firms, Toole Design Group and Groundwork Studio, which were hired by FMPO to assist with the pedestrian and bicycle master plan and help answer questions from the public.
The Farmington Municipal Planning Organization, headed by Peter Koeppel, aims to find gaps in the city’s paths and trails.
The Toole Design Group started this fall to identify places that people would like to walk and bike, identify gaps in trails, bikeways and sidewalks across the region and to prioritize corridors and routes for development. Erika Robers of Groundwork Studio attended to help drive community input.
“The idea here is to have it be an interactive meeting, to get people’s direct feedback as to how they’re already using the trails and what they’d like to see them improved,” said Robers.
Robers wants as much community input as possible and asks the people visit the project website at bit.ly/FMPOmap. There you can virtually drop pins to show frequented locations on the interactive map and take a 16-question survey about your walking and biking habits.
Participants were encouraged to put sticky notes on the maps to express specific issues they want to be considered.
Safety while running and bicycling was a big factor for women.
Nancy Mike of the Southwest Runners Club, based in Farmington, said 20 to 30 runners gather together to run primarily in the Lions Wilderness and Crossroads area.
“For women I think safety is a big factor,” she said.
Drew Gramer said he was there “to make the roads safer for everybody.” As an avid bicyclist employed by Habitat Management, he said he’s an advocate for the people who don’t feel they can bike and walk safely.
Micah Magee, a runner and biker, said she hoped to see more bike paths developed.
Amy Bell of Groundworks Studio said the meeting was the first public engagement event of the analysis phase of the study that began in September. Another opportunity for community input will take place next year, and based on input, the group will develop policy and infrastructure recommendations and consider funding.
She expects the final plan to be complete by the fall of 2023.
FMPO, an auxiliary city department, is funded mostly by federal government.
“What this means in practice is that we are a division of the city’s Community Works Department, which provides us with HR, legal, IT, and other administrative support,” said Koeppel of FMPO. “For our transportation planning work, we are governed by a policy committee consisting of elected officials from Aztec, Bloomfield, Farmington, Kirtland and San Juan County,” he wrote in an email.
Olivia Groeber, the other FMPO staff member, and Koeppel are city employees.
“We are paid by the city, but the majority of our funding (about 84%) comes from the Federal Highway and Federal Transit Administrations. The remainder is split among our member governments, based on their populations. Funding comes “primarily from federal highway and transit with a small – about 15-20% – from local government.”
At this point from their input, the major priorities are:
- Need for improved safety for cyclists and pedestrians.
- Connectivity between neighborhoods and trailheads.
- Access to destinations such as schools, shopping, etc.
In upcoming months, they plan “to take what we learned from our public and stakeholder engagement and develop projects and priorities.” Stakeholders are the New Mexico Department of Transportation, local governments, and community groups.
Koeppel said state and federal funding programs can be utilized to implement the completed plan. State programs include the Transportation Project Fund, while federal sources include the Transportation Alternatives Program, the Recreational Trails Program, the Congestion Mitigation/Air Quality Program, the Safe Streets and Roads for All program, and the Carbon Reduction Program, he said.
Koeppel said they would consider developing bicycle and hiking trails completely independent of city streets. These would serve the dual function of transportation and recreation.
Koeppel can be reached for comments at (505) 599-1449 or pkoeppel@fmtn.org.
