By Khalida Sarwari
A citywide discussion about how to expand and enhance Saratoga’s parks, trails, bikeways and open spaces is underway and expected to gain momentum early next year.
Following a presentation by the city’s public works director, John Cherbone, the Saratoga City Council unanimously agreed to direct members of the city staff to agendize the issue for the council’s annual retreat, which typically takes place in January or February.
The Aug. 17 discussion centered around the circulation and open space elements of the city’s General Plan, policy documents that guide how the city’s parks, trails, bikeways and open spaces are built and maintained. They were last updated between six and nine years ago. The council’s plan is to update the documents in order to provide a strong policy framework that supports active lifestyles.
Vice Mayor Emily Lo suggested expanding the youth commission’s “Walk-One-Week” program–which encourages students and parents to walk to school–to the wider community, while Councilman Rishi Kumar proposed making a mobile app with maps and trail data.
Saratoga currently has 19 miles of trails that are both local and regional, according to Cherbone. The local trails include the San Marcos Open Space trail and the Heritage Orchard trail. The trails with regional connections include Joe’s trail that connects to Cupertino, the Parker Ranch trail system that connects to Fremont Older Open Space and the planned Saratoga-to-the-Sea trail.
The city also boasts more than 26 miles of sidewalks and pathways located mostly on arterial or collector streets and near schools. City officials have identified more than 10 miles of gaps along some routes as a result of roadway topography or lack of right-of-way, according to Cherbone.
There are around 14 miles of bikeways in Saratoga, and as in the case of the city’s sidewalks, they’re located mostly on arterial or collector streets where traffic and vehicle speeds tend to be higher.
The city is considering using a “road diet”–a technique whereby the number of travel lanes or width of the road is reduced in order to achieve improvements and traffic calming methods, such as the addition of bicycle lanes without widening a road, which can be more expensive. The city has already identified Allendale and Fruitvale avenues as one area that could benefit from such improvements.
The council will broach the subject again in early 2017.
Link:
Saratoga City Council looks for ways to help residents hit the trail
