Centre County Metropolitan Planning Organization (CCMPO)
Coordinating Committee Meeting 

Tuesday, January 22, 2008 

6:00 pm

College Township Municipal Building

AGENDA
 

Summaries and attachments for each item follow the agenda.

1.                  Call to Order 

2.         Election of Officers for 2008

3.         2008 Meeting Schedule:

                        Action: Approve meeting dates and times for 2008

 4.         Approval of Minutes: November 27, 2007 Coordinating Committee meeting

 5.         Citizens’ Comments:  For items not on the agenda

 6.         Preliminary Draft 2009-2012 Centre County Transportation Improvement Program (TIP):   

             Review Preliminary Draft TIP

                  Action: Approve submission of Preliminary Draft TIP to PennDOT Central Office

 7.         Draft FY 2008-09 Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP)   

             Review 1^st Draft UPWP and Candidate Supplemental Planning Funds Projects

                Action: Identify priorities for supplemental planning funds and provide comments to staff

 8.         I-80 Toll Conversion Project:

            Discussion of FHWA Response and Other Comments

No action required

 9.         Coordinated Public Transit - Human Services Transportation Plan:

            Updates to Coordinated Plan

No action required

 10.       Announcements

 11.              Adjourn

ITEM 2 

ELECTION OF OFFICERS 

The Coordinating Committee should elect a Chair and Vice Chair for 2008.  In 2007, Dan Klees (College Township) served as Chair, and Elizabeth Goreham (State College Borough) served as Vice-Chair of the Coordinating Committee.  The Coordinating Committee should also consider the appointment of a Secretary.  Bob Crum, CRPA Director, currently serves as the MPO Secretary. 

Several new representatives have been appointed in 2008:  

Voting members of the Coordinating Committee include: 

               Non-voting members of the Coordinating Committee include: 

                Presented by:   Bob Crum, CCMPO Secretary

                 Action:             Election of officers and appointment of a Secretary for 2008.

ITEM 3

2008 MEETING SCHEDULE

2008 Meeting Schedule

The Coordinating Committee should confirm the dates and time for its 2008 meetings.  In 2007 and prior years, the Committee held meetings on the 4^th Tuesday of the months in which meetings were scheduled. Meetings are not held every month during the year.

The 4^th Tuesday was originally selected because there were no conflicts with meetings of municipal governing bodies and other regional organizations.  In addition, actions required by the CCMPO are often related to end-of-the-month deadlines, thus a meeting late in the month provides staff adequate time to prepare materials and the agenda package.

Should the Coordinating Committee continue to meet on the 4^th Tuesday, meetings in 2008 would be held as specified in the proposed meeting schedule attached to this item.  Staff notes that additional meetings may need to be scheduled to address unanticipated items. 

The Coordinating Committee should review the proposed meeting schedule, and approve the dates and times of meetings for 2008. 

            Presented by:   Tom Zilla, CRPA 

            Action:             Approve meeting dates and times for 2008.

ITEM 6 

2009-2012 CENTRE COUNTY
TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM (TIP) 

Review Preliminary Draft TIP

for Submission to PennDOT Central Office 

Staff Powerpoint presentation
Summaries of the highway element of the Preliminary Draft TIP
Summaries of the transit element of the Preliminary Draft TIP
Map of bridges included on the highway element of the Preliminary Draft TIP
Summary of comments from the CCMPO Technical Committee
Correspondence from PennDOT about spike funds for the I-80 Section A18 Interchange

In Pennsylvania, the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) and the Twelve Year Transportation Program (TYP) are updated every two years, with the update process taking approximately one year.  Guidance for preparing the new 2009-2012 TIP and TYP was provided to MPOs and RPOs in June 2007.  Updated financial guidance was provided in September 2007. 

At the September and November 2007 CCMPO meetings, staff provided an overview of transportation issues relative to the new TIP.  During that time period, PennDOT updated costs and schedules for highway and bridge projects, leading to the development of a Preliminary Draft Highway Element of the TIP, in consultation with MPO staff.  CATA and MPO staff also developed a Preliminary Draft Transit Element of the TIP.

A Preliminary Draft TIP must be submitted to PennDOT Central Office by January 25, 2008.  PennDOT will respond with comments by February 22, 2008.  A Final Draft TIP will then be prepared for review in March 2008, and the Coordinating Committee will be asked to approve a Final Draft TIP for public review in late March.  Following the completion of an Air Quality Conformity Analysis and a required 30-day public comment period, the CCMPO will consider adopting the TIP in late June 2008. 

At its January 9, 2009 meeting, the CCMPO Technical Committee reviewed the Preliminary Draft TIP, and provided comments for consideration by the Coordinating Committee. 

At its November 22, 2008 meeting, the CCMPO Coordinating Committee approved a request to the PennDOT Central Office for “spike” funds for the Construction phase of the I-80 Section A18 Local Access Interchange (Marion Township).  By correspondence dated January 10, 2008, PennDOT responded that a decision about the request for spike funds will be made at a later date in the TIP development process. 

Attached are:

	Staff PowerPoint presentation
	Summaries of the highway and transit elements of the Preliminary Draft TIP
	Map of bridges included on the highway element of the Preliminary Draft TIP
	Summary of comments from the CCMPO Technical Committee
	Correspondence from PennDOT about spike funds for the I-80 Section A18 Interchange

The Coordinating Committee should review the attached information, receive the staff presentation, and consider approving the submission of a Preliminary Draft TIP to the PennDOT Central Office. 

Presented by:   Tom Zilla, CRPA

Action:  Approve the submission of a Preliminary Draft 2009-2012 Centre County TIP to the PennDOT Central Office.

ITEM 7 

FY 2008-09 UNIFIED PLANNING WORK PROGRAM (UPWP) 

Review Candidate Supplemental Planning Funds Projects

 Staff PowerPoint presentation
1^st Draft FY 2008-09 UPWP (supplemental planning funds projects are under Task VII)

Each year in February, the MPO adopts a UPWP for the fiscal year which begins on July 1 of that year and ends on June 30 of the following year.  The UPWP lists the work tasks to be completed by the CRPA and the CCPCDO on behalf of the CCMPO.  Staff is currently operating under the FY 2007-08 UPWP.

At the November 2007 CCMPO meetings, staff presented PennDOT’s priorities for the FY 2008-09 UPWP, and reviewed candidate projects for supplemental planning funds.  As directed, staff prepared descriptions of three candidate projects for supplemental planning funds.  On January 9, 2008, the CCMPO Technical Committee reviewed the candidate projects, and concurred with the priorities for the projects proposed by staff.  The projects are described in Task VII of the attached 1^st Draft UPWP, with the proposed priorities represented by the order in which the candidates are presented.

Attached are:

	Staff PowerPoint presentation
	1st Draft FY 2008-09 UPWP (supplemental planning funds projects are under Task VII)

The Coordinating Committee should review the staff presentation about the 1^st Draft UPWP, and identify priorities for the candidate supplemental planning funds projects. 

PennDOT is also authorizing a “one-time” allocation of additional FHWA Planning (PL) funds in
FY 2008-09, up to 25% over the base allocation of funds.  The maximum amount of additional funding that may be available for the CCMPO is $23,208.  The additional funds are intended for projects focusing on “smart transportation”, safety, “right-sizing”, and project development.  Consideration will also be given to other local and regional project priorities.  Staff has identified four tasks in the UPWP where the additional funding could be utilized: 

            Task I.D. – Long Range Transportation Plan

            Task IV.D. – Land Use Coordination

            Task V.A. – Monitor Key Projects

            Task VI.A. – Streamline Project Implementation 

Staff will discuss the inclusion of additional funds with the PennDOT Central Office prior to the preparation of the Final Draft UPWP.

Comments should be provided to staff to facilitate preparation of a Final Draft UPWP, which will be presented for adoption by the Coordinating Committee in late February. 

The UPWP must be adopted and submitted to the PennDOT Central Office by February 29, 2008. 

Presented by:   Tom Zilla, CRPA

Action:   Identify priorities for candidate supplemental planning funds projects, and provide comments to staff to facilitate preparation of a Final Draft FY 2008-09 UPWP.

ITEM 8 

INTERSTATE 80 TOLL CONVERSION PROJECT 

Discussion of FHWA Response and Other Comments 

Correspondence from FHWA to PennDOT and the PTC
Correspondence from the Centre County Board of Commissioners
Correspondence from the Upper Bald Eagle Council of Governments (COG)
Correspondence from the municipalities in the Mountaintop Planning Region
Correspondence from the Chamber of Business and Industry of Centre County (CBICC)
CCMPO’s June 2007 comments about state transportation funding proposals

In July 2007, Pennsylvania Act 44 was approved by the legislature and signed by Governor Ed Rendell.  Act 44 provides increased state funding for highways, bridges and mass transit, and also makes fundamental changes to the way the mass transit funding is distributed in the Commonwealth. 

A portion of the new transportation funding authorized by Act 44 comes from revenue generated by the conversion of I-80 to a toll road, which would be operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) through a 50-year lease agreement with PennDOT.  The PTC has initiated the process of converting I-80 to a toll facility, and held a first round of public meetings in November 2007 to provide information and seek input about the toll conversion project.  A public officials briefing and public meeting were held in Centre County on Thursday, November 15, 2007.

The meeting guide distributed at the November 15 public meeting was provided to Coordinating Committee members in the November 27, 2007 CCMPO meeting agenda.  Representatives of the PTC and its consultant team attended the November 27 Coordinating Committee meeting to provide a brief presentation about the project, and receive comments and input.

Since the November meeting, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) responded to the PTC’s request to toll I-80.  In addition, several other entities have provided comments about the toll conversion plan since November.

The Committee should discuss FHWA’s response, and the comments and positions prepared by several entities in Centre County since November.

Attached are:

	Correspondence from FHWA to PennDOT and the PTC
	Correspondence from the Centre County Board of Commissioners
	Correspondence from the Upper Bald Eagle Council of Governments (COG)
	Correspondence from the municipalities in the Mountaintop Planning Region
	Correspondence from the Chamber of Business and Industry of Centre County (CBICC)
	CCMPO’s June 2007 comments about state transportation funding proposals

Presented by:   Tom Zilla, CRPA

No action required

*****

For more information about Act 44 and the I-80 toll conversion project, visit the PTC’s project website at http://www.paturnpike.com/i80/ .

ITEM 9 

COORDINATED PUBLIC TRANSIT - HUMAN SERVICES
TRANSPORTATION PLAN 

Updates to Coordinated Plan 

In May 2007, the CCMPO Coordinating Committee adopted its Coordinated Public Transit - Human Services Transportation Plan.  A Coordinated Plan must be adopted by the CCMPO in order for eligible project sponsors such as CATA and the Centre County Office of Transportation (CCOT) to access federal funds from the Jobs Access Reverse Commute (low income individuals, reverse commuters), New Freedom (persons with disabilities), and Section 5310 (senior citizens) programs. 

In October 2007, the PennDOT Central Office provided guidance about updates needed to ensure that Coordinated Plans are in compliance with the most recent federal metropolitan transportation planning regulations.  PennDOT has stipulated that fully-compliant plans must be adopted and submitted to the Central Office by February 29, 2008. 

Staff anticipates that minor revisions to the CCMPO’s adopted Coordinated Plan are needed to ensure full compliance with federal regulations.  At the meeting, staff will review the revisions anticipated to be needed.  A revised Plan will be presented to the CCMPO Committees in February for adoption. 

The Coordinating Committee should receive the staff presentation, and provide comments to facilitate the preparation of a revised Coordinated Plan. 

Presented by:   Greg Kausch, CRPA

No action required

ITEM 10 

ANNOUNCEMENTS 

1.      Future Meeting Dates

         a.         Technical Committee:  Wednesday, February 13, 2008, 9:30 am (tentative), Location to be announced

Election of Officers
FY 2008-09 Unified Planning Work Program
Coordinated Public Transit - Human Services Transportation Plan
Centre County Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) 2008 Update
I-80 Toll Conversion Project
2008 meeting schedule

         b.         Coordinating Committee:  Tuesday, February 26, 2008, 6:00 pm (tentative), Location to be announced

Member reports
FY 2008-09 Unified Planning Work Program
Coordinated Public Transit - Human Services Transportation Plan
Centre County Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) 2008 Update

2.         The February 26, 2008 Coordinating Committee agenda will include a “Member Reports” item, which is intended to provide an opportunity for voting and non-voting members to briefly report on an item(s) of significant interest within their organization, municipality, or planning region.  Items of interest may relate to transportation, other infrastructure, capital budgeting or land use.  This item was recommended by the MPO Performance Review Committee as one method for exchanging information and improving communication among the representatives. 

3.         CCMPO staff contact information:

                  Centre Regional Planning Agency                Telephone:       814-231-3050
                  2643 Gateway Drive                                      Fax:                 814-231-3083
                  State College, PA  16801 

                        Bob Crum, Director                             rcrum@crcog.net

                        Tom Zilla, Transportation Planner       tzilla@crcog.net

                        Trish Meek, Transportation Planner     tmeek@crcog.net

                        Greg Kausch, Transportation Planner  gkausch@crcog.net  or  gkausch@catabus.com

                        Lori Shingler, Office Manager            lshingler@crcog.net

                  Centre County Planning Office                                Telephone:       814-355-6791
                  420 Holmes Street – Willowbank Office Building   Fax:                 814-355-8661
                  Bellefonte, PA  16823

                        Bob Jacobs, Director                           rbjacobs@co.centre.pa.us

                        Mike Bloom, Transportation Planner   dmbloom@co.centre.pa.us