Panel pushes for better walking, cycling in Sedalia

The Citizens Committee for Smart Growth on Thursday discussed a proposal aimed at making Sedalia streets more pedestrian-friendly and heard a presentation from Whittier High School students about their service learning project to promote recycling.

Members of the committee reviewed the first draft of a proposed resolution for a “Livable Streets Policy,” a proposal that would establish guiding principles for the city to consider when planning street projects in order to encourage walking, biking and other non-motorized transportation while promoting safety.

Committee member Cliff Jarvis said the policy would apply to projects in which the city is renovating, rehabilitating or building streets, as well as other infrastructure projects such as sewer improvements.

“Our proposal would become city policy that any time they consider those types of public works projects that the design incorporate any livable streets elements that are feasible with the site,” Jarvis said.

The components that would be considered during the planning of projects could include widening or adding sidewalks in the affected areas to accommodate more bicycle and pedestrian traffic, adding measures that slow traffic to improve safety or widening parkways to increase the space between pedestrian and vehicle traffic, Jarvis said.

Under the proposed resolution, the draft of which was modeled on similar measures adopted in Lee’s Summit and Elsberry, the city would not have to include those components if the project site is not suitable for non-motorized use or if the additional costs would be excessive, although the reason for not including the livable streets elements would have to be documented.

“So it’s OK to say no, but they have to tell you why they said no,” said Kim Graves, committee chairman.

Committee members plan to review the draft of the resolution and complete the proposal at the group’s next meeting in December. The measure is then expected to go before the City Council for consideration sometime this winter.

The smart growth committee also heard from Whittier High School students who are leading a service learning project to improve recycling efforts in Sedalia schools and raise awareness of recycling options across the community.

Paige Wiskur, a student at Whittier, said as part of the project the class has set up recycling programs at Whittier and the district’s elementary schools and tracked the amount of recyclables collected from each.

In the first quarter of the year, the students collected 1,162 pounds of paper products, 1,862 plastic bottles, 12 pounds of other plastic materials and 168 pounds of cardboard from the five participating schools.

In just the first three weeks of the second quarter, they had already gathered 1,018 pounds of paper materials, 750 plastic bottles, 34 pounds of other plastic products and 672 pounds of cardboard.

Along with gaining knowledge about various recycling processes, the class is  working to educate others and help create habits that will minimize the environmental impact of district schools.

“We’re just trying to improve recycling efforts in Sedalia schools and to help Sedalia become a more environmentally conscientious community,” Wiskur said.

She said the students hope their efforts to educate and raise awareness about the issue will motivate the participating schools to continue their recycling programs beyond the year of the project.

Committee members lauded the students’ commitment and thanked them for their efforts on the recycling project.

“What you’re doing is tremendous,” said Mickey Paul, director of employment services at the Center for Human Services, which operates the recycling center through a partnership with the city.