A word of caution from a soon to be ex-resident of Volusia
County.
Lake Helen is a very pleasant enclave located within a decidedly
bicycle
unfriendly environment. Riding in and around Lake Helen can be most
enjoyable - as long as one stays within 2 or 3 miles of Lake Helen.
Outside of that area, there are few bike lanes, only 8 miles of completed
trails, and a preponderance of dangerous "sharers" of the road. In
short,
Volusia is way behind in its creation of a bicycle friendly
environment.
The lack of a strong advocacy group, such as Florida Freewheelers one
County to the south and GCC, exacerbates the problem. The development
community in Volusia cannot wait to take over the existing unused railway
right
of way and Volusia Rails-to-Trails is woefully under funded. Purposefully,
I
suspect.
There are some wonderful rides in Volusia. However, as
development
accelerates from the east and south, one must get out on the road earlier
and
earlier to avoid dangerous situations.
Hopefully, an organization such as the Florida Discovery
Bicycling Center can provide the impetus to reverse Volusia's
tendencies. For the most part, they've already lost "the Loop".
Maybe further decline can be prevented. It will be an up hill and
strongly
contested battle.
John R. Mohme
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Friday, September 08, 2006
12:47
PM
Subject: GCCMail: Follow-up from the
Building a Better Bicycle Network Workshop (08/31/06)
Follow-up from
the
Building a Better Bicycle Network Workshop (08/31/06):
The Building a
Better
Bicycle Network workshop was co-sponsored by
Florida Bicycle Association (FBA) and
Bike
Florida.
Below is a
synopsis of
Herb Hiller?s presentation; contact information for FBA, Bike
Florida, Office of Greenways and
Trails
(OGT), and North Central Florida Regional Planning Council (NCFRPC); and
information on Land Development Regulations (LDRs) and New Development in
Unincorporated Areas.
Ride
safely!
~Kiara
------------------------------------------
Laura Hallam,
Executive Director
Florida Bicycle
Association
PO
Box 718, Waldo FL
32694
phone/fax:
352-468-3430; cell: 407-399-9961
laura@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx;
www.floridabicycle.org
Visit the
Florida Discovery Bicycling Center:
http://www.floridabicycle.org/discovery/index.htm
Florida Bicycle
Association is a 501 (c)(3) organization uniting all types of bicyclists.
Better bicycling means a better Florida. Your membership makes us
stronger.
------------------------------------------
Linda Crider, Executive Director
Bike Florida
P.O.
Box
5295
Gainesville, FL 32627
Tel: (352)
392-6755;
Fax: (352) 846-0404
------------------------------------------
Synopsis of Herb
Hiller?s presentation, 8/31/06
The gist of my
presentation on building better bicycling networks was to propose that we
decide on our objectives and ask who, from outside the bicycling
community, is
interested in having these objectives realized. This is the way to develop new
partnerships and make things happen.
I cited the
situation
of almost 30 years ago when I was asked to develop a form of tourism in
White
Springs that would be compatible with the town?s historical
character. I proposed bicycle touring. I wound up challenged to take
this on
myself. I quickly realized
that
the best way to get people to ride the tours over the long haul was to
create
bicycling awareness in Florida, and the best way to achieve this was to
create
a state bicycling movement for all the good reasons already then
apparent: for
energy conservation, for alternative transportation, for health and so
on. Result was formation of
the
Florida bicycle movement, Linda
Crider?s
involvement, Bob Graham?s, Dan Burden?s, and so on. The tours over a period of time
morphed into the Suwannee Bicycle Association, which
continues.
Today?s start-up
of
the Florida Discovery Bicycling Center in
Lake Helen offers a comparable
reach. Here, the idea was to teach safe
cycling to adults as a way to get them riding outside their immediate
neighborhoods. The Florida
Bicycle Association adopted the idea and began converting it to
program.
Lake Helen chose to incubate the program
because of its compatibility with that city?s commitment to slow growth,
integrative economic development and alternative transportation
(Lake Helen already favors horseback
riding,
walking and bicycling for getting around). The
River of
Lakes Heritage
Corridor saw that the project would
fit its
program of locally resourceful tourism.
Other partners have since come forward, including Florida Hospital
West
Volusia. The first inaugural
season of training/touring programs begins November 12th.
In its search for
a
better bicycling network, Gainesville needs to ask first just what
it
seeks to accomplish for bicycling/bicyclists ? or as sometimes better
defined,
for motorists who choose to make more use of their bicycles (which
describes
us in more effective focus).
After what it seeks, the question becomes, Who else might
benefit? The more comprehensive and
effective
the cycling program, the greater its potential to benefit to the city at
large. An effective cycling
community becomes a community that can hold itself out with distinction
in the
highly competitive marketplace of corporate development. Gainesville needs to bring together a
core
group of business people who bicycle, who will think through the benefits
for
how Gainesville might accordingly represent
itself
to the outside world, draft a sound approach to the business and
political
leadership of the city and make the plan
happen.
I also made the
point
that bicycle commuting utterly depends on showers in the workplace, as
well as
safe bike lock-ups and a program of safe cycling instruction, such as FBA
newly provides through its Florida Discovery Bicycling Center.
Herb
Hiller
290 Drayton Island
Road
Georgetown, FL 32139-3112 ;
Tel:
386/467-8223;
Fax 386/467-7040
E-mail:
hiller@xxxxxxxxxxx
------------------------------------------
Robin Turner,
Regional
Coordinator
Visit the web at
www.FloridaGreenwaysAndTrails.com
FDEP, Office of
Greenways and Trails
Phone (850)
245-2052,
Toll Free 877-822-5208, Fax (850) 245-2082; Email:
robin.turner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
------------------------------------------
Mike Escalante,
AICP
NCFRPC Senior
Planner
http://ncfrpc.org/
------------------------------------------
Commissioner Mike
Byerly
Land Development
Regulations (LDRs) and New Development in Unincorporated Areas:
Web reference:
http://growth-management.alachua.fl.us/ldr.php
LDR
sections:
Street Design
Specifications - Section 407.79(h) Table 407.80.1 -Street Design
Specifications
Bicycle Parking -
Sect. 407.15
Road Connectivity
-
Sect. 407.79(a)
Limits on
Cul-de-Sacs
- Sect 407.79(b)
Village Centers -
Sect. 407.62
Open Space
Requirements - Sect. 407.54(a)2
Traffic Calming
Measures - Sect.407.79(j)
Pedestrian
Network
Standards - Sect. 407.81
Sidewalks - Sect.
407.79(h)
Street trees -
Sect.
407.43(d)2
Phone # for
Growth
Management Dept: 374-5249
Want to be your own boss? Learn how on Yahoo!
Small Business.
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