Tahlequah council adopts updated Complete Streets policy, approves Vision Zero resolution to pursue safety grant

The Tahlequah City Council on May 5 approved an updated Complete Streets resolution and separately adopted a Vision Zero resolution that city staff said will support a transportation-safety grant application.

Planning and Development Director Paige Harjo told the council the Complete Streets item updates language from a 2016 ordinance and “reads more like a resolution,” and she recommended adoption as a resolution rather than keeping conflicting ordinance language on the books. Harjo said the packet language also needs a factual update: the draft’s WHEREAS line that currently reads “7 Oklahoma cities have adopted complete street policies” should say about 1,700 cities across the United States.

The resolution matters because, Harjo and staff said, it puts the city in a better position to apply for implementation grants and to align project design with safety and multimodal access. Harjo said the Vision Zero resolution, prepared by the city’s engineering consultant, helps the city apply for an implementation grant; staff said the grant application is due in June (exact date not specified).

Council discussion focused on whether Complete Streets should be a binding ordinance or a policy-resolution that staff can update. City Administrator Taylor (first name on file as Taylor) and multiple councilors agreed the existing 2016 ordinance was written in language that gives the city many discretionary “outs,” and that the revised wording reads like a policy. Councilors suggested several options, including keeping a short ordinance that requires annual review by the planning commission while adopting the policy as a resolution so the policy language stays current and useful for grant applications.

Councilors voted to adopt the updated Complete Streets resolution as presented and also approved the Vision Zero resolution to proceed with the grant application process. By contrast, council debate on repealing the 2016 ordinance and replacing it with a new ordinance produced no final action that night; councilors asked staff to return with clarified language and with an approach that would keep Complete Streets under regular review.

Councilors also discussed options to require the planning commission to review the policy annually and to add a time limit to the resolution so future councils revisit it on a regular schedule.

The council’s votes: the Complete Streets resolution carried; the Vision Zero resolution carried, and staff were authorized to pursue the grant application and return with revised ordinance language if needed.

Looking ahead, staff said they will coordinate with Cherokee County Health Services and the city’s consultant to finalize the language and schedule any required ordinance work or annual review requirements.