Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Transportation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Orleans committee narrows transportation priorities, plans Main Street RFP and backs Tonset extension study
Summary
Committee members reviewed a 2019 Complete Streets prioritization plan, agreed to pursue a Main Street design RFP this fiscal year and reached consensus to elevate a Tonset Road extension as the committee's next CIP priority while coordinating with MassDOT for state road items.
At a recent Orleans Transportation Committee meeting, members reviewed the townwide Complete Streets prioritization plan and directed staff to start the procurement work for the next phase of Main Street design while elevating a Tonset Road extension as their next planning priority.
The plan under discussion, developed with the Cape Cod Commission in 2019, lists sidewalks on Main Street, work on Old Colony Way and other projects townwide. "This isn't necessarily a DPW prioritization plan," Calvin, the DPW director, told the committee, saying the Complete Streets document reflected community input and is used to position projects for state funding and design support.
Why it matters: Complete Streets status can make projects eligible for state funding and give the town leverage when petitioning MassDOT or applying for Chapter 90 or other grant programs. Committee members flagged roughly 10 items in the plan that are principally state responsibilities on Route 28 and 6A and said the town can petition the state and pursue TIP placement for design and construction funding.
Members discussed where town money belongs: Old Colony Way was described as largely complete for the south‑side sidewalk installed from Staples Plaza to Main Street, but committee members noted remaining sidewalks and drainage issues on other segments that may be addressed through pavement maintenance or future CIP articles. For projects that are town responsibilities, the committee said they prefer adding discrete projects into the capital improvement plan rather than trying to mix them into routine pavement management.
On timetable and next steps: Staff described an RFP process to find a design consultant for the next Main Street phase. The RFP will reflect the committee's chosen conceptual alternative, typically allow about 30 days for responses and, staff estimated, could take roughly three months to get a designer under contract before detailed design begins. The committee asked staff to identify "crunch points" along Main Street (tight sections, hedges, utilities and historic walls) to inform the design scope.
On future priorities the group reached a working consensus to focus on a Tonset Road extension as the committee's next priority after current Main Street and Beach Road work is underway. Members said Tonset is a laid‑out road that dovetails with school and police station connections and could be a candidate for grant programs such as Safe Routes to School. The committee agreed to form a smaller task group to review and prioritize the Complete Streets list and to prepare potential CIP requests for the November budget cycle.
The committee did not take formal binding votes on project authorization but recorded consensus to proceed with the RFP sequence and to prioritize Tonset for CIP consideration. Staff will return with the RFP schedule, cost estimates and public presentation dates.
What comes next: staff will prepare the RFP and bring the Main Street design schedule back to the committee; the committee also agreed to draft prioritized CIP requests to present to town leadership in advance of the capital planning calendar.
