City Council, July 23rd

Since the agenda for City Council on Monday doesn't anything of great moment, let's tip our caps to the Reve Tour!

Photo: Reve, via the Oregonian

Don't know about the Reve Tour?

This year we are celebrating 100 years of women voting in Oregon and 40 years of women's athletics under Title IX. Just the other day Yahoo named a new CEO.

And over the weekend a team of women finished the Tour de France one day ahead of the men.

Portland writer Heidi Swift is blogging about the tour here.

I have a feeling the ripples from this may not be fast, but they will be strong and long, and will be an important ingredient in making bicycling much less focused on the men. 50 years ago climbing Mt. Everest was rare. In the past few years, State Treasurer Ted Wheeler and Salemite Craig Hanneman reached the summit of Everest, and there are lines sometimes on the mountain. It remains a great challenge, but one that many have undertaken.

Equally, I'm sure we'll hear of more women doing the Tour and see a trickle down effect in racing and ordinary bicycling!

Council Agenda

At 5:30 before the meeting, there will be a joint work session of the Urban Renewal Agency and the Planning Commission on the Minto Island Bridge and Path.

On the agenda itself is the First Reading of the Bike and Walk Salem update to the Transportation System Plan, with the Public Hearing scheduled for August 13th.

With an Intergovernmental agreement the City proposes hire the County to manage planning on Brown Road bike lanes and sidewalks. Since the project area is in both City and County, designating a lead will ensure continuity and avoid duplication of resources.

Parks has an update. Hoodview Park in North Salem, off of Kale, started construction on June 18th, and some wayfinding signage is going in at Minto.

The Council goals update doesn't seem to have anything new other than news that the downtown mobility study contract had finally been awarded at the end of June.

Conversations on the Fairview refinement plan continue, and folks have agreed to extend the continuation from July 23rd to August 13th.

And there's a brief note on the initial take of the 2013 Legislative priorities for the City. Not surprisingly, funding and taxation matters dominate. Transportation stuff didn't make the preliminary cut.