Speakers, Nay; Photo, Yea...

So, last nights City Council meeting did not go quite as expected.

No one spoke about the proposed ciclavia-style event for Claremont and Pomona, in fact I did not notice anyone from the Pomona Valley Bicycle Coalition (PVBC) present. This led me to reexamine the email, and conclude that I read too much into it. First, I assumed there would be something on the agenda regarding the ride, and second I assumed that there would be a PVBC representative there as facilitator, and with other supporters chiming in. But, no. Nothing. The exploratory ride is still on, but is a separate matter. Clearly, the main event (at the scale I am imagining it) can not take place without approval and involvement from the two cities through which it would run. I will keep my fingers crossed and await more news. Is no news, good news? Not really; no news, it just no news.

The big draw of the evening, the matter that most people seemed to have trekked to the Council Chamber for, was the speed limit increase study. Murmuring, grumbling, fidgeting, sounds of incredulity ran through the gathering during the entire presentation by city staff. The presentation itself was quite informative - the hows and whys of mandated speed increases, brief history of challenges to the 85th Percentile mandate, questions and proposals of what can and cannot be done - and comments by Council members all indicated that, clearly, no one is in favor of the increases. The question remained (I left at 8:30 while the discussion was still taking place) as to how best to respond to the state mandated increases, and the potential for working around them. This is a contentious issue between local governments and the state, one with great implications for safety, and I don't see it being settled anytime soon. 

On the plus side, I finally got around to taking a night-time photo of the bicycle parking structure at Pitzer College. I took a day-time photo of it last year, or when ever it was erected, and always wanted to get one showing it lit up. As I rode back home through the campus, I realized now was my opportunity. Still one of the best examples of bicycle parking I have seen.