Congress for the New Urbanism is launching The Role of Universities in Urban Design and Innovation, which is focused on the influence of universities on the development of our community. These are open public discussions held at P.J. Dolan’s at 2836 E. Bearss Avenue, Tampa. The first discussion in September focused on USF’s influence on our economy, our politics, and our physical environment.  Two more discussions are scheduled as follows.

#2 – Town and Gown: Getting Along and Prospering – Nov 18, 2014 
What is the relationship like between universities and their host cities? How are they changing?

#3 – The Connected Future of USF and North Tampa? – Jan 13, 2015
How do we achieve our vision? How can the relationship between USF and its current/future partners with surrounding local government and community organization help to reshape the greater North Tampa area?

USF Bulls Walk and Bike Week: Complete Streets Open House to be held Wednesday, September 3rd from 11:00am-2:00pm  inside the Marshall Center Atrium.  The USF Bulls Walk and Bike Week is an event to actively promote pedestrian and bicycle safety to the University community. The Open House will be an opportunity for students and campus visitors to learn about ongoing Complete Streets efforts and projects both on campus and in the broader Tampa area.

What are “Complete Streets”? Complete streets are streets for everyone. They are designed to enable safe access for all users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and transit riders of all ages and abilities. Complete Streets make it easy to cross the street, walk to shops, and bicycle to work. They allow buses to run on time and make it safe for people to walk to and from transit stations. The USF Bulls Walk and Bike Week will also host vendors and exhibits. The public is invited to attend.

Tampa’s Urban Charrette and the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) Tampa Bay will host Urbanism on Tap at PJ Dolan’s Irish Pub & Grille, North of USF on September 9, 2014 starting at 5:45 p.m. Starting this fall, Urbanism on Tap organizers have moved north of Downtown Tampa to host a new Urbanism on Tap Series highlighting the ‘Role of Universities in Urban Design and Innovation’and engage the University of South Florida (USF) community in the conversation.

Led by Urban Charrette and CNU Tampa Bay, Urbanism on Tap is a recurring open mic event, focused on generating constructive conversations within the community about current ideas and trends that are shaping our city. Every event is open to the public, and moderators and attendees are invited to share their views and stories related to the topic of the day. The intention of the event is to generate a lively exchange of ideas, which will enhance our ability to make Tampa a more livable city. The upcoming event, entitled “The USF Factor,” is the first discussion of a new three-part series focused on the relationship between University of South Florida and Tampa’s urban landscape.

Venue: PJ Dolan’s Irish Pub & Grille, North of USF (2836 E Bearss Ave Tampa, FL 33613); Date and Time: September 9, 2014 from 5:45 p.m – 7:15 p.m. For any questions, email Ashly Anderson at info@urbancharrett.org or 239-823-1645.

Writer: Vinod Kadu. Source: Erin Chantry, CNU Tampa Bay and Ashly Anderson, Urban Charrette

The next NNTA meeting will be held Wednesday, September 10, 2014, 8:00-9:30 a.m.  The meeting will take place at the Center for Urban Transportation Research, on the USF Tampa Campus.  Incoming Chairman, Dan Jurman, who serves as Executive Director of the University Area Community Development Corporation, will preside.  Mark Sharpe, the Chairman of the Hillsborough County Board of Commissioners has been invited to speak about the plans of the newly formed Tampa Innovation Alliance.  Mr. Sharpe was recently hired to serve as its Executive Director.  Mr. Stephen Benson, Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Specialist for the Florida Department of Transportation, District 7, will give a presentation about the plans for protected bike lanes along Fowler Avenue.  This meeting is open to the public.  If you have any questions, please contact Sara Hendricks, 813-974-9801 or hendricks@cutr.usf.edu

Mr. Dan Jurman has accepted a nomination to serve as NNTA Vice-Chair. He will begin serving in this new capacity in January 2014. Here is a a bit of background about Dan: He joined the University Area Community Development Corporation (UACDC) as its Executive Director & CEO on January 9^th, 2012.  In his short time in Tampa, Dan has led the effort to build a coalition of over 70 non-profit, public and private partners to fundamentally change the way service providers work together in the community.  He came to Tampa from Lancaster, Pennsylvania where he spent 13 years in senior leadership positions at non-profit organizations of varying sizes and missions.  In Tampa he served on the Citizen Advisory Council’s Non-Profit Subcommittee and currently serves as a member of Eckerd Community Alternatives’ Advisory Council, Hillsborough County Violence Prevention Collaborative (Public Safety and Judiciary Committee Chairman), the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay’s Community Platform Steering Committee, is an Elder and Finance Committee member at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church and is a member of the New Tampa Rotary.  He started his non-profit career in New Jersey working in youth programs in hard-hit neighborhoods in cities like Camden, Newark and Atlantic City.  He and his wife and their 3 children live in New Tampa.

December Promotion: We are giving away new flat screen T.V.’s or Ipad’s for the first 5 new van’s drivers! Add a new benefit for your employees at no cost to the Employer.  Vanpooling saves your employees money on their way to work.  Our ridematching system links 5-15 people with similar commutes and helps companies and employees reduce costs and hassle on their daily commute. While vanpooling to work they can sleep, socialize with friends or get a headstart on the workday on a smart phone or through one of our Wi-Fi enabled vans.  We make it easy! We identify clusters of people/coworkers who live in the same area.  We are offering a FREE Cluster Analysis and One FREE Month Demo Van promotion for new Employers. We host group meetings and help form commuter groups.  We set-up vehicle delivery, provide insurance and regular maintenance. Contact: Ed Chase, Business Development.  Direct Dial: 813-849-8320. Email: ed.chase@vRide.com

http://www.vride.com/commuter-tax-benefits-incentives-grant-assistance

The week-long campaign will take place across the USF Tampa campus September 9-13, 2013, promoting awareness of pedestrian and bicycle safety with reminders to Walk Wise, Bike Smart, and Drive Carefully. The scheduled events for the week include the following highlights: Monday, September 9th, Walk with the Bulls event – Join USF President Judy Genshaft on a walk around the beautiful USF Tampa campus; Tuesday, September 10th , Complete Streets Open House – Learn and give feedback at the USF Marshall Center about transportation projects happening around the USF area; Thursday, September 12th, Bicycle Celebration at the USF Marshall Center where we will be raffling off 10 bicycles to faculty, staff, and students; and Friday, September 13th – Cycling Savvy Class at CUTR to learn techniques of bicycling.

More information on these events can be found on the Facebook page, www.facebook.com/bullswalkandbikeweek
The 2011 Florida pedestrian fatality rates were nearly double the national average and bicycle fatality rates were nearly triple the national average, based on NHTSA Traffic Safety Facts data. Hillsborough County alone saw 658 pedestrian and bicycle related crashes resulting in 666 injuries and 36 fatalities. In 2011, there were 38 pedestrian and bicycle related crashes within a 1.5 mile radius around and including the USF Tampa campus. The goal of this event is to promote safety to not only pedestrians and bicyclists, but to motorists as well, with the hope of bringing these numbers closer to zero.

The Center for Urban Transportation Research (CUTR) at the University of South Florida (USF) has received support from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) Traffic Safety Office to conduct the second annual USF Bulls Walk and Bike Week educational campaign.

In September 2013, Hillsborough County is about to begin construction on bicycle and pedestrian safety improvements on three segments of roadway in New North.

56th Street, from Fowler Avenue to Fletcher Avenue
• Install 3,200 linear feet of sidewalk on the west side of 56th Street.
• Install 2,500 linear feet of sidewalk on the east side of 56th Street to close existing gaps.
• Install two high-visibility mid-block crosswalks with rapid flashing beacons at 122nd Avenue and at 127th Avenue.
• Existing HART bus stops will be relocated to the new crosswalk locations.
• Install street lighting on both sides of 56th Street.

42nd Street, from Fletcher Avenue to Bruce B. Downs Blvd.
• Install 1,500 linear feet of sidewalk on the east side of 42nd Street where existing gaps occur.
• Install two high-visibility mid-block crosswalks with rapid flashing beacons between Wood Spring Lane and Lazy Oaks Drive, and just south of Valor Court.
• HART will relocate existing bus stops to the new crosswalk locations.
• Install street lighting on both sides of 42nd Street.

Bruce B. Downs Blvd., from Fletcher Avenue to Bearss Avenue
• Install sidewalks on the east and west sides of Bruce B. Downs Blvd. to eliminate existing gaps.
• Hillsborough County proposes lighting improvements along Bruce B. Downs Blvd. They are currently under design by TECO and the upgrades would be done by TECO.

Thomas Locke Remembered

Tom Locke talking about alternative transportation                                                                                                                     during Commuter Choices Week, USF 2002

Dear New North Transportation Alliance Members & Friends,

With great sadness, we report that Thomas Locke, General Manager of the University Mall and Vice Chair of the New North Transportation Alliance (NNTA), passed away Monday, July 1, 2013.  A memorial celebration will be held Friday, July 19, 2013, 5:00 PM at the University Area Development Center, 14013 North 22nd Street, Tampa, Florida 33613.

If it were not for the abiding interest, leadership and advocacy by Tom Locke over the years, going back to 1994, the New North Transportation Alliance would not have accomplished all that it has.  Tom was long-time Chair and Vice Chair of NNTA, formerly known as the University North Transportation Initiative (UNTI).

Tom had developed a large network of contacts in the community business arena.  Having moved recently from Chicago, he was aware of the effects that rapid urbanization has upon the transportation system and mobility of the community.  He was well attuned to the needs of private businesses in the area, especially on issues of transportation access, employee recruitment and retention, and safety.  He became personally involved in other related issues, primarily regional planning activities that will set the course of major transportation investments for the next forty years. This involvement made him well known and respected in the transportation community and articulate about the issues.  Tom’s participation in NNTA has been responsible for much of the momentum and focus of the organization.  He understood the importance of reminding NNTA members periodically of its many accomplishments.

In NNTA’s earlier history, Tom had provided the University Mall as a location for the former University North Commuter Center, a one-stop shop for transportation information and HART bus tickets during the 1990’s.  Tom provided the University Mall as the location for Alternative Transportation Week special events and the location for BikeLids parking at a time when few businesses considered providing bicycle parking facilities for their employees and customers.

In partnership with USF, Tom initiated and provided support for the Mall Express, a noon-time shuttle service between USF and the University Mall.  This later expanded into the USF Bull Runner.

Tom advocated for the development of a multimodal transportation system and he addressed the Hillsborough Board of County Commissioners about the transportation needs in our service area. Tom actively reached out to the Hillsborough MPO to include UNTI and the other transportation management organizations in the MPO Transportation Improvement Program.

Tom facilitated meetings and discussions about a host of local transportation issues, including the proposed East/West Connector, Bruce B. Downs Blvd. corridor safety, and the need for bike lanes on 42^nd Street.

Early in Tom’s tenure as Chair, he was recognized by then Tampa City Councilman Bob Buckhorn for his civic activities. Tom was a member of the Committee of 99, an advisory group to the Hillsborough County Commission that considered various transportation improvement scenarios during the late 1990’s.  Ten years later, he served as a stakeholder to the Light Rail Alternatives Analysis and for HART’s MetroRapid bus rapid transit service. More recently, Tom advocated tirelessly on behalf of the completion of multimodal street and safety improvements to 22^nd Street as part of his work with our partner, the University Area Community Development Corporation.  It was Tom’s idea to hold the Transportation EXPO at USF in September 2010.

Through Tom’s devoted advocacy, the New North area continues to improve for its residents and commuters. His support for the good work of the NNTA was consistent and enthusiastic, resulting in many transportation choice improvements with more yet to be realized in the years to come. We will miss Tom’s leadership and persona tremendously.

Sincerely,

Barbara S. Donerly, RA, AICP, LEED  AP

Co-Chair NNTA

Assistant Director, USF Facilities Planning & Construction