Re-thinking the Ravine District — Several business owners were concerned that the preliminary streetscape design focused too much on the ravine and overlooked the commercial and historical aspects of the area. As a result, the team is assembling ideas from historic photos and re-positioning street trees in the commercial district of the area.

Addition of temporary delivery parking spaces — Seven (7) short-term delivery spaces have been incorporated into the streetscape design to provide space for both smaller and full-size delivery trucks to unload. The City will be working with delivery companies to determine ideal times for dedicated loading areas.

Identification of existing public art — The Public Arts Committee (PAC) and the Bainbridge Island Downtown Association (BIDA) are evaluating the art and other features (benches, pavers, etc.) currently incorporated into the streetscape and determining the stewards of each piece. Together with the design team, they will determine how to best proceed with the removal, relocation or re-commission of each item.

Reduction in the number of street trees — Many islanders were concerned about so many new street trees proposed in the preliminary design. In response, the team has reduced their number by almost 30% to provide more on-street parking, increase visibility to store-front windows and provide more natural light in the core district.

Retention of proposed lane and sidewalk widths — Some people are concerned that the proposed width of sidewalks (9 feet) and travel lanes (12 feet) in the core district are too narrow. However, the proposed design guidelines for the downtown core recommend a minimum 10-foot sidewalk width, and the city standards for urban arterial streets recommend a minimum 10-foot travel lane width. The preliminary design proposes making the travel lanes two feet wider and the the sidewalks one foot narrower than these policies recommend. Any further reduction in the sidewalk width would compromise the space for street trees, low-impact storm water features, benches, bike racks, artwork and people moving about our pedestrian-oriented town center.

Addition of dedicated right-turn lane — The addition of a right-turn-only lane for drivers heading north on Madison (the dominant west-bound movement) will reduce delays at this key intersection.

Reduction of east-bound encroachment area — Moving the green space to the northwest corner of the intersection allows for a reduction in the curvature of the street at this location. This provides additional clearance between the proposed sidewalk on the south side of the street and the large existing tree on the Eagle Harbor Church property. At the church’s request the design team is considering swinging the sidewalk around the south side of the tree to reduce construction impacts on the tree roots.

Retention of existing trees — In an effort to retain as much on-street parking in this area as possible, the team will be meeting with the adjacent property owner to ensure that existing trees in this area will be preserved and to coordinate other landscape buffer improvements.

Addition of dedicated left-turn lane — The addition of a left-turn-only lane for drivers heading west on Winslow Way (the dominant north-bound movement) will reduce delays at this key intersection. This will mitigate the increase in left-turns here due to the proposed restriction of left-turns at the Winslow-Bjune intersection.

Reconfiguration of northwest corner as a rain garden — The addition of the right-turn-only lane for drivers heading north on Madison requires swapping the locations of the west-bound through-lane and the center island rain garden in the preliminary design. This new location at the northwest corner of the intersection gives the design team the opportunity to coordinate the rain garden design with improvements planned by owners of the adjacent Winslow Green.