HomeMy WebLinkAboutInformation Update.20190408
INFORMATION UPDATE
I. Non-Smoking Policy at APCHA Managed Properties
II. Downtowner Service Update
INFORMATION UPDATE
Smoking Policy at APCHA Managed Properties
Strengthening Community Through Workforce Housing
1
Informational MemoInformational MemoInformational MemoInformational Memo
TO: Aspen City Council
FROM: Aspen Pitkin County Housing Authority Staff
MEETING DATE: April 8, 2019
RE: Non-Smoking Policy at APCHA Managed Properties – No Action Required
Purpose:Purpose:Purpose:Purpose:
APCHA will introduce non-smoking policies at Marolt, Truscott 1 & 2, and Aspen County Inn.
TIMELINE AND PLAN:TIMELINE AND PLAN:TIMELINE AND PLAN:TIMELINE AND PLAN:
Lease addendum’s have been drafted and approved by APCHA’s attorney. APCHA knows that enforcement is
going to prove challenging in the beginning but is prepared to move forward. APCHA has confirmed that
there will be no reduction in insurance premiums. However, APCHA is confident that this is the right decision
from a health and safety standpoint.
Marolt
The Aspen Music School leases Marolt in the summer and they are excited by the introduction of a smoke-
free policy, as the school campus is already smoke free. APCHA will designate two outside areas around
Marolt as smoking areas. Signage and butt receptacles will be installed.
The reservation agreements for the 2019/2020 winter for Marolt will include an additional provision stating,
Marolt will be smoke-free. This is important as people will be made aware of the change when they register
in the spring.
Aspen Country Inn and Truscott 1 & 2
APCHA’s goal is to turn these properties smoke free by June 1, 2020. Starting June 1, 2019 APCHA will begin
to add the lease addendum to all leases that are re-signed informing current tenants of the changes. In
addition, APCHA will post flyers and hold a resident meeting informing residents of the change. This will allow
current tenants 12 months to find new housing if they choose not to stay. APCHA will designate multiple
areas around Truscott and Aspen Country Inn as smoking areas and install signage and butt receptacles.
DRAFT-MEMORANDUM
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: John Krueger, Director of Transportation
THROUGH: Scott Miller, Director Public Works
Trish Aragon, PE, City Engineer
MEETING DATE: April 22, 2019
RE: Information Only: Downtowner Service Update
BACKGROUND
In April 2016, Aspen City Council approved a pilot on-demand transit program with the
Downtowner as the selected vendor. This service was ultimately extended through April of 2018.
An RFP for a more permanent app-based on-demand service was issued in December of 2017
and awarded again to the Downtowner in May of 2018. The current contract with the
Downtowner is valid for up to five year.
The original intent of the service was to provide short-distance on-demand transportation within or
near the downtown core, with a purpose of reducing downtown parking congestion. Service was
to operate for up to 12 hours daily using electric vehicles, preferably GEM cars. Currently, the
Downtowner is operating a fleet of seven GEM cars, including one that is ADA accessible. See
page two for further discussion of vehicle related issues.
Since its inception, the Downtowner program has grown in terms of ridership, service hours and
boundaries. Current hours of service are 8:00am-11:00pm in the winter and 11:00am-11:00pm
for the remainder of the year. Requests for expansions to both boundaries and hours of operation
are received frequently. Please see Attachment B for ridership and other statistics.
The average wait time for a ride is under 10-minutes, although higher wait times do occur during
predictably busy periods such as New Year’s Eve or X Games. In 2018, the average wait time
was just over seven minutes. A more comprehensive ridership report and other data are included
as Attachment B.
DISCUSSION:
Until recently, the Downtowner service has exclusively utilized electric Polaris GEM cars. The
GEM cars have proved to be popular with customers and, until recently, have enabled the
Downtowner to meet its required level of service. However, since winter 2018, the GEM
vehicles have been plagued with electrical problems that require lengthy diagnoses and repair
timeframes, at times eliminating half the fleet.
In order to keep average wait times to 10 minutes or less during the busy winter season, the
Downtowner needed to bring in an emergency back-up vehicle into service. The back-up vehicle
was a 15-passenger shuttle that was well-received by customers but of concern to some Council
members because it was not electric.
As of March 25, the shuttle has been returned and GEM vehicles are wholly operating the
service. However, the GEM fleet continues experiencing electrical issues and is becoming an
operational problem due to frequent charging needs. With this in mind, staff has worked with
Downtowner to identify an electric vehicle alternative for the upcoming spring, summer and fall
seasons. The vehicle will be a Downtowner branded Chevy Bolt (Attachment A). This vehicle
will operate as a backup for either mechanical failures or capacity issues that arise due to GEM
charging needs.
Although the Bolt is considered a bridge vehicle to serve rider needs during the upcoming busy
seasons, staff does plan to return to Council for a work session later in the year to clarify the
goals of the service and how best to reach them. Topics of discussion will include service targets,
hours of operation, boundaries and vehicle type(s).
ATTACHMENT A
BOLT VEHICLE
ATTACHMENT B
DOWNTOWNER DATA
Ridership
2016 (June 17 - Dec): 22,886
2017: 47,664
2018: 70,762
2019 (Jan - Mar): 30,376
2018 Personal Vehicle Replacement (In App Survey)
36% of respondents stated that their Downtowner trip replaced a personal vehicle
trip.
2018 Shared Rides
33% of 2018 trip requests were grouped into shared rides.
2018 Average Wait Time
7:08
2018 Average Trip Distance
.63 miles
2018 Top Drop-off Locations
Rubey Park
Gondola
City Market
2018 Average Ride Length
4 minutes
2018 Average Experience Rating
4.92 out of 5