OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Land Use and Special Studies Committee Meeting - August 6, 2025

City CouncilWednesday, August 6, 2025
BodyCarmel, Indiana
SessionCity Council
DateWednesday, August 6, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record

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Transcript — Verbatim
0:01

Okay.

0:04

Open the land use and special studies committee meeting Wednesday, August 6th, here at the Carmel Public Library at 5 36 p.m.

0:13

I apologize for the tardiness.

0:16

Things we'll be discussing today are right-of-way permits and micro mobility.

0:23

Where are we on right-of-way?

0:26

I sent the draft of an ordinance last week, I think, on maybe Thursday.

0:33

Because Brad Psyon spread here.

0:37

He was included on the email, but I haven't received a feedback from Brad yet.

0:44

Okay.

0:45

I don't know.

0:45

I know he had been very busy with other stuff, including budget sessions.

0:52

But the first draft is complete.

0:55

As you requested, it would be good to kind of sink the teeth into the document.

1:01

I did my best, but uh obviously subject to a lot of changes and further tailoring, etc.

1:07

So one thing I talked with Brad and he was not familiar with this.

1:12

Um he questioned, and I'm gonna bring up to you the ability of he was like, Well, the police gonna handle this, and I said no, these are fines, these are administrative.

1:26

Right, I just want to make sure that's not a police thing.

1:29

I mean, unless it becomes one, but it is not.

1:33

And I'm sorry, I didn't uh we need to if we could please go around and say who we are.

1:40

It's something we've started, and I don't want to Jessica Calm, Clark's office.

1:44

Okay, gather.

1:46

Brady Myers, Carmel PD.

1:48

Jordan Cole, Strong Towns Carmel.

1:50

Brian Locke, Carmel City Council.

1:56

Adrian Healing, Department of Community Services, Teresa Ayers, City Council, Shannon Art, City Council.

2:02

Cindy Estes, Timber Creek, Condominiance.

2:05

I need to show she city council.

2:06

That's neither city council.

2:08

And Sergei Grucher and Steve uh uh City Legal.

2:12

Thank you.

2:14

Okay, back to right-of-way permit.

2:16

So, team.

2:20

Have we reviewed what Sergey sent out?

2:23

And I would be honest, the last couple weeks, I have not.

2:29

Not in great detail, Matt.

2:31

If you want to table this for the next meeting to give yourself some time to really dive through it and for us to all dive through it, I'm okay with that.

2:40

Is that a consensus?

2:41

Yeah, that's fine with me.

2:44

Because I would like Brad's insights as well.

2:46

I know he hasn't.

2:49

We haven't had a chance to talk about very couple issues that I have, but any confirmation from engineering whether it's even feasible to do.

2:57

Um I specifically refer to um continuous maintenance bonding obligations and securities, and how that is going to work because we're currently we don't require that for something like this.

3:09

It's usually reserved for much bigger projects.

3:13

Um and then just the compliance issues that we discussed as well.

3:20

You know, an example of this, and Miss Estus is here because I had emailed her a photo uh there was a TPI well, there's a company, private contractor, not sure what they're doing work on, but they just pulled off 126th Street at speed and plowed into their landscaping along 126th Street and then proceeded to drive with two wheels through their landscaping, then backed up and parked in their landscaping to raise their bucket.

3:54

And that's the kind of thing where there needs to be a work plan submitted.

3:58

Um there's nothing there that could have been an emergency.

4:01

Um that's something that would need to, if work requires taking down a lane of traffic, then it requires taking down a lane of traffic, and a work plan should need to be developed, and the proper safety measures need to be accommodated, not just park completely blocking the trail and in some in private properties landscaping.

4:21

Yeah, we didn't know anything about that.

4:24

Talk to the president of our board.

4:26

Nobody knew AMI did not know.

4:29

So it's TMI is the comp a T T P I T V T P I.

4:34

Yeah, that was the name of the company.

4:36

And I want to say it this may not be a reflection on the company, but of the driver of that vehicle.

4:40

So I don't know anything about the company.

4:42

I don't want to give them a bad name.

4:43

But um the landscaping, we had no idea.

4:47

Somebody came back and put grass on it, and uh Rick Rap Rip RAF around the the pond.

4:56

And we didn't authorize that.

5:00

Um we thought it was the city, the eastman of the city and their landscaping.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Micromobility Planning█████████████████████████████████████████████71%
Engineering And Infrastructure█████████████20%
Public Safety██████9%
Summary of Proceedings

Land Use and Special Studies Committee Meeting - August 6, 2025

The Land Use and Special Studies Committee met on August 6, 2025, from 5:36 p.m. to 6:52 p.m. at the Carmel Public Library. Discussions focused on a proposed Right-of-Way Permit Ordinance and draft regulations for micro mobility devices.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Cindy Estes of Timber Creek Condominiums described an incident where a contractor damaged private landscaping without authorization, highlighting the need for stronger enforcement of work plans and penalties.

Discussion Items

Right-of-Way Permit Ordinance

  • Sergei Grucher (City Legal) presented a comprehensive draft ordinance covering the full permit lifecycle, including restoration timelines (e.g., immediate fills within 24 hours, other restoration within 30 days) and penalty structures (starting at $500 per violation per day, citing similar municipalities).
  • Matt (committee member) raised concerns about continuous maintenance bonding and compliance. Committee members agreed to table the ordinance for further review, pending input from Brad and engineering.

Micro Mobility Regulations

  • Matt presented a draft regulating low-speed vehicles (LSVs), golf carts, e-bikes, scooters, and other devices. Key proposals include:
    • Operation allowed on streets ≤35 mph, bike lanes, and multi-use trails with restrictions.
    • LSVs and golf carts would require insurance, registration, and safety equipment; minors must wear helmets.
    • Prohibitions on sidewalks and multi-use paths (with event exceptions).
    • Enforcement: warnings, fines up to $250 for first offenses, $250 for second, at least $100 for third plus impoundment.
  • Council members expressed support for the goal but raised safety concerns, particularly regarding:
    • E-bike speeds and conflicts with pedestrians on the Monon trail.
    • Underage operation of golf carts in neighborhoods like Village of West Clay.
    • The need for a nuanced "scalpel" approach rather than a broad brush, tailoring rules to specific street types.
  • The committee decided to move the draft forward: City Legal will convert it into an ordinance for introduction to the City Council. They also plan to invite an expert to discuss data from other communities.

Key Outcomes

  • Right-of-Way Ordinance: Tabled for additional review; will be discussed at the next committee meeting.
  • Micro Mobility Ordinance: Draft sent to City Legal for formal ordinance language, to be introduced to the City Council. Further refinement will occur in committee.
  • Safety Data: The committee committed to researching safety studies and will consider inviting a transportation safety expert.
  • Speed Limit Review: Council members discussed potentially lowering the speed limit on 136th Street to improve safety.

Meeting Transcript

Okay. Open the land use and special studies committee meeting Wednesday, August 6th, here at the Carmel Public Library at 5 36 p.m. I apologize for the tardiness. Things we'll be discussing today are right-of-way permits and micro mobility. Where are we on right-of-way? I sent the draft of an ordinance last week, I think, on maybe Thursday. Because Brad Psyon spread here. He was included on the email, but I haven't received a feedback from Brad yet. Okay. I don't know. I know he had been very busy with other stuff, including budget sessions. But the first draft is complete. As you requested, it would be good to kind of sink the teeth into the document. I did my best, but uh obviously subject to a lot of changes and further tailoring, etc. So one thing I talked with Brad and he was not familiar with this. Um he questioned, and I'm gonna bring up to you the ability of he was like, Well, the police gonna handle this, and I said no, these are fines, these are administrative. Right, I just want to make sure that's not a police thing. I mean, unless it becomes one, but it is not. And I'm sorry, I didn't uh we need to if we could please go around and say who we are. It's something we've started, and I don't want to Jessica Calm, Clark's office. Okay, gather. Brady Myers, Carmel PD. Jordan Cole, Strong Towns Carmel. Brian Locke, Carmel City Council. Adrian Healing, Department of Community Services, Teresa Ayers, City Council, Shannon Art, City Council. Cindy Estes, Timber Creek, Condominiance. I need to show she city council. That's neither city council. And Sergei Grucher and Steve uh uh City Legal. Thank you. Okay, back to right-of-way permit. So, team. Have we reviewed what Sergey sent out? And I would be honest, the last couple weeks, I have not. Not in great detail, Matt. If you want to table this for the next meeting to give yourself some time to really dive through it and for us to all dive through it, I'm okay with that. Is that a consensus? Yeah, that's fine with me. Because I would like Brad's insights as well. I know he hasn't. We haven't had a chance to talk about very couple issues that I have, but any confirmation from engineering whether it's even feasible to do. Um I specifically refer to um continuous maintenance bonding obligations and securities, and how that is going to work because we're currently we don't require that for something like this. It's usually reserved for much bigger projects. Um and then just the compliance issues that we discussed as well. You know, an example of this, and Miss Estus is here because I had emailed her a photo uh there was a TPI well, there's a company, private contractor, not sure what they're doing work on, but they just pulled off 126th Street at speed and plowed into their landscaping along 126th Street and then proceeded to drive with two wheels through their landscaping, then backed up and parked in their landscaping to raise their bucket. And that's the kind of thing where there needs to be a work plan submitted. Um there's nothing there that could have been an emergency. Um that's something that would need to, if work requires taking down a lane of traffic, then it requires taking down a lane of traffic, and a work plan should need to be developed, and the proper safety measures need to be accommodated, not just park completely blocking the trail and in some in private properties landscaping. Yeah, we didn't know anything about that. Talk to the president of our board.

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