Dormont Borough Safe Mobility Commission Meeting – August 19, 2026

The Safe Mobility Commission met to discuss petitions, the Safe Streets for All (SS4A) grant, the Dormont/Mt. Lebanon Active Transportation and Safety Plan, Gateway topics, the road diet, and capital budgeting. Note: the agenda and transcript header list the meeting as March 17, 2026, at 6:00 PM, while the provided meeting metadata date of August 19, 2026, is used in this title as instructed.

Consent Calendar

• Minutes approval was deferred. A member had corrections to the February 2026 minutes but had not emailed them in time; another member asked to wait because he had just returned from Harrisburg. The commission agreed to approve two sets of minutes at the next meeting.

Public Comments & Testimony

• None were received. No members of the public attended in person, and no remote comments were read into the record.

Old Business

Petitions

• No formal petitions were before the commission. Staff mentioned that one petition had been sent out and not yet returned; it appeared to be a request for another stop sign.
• The commission discussed traffic safety mirrors: new mirrors can no longer be added in Pennsylvania, though existing mirrors may remain. A commissioner asked who is responsible for adjusting a mirror on Windamere near the train tracks that is facing the ground; staff said they would check.
• A commissioner suggested it would be more useful for residents to describe the safety problem they see rather than prescribe a stop sign, because stop signs are traffic-control devices and not always appropriate traffic-calming tools. Staff agreed that when a petition reaches the commission, staff could explore other solutions with the petitioner.

SS4A Grant Clarification and Intersection Audit

• The SS4A grant question remains unresolved: the award includes both demonstration and study language, and the borough is still in the early contract-phasing stage with the state. Staff said full clarification on allowable spending will come once the contract is signed.
• Michael Baker International, a civil engineering firm, contacted the borough with a proposal to conduct the boroughwide intersection audit requested in the grant application. The approximate cost is $60,000. Deliverables would include an existing conditions analysis, an intersection evaluation matrix, a community survey/needs assessment report, and an intersection implementation matrix. The audit would cover every intersection in the borough.
• Staff are checking with the solicitor whether Michael Baker can be contracted as a preferred service provider because of proprietary technology, and whether federal grant bidding thresholds apply. Michael Baker has been invited to present to council at the March 30 super committee meeting; sample materials will be circulated to commissioners.

Discussion Items

Council Meeting Report and Road Program

• Lloyd attended the council meeting virtually. Staff highlighted the roads selected for improvement: full reconstruction of the sections of Crosby that need it, plus mill and overlay work on Mississippi, Tennessee, and a variety of alleys.
• The borough’s PMG road-condition report uses PCI scores; some roads scored 2 out of 100. Almond Street and Barrenway scored 8 out of 100. Roughly one-third of borough roads are in good condition, one-third are fair, and one-third are poor or failed.
• No sidewalk work is currently on the list. The borough is still developing a sidewalk improvement program modeled on Brentwood: when roads are selected, code enforcement would evaluate sidewalks in those areas and notify property owners. Funding for launching the program this year is still under evaluation. Curbs are included in reconstruction projects but not in mill-and-overlay projects.
• Sidewalk maintenance is generally the property owner’s responsibility, though the borough plans to assess its own properties this spring. A commissioner flagged a tripping hazard on the sidewalk near Hillsdale Commons on the route to West Liberty Avenue; staff said they would look at it.

Dormont Goes Green

• Dormont Goes Green is scheduled for April 26, 2026, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the community garden municipal parking lot. A commissioner raised ADA concerns, noting that no accessible parking reaches the community garden and urging organizers to have a plan for accommodations.

Dormont/Mt. Lebanon Active Transportation and Safety Plan

• Commissioners reviewed community engagement sessions held in Mt. Lebanon, at the Dormont library, and at East End Brewing. One commissioner said planners are considering all-way stops at every Dormont signal, but have not committed. Another commissioner relayed a working attendee’s complaint that the East End Brewing session was too loud for them to provide comments, and suggested a more conducive venue for the next round.
• Staff said the plan is at the end of community engagement, not the end of the project. First-draft comments are due to the consultant at the end of the week. After the consultant integrates comments, a second draft will be circulated for two weeks of review, with a final styled PDF expected in the first week of April.
• Commission members will submit individual comments rather than a collective commission response. One commissioner questioned why the commissions were not more involved as bodies; staff responded that this was the structure set by the project planners and that the second draft would go to the commissions for review.

Gateway Topics and Visioning Goals

• Gateway’s Mark Reidenbach was unable to attend because his wife’s flight was delayed. The commission chose to defer Gateway’s presentation to the next meeting rather than have staff cover it.
• In reviewing visioning goals, staff gave updates on clean-language instructions for traffic complaints, ongoing ArcGIS work (including sewer, stormwater, permitting/code enforcement, signage, veterans banners, trees, and road-opening permits), and the intersection audit as the mechanism for future crosswalk/sign recommendations.
• Members noted that the traffic-calming handbook still conflicts with the adopted traffic-calming policy and needs to be reconciled before adoption; several mid-range goals, such as synchronized safety improvements with the roads program and a sidewalk repair/maintenance program, are in progress.

ATP and Road Diet Check-In

• No response has been received from PennDOT on the road diet. Staff said council sent a letter to PennDOT and it was not received well; however, the district engineer responded that PennDOT “simply misspoke” and is aware of the speed limit.

Understanding How Improvements Are Budgeted

• Staff explained that routine striping and signage are funded through the operating budget, while larger one-time or multi-year improvements are capital projects. There is no fixed dollar threshold; the distinction is based on whether the work is a one-time expense or an ongoing annual expense. The capital budget is driven by need and opportunity, with most large projects requiring grants because the borough cannot typically fund a $200,000 project from cash. The annual capital budget target is roughly $1 million, with the road program receiving the largest share.
• As an example, East Martin/Kelton signage and striping were estimated at $3,500. The borough recently purchased a paint sprayer to do more line striping in-house. Integrating intersections into the road program is intended to capture safety improvements more efficiently. Mount Lebanon indicated it does not maintain any part of East Martin/Kelton and will not partner on a grant; a grant could take six months to a year.
• Staff also cited Beg Snyder Playground, which needs approximately $150,000–$160,000 in ADA improvements. The borough applied for a Community Development Block Grant for the work and is waiting to see whether it will be funded.

Key Outcomes

• Minutes approval was deferred to the next meeting, when two sets of minutes will be approved together.
• No public comments were heard and no formal petitions were acted on.
• Gateway’s presentation was deferred to the next meeting.
• Michael Baker International will present the intersection audit proposal to council at the March 30 super committee meeting; sample materials will be circulated to commissioners.
• First-draft comments on the Dormont/Mt. Lebanon Active Transportation and Safety Plan are due at the end of the week; the second draft will be reviewed before the final PDF is expected in the first week of April.
• Staff will follow up on the Hillsdale Commons sidewalk concern and the Windamere mirror. Dormont Goes Green organizers will be reminded of ADA access needs.
• The road diet remains pending PennDOT response; no formal action was taken.