HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 3.B 12/05/2011 l A.L.U.
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DATE: December 5, 2011
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council through City Manager
FROM: Larry Zimmer, Public Works Capital Improvements Division Manager)
SUBJECT: Resolution Accepting the Cycle 3 Safe Routes to School Program Grant for the
Safe Routes to School Plan 2011 . Project, Approving the Proposed Project Budget,
and Authorizing City Manager to Sign the Grant - Related Documents
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City .Council adopt the attached resolution accepting the Cycle 3
Federal Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Program Grant for the Safe Routes to School Plan 2011 .
Project, approving the proposed project budget, and authorizing City Manager to sign the grant -
related documents.
BACKGROUND
The current cycle of the SRTS grant was announced in April, with applications due in July. The
City applied for a planning grant as well as a grant for a lighted crosswalk at East Washington
Street and Vallejo. The applications were reviewed individually, with the planning grant being
successful and the lighted crosswalk being denied at this time. 139 grants were awarded out of
332 submitted applications.
The goal of the Safe Routes to School program is to maintain and improve safety for students
traveling to and from school by bicycle and on foot, and to promote these modes for traveling to
school. The proposed grant funding will be used to create a new Safe Routes to School Plan.
Staff will select a consultant to review our existing plan and provide recommendations on .. .
infrastructure safety improvements. The plan will include eleven elementary schools, one
' alternative school campus (Valley Oaks), and two junior high school campuses within
Petaluma's city limits.
The City completed a selffunded Safe Routes to School Plan in 2005 that focused on
infrastructure improvements within a 1,000 foot radius of twelve individual elementary school
campuses (one campus has since been closed).
Agenda Review:
City Attorney Finance Director City Manag
DISCUSSION
Staff applied for this current grant to update and expand on the current plan. Many of the
recommended projects within the 1000 foot radius proposed in the 2005 plan have been
implemented. The plan expansion will increase the radius to a half -mile. Additionally the new
plan will include two junior highs and one alternative school campus. An updated plan will help
the City compete more competitively when applying for future State or Federal SRTS funding.
If approved, this project will help the City and the different Petaluma School Districts prioritize
safety improvements for fourteen individual school campuses. Following Council approval and
Caltrans authorization to proceed with the project, staff will request proposals from consultants
to work on the project. Pending the actual budget authorization process by the Federal Highway
Administration, the work may begin as early as spring 2012.
If this project is not approved, staff will decline the Federal Safe Routes to School (SRTS)
Program funding. These specific funds can only be used for the project as described in the grant
application and, therefore, cannot be used for other purposes.
FINANCIAL IMPACTS
Staff has applied for and been approved to receive $129,600 of Cycle 3 Federal Safe Routes to
School (SRTS) Program funds for a non - infrastructure planning grant. The SRTS Program will
fund 100% of the staff time for grant and project management. As is typical, this grant will
reimburse based on actual expenses. The initial costs will be paid for out of the CIP fund and
reimbursed typically within two months of expenditure.
The following is an estimate of the total project cost. The estimate will be further refined during
the project development process. In the unexpected event that additional funds are required, a
future resolution will be brought to Council.
R equested 0.4s t mated '?
f z, G;:n,
VSIes Ftv Ng 2 Re mtiu *ement.
Staff Time $ 21,600 $ 21
Planning Contract $ 98,000 $ 98,000
Supplies and Materials $ 1.0000 $ 10,000
TOTAL $ 129,600 $ 129,600
Funding Sources
Federal SRTS $ 129,600 $ 129,600
TOTAL $ 129,600
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ATTACHMENTS
1. Resolution
2. Map of School Campuses
3. Caltrans Award Letter
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ATTACHMENT 1
RESOLUTION ACCEPTING THE CYCLE 3 SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL PROGRAM
GRANT FOR THE SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL PLAN 2011 PROJECT, APPROVING
THE PROPOSED PROJECT BUDGET, AND AUTHORIZING CITY MANAGER TO
SIGN THE GRANT- RELATED DOCUMENTS
WHEREAS, the proposed project is a safe routes to school plan for fourteen Petaluma
school campuses; and
WHEREAS, the project represents an ongoing effort by the City to improve pedestrian
and bicycle safety; and
WHEREAS, the project will help prioritize safety improvements projects for school
routes to and from the fourteen school campuses; and
WHEREAS, staff successfully applied for the Cycle 3 Federal Safe Routes to School
Program (SRTS) funding and was awarded $129,600 toward the Safe Routes to School Plan
2011 Project; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City Council of the City of
Petaluma hereby:
1. Accepts the Cycle 3 Federal Safe Routes to School Program Grant; and
2. Amends the FY 2011/2012 Adopted CIP Budget to include the Safe Routes to School Plan
2011 Project; and
3. Accepts the proposed project budget in the amount of $129,600; and
4. Authorizes the City Manager to sign the Caltrans Program Supplement Agreement (PSA) for
this specific project in order to receive grant funding allocation:
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ATTACHMENT 3
TA • K —B 1 TR IA: A DIN AND 1 D D B'• 7r. .ve .r
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 1 '
DISTRICT 4 OFFICE OF LOCAL ASSISTANCE �
P.O. BOX 23660, MS -10B `� a)
OAKLAND, CA 94623 -0660
PHONE (510)286 -4444
flex your power.)
TYY (510)286 - 4454 Be energy efficient!
www.dot.ca.gov
October 13, 2011
Erica Ahmann
11 English Street
Petaluma, CA 94953 -0061
Dear Ms. Ahmann:
Congratulations! The following non - infrastructure project has been approved for
funding under Cycle 3 of the Federal Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Program.
Petaluma, La Tercera ES, Miwok Valley ES, Kenilworth MS, Petaluma MS, Mcdowell ES,
McKinley ES, Valley Vista ES, & $129,600
139 project applications were selected `out :of, the - 332.applications submitted
statewide. Each District through the District Selection Committee Process selected
their highest scored projects up to their funding target of $66 million.
$42 million of the $66 million represents the programming capacity available in the
current 2011 Federal Statewide Transportation Improvement Program ( FSTIP) with
anticipated funding in the reauthorization of the new federal act. An additional
$24 million is programmed in the beyond years of the FSTIP m order to maximize
future obligations utilizing anticipated capacity in the 2013 FSTIP.
All approved projects will need to be amended into the FSTIP by the Metropolitan
Planning Organizations prior to requesting authorization to proceed. In order to fully
utilize the programming capacity of the FSTIP, all approved projects will have at least
25% and up to 100% of project funds amended in the 4 - year element of the FSTIP
based on the project delivery schedule. This will allow all agencies to initiate the
delivery of their:, projects in an expedited manner to meet the safety program delivery
requirements. For infrastructure projects with 75% of their funding programmed in
the beyond years of the FSTIP, their funding is expected to be programmed into the 4-
year element of the 2013 FSTIP, before their request for authorization for
construction.
Caltrans encourages agencies to move forward and obtain authorization for their
projects expeditiously. Expedited Project Selection Procedures (EPSP) may be
utilized to =rnove:forward any project that has been programmed in the 4 -year element .
of the 2011 FSTIP. Caltrans anticipates being able to approve all EPSP requests for
the next several years.
"Caltrans improves mobility across California"
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ERICA AHMANN
October 13, 2011
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Caltrans is now requiring agencies to•meet delivery deadlines for key milestones as
stated in Caltrans' Cycle 3 SRTS Guidelines The milestones and delivery deadlines
are as follows:
Non - infrastructure projects:
1. Request for Authorization to. Proceed with Construction within 9 months
after the project is amended into the FSTIP. `Environmental requirements
must be met prior to the Request for Authorization to Proceed with
Construction.
2. Complete construction and close -out the project within 57 months after the
project is amended into the FSTIP.
The project schedule submitted in the application is the commitment by you to deliver
the project within the project delivery requirements established by DLA and will be
used for project tracking. Caltrans will track ,the delivery of these SRTS projects and
prepare a quarterly report showing the delivery performance of each project. The
delivery; report is available at
hup://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/LocalPrograms/HSIP/delivery status:htm.
Projects that are on or ahead of schedule will be identified with a green checkmark. •
Projects that are behind schedule will be identified with a red flag. Flags will be
removed in later reports if the agency has completed the milestone: If an agency has a
SRTS project that'has a red flag in a report that is released during, a future SRTS `call
for projects' cycle, Caltrans will not accept SRTS applications from that agency.
The DLA reserves the right to re- program the unobligated federal funds for projects
that do not meet the•delivery milestones requirements and become flagged. Any
unobligated federal funds may be re- programmed to outside of the active 4 -year
element of the FSTIP. By reserving the right tore- program the unobligated federal
funds for projects that do not meet the' delivery requirements, the. DLA expects to
maintain; programming ;. flexibility for our safety programs and effectively manage the
programming capacity for projects waiting to obligate federal funds. In addition, any
agency that has not initiated their project by the first milestone date will be required to
submit status. and justification for the project to remain•in the program. The updated
Project Delivery Requirements has been posted at the delivery status website
reference above.
We encourage you to consider your agency's ability to deliver your project within the
time frames provided under the new delivery requirements. If you determine that the
project has environmental, right of way,; or other conditions that may, prevent your
agency from meeting these milestones and you do not want to risk your project being
re- programmed or precluded from applying for future SRTS funding, please contact
me as soon as possible to discuss your options.
"Caltrans improves mobility. across California"
ERICA AHMANN
October 13, 2011
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To view the complete project list and implementation guidelines, please visit the Safe
Routes to School Website at:
http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/LocalPrograms/saferoutes/srts.htm.
Once your project is amended into the FSTIP and prior to starting any work, please
submit a Request for Authorization to Proceed with Preliminary Engineering for
infrastructure projects or a Request for Authorization to Proceed with non-
infrastructure project as outlined in Chapter 3 of the Local Assistance Procedures
Manual and the latest Office Bulletin DLA- 11-08 for non-infrastructure projects.
Please contact Moe Shakernia to arrange for an on -site field review to evaluate and
assess the entire scope of the infrastructure project A field review form can be found
in the. Local Assistance Procedures Manual or at the -Local Programs website:
http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/LocalPrograms/lam/lapm.htm.
If you have project - related questions, please feel free to contact Moe Shakernia at
(510)286 -5236, or at Moe_Shakernia @dotca.gov. If you have program- related
questions, please contact the statewide Safe Routes to School Program Coordinator,
Dawn Foster. She may be reached at (916) 653 -6920 or at:
Dawn.Foster@dot.ca.gov.
Sincerely,
SYLV6k4UNG Chief
Office of Local Assistance
"Caltrans improves mobility across California"
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