The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About2/6/2024 Item 6a, Horn - Staff Agenda Correspondence (Broad Street)City of San Luis Obispo, Council Memorandum City of San Luis Obispo Council Agenda Correspondence DATE: February 5, 2024 TO: Mayor and Council FROM: Matt Horn, Public Works Director VIA: Derek Johnson, City Manager ATTACH: ATP Active Project Description, Broad Street Background, Resource Estimates SUBJECT: ITEM 6A – FISCAL YEAR 2023-24 MID-YEAR BUDGET REVIEW Numerous agenda correspondence has been submitted by community members advocating for the City to advance efforts to implement transportation improvements along the South Broad Street corridor as envisioned in the 2014 South Broad Street Area Plan and 2021 Active Transportation Plan (ATP). The response below provides information on what transportation safety/active transportation improvement projects are already in progress, what resources are currently available, and what additional resources would be required to accelerate work on a new project for South Broad Street. 1) What active transportation/transportation safety projects have been recently completed or are in progress? The following notable active transportation projects have been recently completed or are in progress as City-led capital improvement projects: 1. 2022 Downtown Paving Project – Complete a. Downtown Marsh and Higuera Street Bikeway Improvements b. Oceanaire and Cerro Romauldo Neighborhood Greenways c. Ramona Drive and Patricia Safe Route to School Traffic Calming 2. Over 100 ADA Curb Ramps Complete or In-Construction in 2022-24 3. 2023 Pedestrian Crossing Improvements & Johnson Road Diet - Complete 4. North Chorro Greenway Project – In Construction 5. 2023 Arterials Paving – In Construction a. Santa Barbara Street Bikeway Improvements b. Monterey Street Pedestrian/Bike Crossing Enhancements c. Santa Barbara/High Street Pedestrian Crossing Enhancements d. Orcutt Road Bikeway Enhancements 6. Monterey/Santa Rosa Intersection Crossing Improvements – Complete 7. 2024 Roadway Sealing Project – In Design a. Grand Avenue Complete Street Item 6a - Broad Street Corridor Page 2 b. Toro Street Neighborhood Greenway c. Portions of Mill Street Neighborhood Greenway d. Johnson Avenue Permanent Road Diet 8. South/King Signalized Crossing Project – In Design 9. Higuera Complete Street Project – In Design 10. Foothill Complete Street Project – In Planning/Early Design 11. Railroad Safety Trail Extension (Tiburon to Orcutt) – In Design 12. California/Foothill Rail Crossing Improvements – In Design 13. California/Taft Roundabout – In Design 14. Prado Creek Bridge & Higuera/Prado Protected Intersection – In Design 15. Prado Interchange (Sidewalks and Protected Bike Lanes) – In Design The projects noted above represent over $30 million in investment in ATP Implementation. Attachment A provides key graphics and information related to the community’s request. In addition, the following active transportation projects have been recently completed or are in progress as requirements of private development projects: 1. San Luis Ranch Development - Complete a. Madonna Road Shared-Use Path b. Los Osos Valley Road/Froom Ranch Way Protected Intersection c. Madonna Road/Dalidio Drive Protected Intersection d. Dalidio Drive and Froom Ranch Way Shared-Use Paths 2. Avila Ranch Development – Partially Complete a. Buckley Road Extension Bikeways – Complete b. Vachell Lane, Earthwood, and Venture Drive Bike Lanes – Complete c. Tank Farm Creek Shared-Use Path – Partially Completed d. Buckley Road East of Vachell Bike Lanes & Shared -Use Path – In Design 3. Froom Ranch Development – In Design a. Los Osos Valley Road Protected Bike Lanes b. Los Osos Valley Road/Auto Park Protected Intersection 4. 600 Tank Farm, 650 Tank Farm, 660 Tank Farm Developments – In Design a. Protected bike lanes and sidewalks on Tank Farm Road b. Intersection Improvements at Tank Farm/Santa Fe c. 65% Design for Tank Farm Road Shared-Use Path Extension With the addition of these improvements, a little over 50% of the City’s Active Transportation Plan Tier 1 (highest priority) network would be complete. Item 6a - Broad Street Corridor Page 3 Broad Street from South Street to the southern City limits is identified as a Tier 1 Bicycle and Pedestrian Corridor in the Active Transportation Plan and it should be noted that Broad Street between Sweeney Street and Tank Farm Road is scheduled for repaving in 2026-27 and/or 2028-2029 depending on available funding. Typically, measures would be taken to improve pedestrian and bicycle improvements as part of the repaving work. If the Council wants to implement temporary measures as part of the 2027 paving program, While the repaving project would provide ATP benefits, the totality of improvements conceptually laid out in the South Broad Street Corridor Plan are beyond the scope of paving maintenance and are expected to cost between $12 - $15 million. Please note that these improvements are yet to be completely scoped and project delivery costs have yet to be developed. The anticipated improvements to Broad Street include roadway medians, streetlights, traffic signals, and street trees on Broad Street from Upham to Orcutt Road. If Council wishes to fund additional improvements on Broad Street at this time, and with the addition of new resources discussed further below, staff believes that planning, public outreach, and design work would take approximately 3 years. Council could also direct staff to include some modest improvements with the paving program with permanent solutions such as signals, medians, lighting, and other identified improvements being integrated into longer-term capital planning and grant applications. 2) Are current resources sufficient to initiate work on a new transportation improvement project for South Broad Street? Currently, the Transportation Planning and Engineering Program is operating at full capacity, with nearly $30 million in active Capital Improvement Plan projects in some phase of design or construction, in addition to ongoing responsibilities to maintain essential services and programs, including development review, construction traffic control review, and traffic safety/vision zero program administration. While the Program is currently fully staffed, due to previous staffing vacancies, promotions, and departures over the past several years, the Program has not been able to move projects forward as quickly as anticipated on several prominent ATP projects, including the Foothill Complete Street and Railroad Safety Trail Extension (Tiburon to Orcutt) projects. At this time, there are insufficient staffing and funding resources available or programmed to advance work on any substantial new project assignments, including the South Broad Street Corridor, without deferring/canceling work on other projects. That is not recommended, as most of the current resource-intensive projects are already in construction or funded through outside grants, where delays would risk forfeiture or the return of significant funding amounts. Item 6a - Broad Street Corridor Page 4 3) What additional resources would be required to advance work on a new project for South Broad Street? If the Council is interested in allocating new resources to advance work on a new project for the South Broad Street Corridor at this time, additional staffing and funding resources would be required. In order to take on this new project while maintaining progress on existing essential services and priority capital projects, the following additional resources would be needed: • Staffing – Two new full-time staffing positions would be recommended: one transportation planner-engineer (ideally mid-to-senior experience level), and one capital improvement project engineer, focusing on transportation project delivery. o Additional Operating Cost: $400,000 through FY25 + additional funding in future fiscal years • Capital Project Funding – Approximately $400,000 would be needed to advance consultant services for focused planning, environmental review, engineering design, and community outreach efforts for a South Broad Street Corridor project in order to advance concepts to a sufficient level to inform requests for final design and construction funding within the near - term horizon (2-5 years). These efforts would also provide sufficient details to support competitive pursuits of outside grant funding for construction. o Additional Capital Cost: $400,000 In total, approximately $800,000 would be required to advance these efforts at this time. Construction costs for permanent improvements are currently estimated at $12-15 million. It should be noted that the hiring process for the City will take approximately four months to complete and the time necessary to onboard and train a new staff member takes one to two years depending on the experience of the staff hired. It also should be noted that the City has been successful in hiring entry-level staff in the engineering and transportation discipline area, but more experienced professionals are in high demand. Lastly, it should be noted that the City’s Transportation Manager is unable to have direct involvement and oversight over a potential South Broad Street Corridor project, due to a conflict of interest. This fact highlights the need for additional outside resources to provide adequate oversight to support such a project. If Council is inclined to support the addition of this project, staff recommends reducing the amount of funds appropriated into the Infrastructure Investment Fund. Item 6a - Broad Street Corridor Page 5 4) What actions are recommended if Council wishes to move forward with Broad Street ATP implementations outside the two-year financial plan budgeting process. Council has been provided with cost, timing, and information concerning other projects to assist with Council’s determination whether to move forward with ATP implementations on Broad Street. Due to the need to hire and onboard staff, Council could align funding needs with timing and when better information will be available as follows: A. Appropriate $400k from the Infrastructure Investment Fund to support staffing needs for the Broad Street ATP with the Mid-Year Budget and approval of this funding for carryover through FY 2023-24 and into FY 2024-25. B. Direct staff to return with a project plan for Broad Street ATP Improvements with Budget Supplement. C. Direct staff to return with a funding request for consultant services to support Broad Street ATP Implementation work efforts as part of the Budget Supplement. D. Direct staff to return with necessary Capital Improvement Plan revisions to fund this need and other infrastructure needs as well as inflationary trends as part of the Budget Supplement. E. Direct staff to align future Broad Street Paving with Broad Street ATP Implementation work. Based on known information, this process could take approximately 5 to 6 years to implement ATP improvements on Broad Street when taking into account the need to hire staff, and complete planning and public outreach, design, and construction. A more comprehensive project plan will be provided at Budget Supplement if Council supports the above recommendations. 1 ATP Projects in Progress • >$30 million in ATP projects in progress • Notable projects: 1. Higuera Complete Street 2. Foothill Complete Street 3. 2023 & 2024 Paving Projects 4. South/King Signalized Crossing 5. California/Foothill Crossing Safety Improvements 6. California/Taft Roundabout 7. RRST Extension (Orcutt Area) 8. Prado/Higuera Protected Intersection 9. LOVR Bikeways (Private Development) ATP Tier 1 Network Highlighted Links = Projects complete, in design or construction ATTACHMENT A 1 2 South Broad Street Corridor What improvements are envisioned? • Landscaped medians • Signalized intersections • Protected bike lanes • Sidewalk widening • Street Trees • Streetlighting •$15M+ to Implement ATTACHMENT A 2 3 Resources required to initiate work on South Broad Street Corridor • Transportation and CIP Engineering Divisions at full capacity • Several ATP projects already delayed due to staffing limitations (Foothill Complete Street, RRST Extension in Orcutt Area) • Current projects cannot be deferred without risking millions in grant funding • Needs for planning/environmental/50% design ≈ $800,000 • Staffing: 2 Engineers ($400,000) • Consultant Services: ($400,000) ATTACHMENT A 3