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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSan Luis Ranch DEIR Public Comment received 1-30-2017 (Bike SLO County) 860 Pacific St, Suite 105, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 | bikeslocounty.org City of San Luis Obispo Community Development Department Attn: John Frickenbach and Doug Davidson 919 Palm Street San Luis Obispo CA 93401-3218 ddavidson@slocity.org Dear Mr. Frickenbach and Mr. Davidson: Re: San Luis Draft Environmental Impact Report Jan. 30, 2017 Bike SLO County appreciates the opportunity to comment on the San Luis Ranch Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR). We are supported by more than 4,800 individuals throughout the region who believe safer complete roads for biking, walking and driving are essential to communitywide well-being. Bike SLO County supports denser housing for people who want to live closer to their jobs in the City so they don't have to commute long distances, and riding a bicycle, walking and/or taking transit are viable options. We are pleased to see that the DEIR emphasizes bikeways and pedestrian connections on site and to adjacent and close-by destinations, all of which contribute to reduced vehicle trips and vehicle trips traveled. We support the mitigation measures that encourage people to use multi-modal transportation options, including a bicycle-share program, vanpools and neighborhood electric vehicles. The projection of 32 driving miles per household per day is a significant decrease from the City average of 54 per day. Despite the DEIR’s proposed mitigations, San Luis Ranch is projected to generate nearly 17,000 additional motor vehicle trips per day in an area already suffering from traffic congestion. The added traffic results in a number of significant and unavoidable environmental impacts, including to air quality and traffic. We find these impacts unacceptable, and believe they can be mitigated to below a level of significance by: -Placing more emphasis on and incentives to use multi-modal transportation options to destinations beyond adjacent and close-by destinations, including downtown San Luis Obispo, San Luis Obispo High School, Cal Poly and worksites in the vicinity of the County Regional Airport. -Recognizing that changing transportation preferences and technology will furthe r reduce driving miles per household. 860 Pacific St, Suite 105, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 | bikeslocounty.org The Final EIR needs to address three major City goals that the San Luis Obispo City Council established on Jan. 28, 2017, for the next two-year budget cycle: -Housing: Facilitate increased production of all housing types designed to be economically accessible to the area workforce and low and very low-income residents, through increased density and proximity to transportation corridors in alignment with the Climate Action Plan. -Multi-Modal Transportation, including prioritizing implementation of the Bicycle Master Plan, pedestrian safety and the Short-Range Transit Plan. -Climate Action: Implement the Climate Action Plan, assess requirements to achieve a "net-zero carbon city" target and implement cost-effective measures, including implementation of a sustainability coordinator and formation of a green team. We request that the Final EIR analyze a new green project that incorporates the City Council’s new goals and addresses how San Luis Ranch will help the City achieve the 20 percent trips-by-bike goal in the Land Use and Circulation Elements and the Climate Action Plan and the 20 percent mode share objective in the Bicycle Transportation Plan. The San Luis Ranch Specific Plan states the following: The SLO Bicycle Transportation Plan puts forth the need for a Class I crossing of Hwy 101 between Los Osos Valley Road and Madonna Road. San Luis Ranch Specific Plan development shall consider as part of the Prado Road connection, either a bicycle/pedestrian only crossing , or a motor vehicle crossing with both Class I and Class II facilities. The SLO Bicycle Transportation Plan looks to provide connectivity from the planned “Prado East extension to Broad” project, as a main east/west connector across town to shopping and, most notably, Laguna Middle School (see Figure 6.13). San Luis Ranch Specific Plan development is only responsible for its fair share of improvements in the San Luis Ranch Specific Plan Area. The Final EIR must address a glaring gap in the bicycle transpo rtation network: a Class I crossing of Highway 101 near Marsh Street for a direct connection to downtown. San Luis Obispo urgently needs a safe and convenient crossing of Highway 101 between downtown and the Laguna Lake area for people of all abilities on bicycles. Access to the Madonna bike path is so perilous at both ends that experienced bicyclists avoid it, and Laguna Middle School students rarely consider it as a viable option for travel to school. The DEIR identifies the Prado Road connection as a crossing for people on bikes and states that San Luis Ranch is responsible for financing its fair share of the project. For people on bikes traveling back and forth between the Laguna Lake area and downtown, the Prado Road connection is not direct and requires riding on heavily congested Higuera Street where additional and extended turn lanes are proposed at intersections 860 Pacific St, Suite 105, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 | bikeslocounty.org as mitigation for the Avila Ranch project. Even if San Luis Ranch is not responsible for financing all or part of a Highway 101 crossing f or people on bikes near Marsh Street, the Final EIR must address it as a significant environmental impact because it represents a significant barrier. Another barrier to people on bicycles is the San Luis Ranch DEIR’s proposed mitigation to add and extend turn lanes to intersections to increase capacity for motor vehicles. Multiple turn lanes pose safety risks to people on bicycles and discourage bicycling. The City Bicycle Transportation Plan states that “intersections can be significant barriers for bicyclists, depending on the bicyclist skill level and the complexity and volume of the intersection traffic.” We cite the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments (SLOCOG) 2013 bicycle use survey found that the majority of County bicycle riders fall into three major categories: -Strong and Fearless (14.6%): Defined as someone comfortable riding on almost any road or intersection in the county regardless of road conditions, traffic speed and volume. -Enthused and Confident (31.3%): Defined as someone comfortable riding on certain roads with wide shoulders, bicycle lanes and easy-to-navigate intersections. -Interested but Concerned (27.9%): Defined as someone only comfortable riding away from motor vehicles or on roads with bicycle lanes, neighborhood streets with low traffic speed and volume, and on bicycle paths. The full survey is posted at: http://slocog.org/sites/default/files/SLOCOG-Bike-Barriers-Survey-Analysis-Report.pdf The City needs the “enthused and confident” and “interested but concerned” categories to reach the 20 percent trips-by-bike goal in the LUCE and Climate Action Plan and the 20 percent mode share objective in the Bicycle Transportation Plan. Bike SLO County is also concerned there won’t be enough developer fee contributions, including San Luis Ranch’s fair share, to build the Prado Road connection as proposed in the DEIR. The failure of Measure J, the half -cent sales tax measure on the November 2016 ballot, and a significant reduction in SLOCOG’s funding sources and flexibility in how funding can be spent present other challenges. In addition, the City of San Luis Obispo received a large allocation of regional funds for the Los Osos Valley Road interchange project, which means regional funds will be distributed to other jurisdictions in the near future. If the Prado Road isn’t built as proposed, the overpasses at Madonna Road and Los Osos Valley roads will take on the added traffic resulting from San Luis Ranch. 860 Pacific St, Suite 105, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 | bikeslocounty.org The DEIR also assumes that the Avila Ranch project will be approved as proposed. The San Luis Ranch Final EIR should address the environmental impacts of significant changes or delays in Avila Ranch. Sincerely, Lea Lea Brooks, Advocate Bike SLO County