REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Adopt a Resolution to Accept One Bay Area Grant Cycle 2 and Sustainable Transportation Planning Grant Funds and Approve Budget Modification No. 3
Report
GRANT SUMMARY
The City has recently secured the following grant funds through a competitive selection process:
One Bay Area Grant Cycle 2 (OBAG2)
The OBAG2 program is funded with a mix of federal Surface Transportation Block Grant Program (STBGP) funds and Congestion Mitigation Air Quality (CMAQ) funds. The projects must either be in, or directly serve a Priority Development Area (PDA). PDAs are locations defined by the cities and towns and approved by the Association of Bay Area Governments for more intense development around high frequency transit services. In May 2016, Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) released the OBAG2 call for projects. A total of 27 projects were submitted and only 15 were selected for award of grant funds. The City submitted the following 7 projects requesting $10,581,920 in OBAG2 grant funds with a local match totaling $2,463,266:
• Peery Park Sense of Place Improvements - $3,400,000 ($2,686,000 grant / $714,000 local match)
• East Sunnyvale Area Sense of Place - Transit/Bike/Pedestrian Upgrades - $3,857,500 ($3,047,425 grant / $810,075 local match)
• Fair Oaks Avenue Bikeway and Streetscape - $990,500 ($782,495 grant / $208,005 local match)
• Bernardo Avenue Bicycle Undercrossing - $632,911 ($500,000 grant / $132,911 local match)
• Java Drive Road Diet and Bike Lanes - $632,911 ($500,000 grant / $132,911 local match)
• Lawrence Station Area Sidewalks and Bicycle Facilities - $632,911 ($500,000 grant / $132,911 local match)
• Traffic Signal Upgrades - $2,898,453 ($2,566,000 grant / $332,453 local match) (Two separate applications were submitted to the program for award of these grant funds, but the final award combined both the applications into one project.)
All the City submitted projects were approved for award of OBAG2 grant funds by the VTA. A resolution is needed to submit the projects to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission for final approval. Funding for these projects has been included in the FY 2017/18 Recommended Budget. Funds are programmed for design and construction beginning in 2018, with the ultimate obligation deadline being 2023.
Sustainable Transportation Planning (STP)
The STP program is funded from the Federal Transit Administration and the State Highway Account. The STP grant must be used for studies of multimodal transportation issues having statewide, interregional, regional, or local significance. In August 2016, Caltrans released a call for projects. A total of 132 projects were submitted and only 41 were selected for award of grant funds. In April 2017, the City of Sunnyvale was notified by Caltrans that the City’s STP grant application was accepted for grant funding. State grant funds in the amount of $338,185 are approved with matching funds in the amount of $43,815. The grant funding will be used to develop a citywide Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Safe Routes to School Plan focusing on active transportation infrastructure and programs.
City Council must adopt a resolution to accept the OBAG2 grant funds and request final approval from MTC and a resolution to authorize the execution of STP documents, as required by each program before funds can finally be awarded.
EXISTING POLICY
General Plan, Chapter 3, Land Use and Transportation Element:
• Goal A: Coordinated Regional and Local Planning - Protect the quality of life, the natural environment, and property investment, preserve home rule, secure fair share funding, and provide leadership in the region.
• Goal B: Environmentally Sustainable Land Use and Transportation Planning and Development - Support the sustainable vision by incorporating sustainable features into land use and transportation decisions and practices.
• Goal C: An Effective Multimodal Transportation System - Offer the community a variety of transportation modes for local travel that are also integrated with the regional transportation system and land use pattern. Favor accommodation of alternative modes to the automobile as a means to enhance efficient transit use, bicycling, and walking and corresponding benefits to the environment, person-throughput, and qualitative improvements to the transportation system environment.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The action being considered does not constitute a “project” within the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15378(b)(4) in that it is a fiscal activity that does not involve any commitment to any specific project which may result in a potential significant impact on the environment.
FISCAL IMPACT
The total cost for projects associated with the OBAG2 and STP grants is $13,427,186. The operating costs for the project were included in the FY 17/18 budget. The total grant amount awarded is $10,920,105. The total matching funds in the amount of $2,507,081 are required to receive the awarded grants. A breakdown of the cost by grant is shown in the following table:
Receiving $10.92 million in grant funds is a net positive effect on the overall City transportation CIP. Staff recommends funding the required local match from two sources. Transportation Impact Fees should be the primary funding source, providing the local match for the following projects: East Sunnyvale Area Sense of Place - Transit/Bike/Pedestrian Upgrades, Fair Oaks Avenue Bikeway and Streetscape, Bernardo Avenue Bicycle Undercrossing, Java Drive Road Diet and Bike Lanes, and Lawrence Station Area Sidewalks and Bicycle Facilities. The local match totals: $1,460,628
For the remaining $1,046,453 (Peery Park Sense of Place Improvements, Traffic Signal Upgrades) local match from the General Fund was included in the FY 2017/18 Adopted Budget.
Budget Modification No. 3 (Attachment 3) has been prepared to reflect the final OBAG grant awards. The Projects Budget included appropriations for the OBAG projects, however, one project was revised in the final grant award to encompass two projects that had been included in the budget. This budget modification cancels new project 901214 - Sunnyvale Roadway Pavement Rehabilitation, and reallocates the funding to project 901215 - Sunnyvale Traffic Signal Upgrades, to match the final grant award.
Further, Budget Modification No. 3 appropriates the STP grant award to a new project for Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Safe Routes to School Safety Improvements. This project appropriation includes a transfer of $43,815 from Transportation Impact Fees for the local match.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City's official-notice bulletin board outside City Hall, at the Sunnyvale Senior Center, Community Center and Department of Public Safety; and by making the agenda and report available at the Sunnyvale Public Library, the Office of the City Clerk and on the City's website.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Approve the required resolutions to accept One Bay Area Grant Cycle 2 and Sustainable Transportation Planning Grant Funds and Approve Budget Modification No. 3 in the amount of $382,000.
Staff
Prepared by: Ralph Garcia, Senior Transportation Engineer
Reviewed by: Shahid Abbas, Transportation and Traffic Manager
Reviewed by: Manuel Pineda, Director, Public Works
Reviewed by: Kent Steffens, Assistant City Manager
Approved by: Deanna J. Santana, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. OBAG2 Resolution
2. STP Resolution
3. Budget Modification No. 3 Table