To: Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council
From: Julie Lucido, Public Works Director
Prepared By: Jessica Lowe, Deputy Public Works Director
TITLE:
Title
Five-Way Intersection Improvement Project - Cooperative Agreement with the California Department of Transportation
LABEL
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommendation
Authorize the Public Works Director to execute on behalf of the City a Cooperative Agreement in substantial conformance with Attachment 1 with the California Department of Transportation to complete CEQA analysis and design documents for improvements to the intersection of Silverado Trail (SR121)/East Avenue/Third Street/Coombsville Road.
Body
DISCUSSION:
The intersection of State Route (SR) 121 (Silverado Trail), East Avenue, Third Street, and Coombsville Road (Silverado 5-Way) is in need of modifications to reduce congestion and improve safety and operations for motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians.
In September 2014, a large community engagement initiative began to discuss intersection improvement options, and multiple productive community meetings were well attended. As a result of that public engagement, thirteen alternatives were developed. Each alternative was evaluated for the level of improvement to the intersection and impact to the surrounding neighborhood. After evaluating input from the public meetings, operational levels of service, engineering constraints, and safety improvements, the thirteen alternatives were narrowed to four viable alternatives and were presented to Council.
In February 2017, Council recommended Alternative 5F (Attachment 2), consisting of a double roundabout, and directed Staff to submit the Draft Study Report - Project Initiation Document (PID) to the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) for finalization. Caltrans subsequently approved the PID on June 28, 2019, and programmed Alternative 5F for further study and design.
Work covered under this proposed Cooperative Agreement includes the next phases of project development, including development of the environmental document and engineering design to complete construction documents. The environmental studies will comply with CEQA and NEPA with the City leading through the CEQA process as Lead Agency and the final environmental document subject to Caltrans approval as the CEQA Responsible Agency. Caltrans will lead the NEPA process. The City will also lead the efforts for the engineering work to develop the construction documents. The City will fund the work to prepare the environmental and construction documents while Caltrans will fund their review of those work products. Because federal funding is anticipated to be needed for future phases of the work, the environmental review and design phases will follow the federal process for project development.
Approval of the Cooperative Agreement is the next action in the overall process to develop, analyze, approve, and construct the proposed project and must be completed now to meet State funding deadlines. Additional project approvals by Council will be necessary for future stages of the project development including right of way acquisition and construction. The specific requirements for the right of way acquisition is unknown at this time and will be finalized during design. Once finalized, an amendment to the Cooperative Agreement covering the right of way phase will be brought to Council for approval.
Funding has been programmed in previous years and proposed in Fiscal Year 2023/2024 to complete the two phases of work covered by the Cooperative Agreement. The funding sources programmed for the project are Street Improvement Fees and Gas Tax and may only be used on transportation projects. One Bay Area Grant (OBAG) funds in the amount of $2 million have been awarded to the project for the construction phase, and Caltrans has programmed $3.9 million in State Highway Operation and Protection Program (SHOPP) funds. Funds in addition to those already programmed will be needed to successfully complete the project, and the Napa Valley Transportation Authority has committed to aiding in obtaining external grants to fund the project. Total project costs were estimated to be $23 million assuming a construction year of 2024.
Following execution of the Cooperative Agreement, Staff will release a Request for Proposals to obtain professional services to prepare the environmental and construction documents. Staff will bring the proposed project back to Council for items including contract award for development of those documents and for adoption of the CEQA documentation.
FINANCIAL IMPACTS:
No funds will be exchanged with Caltrans under this agreement. Both the City and Caltrans are contributing funds to the work. City funds will pay for the development of the environmental document and the construction documents, and Caltrans funds will pay for their costs to review the work as the responsible agency.
The City will fund its portion of the work with the existing Third-Coombsville-East (5-Way) Intersection Project (ST14PW04) budget. The project’s current available balance is $4,040,000. An additional $850,000 project obligation is proposed as part of the FY23 Capital Improvement Program Amendment item on the June 6, 2023 agenda. If the proposed additional $850,000 is approved, then the total available project budget will be $4,890,000, providing sufficient funds to cover the City’s proposed cost share of up to $4,850,000. CalTrans’ review will be funded directly by Caltrans (SHOPP funds).
CEQA:
The Public Works Director has determined that the Recommended Action described in this Agenda Report is not in-and-of-itself a “project” (pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15378) since it does not result in a physical change in the environment.
However, the Recommended Action is a part of a larger “project” that will be subject to environmental review in accordance with CEQA at the “earliest feasible time” prior to “approval” consistent with CEQA Guidelines Sections 15004 and 15352. The larger “project” includes the Council’s consideration and approval of a CIP project to construct two new roundabouts at the five-way intersection of the Silverado Trail, East Avenue, Third Street, and Coombsville Road, and staff plans to bring back a CEQA analysis of that project to Council prior to making any final recommendations.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
ATCH 1 - Draft Cooperative Agreement
ATCH 2 - Project Location and Alternative 5F
NOTIFICATION:
None.