Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 01231996 - D.1 V. 1 TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Contra•,•'", �.. -� FROM: Harvey E. Bragdon, '"'4 - Costa ��' Community Development Director osrq County - DATE: January 23, 1996 SUBJECT: Consider a Request to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission to include the State Route 4 Bypass Project in the 1996 Regional Transportation Plan. SPECIFIC REQUEST(S) OR RECOMMENDATION(S) & BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION RECOMMENDATIONS Authorize the Chair of the Board of Supervisors to sign and transmit to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission a letter requesting that the State Route 4 Bypass project be included in the 1996 Regional Transportation Plan. FISCAL IMPACT None. BACKGROUND/REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS Last summer the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) began an update of the Regional Transportation Plan for the San Francisco Bay Area (RTP). The current RTP was adopted in 1994. The update is scheduled for adoption in the summer of 1996. In anticipation of this update, the County has been working with other jurisdictions through the State Route 4 Bypass Authority and the Contra Costa Transportation Authority to have the State Route 4 Bypass included in the RTP. The County originally requested the MTC to include the State Route 4 Bypas in 1994 Regional Transportation Plan. At that time, the MTC deferred action on this req a t, i d' a that the CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: X YES SIGNATU _ RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR _ RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE _ APPROVE OTHER SIGNATURE(S): ACTION OF BOARD ON January 2 3 , 19 9 6 APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED x OTHER x See addendum for Board of Supervisors ' actions . VOTE OF SUPERVISORS I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A UNANIMOUS (ABSENT TRUE AND CORRECT COPY OF AN AYES: 1, 4 , 5 , 2 NOES: none ACTION TAKEN AND ENTERED ON THE ABSENT: none ABSTAIN: 3 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN. Contact Person: S. Goetz, 646-2134 ATTESTED January 23 , 1996 Orig: PHIL BATCHELOR, CLERK OF cc: State Route 4 Bypass Authority THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Contra Costa Transportation Authority AND COUNTY MINISTRATOR Public Works Department BY d , DEPUTY Request to Include the State Route 4 Bypass in the 1996 RTP January 23, 1996 Page Two BACKGROUND/REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATION (continued) impacts of the project were not evaluated in the RTP's Draft EIR. The Final EIR of the RTP stated the project can be included at a later date after MTC had an opportunity to review the Bypass project's Final EIR and the fully-funded project that the local jurisdictions would propose for construction. Since adoption of the 1994 RTP, the State Route 4 Bypass project has received environmental clearance, with significant public review, and the residents of eastern Contra Costa have imposed a fee program on new developments to fund this and other transportation projects. Construction of the initial phase of the State Route 4 Bypass project, consisting of a two-lane expressway from State Route 4 in Antioch to Walnut Boulevard south of Brentwood, has been included in the 10-year Capital Improvement Program of the Contra Costa Transportation Authority's 1995 Congestion Management Program. On October 18, 1995, the Contra Costa Transportation Authority submitted a request to the MTC to include the State Route 4 Bypass project in the 1996 update of the RTP, consistent with the recently adopted Congestion Management Program. Last December, the MTC staff released a description of their initial project assumptions for the 1996 RTP, it did not include the State Route 4 Bypass project. Furthermore, to limit the environmental work on the 1996 RTP, staff declared their intent not to include significant, new capacity projects unless there is a critical urgency need. The MTC staff proposed several criteria that any new project must satisfy before it could be included in the 1996 RTP. The MTC would determine if the State Route 4 Bypass project meets these criteria once they receive a response to their initial project assumptions from interested agencies. The Contra Costa Authority staff is preparing a response to the initial project assumption for the 1996 RTP. On January 11 , the State Route 4 Bypass Authority authorized transmittal of a response to the MTC and requested it's member jurisdictions to consider similar action. County staff recommends that the Board authorize the Chair to comment on the initial project assumption of the 1996 RTP and request that the RTP include the State Route 4 Bypass. Copies of the Board's comments should be sent.to the State Route 4 Bypass Authority and the Contra Costa Transportation Authority. ADDENDUM TO ITEM D. 1 JANUARY 23 , 1996 Steve Goetz, Community Development Department, presented the staff report on this item. Supervisor Torlakson spoke in support of the project and he moved approval of the recommendation. Supervisor Bishop advised she would be abstaining on the motion as she has real concerns on the State Route 4 bypass . Supervisor DeSaulnier seconded the motion. Supervisor Rogers requested background on the growth analysis and he also requested information on the environmental impact review. Mr. Goetz responded to Supervisor Rogers requests and he responded to Supervisor Bishop' s concerns on the State Route 4 bypass and he also described the scope of the project . Supervisor Torlakson urged the Board to move ahead and continue to monitor the matter in the Transportation Committee and provide status reports to the Board. Supervisor Bishop expressed concerns relative to this action being linked to a toll road. Mr. Goetz clarified that this matter had nothing to do with Federal funding or a toll road. Supervisor Rogers requested further clarification on specific decisions on State Route 4 bypass and he requested a chronology on important positions the Board had taken. Mr. Goetz responded with a brief chronology of actions on this issue, commenting on Board approval of the East County Action Plan. Supervisor Rogers expressed a willingness to support the motion with an amendment that the action taken on this issue does not' imply a position on a toll road. Supervisor Torlakson concurred. IT IS BY THE BOARD ORDERED that the Chair, Board of Supervisors, is APPROVED AND AUTHORIZED to sign and transmit correspondence to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) requesting that the State Route 4 Bypass Project be included in the 1996 Regional Transportation Plan; and the Transportation Committee is DIRECTED to monitor this project and provide status reports to the Board of Supervisors; and staff is DIRECTED to amend the above referenced correspondence to clarify that the Board of Supervisors is not taking any implied position on toll roads via this action due to the fact that the State Route 4 Bypass and toll roads are two separate issues . REVISED LETTER TO REPLACE 1/23/96 CORRESPONDENCE Phil Batchelor The Board of Supervisors Contra Clerk ofthe Board Costa and County Administration Building County Administrator 651 Pine Street, Room 106 (sto)646-2371 Martinez,California 94553-1293 County Jim Rogers,1st District e_ L gas..-•. o0 Jeff Smith,2nd District -f - Gayle Bishop,3rd District ;'G '•' 1Aark DeSsulnler,4th District Tom Tortakson•5th DistrictJ - Tq.coi; `t' January 26, 1996 Mr. Lawrence D. Dahms Metropolitan Transportation Commission 101 Eighth Street Oakland, CA 94607-4746 Dear Mr. Dahms : The Board of Supervisors wishes to respond to the initial project assumptions for the 1996 update of the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) as described by your staff at the December 18 meeting of the Partnership' s Plans and Programs Committee. We request that these assumptions be revised to include the State Route 4 Bypass project, consistent with similar requests of our Congestion Management Agency and the State Route 4 Bypass Authority. Evaluation of our request to add the Bypass project to the RTP should be based on the project' s consistency with RTP goals. Such an evaluation would reveal the following: - The Bypass project improves the mobility of persons and freight by allowing through traffic to bypass downtown Oakley and Brentwood via a shorter, more direct route; - The Bypass project has received environmental clearance, following significant public review, enhancing its sensitivity to the environment; - Construction of the Bypass would fulfill the wishes of individual communities along the corridor who have agreed to provide the funds needed to construct this project; and - When completed, the Bypass would serve as a critical link in the circulation system of the area, providing access to the new Kaiser hospital and affordable housing, consistent with local plans. Currently, the, State Route 4 Bypass Authority is proceeding with project design activities for the Bypass . The participating jurisdictions are committed to open an initial segment of this Mr. Lawrence D. Dahms January 26, 1996 Page Two facility as soon as possible in order for the community to enjoy the benefits of congestion relief as early as possible. These project development activities will be delayed if the Bypass project is not included in the 1996 RTP. The Board of Supervisors acknowledges the shortage of state and federal funds for regional transportation improvements. We ,have agreed to partner with our neighboring local jurisdictions by jointly imposing significant fees on new development to fund the Bypass and other transportation improvements. We hope the Commission would provide encouragement and support by acknowledging such efforts at this time in the RTP. We also wish to emphasize that this request should not be construed as an action in support of the Mid State Tollway. The Tollway is not part of the State Route 4 Bypass and should not be associated with the Board' s request to add the Bypass to the RTP. Xna h, Chair sta County Supervisors cc : J. Pierce, OCTA T. Torlakson, SR4 Bypass Authority