Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 05082007 - C.61 TO: REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY/BOARD OF SUPERVISORS s wL �E. ......._._oA Contra FROM: John B. Cullen _ Executive Director ; , Co LCL County DATE: May 8, 2007 C , c� 1 SUBJECT: North Richmond Truck Route Project SPECIFIC REQUEST(S) OR RECOMMENDATION(S) & BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION RECOMMENDATIONS 1. As the Redevelopment Agency, ACCEPT the North Richmond Truck Route Study: Alternative Route Concepts, Final Report (February 2007) prepared by Carter & Burgess, Inc. for the Caltrans Environmental Justice Grant. 2. As the Board of Supervisors, AUTHORIZE a General Plan Amendment Study to add the alignment of the "Preferred Alternative Route" into the circulation element of the General Plan. 3. As the Board of Supervisors, ACKNOWLEDGE that granting authorization for this General Plan Amendment Study does not imply any support to amend the General Plan, but only that this matter is appropriate for study. FISCAL IMPACT: None CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: / YES SIGNATURE _ RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMM D ION OF OARD CO ITTEE APPROVE _OTHER SIGNATURE (S): ACTION OF BOARD ON 0K, bO APPROVED AS RE"MENDED MENDED XC OTHER C�o�leD o� vc'ut"C�UISo�S VOTE OF SUPERVISORS I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE AUNANIMOUS (ABSENT_ _) AND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN YES: NOES: AND ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE ABSENT: ABSTAIN: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN. Contact: D'Andre Wells (925/335-1236) ATTESTED 0 5l0 g JOHN CULLEN, CLERK OF cc: CAO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Community Development AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR Redevelopment Agency 8fi 0L1--1 DEPUTY SUBJECT LINE BOARD OR COMMITTEE DATE Page 2 BACKGROUND/REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS One of the major initiatives of the North Richmond community is the need to divert Big Rig Truck traffic out of the residential neighborhood. Many residents have complained about an unusually high volume of trucks traveling precariously along residential streets, major corridors, and near local school Verde Elementary. Many truckers take short cuts through the community and industrial destinations on their way to transport goods, and make deliveries. The presence of trucks in North Richmond has been a growing problem since the completion of the Richmond Parkway in 1990. A shortage of effective complimentary routes in the area, coupled with large scale developments like K13 Homes and furniture manufacturer Palecek Imports, Inc. only exacerbates this problem. The elimination of unnecessary truck traffic will create safer roadways, reduce diesel emissions, and protect walkways along main streets like Chesley, Market and Third Avenue. The Redevelopment Agency(Agency) has long identified this need as one of major project,,-, under its capital improvement program. On April 4, 2006, the Agency retained engineering consultant Carter-Burgess, Inc. to implement a$100,100 Environmental Justice Grant from the California Department of Transport*ation (Caltrans). This grant was provided to develop a community-supported plan to devise and implement an alternative route for Big Rig trucks to use traveling to and from the North Richmond community. The planning process resulted in a "Preferred Alternative Report" for a route which will be parallel and immediately adjacent to the Union Pacific Railroad tracks through North Richmond. This will be accomplished by extending a short dead-end street called Soto Street northward to connect with Parr Boulevard. The Soto-Parr connection will enable trucks to move back and forth between the regional highway network(Richmond Parkway)and industrial destinations without passing through the neighborhood's Town Center or coming-near Verde Elementary. In addition, the new route will improve access to several industrial businesses along Market Avenue and 7t" Street which encourages economic development and employment opportunities. This route also underscores the shift and segmentation between the residential neighborhood, business community, and housing developments being planned for area. As more of the industrial area converts to residential uses like KB Homes and Signature Properties, it will become even more important to provide a truck route that bypasses the residential areas of the community. The Agency implemented this process as part of phase I of its AB1290 Implementation Plan along with the following community based organizations: North Richmond Municipal Advisory Council, West County Toxics Coalition, Neighborhood House of North Richmond, Community Healthy Initiative, and the Contra Costa County Asthma Coalition. Phase I which is now completed involved a community planning process, design, and selection of a community supported preferred alternative. Phase 11 calls for securing funding to implement the "Preferred Alternative." A funding application to proceed forward with the next steps has already been submitted to Caltrans under its Transportation, Community, and System Preservation Program for environmental review and preliminary design. The next phase also calls for a General Plan Amendment Study in order,to include the `Preferred Alternative Route" into the circulation element of the general plan. This request is warranted given that the proposed route crosses both Wildcat and San Pablo Creek, uses many underutilized parcels, and requires an enormous amount of capital investment in the North Richmond community. Therefore, staff recommends that the study be authorized. Authorization of this study does not imply the board's support or endorsement to amend the General Plan, but only that this matter is appropriate to study. SUBJECT LINE BOARD OR COMMITTEE DATE Page 3 The overall goal of this report was, and is, to find real solutions to address the abundance of trucks traveling through the North Richmond community. Other benefits include: ■ Improving the efficiency of the transportation system ■ Reducing the impacts of transportation on the environment ■ Providing efficient access to jobs, services and centers of trade, and ■ Examining community development patterns and identify strategies to encourage private sector development The project schedule for the North Richmond Truck Route Project, including design, engineering, general plan amendment, right—a-way acquisitions and construction, is anticipated to take approximately five to seven years, from the start of environmental review to completion of the construction project. The Redevelopment Agency is asking that the Board accept the outcomes of this report, and the "Preferred Alternative," and to authorize the Agency to proceed forward with phase II to explore funding options and other methods of finance to construct the necessary improvements to the Soto-Parr extension to relieve the North Richmond community of the endless amount of truck congestion in the residential neighborhood.