Cotati City Council
Agenda Staff Report
Item type: PUBLIC HEARINGS (ACTION)
To: City Council
Subject: ADOPTION OF THE COTATI ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION
PLAN AND AMENDMENTS TO THE GENERAL PLAN
CONSISTENT WITH THE ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION PLAN
Date: May 14, 2024
Written by: JP Harries, Senior Planner
Recommendation
Staff and the Planning Commission recommend that the City Council receive a presentation by city staff, receive public comments, and adopt a Resolution adopting the 2024 Cotati Active Transportation Plan and amendments to the General Plan consistent with the Active Transportation Plan.
Project Description
The draft Cotati Active Transportation Plan, which was circulated for public review between February 22 and March 25, 2024, has been updated in response to the comments received during the review period. Staff is requesting that the City Council consider the recommendations from the Planning Commission (see discussion in the following Background section) and adopt a Resolution adopting the 2024 Cotati Active Transportation Plan (attached to the accompanying Resolution as Exhibit “A.”) and amendments to the General Plan consistent with the Active Transportation Plan.
Background
The Cotati Active Transportation Plan (ATP) will be an update to the Cotati Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan adopted in 2014. The ATP is being developed as part of the Countywide Active Transportation Plan through a grant awarded to the Sonoma County Transportation Authority (SCTA) and contract held by SCTA.
City staff and SCTA have worked closely with the consultant team, Fehr and Peers and Leshner Planning, to gather data and establish existing conditions, engage the community, conduct technical analyses, and develop the Cotati ATP. City staff and the consultant team presented an overview of the project to the Planning Commission on June 13, 2023. On November 6, 2023, City staff and the consultant team presented draft Vision and Goals as well as a draft list of projects that would provide for a low-stress bicycle network and address existing network gaps.
On December 4, 2023, City staff presented the draft policies and actions to the Planning Commission for discussion and feedback.
Draft ATP and public review period
The draft Cotati Active Transportation Plan, which included a new list of projects, project prioritization, and programs, was circulated for public review between February 22 and March 25, 2024. The draft plan was presented for feedback at a public workshop held at the Cotati SMART station on February 29, and presented to the City Council and Planning Commission on March 12 and 18, 2024, respectively. Based on feedback gained during the public review period of the draft, the following changes were made:
• Edits to the text regarding the different types of bike facilities to add clarity as to the differences between the types as well as clarity on when those different types are used.
Edits made under Existing Active Transportation Network Characteristics section and edits made in the Infrastructure Improvements section.
• Revised priorities for projects where multiple community members commented similarly, and City Staff concurred.
• Revised some of the project descriptions based on community input and in some instances to clarify the description.
• Added projects based on City staff and community input. • Revised some of the policy language based on community input. • Updated cost estimates for Tier 1, 2, and 3 projects by type. • Updated monitoring measures and added, where applicable, baseline measures.
Planning Commission – April 15, 2024
On April 15, 2024, the Planning Commission reviewed the final ATP. After public feedback and discussion, the commission voted unanimously to recommend that the City Council adopt the ATP with the following recommended changes:
• Move Project #24 (W. Sierra Crossing at Hillview) from Tier 2 to Tier 1. • Move Project #27 (E. Cotati Crossing at Arthur/Charles) from Tier 2 to Tier 1. • Add Class 1 pathway from the realigned Highway 116/West Cotati intersection to Helman Lane via the eastern corner of the Lowe’s property. • Policy 1-6: Change the last sentence as follows: “…and Class IV separated bike lanes should…” to “…and Class IV separated bike lanes shall…” • Policy 1-5: Change “All public streets shall have a sidewalk…” to “All public streets shall have safe pedestrian facilities…”
• Policy 3-2.1: Delete the word “new” from the policy.
The recommended changes have not yet been included in the final ATP. Staff is requesting the Council consider the recommend changes and provide direction to staff. The Planning Commission resolution is attached and follows this staff report.
Analysis Discussion
The Cotati ATP is a planning document which demonstrates a commitment and provides longterm guidance to the public and the City for the programs and physical improvements necessary to develop and maintain an effective active transportation circulation network. The document is used by the City when reviewing private development projects to ensure appropriate land dedications occur and/or active transportation facilities are constructed as a part of the development. It is also used to develop and prioritize the City’s public works projects and grant requests. Additionally, the adoption and maintenance of a current active transportation plan is required to qualify for many regional, state, and federal grants.
Overall, the ATP update focuses on:
• All Ages and Abilities – Creating spaces for people to walk, bike, and roll that are lowstress and lower risk to create more opportunities for more people to walk, bike, and roll. • Regional Coordination - Identifying and planning regional routes between jurisdictions as part of the larger Countywide ATP.
• Implementation – Prioritizing projects and identifying funding to focus and streamline implementation.
The ATP is divided in several sections that include:
• A description of the Cotati community and the status of the existing active transportation network, including the existing bikeway network, the transit network, where sidewalk gaps exist, and the level of stress one encounters on the various bikeways. • The community and stakeholder outreach and engagement that was done during development of the ATP.
• The Vision and Goals of the ATP.
• Maps and a list of projects needed to develop an effective active transportation network and the priority of each project.
• Programs, policies, and action items to support an effective active transportation network and program.
• Considerations of implementation including timelines, cost estimates, funding sources, and monitoring.
Financial Considerations
Adoption of the ATP does not have an immediate fiscal impact. The ATP was primarily developed through a grant awarded to the SCTA and a $30,000 contribution from the City in the 2023-24 fiscal year. Staff time to attend meetings, engage with the public, and coordinate with the consultant team developing the ATP was absorbed by the Community Development Department budget.
The ATP does include programs and projects that will require staff time and City resources if the City chooses to implement them. Section 6 of the ATP (Implementation: Local Considerations) provides cost estimates for implementing the projects contained in the ATP. Project cost estimations were developed to provide a general idea of the anticipated costs for each proposed project type (i.e. multi-use path, signalized crossing improvement, sidewalk installation, etc.). It is estimated that the construction costs of implementing all projects in the ATP would be $20.5 million. These projects are a combination of improvements which would fall under the responsibility of private landowners when development projects are proposed (frontage improvements on a newly developed parcel for example), as well as projects which would likely require the City to be responsible for the construction (such as installation of a new cross walk in a developed area of the community). It is worth noting the ATP does not attempt to identify which projects, or portions of projects, would be the responsibility of a private developer or that of the City. The overall costs of improvements, timing of budget availability and/or private development and other mechanisms (such as grant funding) to make such improvements are far too uncertain.
Section 6 of the ATP also identifies funding sources available to fund the projects and programs in the plan. In addition to local sources such as the Capital Improvement Program and developer impact fees, Section 6 presents a list of competitive grants and formula-based funding programs for consideration to address the financial needs of the projects within the plan. The section identifies 21 regional, state, and federal funding sources currently available.
Environmental Issues
The physical improvements included in the ATP will be subject to future environmental review when specific projects are proposed. The adoption of the ATP qualifies for a statutory exemption from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to SB 922 (Wiener, 2022), which amended Public Resources Code Sections 21080.20 and 21080.25 to exempt Bicycle Transportation Plans and projects that meet certain conditions. Additionally, the general exemption in CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3) provides for projects where it can be seen with certainty that there is no potential for significant environmental effects.