RESOLUTION NO. (XX)
APPROVAL OF AN AGREEMENT WITH MARK THOMAS FOR GRANT WRITING ASSISTANCE ON THE HIGHWAY 116 INTERSECTION SAFETY PROJECT WHEREAS, the Highway 116 Intersection Safety Project design is scheduled to be approved by Caltrans and construction ready by March 2027; and WHEREAS, as the project approaches construction ready, the City has been actively working on assembling the necessary construction funding; and WHEREAS, to maximize the City's chances of a successful application, it is recommended to use a professional grant writer with experience applying for SB 1 funding, as City staff have limited time for, or experience with, a grant application as involved and competitive as the SB 1 funds; and
WHEREAS, at this time, the City has secured $2M in construction funding, with another $2M expected to be awarded in the near future; and
WHEREAS, the City is also holding approximately $800k in traffic mitigation fees for the Project, for a total of $4.8M in secured or expected construction funding; and WHEREAS, to construct the Project, the City will require another $2M to build the core elements of the Project, but allowable under the grant rubric, the City would likely ask for additional funding above the minimum needed to be able to add additional project elements; and WHEREAS, it is recommended that the currently budgeted City Hall Digital Lock System project ($50,000), coded to the buildings department within public works (101-21- 80187) be reduced to $25,000 and $25,000 be reallocated to the engineering department within the public works department (101-18-80187) for grant writing assistance; and WHEREAS, it can be determined with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment; the activity is not subject to CEQA review. This general rule can be applied to activities which could be subject to the CEQA process, but which logic dictates should not be subject to CEQA review. Therefore, based on the information provided above, the proposed resolution is exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 14.03.021 of the CEQA Guidelines in that there is no possibility that the activity may have a significant impact on the environment; and
WHEREAS, this action is strictly to approve an agreement for grant writing services and the project itself has already undergone CEQA review consistent with Section 15183.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the City Council hereby:
1. Finds the above recitals true and correct and incorporated herein by reference.
2. Authorizes the reduction and reallocation of $25,000 in funding via budget adjustment as provided. Thus, reducing the digital lock system project budget from $50,000 to $25,000, with $25,000 reallocated to the grant writing assistance project.
3. Authorizes the City Manager to execute an agreement of up to $25,000 with Mark Thomas, and take any other actions necessary, for grant writing assistance seeking construction funds for the Highway 116 Intersection Safety Project.
IT IS HEREBY CERTIFIED that the foregoing resolution was duly adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Cotati held on August 11, 2026, by the following vote, to wit:
Approved:___________________________
Mayor
Attest:______________________________
Kevin Patterson, City Clerk
Approved as to form:______________________________
City Attorney