Item No.
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER
BY: MATTHEW BAUMGARDNER, DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS/CITY
ENGINEER
DATE: JULY 25, 2023
SUBJECT: DISCUSS WOODRUFF AVENUE BEAUTIFICATION PLAN
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
At the April 11, 2023 City Council meeting, at Mayor Pro Tem Trujillo’s request, the City Council requested that staff bring forward a future agenda to allow the Council to discuss a beautification plan for the roadway along Woodruff Avenue. On June 9, 2023, staff joined Mayor Pro Tem Trujillo and Councilmember Horn to walk the Woodruff Avenue corridor between Foster Road on the southern end to Firestone Boulevard to the north .
The walking tour highlighted a number of key issues to be addressed with respect to road and sidewalk infrastructure, parkway landscaping, on-street parking of oversized vehicles, and various private property code enforcement concerns. Staff is presenting these issues, providing status updates on current work to address these issues, as well as seeking direction from the Council regarding an overall Woodruff Avenue beautification plan.
RECOMMENDATION
That the City Council:
1. Discuss the infrastructure, parking, and code enforcement issues along Woodruff Avenue and the steps underway to address the issues;
2. Approve the Woodruff Avenue Beautification Plan as proposed in this report; and
3. Provide direction or other feedback to staff regarding taking any additional steps in developing a Woodruff Avenue beautification plan.
BACKGROUND
The Woodruff Avenue corridor is characterized as an arterial road between Foster Road to the south and Firestone Boulevard to the north. The land use between Foster Road and Imperial Highway is predominantly residential with some commercial properties.
North of Imperial Highway, the land use typically shifts to commercial and industrial in
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CITY MANAGER
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2 nature. During a June 9, 2023 walking tour that staff attended with Mayor Pro Tem Trujillo and Councilmember Horn, issues were encountered that are highlighted within this report.
The Woodruff Avenue corridor between Foster Road and Firestone Boulevard is approximately 1.5 miles in length. It can be broken into two separate segments by typical land use: the residential/commercial section south of Imperial Highway and the commercial/industrial section north of Imperial Highway. Staff was able to narrow the issues that need to be addressed along the corridor into four distinct categories: 1.
Infrastructure, 2. Parkway landscaping, 3. On-street parking, and 4. Code enforcement.
Southern Segment of Woodruff Avenue (south of Imperial Highway) This segment extends from Foster Road to Imperial Highway. Between Belcher Street and the 105-freeway overpass, there are single family homes on both the east and west side. The frontages to these homes are separated from Woodruff Avenue by raised islands, as shown in Figure 1 below. This figure illustrates how Woodruff Avenue is comprised of two lanes of traffic in each direction separated by a painted center median.
Figure 1. Full width of street profile between Belcher Street and 105 freeway overpass
The figures below show the general condition of the frontage islands along this stretch of Woodruff Avenue. Figure 2 illustrates the lack of landscaping within the western frontage island. Figure 3 shows sparse vegetation with occasional trees.
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3 Figure 2 – Western Frontage Island Figure 3 – Eastern Frontage Island
Northern Segment of Woodruff Avenue (north of Imperial Highway) This segment extends from Imperial Highway to Firestone Boulevard. With the exception of some apartments and a mobile home park, this segment is predominantly characterized as commercial and industrial in its land use. Unlike the segment south of Imperial Highway, this segment does not have any frontage islands. Because of this, there is sufficient space within the street profile to provide on -street parking through this area. Similar to the southern segment, there are two lanes of traffic in each direction separated by a painted center median.
Figure 4. Full width of street profile north of Stewart & Gray Road
The figures below show the general condition of landscaping along the northern segment.
Figure 5 illustrates the sparse landscaping within many of the parkways. Figure 6 shows sections of sidewalk that do not have tree wells or parkways.
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4 Figure 5. Parkways with sparse vegetation Figure 6. No parkways/tree wells
To the north of the 105-freeway overpass, the west side of Woodruff Avenue is separated from single family homes by a long frontage island. It also lacks any kind of veget ation and is filled with asphalt to the surface. The east side of Woodruff Avenue, along this stretch, is primarily bordered by the Calvary Chapel property and there is no frontage island.
ANALYSIS
Staff attended a walking tour with Mayor Pro Tem Trujillo and Councilmember Horn on June 9, 2023. On this tour, a number of observations were made in order to develop a Woodruff Avenue Beautification Plan, as outlined in the following sections:
Southern Segment
Conditions Observed
Category 1 – Infrastructure: The pavement condition along this corridor was evaluated as part of the Pavement Management Program report conducted in 2021. In general, the pavement falls in the poor to very poor category and requires rehabilitation. Sidewalks, curb and gutter, curb ramps, and driveway aprons require repairs and upgrades in certain sections. Pavement markings are faded, as well.
Category 2 – Parkway Landscaping: As mentioned in the description of the frontage islands, there is a general lack of landscaping and trees along this segment of Woodruff Avenue. The frontage island to the east side is sparsely and sporadically vegetated with agave and red sandstone rocks. There are also several Palo Verde trees along this frontage island. The two western frontage islands are asphalt filled.
Category 3 – On-street parking: There is some on-street parking permitted between Foster Road and Belcher Street, but for the most part, there is only sufficient space for vehicular traffic within the width of the road . No specific problems were noted during the walkthrough.
Category 4 – Code Enforcement: There were some general code enforcement issues that were noted during the walk along this segment, including:
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5 • Residential properties with winter holiday lights • Vacant lot with fencing that requires paint
• Residential properties with chain-link fencing
Potential Remedies
Categories 1 and 2 are being addressed as part of the Woodruff Avenue Pavement Rehabilitation Project, which will occur in Fiscal Year 2023-2024. Designs for this project are currently at the 90 percent phase and are going through final plan check before being authorized for release to public bidding. This design will address the condition of the pavement and any necessary concrete repairs. An option has been added to the project that will augment the design to include plans for landscaping the frontage islands with vegetation and trees. The design also includes construction of a raised center median island, which will also be landscaped (see Att achment A). As part of this augmented design, a monument sign will also be added as traffic enters onto Woodruff Avenue from the south. The overall cost for the pavement rehabilitation project is approximately $3,000,000, including the option of approximat ely $775,000 to add raised medians, landscaping, trees, and new irrigation.
Category 3 does not require any attention south of Imperial Highway as there are no current issues with overnight parking of oversized vehicles in this area.
Category 4 issues are currently being addressed by code enforcement staff. In the case of winter holiday lights, residents are being contacted for keeping them up beyond the holiday period. In the case of the vacant lot, code enforcement is working with th e owner of the vacant lot to have the iron gate repainted.
With respect to homes with chain-link fencing visible from the front of the property, this is not a code infraction since these fences are simply non-conforming to the existing Code, which does not permit chain link fencing. Importantly, if the fences are in dis-repair in that more than 50% of the fence needs to be replaced, then the entire fence must be replaced with a fence that is not chain link. Additionally, staff has been looking into a voluntary program that could be established in the area to assist homeowners in beautifying the fencing by adding coverage plants such as an ivy. Based on some preliminary research of coverage plants, it is estimated that it would cost approximately $5/linear foot of fencing. A survey of the single-family properties that front this section of Woodruff Avenue found that there were only three that had some form of visible chain -link fencing. Based on the approximate linear footage for these homes, it would cost approximately $1,500 to plant ivy at these properties to cover the fencing. Considering the relatively low cost of the materials, it is anticipated that the City would donate the materials and organize a community volunteer effort to install the plants.
Northern Segment
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6 Conditions Observed
Category 1 – Infrastructure: As mentioned in the section on the southern segment, t he pavement condition was evaluated as part of the Pavement Management Program report conducted in 2021. In general, the pavement falls in the poor to very poor category and requires rehabilitation. Sidewalks, curb and gutter, curb ramps, and driveway apro ns require repairs and upgrades in certain sections. Pavement markings are faded, as well.
Category 2 – Parkway Landscaping: There are some sections of parkways that have been created within the sidewalk areas that were previously planted with grass. There are also occasional sections of tree wells that are planted with mature trees. Many sections of the sidewalk along this segment are absent of parkways or tree wells. There are no frontage islands in the northern segment.
Category 3 – On-street parking: Unlike the southern segment, most of the northern segment allows for on-street parking. In several areas, there are oversized vehicles that are parked for extended periods of time.
Category 4 – Code Enforcement: There were some general code enforcement issues that were noted during the walk of this segment, including:
• Deficient signage (missing)
• Excessive banner signage on business facade s
• On-site maintenance (excessive weeds and debris)
Potential Remedies
As with the southern segment, Category 1 pavement and concrete repairs will be addressed as part of the Woodruff Avenue Pavement Rehabilitation Project , during Fiscal Year 2023-2024.
Category 2 landscaping can include new plants and trees to be added to existing parkways along the northern segm ents. Any areas of sidewalks with insufficient landscaping can be analyzed for the addition of tree wells and the appropriate trees.
Special attention will need to be made with respect to line of sight issues for vehicles coming in and out of driveways and near intersections. An approximate cost of $25,000 would be required to add trees, tree wells, and improve parkways in this segment. A raised center median north of Imperial Highway is not recommended due to the volume of left turn movements in and out of the busy commercial/industrial properties by large commercial vehicles. As a result, there is no opportunity to construct a raised, landscaped median.
Unlike the southern segment, Category 3 does require significant attention north of Imperial Highway as there are historically several oversized vehicles parked in this area.
On March 14, 2023, the City Council adopted an ordinance regulating the overnight parking of oversized vehicles. As provided by law, the ordinance took effect thirty days after adoption by the City Council. The Police Department has commenced an
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7 educational campaign using social media and has been issuing warning notifications to any oversized vehicles parked on the street overnight. Staff has installed the required signage at entrances to the City to allow enforcement actions against oversize vehicles to occur, as well as on Woodruff Avenue. Staff can provide an update at a future Council meeting on the effectiveness of the oversized vehicle ordinance on the Woodruff Avenue corridor. The overnight and long-term parking of oversized vehicles on Woodruff Avenue creates dangerous traffic safety conditions due to line-of-sight issues near driveways.
From a beautification standpoint, they tend to collect significant amounts of debris that gets trapped behind their large wheels along the curb. They also prevent street sweeping from occurring, as evidenced by the build-up of soil in the curbs behind the vehicles.
Category 4 issues are currently being addressed by code enforcement staff , as the missing signage is a private issue. In each case, staff is working with the business owners to address signage and maintenance issues.
Summary of Proposed Beautification Measures
Staff categorized issues observed along Woodruff Avenue as infrastructure, parkway landscaping, on-street parking, and code enforcement. The following table outlines steps taken to date to address these issues:
Southern Segment (Foster Road to Imperial Highway)
Category Issue Remediation Effort
1 - Infrastructure Poor pavement condition,
concrete repairs needed
Woodruff Pavement
Rehabilitation Project
2 – Parkway Landscaping Sparsely landscaped street
parkways, few trees
Woodruff Pavement
Rehabilitation Project (see
Attachment A).
Approximately $750,000 to
add new raised medians,
landscape, and irrigation.
3 – On-street parking - No action needed at this
time
4 – Code Enforcement
Holiday lights (residential),
chain-link fencing, and
vacant lot fence
maintenance
Code enforcement staff
actively working with
property owners to resolve.
City to donate materials
and develop volunteer
program to install plants to
cover chain-link fencing.
Northern Segment (Imperial Highway to Firestone Boulevard)
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8 Category Issue Action Taken
1 - Infrastructure Poor pavement condition,
concrete repairs needed
Woodruff Pavement
Rehabilitation Project
2 – Parkway Landscaping Sparsely landscaped street
parkways, few trees
Approximately $25,000 to
add trees, tree wells,
improve existing parkways
3 – On-street parking Oversized vehicles are
parked long-term/overnight
Signs installed at
entrances to City
prohibiting overnight/long-
term parking of oversized
vehicles. Police
Department issuing
warning notifications and
educating through social
media
4 – Code Enforcement
Deficient private signage,
banner signage, site
maintenance
Code enforcement staff
actively working with
property owners to resolve
At this time, staff seeks direction from the City Council for proceeding with augmenting the Woodruff Avenue Pavement Rehabilitation project to include related to parkway landscaping. Based on current estimates, there are currently sufficient funds available in the project budget to complete the road and landscaping improvements. Staff will provide an update on the enforcement of oversized vehicles parked on Woodruff Avenue at a future Council meeting. A volunteer program will be developed to aid property owners wanting to beautify chain-link fencing on the front of their properties. This program will be made available along Woodruff Avenue. Staff also seeks any other direction from the Council on measures they would like to see incorporated into a Woodruff Avenue beautification plan.
CITY COUNCIL PRIORITIES
Quality of Life, Safety & Infrastructure
FISCAL IMPACT
The costs associated with the beautification measures discussed in this report are included below, as well as status of funding:
Item Funding Status Amount
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9 Categories 1 & 2 – Infrastructure and
Parkway Landscaping: Woodruff
Avenue Pavement Rehabilitation
Project
Funded
$2,250,000
(paving);
$750,000
(landscaping)
Category 2 – Parkway Landscaping
(northern segment) – Analysis of
Existing Parkways
Funded $25,000
Category 3 – On-street Parking -
Signage Purchase and Installation Funded $4,000
Category 4 – Code Enforcement –
Staff Time - -
Final Costs: $3,029,000
The City has adequate funding in the Woodruff Pavement Rehab Project to pay for the above listed projects, based on the current estimates of the expenses.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: Woodruff Avenue Parkway and Median Landscaping (preliminary concept as part of the Woodruff Avenue Pavement Rehabilitation Project)
PLANT SCHEDULENWOODRUFF AVENUEBELCHER STREETANGELL STREETArbutus unedo 'Compacta'Compact Strawberry TreeLagerstroemia indica 'Arapaho'Red Crape MyrtleCallistemon 'Little John'Dwarf Weeping BottlebrushCarissa macrocarpa 'Boxwood Beauty'Boxwood Beauty Natal PlumNandina domestica 'Gulf Stream'Gulf Stream Heavenly BambooLagerstroemia indica 'Muskogee'Purple Crape MyrtlePittosporum tobira 'Shima'Cream de Mint Dwarf Mock OrangeTREESSHRUBSRhaphiolepis indica 'Ballerina'Ballerina Indian HawthornTulbaghia violacea `Variegata`Striped Society Garlic
PLANT SCHEDULENWOODRUFF AVENUEBELCHER STREETANGELL STREETArbutus unedo 'Compacta'Compact Strawberry TreeLagerstroemia indica 'Arapaho'Red Crape MyrtleCallistemon 'Little John'Dwarf Weeping BottlebrushCarissa macrocarpa 'Boxwood Beauty'Boxwood Beauty Natal PlumNandina domestica 'Gulf Stream'Gulf Stream Heavenly BambooLagerstroemia indica 'Muskogee'Purple Crape MyrtlePittosporum tobira 'Shima'Cream de Mint Dwarf Mock OrangeTREESSHRUBSRhaphiolepis indica 'Ballerina'Ballerina Indian HawthornTulbaghia violacea `Variegata`Striped Society Garlic