Business Agenda Item 5b
STAFF REPORT
City Council Business Agenda Item
DATE: February 7, 2021
TO: Honorable Mayor and Council Members
FROM: Brendan Byrd, City Engineer
THROUGH: Merritt Perry, City Manager
SUBJECT: Supplemental Budget Request to Develop a Project Study Report for the Kenmar and Ross Hill Road Intersection Improvement Project STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Receive staff presentation and recommendation to approve a supplemental budget request to develop a Project Study Report (PSR) for the Kenmar and Ross Hill Road Intersection Improvement Project.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
In 2016, the City completed the Highway 101, Fortuna Downtown and Riverwalk Area Complete Streets and Connectivity Planning Study. The study was a multi-agency effort with the goal of providing an assessment of design alternatives to improve connectivity between the City’s downtown and Riverwalk area. Since that report was completed, the City has been able to secure funding for Preliminary Engineering and Environmental Documentation for the Kenmar and US 101 Interchanges, and the 12th Street and US 101 Interchange.
In addition to the City’s US 101 Interchanges, the Connectivity Report also investigated the performance of the Kenmar and Ross Hill Road intersection as the City continues to develop.
Currently, this intersection performs at a Level of Service (LOS) C, which is the lowest acceptable level in the City’s General Plan (LOS is generally a measurement of time spent waiting at an intersection). As the City continues to develop this intersection it is anticipated to have a continual reduction in LOS, eventually becoming an F (lowest rating) within a 20-year planning period.
With the City’s other interchange improvement projects on the State Highway System already progressing, in addition to the renewed interest in the development of the former Palco Mill Site, staff would like to allocate budget towards developing a Project Study Report (PSR) for this intersection to be able to adequately plan for improvements at this intersection at this time. In short, the report would take the traffic forecasting that was done through the Connectivity Plan, and expand upon that work to develop concept design alternatives and planning level cost estimates for projects that would achieve an acceptable LOS throughout the lifetime of the project.
Similar to previous efforts for the interchange projects, this report could be used to help secure outside funding sources, or to inform proportional impact fee costs for large developments.
Business Agenda Item 5b
To complete the work staff solicited for a scope and fee from the City’s on-call traffic engineer, GHD. GHD is uniquely qualified to complete this effort, given their involvement in the original connectivity study, in addition to the design phases of the City’s interchange projects. GHD’s scope to complete this report is included as Attachment A.
If this SBR is approved staff will look to execute a task order with GHD under the on-call contract to complete the report. Staff anticipate this effort will be completed this fiscal year.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
As shown in GHD’s draft fee schedule in Exhibit A, the estimated cost to complete a PSR is $44,000 (not to exceed). Staff propose allocating funds from Fund 140, the City’s Traffic Impact Fee, to cover the cost to develop the PSR. A draft of the SBR is included as Attachment B.
Fund 140 currently has a balance of approximately $345,000. This fiscal year, staff have also budgeted funds from 140 in to complete the 12th Street and Newburg Interchange Project Study Report and the Redwood Way Improvements Project. Both of these projects are completed (no further invoicing), and the delivered projects costs came in approximately $80,000 below budget.
If the new budget appropriation for the Kenmar and Ross Hill Road project is approved, the balance of Fund 140 would be approximately $300,000 by the end of this fiscal year.
RECOMMENDED COUNCIL ACTION:
1. Receive staff presentation and review Council questions with staff
2. Open Public Comment
3. Close Public Comment
4. Approve a supplemental budget request in the amount of $44,000 to develop a Project Study Report for the Kenmar and Ross Hill Road Intersection Improvement Project.
Roll Call vote.
ATTACHMENTS:
Exhibit A – GHD Scope of Services and Fee
Exhibit B – Draft Supplemental Budget Request