Fremont City Council Meeting: 04/01/25 07:00 PM
3300 Capitol Avenue Div/Dept: Public Works
Fremont, CA 94538 Category: Presentations
SCHEDULED
Sponsors:
COUNCIL STAFF REPORT (ID # 5383) DOC ID: 5383 B
Updated: 3/28/2025 12:14 PM by Dina Lewis B Page 1
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM - Receive Presentation and Provide Input to Staff on the Preparation of the City’s Five-Year Capital Improvement Program (CIP) for Fiscal Years 2025/26 through 2029/30
Contact Persons:
Name: Hans Larsen Kim Beranek
Title: Public Works Director Community Services Director Div/Dept: Public Works Community Services
Phone: 510-494-4722 510-494-4330
E-Mail: [email protected] [email protected]
Executive Summary: The purpose of this report is to inform the City Council about the preparation of the City’s five-year CIP and to receive input from Council. A draft CIP is proposed to be brought back to the City Council on May 13, 2025, for review and comment.
Adoption of the final CIP is planned for June 2025.
BACKGROUND: The City’s Capital Improvement Program addresses the City’s infrastructure needs and investments, primarily in the areas of Transportation, Parks, Building Facilities, Capital Maintenance, and General Government. The CIP includes a five-year program of planned investments, with the first two years representing a two-year Capital Budget. The CIP is updated every two years. The City’s current CIP approved in June 2023 included investments totaling $296 million over five years.
DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS: At the City Council meeting, staff will present an introduction to the Capital Improvement Program (CIP), including fund sources, projected revenue, and a review of current projects and programs. Preliminary revenue estimates for the new CIP cycle are projected to be $175 million, significantly lower than the current CIP due to a combination of factors including lower private development activity, uncertainty related to future grant funding (particularly from federal sources), and assumption of no new one -time funding from the General Fund.
The CIP process has included an opportunity for community input through an on-line survey that was available on the City’s MyFremont community engagement webpage during the months of December 2024 and January 2025. A total of 414 community members participated in the survey with a summary of the results included as an Attachment. Some notable input from the community related to new capital projects included: more pickle ball courts, build a new community center, improve traffic safety in the area Scott Creek Road and Zinfandel Street, and expand the Railroad Quiet Zone program to include the area of Gomes Park and Walnut Avenue.
Based on the projection of limited new revenues for the CIP, staff suggests a “status quo” approach that continues past investment levels for capital maintenance (pavement, sidewalks, parks, and buildings) and continues to deliver projects with past funding allocations. The following is a summary of the outcomes from a “status quo” investment approach:
Council Staff Report (ID # 5383) Meeting of April 1, 2025 Updated: 3/28/2025 12:14 PM by Dina Lewis B Page 2
• Build new community center in Central Park. The Phase 1 community center project is fully funded and planned to start construction in 2026. Other planned but unfunded parts of the project include a new Event Hall (Phase 2), and new Gymnasium (Phase 3).
• Replace or upgrade old park restrooms at Irvington, Northgate, Central Park (seven locations), Nordvik, Sylvester Harvey, Niles Community Park, Niles Town Plaza, Old Mission, Mission, and Los Cerritos.
• Provide various park improvements at Vallejo Mill, Centerville Community Park, Niles, and at Lake Elizabeth (Central Park). New pickleball courts to be provided at Vallejo Mill Park and Centerville Community Park, with lighting being added to the existing pickleball courts at Central Park. New dog parks will be added at Vallejo Mill and Patterson Ranch Parks. Cricket batting cages would be installed at some community parks and saving for the future Hetch Hetchy Trail (Warm Springs portion) project will resume.
• In alignment with the City’s Climate Action Plan, provide electric vehicle charging at City facilities to support conversion of fleet to electric vehicles, and replace old heating and air conditioning systems in City buildings with “clean energy” systems.
• Install median landscaping along Auto Mall Parkway (partly funded by a federal grant).
• Deliver traffic safety and multimodal transportation improvements along Fremont Boulevard corridor (Centerville, Downtown, and Irvington areas), Decoto/Dumbarton corridor, and Paseo Padre Parkway (Driscoll Road to Washington Avenue). Continue funding for pedestrian, bicycle, ADA curb ramps and neighborhood traffic calming improvements, using dedicated funds from Measure BB and grant programs, with priorities to be determined by new Active Transportation Plan.
• Continue to modernize traffic signals and coordinate traffic flow along major corridors.
• Continue to advance the planning and design of major transportation and trail projects and seek construction funding opportunities for: new Irvington BART Station; I-880/Innovation Bridge (part of East Bay Greenway Trail near Warm Springs BART Station); I-680/Sabercat Bridge (part of Sabercat Trail); Niles Canyon Trail; freeway interchange upgrades at 880/Decoto and 680/Mission North; safety improvements along State Route 262/Mission Blvd; and the Centerville Railroad Quiet Zone corridor.
• Continue current investment levels for the capital maintenance of street pavement, sidewalks, parks, and buildings. Current funding for pavement maintenance would provide for an average Pavement Condition Index (PCI) of 70 (a “good” condition). Current resources for sidewalk repairs are focused on City funding for severely damaged sidewalks and safety issues, and with 50/50 grants available for other sidewalk improvements.
Council Staff Report (ID # 5383) Meeting of April 1, 2025 Updated: 3/28/2025 12:14 PM by Dina Lewis B Page 3
Consideration of Revenue Enhance Opportunities - The City’s needs and interests for capital investments to address aging infrastructure (parks, streets and buildings) and new improvements desired by City residents is significantly higher than can be funded with existing revenue sources. It is common for local agencies to seek additional revenue opportunities from ballot measures approved by local voters. Over the past decade, new funding for capital investments has been generated for projects for Fremont Unified School District, Ohlone College, Union City, Newark, Hayward, Oakland and San Jose. Investment types have included upgraded and new buildings, street repairs, park facilities, and support for affordable housing. If the City Council is interested in exploring opportunities for revenue enhancement, staff recommends that the City Council provide direction to staff to explore the feasibility of a revenue measure.
FISCAL IMPACT: None.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The recommended actions are exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because they are an administrative fiscal activity and not projects pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15378.
ATTACHMENTS:
• MyFremont Community Survey Summary on CIP
RECOMMENDATION: Receive presentation and provide input to staff on the preparation of the City’s Five-Year Capital Improvement Program (CIP) for Fiscal Years 2025/26 through 2029/30, and find that the action is exempt from CEQA review per CEQA Guidelines Section 15378.