1 POMONA SS4A STRATEGIC PLAN
POMONA SS4A STRATEGIC PLAN
Date: 8/29/2022
To: Ro
n Chan, Principal Traffic Engineer – City of Pomona
Fro
m: Brian Marchetti, Senior Planner – KOA Corporation
Subje
ct: City of Pomona LRSP – SS4A Compliance
With the recent onset of the Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) program, enacted by the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT), up to $1 billion in roadway safety funding is available. Municipal governme nts, such as the City of Pomona, are eligible to apply for this SS4A funding. As part of the SS4A grant application, the City of Pomona is required to submit a current Local Roadway Safety Plan, which the City recently adopted on August 15, 2022. This LRSP will become the foundation for traffic safety guidelines moving forward, and the City of Pomona is committed to routinely reviewing these safety guidelines, as outlined in the August 2022 LRSP, every ten years (or as funding allows). The chief goal of the City’s traffic safety commitment is to reduce traffic-related injuries, particularly to pedestrians. This commitment is reflected in both the LRSP and previous plans adopted by the City (which are discussed below). The City also must demonstrate that roadway safety improvements projects are focused in disadvantaged commun ities.
Pomona’s eligibility for an SS4A grant, including projects included in the LRSP, are provided in this report.
EQUITY
Identifying community areas that are designated as disadvantaged communities is a core element of the SS4A grant application. There are several accepted methods for determining locations that can be considered disadvantaged communities, which are discussed in detail below.
HISTORICALLY DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITY (HDC)
The USDOT developed its own metric for determining which Census tracts can be considered a “historically disadvantaged community.” This USDOT metric combines multiple datasets from agencies such as the CDC, US Census Bureau, and EPA t o arrive at an aggregate score for individual Census tracts. This score is an aggregate of the following categories:
1) transportation access
2) health
3) environmental (pollution)
4) economic
5) resilience (vulnerability to climate change)
6) equity (high concentration of individuals who speak English “less than well”) Acc
ording to the USDOT, disadvantaged Census tracts have scores exceeding the 50 th percentile (75 th percentile for resilience) in at least four of these individual categories.
Using
this USDOT me tric, a vast majority of Pomona can be considered a historically disadvantaged community. Only 6 Census tracts in Pomona ( out of 34 Census Tracts) do not meet the threshold for “historically disadvantaged community .” These 6 Census tracts consist of several non -residential areas Attachment 1
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around Cal Poly Pomona, the office park along Corporate Center Drive near the I -10/SR-57/SR-71 interchange, single-family residential adjacent to Ranch Hills Elementary School, the Grand Avenue corridor (between Garey Avenue and Hansen Avenue), and a smaller tract in eastern Pomona surrounding Kingsley Elementary School (near the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Washington Avenue).
Pomona rates particularly high in the equity and environmental categories. For the environmental variable, all 34 Pomona Census tracts rate above the 50
th percentile nationwide (the threshold for “historically
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disadvantaged community” classification, and 26 tracts score above 80 th percentile nationwide. According to the USDOT, these tracts with high environmental ranks are communities with “disproportionate pollution burden and inferior environmental quality.” Regarding equity, 33 (out of 34 Census tracts) rank above the 50th percentile, and 22 tracts score above the 90th percentile nationwide. This indicates that a large portion of Pomona residents speak English “less than well,” according to CDC Social Vulnerability Index.
In addition, 29 Census tracts (out of 34 total) rank above the 50th percentile in transportation access.
Over 82% of Pomona’s total area is considered a “historically disadvantaged community”, using the USDOT definition. In addition, over 87 % of Pomona ’s total population resides in a “historically disadvantaged community” Census tract, according to these USDOT metrics and 2019 ACS 5-Year estimate data.
Comparing these USDOT “historically disadvantaged community” Census tracts with recommended projects in the Pomona LRSP, all Pomona LRSP intersections (18) and roadway corridors (10) are located in a historically disadvantaged community. Note that the Grand Avenue LRSP corridor project is partially located within a non-disadvantaged area, according to USDOT HDC criteria.
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ID Name C ontrol Historically Disadvantaged
Community? (USDOT)
1 Mission Boulevard and East End Avenue S ignalized Y
2 Mission Boulevard and Phillips Drive Signalized Y
3 Mission Boulevard and Humane Way Signalized Y
4 Mission Boulevard and Reservoir Street Signalized Y
5 Mission Boulevard and Towne Avenue Signalized Y
6 Holt Avenue and Towne Avenue Signalized Y
7 Indian Hill Boulevard and San Bernardino Avenue Signalized Y 8 Grand Avenue and Garey Avenue Signalized Y
9 Grand Avenue and Towne Avenue Signalized Y
10 McKinley Avenue and Orange Grove Avenue Signalized Y 11 Fairplex Drive and Holt Avenue Signalized Y
12 Garey Avenue and Holt Avenue Signalized Y
13 Garey Avenue and Orange Grove Avenue Signalized Y
14 Garey Avenue and Franklin Avenue Signalized Y
15 Franklin Avenue and Reservoir Street Signalized Y
16 Humane Way and Roselawn Avenue Unsignalized Y
17 Foothill Boulevard and Towne Avenue Signalized Y
18 Franklin Avenue and Palomares Street Unsignalized Y
19 Towne Avenue and Harrison Avenue Signalized Y
20 Towne Avenue and Bonita Avenue Signalized Y
Historically Disadvantaged
Community? (USDOT)
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
*
Y
Y
*Portion of Grand Avenue project corridor is located outside of a historically disadvantaged community
INTERSECTIONS
CORRIDORS
White Avenue from Val Vista Street/Preciado Street to William Street Hamilton Boulevard from Phillips Street to Lexington Avenue Mission Boulevard from Temple Avenue to Westmont Avenue Grand Avenue from Hansen Avenue to East End Avenue
Franklin Avenue from Bolivar Street to Reservoir Street Name
Holt Avenue from Dudley Street to East End Avenue
Mission Boulevard from Dudley Street to Towne Avenue
Reservoir Street from Ninth Street to Philadelphia Street Towne Avenue from San Bernardino Avenue to Holt Avenue
Garey Avenue from Orange Grove Avenue to Lexington Avenue 5 POMONA SS4A STRATEGIC PLAN
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AREA OF PERSISTENT POVERTY (APP)
The USDOT offers an additional definition for disadvantaged communities: Areas of Persistent Poverty. This metric focuses solely on poverty rate, according to 2014-2018 American Community Survey 5-Year estimate data, where any Census tract with a poverty r ate of at least 20 percent is considered an “area of persistent poverty,” and therefore, a disadvantaged community.
The Area of Persistent Poverty is a more stringent measure for disadvantaged communities. In California,
51.7% of all Census tracts meet c riteria for Historically Disadvantaged Community, whereas only 25% of Census tracts can be deemed an Area of Persistent Poverty, according to USDOT.
In Pomona, 15 Census tracts have poverty rates that meet the threshold for Area of Persistent Poverty, which is about 44% of all Census tracts in the city. The locations are mostly clustered around downtown Pomona – south of I-10 and east of SR-71.
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Concerning LRSP projects, 16 of the 20 intersections chosen for improvements are located in an Area of Persistent Poverty. Also, 8 corridors selected as an LRSP project intersect Census tracts deemed an Area of Persistent Poverty. Only the Hamilton Boulevard project and the western portion of Mission Boulevard (Temple Avenue to Westmont Avenue) are located outside of an Area of Persistent Poverty.
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ID Name Control Area of Persistent
Poverty? (USDOT)
1 Mission Boulevard and East End Avenue Signalized Y
2 Mission Boulevard and Phillips Drive Signalized
3 Mission Boulevard and Humane Way Signalized
4 Mission Boulevard and Reservoir Street Signalized Y
5 Mission Boulevard and Towne Avenue Signalized Y
6 Holt Avenue and Towne Avenue Signalized Y
7 Indian Hill Boulevard and San Bernardino Avenue Signalized 8 Grand Avenue and Garey Avenue Signalized Y
9 Grand Avenue and Towne Avenue Signalized Y
10 McKinley Avenue and Orange Grove Avenue Signalized Y 11 Fairplex Drive and Holt Avenue Signalized Y
12 Garey Avenue and Holt Avenue Signalized Y
13 Garey Avenue and Orange Grove Avenue Signalized Y
14 Garey Avenue and Franklin Avenue Signalized Y
15 Franklin Avenue and Reservoir Street Signalized Y
16 Humane Way and Roselawn Avenue Unsignalized
17 Foothill Boulevard and Towne Avenue Signalized Y
18 Franklin Avenue and Palomares Street Unsignalized Y
19 Towne Avenue and Harrison Avenue Signalized Y
20 Towne Avenue and Bonita Avenue Signalized Y
Area of Persistent
Poverty? (USDOT)
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
INTERSECTIONS
CORRIDORS
Name
Holt Avenue from Dudley Street to East End Avenue
Mission Boulevard from Dudley Street to Towne Avenue
Reservoir Street from Ninth Street to Philadelphia Street Franklin Avenue from Bolivar Street to Reservoir Street Garey Avenue from Orange Grove Avenue to Lexington Avenue Towne Avenue from San Bernardino Avenue to Holt Avenue
White Avenue from Val Vista Street/Preciado Street to William Street Hamilton Boulevard from Phillips Street to Lexington Avenue Mission Boulevard from Temple Avenue to Westmont Avenue Grand Avenue from Hansen Avenue to East End Avenue
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An area of persistent poverty can also be defined at the county level, for counties that have “consistently had greater than or equal to 20 percent of the population living in poverty during the last 30 -year period,” according to decennial census data and the most recent Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (USDOT:
https://datahub.transportation.gov/stories/s/RAISE-Persistent-Poverty-Tool/tsyd-k6ij/ ).
Los Angeles County (Pomona’s county) does not meet the criteria for APP.
In summation, all proposed project locations meet criteria for the USDOT’s “Historically Di sadvantaged Community” definition. Also, 16 Pomona LRSP project intersections and 8 Pomona LRSP project corridors are located in an “Area of Persistent Poverty,” which is a more stringent measure of a disadvantaged community.
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POLICY
Reviewing current safety plans, guidelines, and standards, as well as potential revisions to those guidelines, is a critical part of the SS4A application. As this policy assessment is not included in the 2022 Local Roadway Safety Plan, a detailed discussion of Pomona’s major safety -related plans (and their relation to the newly adopted traffic safety guidelines in the LRSP) is provided below.
2014 General Plan
Strategic Action Areas
Pomona’s 2014 General Plan discusses “strategic action areas” of future development opportunities, ranked by priority. These areas were chosen based on “the area’s potential for change, and its market potential to bring sustainable employment, investment, and added value to its community (General Plan, p.54 ).” Downtown received the highest priority, followed by transit oriented districts (half -mile areas surrounding the City’s train stations: Pomona (North) Metrolink station, LA County Fair station, Pomona (Downtown) Amtrak/Metrolink station, as well as the Cal Poly Pomona campus. Activity centers (i.e. gateways to Pomona) and corridors were also identified as priority strategic action areas, occupying the third and fifth highest priorities, respectively. Institutions, such as Cal Poly Pomona and the Fairplex, are the fourth highest priority for improvements, per the General Plan.
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Pedestrian amenities were identified as a major aspect within each of these higher -priority strategic action areas, which aligns with the Pomona LRSP’s pedestrian safety focus area. With respects to location, the Pomona LRSP recommends safety improvements (including pedestrian amenities) at several locations prioritized in the General Plan. These locations include the Garey Avenue corridor in Downtown, including the intersections of Garey Avenue/Holt Avenue and Garey Avenue/Grand Avenue, the Holt Avenue intersection with SR-71 (General Plan activity center/”gateway”), and the greater Holt Avenue and Mission Boulevard corridors. Each of these recommended LRSP project locations aligns with prioritized development areas in the 2014 General Plan.
2012 Active Transportation Plan
Pomona adopted an Active Transportation Plan in 2012, which identified intersections in need of “crossing improvements,” such as accessible pedestrian signals, continental crosswalks, signal timing/phasing recalibration, and retroreflective pedestrian signage. The ATP selected 35 Pomona intersections for potential pedestrian improvements, and 7 of those intersections are also included in the Pomona LRSP:
• Harrison Avenue and Towne Avenue
• Bonita Avenue and Towne Avenue
• San Bernardino Avenue and Indian Hill Boulevard
• Holt Avenue and Fairplex Drive
• Holt Avenue and Garey Avenue
• Holt Avenue and Towne Avenue
• Mission Boulevard and Towne Avenue
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Additionally, the Active Transportation Plan focused bicycle improvements near Pomona Unified Schools.
While the Pomona LRSP does not recommend any additional bicycle routes, the LRSP does recommend providing safety enhancements near schools.
Installing sidewalks along Mission Boulevard (between Humane Way and Appian Way) is identified as a needed improvement in Active Transportation Plan and LRSP.
Downtown Pomona Specific Plan
Pomona adopted the Downtown Pomona Specific Plan in 1994, and updated the plan, most recently, in 2007. The Downtown Pomona Specific Plan identifies pe destrian circulation, particularly to transit options, as a major focus. As part of the Pomona LRSP, several corridors and intersections in Downtown Pomona were recommended for improvements, including pedestrian safety enhancements. • Garey Avenue corridor
• Holt Avenue corridor
• Mission Boulevard corridor
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• Garey Avenue & Holt Avenue
• Mission Boulevard & Towne Avenue
• Holt Avenue & Towne Avenue
Pomona Corridors Specific Plan
This plan envisions redevelopment along four main Pomona corridors: Foothill Boulevard, G arey Avenue, Holt Avenue, and Mission Boulevard. The Pomona LRSP recommends improvements along three of these corridors, as well as one intersection on Foothill Boulevard.