Fiscal Year 2023-2024 Budget Development Checklist
1 Ques�ons from May 23, 2023, City Council Mee�ng (in order of ques�ons asked) and Dra� Responses from City of Richmond Staff
1. Councilmember Claudia Jimenez
i. Equipment Services Community Crisis Response Vehicles? → Currently, there aren’t vehicles for the Community Crisis Response Program (CCRP) included in the equipment budget. Only vehicles that pay into an internal service fund are included in the budget for equipment replacement vehicles. A report by the Urban Strategies Council is in the final stages of development and is planned to come before the City Council before the Council recess. Once the City Council provides direc�ons regarding the program model, City staff can work with Equipment Services Division to request the appropriate vehicle to support the CCRP model (i.e., van, SUV, sedan, etc.). Vehicles for the program would be new addi�ons to Fleet that would need to be budgeted as needed.
ii. $1.2 M - 18 Projects - where is it?
→ Approximately $82K will be spent by the end of the current fiscal year for the ini�al analysis and the next phases of design for the 18 loca�ons in Phase 1, while keeping quick-build op�ons and other means to address traffic calming issues in mind. Coordina�on is in progress with the CIP Manager and the Arts & Culture Manager. Finance is sugges�ng that the $1.2 M may need to be transferred to General Capital fund to ensure the funds are properly allocated as a mul�-year CIP budget. It is proposed that the budget transfer from the General Fund into the General Capital fund will be part of the year-end cleanup. iii. $375K Annual ADA, what is the status?
→ Q4 FY 22-23: Two (2) contractors have been selected to perform ADA work that consists of 33 sidewalks loca�ons. As of today, the first contractor has completed eight (8) loca�ons.
→ The opera�on currently consists of removing trees and stumps and preparing for the next work loca�on.
→ Last week, the city and the second contractor conducted an on-site construc�on coordina�on mee�ng to clarify site loca�ons. Currently, the City is wai�ng for the second contractor’s updated construc�on schedule that works with Parks department for tree removal The Public Works department is in the process of compiling a list of sidewalk repair loca�ons for FY23-24.
iv. Shields-Reid, is that a grant? What is the status?
→ The City of Richmond was awarded a Prop 68 California State Parks Statewide Park Development and Community Revitaliza�on grant for $8M for the Shields Reid Park Renova�on. This project is slated to Fiscal Year 2023-2024 Budget Development Checklist
2 include the construc�on of a new children’s play area, bike pump track, stage and performance area, fitness zone, public art, habitat garden, tree shade area throughout the park, and ligh�ng and fencing throughout the park. The project is scheduled to go to the Design Review Board in July 2023. More informa�on can be found at htps://www.ci.richmond.ca.us/4483/Prop-68-Statewide-Park-Program-- -Shields.
v. Local Road Safety Plan for priori�zing?
→ The Local Road Safety Plan (LRSP) is a planning document that discusses strategies to improve roadway safety and guides decisions on road safety. The LRSP is also being used to verify that certain grant projects are aligned with regional planning. The LRSP provides jus�fica�ons for grants, and as a result, boosts the City’s ability to apply for the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) grant program. The LRSP is a separate document from the Traffic Calming Program (presented in November 2022). However, there is some overlap between the LRSP and the Traffic Calming Program. One of the main results of the Traffic Calming program was the iden�fica�on of the eighteen (18) priority loca�ons. The Traffic Calming program is intended to be a “living program” and document. Staff intends to make annual presenta�ons to Council on upda�ng the program, which may include addi�onal funding requests.
2. Vice Mayor Gayle McLaughlin
i. Traffic Calming, $1.2 M how much le�?
→ Approximately $82K will be spent by the end of the current fiscal year on analysis and the next phases of design. $1,118,00 is le� from the original $1.2M to proceed with design and construc�on for the 18 loca�ons listed under phase 1.
ii. $6 M Park Improvement - wants details, park bathrooms, ligh�ng? → This amount is an es�mate to build more soccer fields, in about six (6) parks city-wide, based on requests from CM Bana, CM Jimenez and CM Robinson and informa�on in the Parks Master Plan.
iii. Street Sweeping - Annex and Citywide, can the sign be smaller? → The street sweeping signs can be made smaller. There have been discussions between Public Works, Police Department and Opera�ons regarding this topic.
3. Councilmember Melvin Willis
i. $1M for Paving index, is that enough? Is that addi�onal? → According to the 2022 Pavement Management Program Report (produced by MTC for the City of Richmond), the Pavement Condi�on Index (PCI) averages around 60. The PCI is graded on a scale of 0-100 and pavements with PCI below 60 are subject to rapid deteriora�on. The Fiscal Year 2023-2024 Budget Development Checklist
3 study considered five (5) funding scenarios for the City for the next five (5) years. For the city to maintain its PCI average of 60, the City should commit an average annual budget of more than $20 M to paving. The city currently budgets between ~ $5 M to $6 M for pavement management annually. If the City wishes to improve its average PCI by five points (i.e., 65), then MTC es�mates that the City will need to commit to an annual average funding amount of approximately $34 M. ii. Illegal Dumping – are the cameras the same purpose as the Police cameras? What's the correla�on with the Police cameras?
→ The goal is to u�lize similar cameras as the Police. Both departments, Public Works and RPD, will work together, share informa�on, and minimize costs as much as possible.
iii. Electric Boxes - replacements, how secure will they be? → Electrical pull-boxes will be welded shut to prevent copper the� and tampering. Opera�ons will use these boxes for future maintenance and access will only be needed through the streetlight poles’ exis�ng access panel (hand hole).
4. Councilmember Cesar Zepeda
i. Slide 28 - Chevron showing high percent of needs, need to look at that. Chevron has bigger needs than Parchester? Why?
→ CalEnviroScreen's (CES) index is made up of mul�ple components that fall under pollu�on burden and popula�on characteris�cs. In the case of Census Tract #6013378000 where Chevron falls in, the pollu�on burden is overwhelmingly affec�ng the overall CES 4.0 percen�le. Overall, the CES percen�le is 71 percent with a pollu�on burden score of 92/100. ii. Where is the funding coming from for each project?? → The projects have mul�ple funding sources. Capital projects’ status report by department and by fund is provided to the City Council on a quarterly basis. For FY 2023-24 the CIP budget report by department and by fund is provided in June 6, 2023 dra� budget agenda packet, atachment 5. Each project page will highlight its funding sources in the CIP budget book for FY23-24-FY27-28 as well.
iii. Zero Emissions - ECIA
→ With final approval by City Council, City staff can consider u�lizing the Environmental and Community Investment Agreement (ECIA) program to fund the Zero Emission Vehicle Transi�on Plan.
iv. Can we add addi�onal funding for cameras? What's the correla�on with the Police Department? Isn’t there more funding available for cameras? → The goal is to u�lize similar cameras as the Police Department. Both departments will work collabora�vely to share the informa�on and minimize costs.
v. Synergy for different projects; when going out for RFP is there a savings if mul�ple projects are bid at the same �me?
Fiscal Year 2023-2024 Budget Development Checklist
4 → We’re not aware of any data displaying a significant savings if mul�ple different projects are bid at the same �me. Combining projects into one project may have savings; however, the savings would be on staff overhead and on obtaining a beter contractor price due to increased quan��es per unit.
vi. Can they add somewhere? They have a long list from his District. → The ideal procedure is that the community brings their projects/concerns to the respec�ve councilmember based on the district where the concern is located. The councilmember would provide their priority projects to staff between January and February of each year.
Staff would include these projects in the proposed CIP budget for considera�on by the rest of the City Council during the next FY Budget process.
vii. Concrete vs. asphalt, has anyone looked at the lifespan in comparison to cost? → Concrete pavement is more expensive than asphalt as a material for roadways’ pavement surface. However, if properly maintained, both surfaces will have a long lifespan; the typical life cycle of a road is about forty (40) years. The typical advantage of concrete pavement is that it requires less maintenance. A life-cycle cost analysis would be necessary to determine if, at current costs, concrete is more cost effec�ve than asphalt over its life cycle. Given the current funding environment for many ci�es, asphalt is chosen due to its lower ini�al cost, and therefore, more pavements can be replaced.
5. Councilmember Doria Robinson
i. Can they see forma�ng in different ways? Side by side with funding vs. unfunded so they can make long-term planning decisions. Can we have a complete list of CIP projects and the costs of each? What is the long term vs. annual projects?
→ Public Works is working with Finance to develop a list of both funded and unfunded CIP projects and their costs. Currently Public Works is working on forma�ng the new CIP book digitally through ClearGov. In the future, the CIP program intends to evolve and include addi�onal repor�ng metrics, such as short-term and long-term goals, project type, and districts.
ii. 32 projects currently, how many can really be done? What's realis�c of how many projects can be done in a year?
→ As a rule of thumb, an engineer can handle five (5) to six (6) projects in a year. With current staffing levels, that would translate to approximately 15-20 projects that would be managed annually by Public Works Engineering Staff. One strategy to handle the “overage” is “backlogging” other projects to be completed in later years. While consultants could be employed, this is not necessarily a panacea
. Staff s�ll need to work
with the consultants to ensure that projects are being properly Fiscal Year 2023-2024 Budget Development Checklist
5 delivered, mee�ng City standards, and administered well (e.g., invoices paid, schedules are met, grant guidelines are kept, and projects stay within their scopes). Another strategy is to add more staffing a�er the current staff members become established. This would help to ensure that future staff are established with the City and properly trained according to City policies, standards, and procedures. It is important to note there is currently a large backlog of projects and requests. It is important to note there is currently a large backlog of projects and requests.
6. Councilmember Soheila Bana
i. How much funding do we have available to work with?
→ The funding availability is to be determined. Most of the projects are funded from grants and funds like Gas Tax, SB1, and Measure J, which are alloca�ons from the state. Developer Impact Fee funds are another op�on; however, those funds are for specific types of projects. Currently, the City Council can allocate the remaining balance on the American Rescue Plan Act funding to help fund projects.
ii. Can they get a report on Citywide reported issues by District via an online portal?
→ The development of our online portal is s�ll in the pre-development stage. We need �me to determine the capabili�es of our exis�ng so�ware such as TrackIT and ARCGIS. The online portal is also only as good as its data. Due to staff turnover and lack of inquiry management, addi�onal �me and staff are needed to not only clean up the exis�ng inquiries, but also manage the new ones coming in simultaneously. iii. Can the Impact of cameras on traffic calming be measured? Do the cameras help with the sideshows?
→ There may be some evidence that cameras can influence behavior on motorists. However, the City may wish to inves�gate this ques�on in depth and/or commission a study by an expert consultant on the subject. There may also be some legal issues and limita�ons associated with these cameras that should be explored.
iv. Would like a report on how produc�ve the City Council requests are? → The City Staff would like clarity on this ques�on to understand what type of informa�on is being requested in the report.
v. Carlson Blvd. District 4 needs parks, may allocate $1M to buy the land and another one million to build a park.
→ To move forward with land acquisi�on and development, City staff would need policy direc�on from the City Council.
vi. Tree Replacement Plan is needed as part of the Capital Improvement Plan → Tree replacement can be a component of the Unfunded Park Improvements Project.
Fiscal Year 2023-2024 Budget Development Checklist
6 7. Mayor Eduardo Mar�nez
i. Current paving index, where is it? How much is needed to get it to the next levels?
→ The MTC commissions a pavement study for their client jurisdic�ons bi- annually. To par�cipate, agencies do share in the cost (for Richmond, the cost is 20% or approximately $20 K). The last study was completed in or around April 2022. This study is called a Pavement Management Plan.
This plan explored five (5) pavement maintenance scenarios and the associated poten�al fiscal impacts over a five-year �me horizon. The two (2) scenarios that may be of interest to the Council would be the “status-quo” scenario and a “five-point increase” scenario. For the City to keep its Pavement Condi�on Index (PCI) at its current level of 60, then the City will need an approximate annual paving budget of over $20 M.
Alterna�vely, if the City wishes to improve its PCI to 65, then it would need an approximate annual budget of approximately $34 M. The City’s budget typically runs at ~$5 M to $6 M per year for pavement maintenance. The following includes addi�onal informa�on and a descrip�on of PCI scores:
PCI Range Condi�on Descrip�on
• 91-100 Excellent: New or like new pavement. Litle or no distress.
• 71-90 Good: Litle or no distress, except for u�lity patches in good condi�on, or minor to moderate hairline cracks; typically, lightly weathered.
• 51-70 Fair: Light to moderate weathering, light load-related base failure, moderate linear cracking. A PCI under 60 is subject to rapid deteriora�on.
• 50-31 Poor: Moderate to severe weathering, moderate levels of base failure, moderate to heavy linear cracking.
• 30-0 Very Poor/Failed: Extensive weathering, moderate to heavy base failure, failed patches, extensive network of moderate to heavy linear cracking.
ii. Illegal Dumping - Do we have those cameras that can move around to different loca�ons?
→ The goal is to u�lize similar cameras as the Police Department. The cameras would be installed at known illegal dumping hotspots city-wide.
As the need arises, more cameras should be installed. PW and RPD would work together to share informa�on and minimize costs.