Susana Alcala Wood, City Attorney Jorge Oseguera, City Auditor Mindy Cuppy, City Clerk Howard Chan, City Manager John Colville, City Treasurer City Council Report
915 I Street, 1st Floor
Sacramento, CA 95814
www.cityofsacramento.org
File ID: 2022-00374 February 15, 2022 Consent Item 14
Title: 2022 State Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP): Joint Grant Application with Capitol Corridor JPA, Sacramento Regional Transit, Sacramento Area Council of Governments, and Downtown Railyards Ventures (T15029000)
Location: 401 I Street, District 4
Recommendation: Adopt a Resolution: 1) directing staff to submit a proposal for the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP) in collaboration with Capitol Corridor JPA (CCJPA) as lead agency applicant, Sacramento Regional Transit (SacRT), and Downtown Railyards Ventures, LLC (DRV) for project funding to design and construct initial phases of a new Transit Center at the Sacramento Valley Station (SVS) and street improvements for regional bus access; Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG), SacRT, and DRV for project funding to design and construct initial phases of a new Transit Center at the SVS, Light rail station relocation, H Street Cycle track, Contactless Payment System for regional commuter buses, and street improvements for regional bus access; and 2) authorizing the City Manager to accept the City of Sacramento portion of awarded grant funding from the State of California, Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and execute the grant agreement and any related documents; and 3) upon award, authorizing the City Manager to execute agreements and related documents with Downtown Railyard Ventures LLC for reimbursement of construction funds from TIRCP.
Contact: Gregory Taylor, AIA, LEED AP, Project Manager, (916-808-5268), [email protected]
; Ryan Moore, Director of Public Works, (916-808-6629), [email protected]; Department of Public Works
Presenter: None.
Attachments:
1-Description/Analysis
2-Resolution
File ID: 2022-00374 Consent Item 14
February 15, 2022
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City of Sacramento
Description/Analysis
Issue Detail: The State of California, Caltrans Division of Rail and Mass Transportation has issued a call for projects for the fourth round of the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP). Applications are due March 3, 2022. If approved in this action, the City of Sacramento will be one of the joint applicants under a master grant application made by CCJPA. Other joint applicants include SacRT and DRV. The City’s portion of the request include construction of a Pick-up and Drop-off loop, storm drain, and improved bicycle access, construction of bus layover facility, bus regional bus stops for regional commuter buses, and funds for construction documents and specifications for the SVS Bus Mobility Center, including NEPA (National Environmental Protection Act) clearance to be ready for federal applications for the regional passenger bus hub; SacRT’s piece includes double tracking and loop of the Green Line to provide enhanced transit service to destinations in the Railyards and River District. SACOG will administer funds for the Contactless Payment System for regional buses and facilitate the maintenance and operations of the bus layover facility and the Downtown/Midtown bus stops. DRV is a sub-applicant to the city for funding construction of a 600-foot segment of 5th Street to North B Street, which has been identified in the regional commuter bus study to improve connections between Interstate 5 and SVS.
Policy Considerations: The recommendation in this report is consistent with the City of Sacramento General Plan goals to improve system connectivity and promote economic and infill development. The City has developed a facility plan for expanding regional bus access to the station, which meets the service needs for the station outlined in the 2018 State Rail Plan for increasing for intercity passenger rail and regional bus networks with milestones in 2022, 2027, and 2040.
Economic Impacts: None.
Environmental Considerations:
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA): In accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), under Statutory Exemption 15262, feasibility and planning studies for possible future actions do not require the preparation of environmental documents, but they do require the consideration of environmental factors. The master planning of the SVS, which is a planning study, is a component of the larger Intermodal Transportation Facility Project (T15029000) and has been assessed as part of that project’s environmental review.
Environmental clearances in accordance with CEQA and NEPA have been received at the program and project levels. The Railyards Specific Plan was amended to
File ID: 2022-00374 Consent Item 14
February 15, 2022
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City of Sacramento
incorporate SVS Area Plan elements and the CEQA document was updated by Addendum, both adopted by Council in April 2021. The regional Bus Mobility Center CEQA analysis was undertaken at the Project Level.
Sustainability: The Transit Center project was developed within the current SVS Master Plan work and will provide expanded bus and light rail transit operations, electrical vehicle charging and bicycle facilities. The Transit Center is designed to standards under the Living Building Challenge (LBC) framework developed by the International Living Futures Institute (ILFI). The Department of Public Works has registered the master plan as a Living Community Challenge (LCC) project with ILFI as a project under the City’s Demonstration Partnership Program.
Commission/Committee Action: None.
Rationale for Recommendation: The SVS is currently the seventh busiest Amtrak train station in the nation and the busiest CCJPA station located adjacent to the central business and at the heart of a developing new infill development area. To take advantage of this regional hub, the SVS is planned to expand as a regional transportation facility to serve multiple modes of transportation: from intercity passenger rail, a hub for regional light rail service, bus services, and bike and pedestrian trails. A consolidated grant request reflects the regional utility and related benefits of rail and transit services.
Financial Considerations: Projects applying for the TIRCP do not require a minimum match.
City staff will identify public and private investments made in the Railyards as leverage to support the grant request. Total project application for all projects will not exceed $80 million. If awarded, the CCJPA as grant applicant will transfer awarded grant funds to the City and SacRT for their respective project components. The Sacramento Intermodal Facility Project (T15029000) has sufficient funding for any ineligible costs to support the grant.
Local Business Enterprise (LBE): Not applicable.
Background: The City and region have identified expansion of the SVS, the historic depot, and its surrounding land uses into a regional transportation facility to serve multiple modes of transportation: from intercity passenger rail, a hub for regional light rail service, bus service, and bike and pedestrian trails. The City has taken the lead to develop this regional project through multiple phases. Phase 1, Track Relocation, completed in 2012, moved and expanded the mainline rail tracks and related operations to the north, improving passenger and freight train efficiency and services with major upgrades to passenger rail facilities. Phase 2, rehabilitation and renovation of the historic station building was completed in March 2017.
File ID: 2022-00374 Consent Item 14
February 15, 2022
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City of Sacramento
The City was awarded $3.9 million from the 2020 TIRCP, which provided construction funding for a new SVS North Entrance directly connecting the passenger station with the Central Shops Plaza and entertainment venues. That project is scheduled for construction in early 2023. The City also received funding to study the reconfiguration of the Interstate 5 on-ramps at I Street and 3rd Street that will provide regional buses bi-directional access to Interstate 5 to/from the Bus Mobility Center. The 2020 TIRCP also funded two studies for regional buses, which analyzed a new consolidation of routes in the Central City and a Layover and EV Bus charging facility. Both will be submitted for funding in the 2022 TIRCP joint application with CCJPA.
Phase 3 is the expansion of transportation infrastructure and site development into a larger intermodal center located near the relocated passenger rail infrastructure. The Department of Public Works is leading the Phase 3 master plan with a consultant team that has developed the Transit Center as part of the overall master plan. The master plan was incorporated into the Railyards Specific Plan with Council approval in Spring 2021. The historic station will continue to serve Amtrak passengers and Amtrak operations such as baggage and ticketing services, crew base, as well as passenger waiting are in the refurbished Main Waiting Room and house over 26,000 sf of retail and office lease space.
The level of passenger service needs is guided by the 2018 State Rail Plan, which outlines service increases for intercity passenger rail and regional bus networks with milestones in 2022, 2027, and 2040 that outline statewide rail and bus service improvements that will require significant service and capacity increases at SVS for bus, light rail, and other mobility services.
The state has created the TIRCP as a principal funding vehicle to implement the state rail plan.
As stated in the TIRCP request for projects statement: “the TIRCP was created to provide grants from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) to fund transformative capital improvements that will modernize California’s intercity, commuter, and urban rail systems, and bus and ferry transit systems, to significantly reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, vehicle miles traveled, and congestion.”
The SVS Area Plan was accepted by Council April 6, 2021, and the plan elements incorporated into the Railyards Specific Plan and CEQA analysis to facilitate the development of the SVS Transit Center to transform the city-owned parcel to accommodate the expansion of all service modes, particularly bus, light rail, and bike access with future housing, hotel, retail, and office uses.
The Transit Center will provide 18 bus berths for intercity buses and some existing local RT routes. Currently ten bus agencies serve Downtown Sacramento with 90 routes stopping within a half-mile of the station. For those routes, 764 alightings and departures occur each day, with
File ID: 2022-00374 Consent Item 14
February 15, 2022
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City of Sacramento
only 84 of those serving SVS. Existing Amtrak bus berths are at capacity at periods of the day and the ability to add bus services is limited with the current configuration. Demand for bus access has increased and is projected to increase with new job centers such as the County Courthouse and new commercial and residential developments proximate to the station.
Component Projects of the Grant Application for construction funding and constructed by the City are as follows:
Pick-up/Drop-off Loop (PUDO): The current Vehicular Pick-up/Drop-off (PUDO) occurs in the drive aisle at the front of the historic station. This location serves infrequent travelers long- distance Amtrak riders with need to enter the station for ticketing and checked baggage, but for daily commuters, this location is burdensome, requiring passage through the station and an 800 ft walk to the station platforms. This location also suffers from high congestion with the combined constraints of parking queuing and high vehicle volumes, particularly during peak hours and holidays, impacting all travelers. The need for a dedicated PUDO close to the entrance to the passenger platforms that can efficiently serve passengers to the rail system and facilitate direct drop-off to the light rail system will be of great benefit to rail and transit users. This new facility will have sufficient curb length to handle private vehicles, Transportation Network Companies ( TNC) (e.g., Lyft and Uber), and small van shuttles that can deliver commuters efficiently to awaiting trains.
The PUDO is to be constructed with the relocation of the light rail station from the current east/west orientation to a north/south orientation along the far eastern edge of the city parcel, as has been a long-standing project for relocation. The PUDO will be sited between the light rail station and the existing passenger tunnel entrance.
H Street Cycletrack: Bike Access to the station has been a frequent public request in many public meetings and online surveys conducted through the Phase 3 master plan process.
Capitol Corridor has a significant 8% of current ridership that access the station by bike, despite the current limited access. Consistent with the Central City Specific Plan (CCSP), the Transit Center project will improve bike access via a Class IV facility extended along F Street into the site to the existing terminus of 2nd Street north of Old Sacramento with the future construction of the Bus Mobility Center, and can be connected to a future crossing of the historic I Street bridge with its conversion to a pedestrian and bike facility. This alignment will provide access to the station via Alkali Flat and northern neighborhoods.
A strong link to the Central Business District is needed. Including in the application is a two-way cycle track along H Street from 10th Street to the station that is consistent with the CCSP and connects with planned north/south cycle tracks at 9th and 10th Streets. The H Street bi-directional facility is aligned to the south to prevent conflict with the light rail tracks on the northern side H Street.
File ID: 2022-00374 Consent Item 14
February 15, 2022
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City of Sacramento
Storm Drain Line: A key piece to develop the SVS site as a full intermodal hub station with transit-oriented development, is the placement of the storm drainage trunk line that will convey stormwater to the pump station in the Railyards. This trunk line is a critical link in the Railyards Drainage Master Plan to convey stormwater from the existing platforms and all area of the developing Transit Center, including the relief the detention basin on the SVS site that is designated for housing, and the detention basin on the adjacent property fronting 5th Street, Lot 40, which is likely to be a site for office. The storm drain will be part of the PUDO project.
Regional Transit Route Consolidation Projects
For the past year, SACOG has led a study funding in the 2020 TIRCP for aligning all regional commuter bus through a fixed route through downtown and midtown connecting with SVS passenger rail that includes a bus layover and future vehicle charging along X Street between 6th and 8th Streets. The city would be responsible only to deliver the capital improvements for these projects and SACOG is facilitating an operations and maintenance structure that would not include the City of Sacramento. The components of this project are as follows:
Bus Stops & Shelters: In 2018, the Department of Public Works was in discussion with the Transbay JPA in San Francisco for the relocation of seventeen bus shelters on the site of the Temporary Transbay Terminal for use at the planned bus station at SVS. The shelters were designed to be re-used and the end of their use at Transbay. That effort stalled and the SVS Bus Mobility Center evolved beyond the feasibility to use the structures. These structures are now under the control of the San Francisco Redevelopment Authority. They will continue to be in use to 2023 when the site is to be cleared for construction, at which time the structures would be removed. This timeframe coincides with the anticipated construction schedule for new bus stops for the regional commuter buses. Staff is pursuing a cost estimate for the dismantling, transport, and reassembly of the structures for grant funding. The estimated value of the structures is approximately $3 million. Public Works would construct the improvements at each of the 18 bus stops.
Bus Layover and EV Charging Facility: The Central City Specific Plan identifies a three-block length fronting X Street along the Caltrans parking area for bus layover. The City has lease commitments on the parking, which this project would alter terms for use as a bus layover and electric bus charging station. The regional commuter buses currently either layover buses on city streets in the downtown between the morning and evening commute schedules, or dead- head buses back to their point of origin. With the state mandate for all buses to be electric by 2035, the opportunity for charging in this location during the layover period is desirable for the regional operators. SACOG is working with the regional operators, Caltrans, and city staff to facilitate agreements and construct the layover facility with TIRCP funding. The city would deliver the capital improvements for the layover facility solely with grant funds. Maintenance
File ID: 2022-00374 Consent Item 14
February 15, 2022
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City of Sacramento
and operations agreements will be negotiated by SACOG third party entities and bus operators.
5th Street Segment Railyards Blvd to North B Street: This study has identified 5th Street as the most efficient connector for all north area buses to access the freeway to SVS and serve the new state office complex on Richards Blvd. Currently, 5th Street is built through the Railyards through the intersection with Railyards Blvd., leaving a 600 ft segment with underground utilities but no surface improvements. The completion of this segment would provide access to the Richards Blvd interchange via Sequoia Pacific as an interim, until such time 5th Street would extend through private land holdings as anticipated in the River District Specific Plan.
This last road segment was not determined to be completed until such time Kaiser Hospital is constructed, however, the need for efficient regional transportation improvements provides an opportunity to request funding from the state for funding this improvement.
Professional Services
The Grant Application also includes the Bus Mobility Center project for Architectural and Engineering documentation and environmental clearance. The Bus Mobility Center (BMC) project is currently at 30% design documentation with a 30% cost estimate under contract with Perkins +Will team. The grant application will include a funding to complete all construction documents, specifications for federal funding for construction of the BMC under the current professional services contract. The project scope will also include funding for NEPA preparation and certification for anticipated federal funds to construct.
The historic station will continue to serve Amtrak passengers and Amtrak operations such as baggage and ticketing services, crew base, as well as passenger waiting are in the refurbished Main Waiting Room and house over 26,000 sf of retail and office lease space.
RESOLUTION NO. 2022-
Adopted by the Sacramento City Council
February 15, 2022
2022 State Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP) Grant Joint Application with Capitol Corridor JPA, Sacramento Area Council of Governments, Sacramento Regional Transit, and Downtown Railyards Ventures (T15029000)
BACKGROUND
A. The California State Transportation Agency has issued a call for projects for the FY 2022 Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program grants.
B. Applications for the FY 2022 Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program grants are due March 3, 2022.
C. The Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program mission statement: TIRCP was created to provide grants from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund to fund transformative capital improvements that will modernize California’s intercity, commuter, and urban rail systems, and bus and ferry transit systems, to significantly reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, vehicle miles traveled, and congestion.
D. The Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program objectives are stated as:
a. Reduction in greenhouse gas emissions;
b. Expand and improve transit service to increase ridership; c. Integrate the rail service of the state’s various rail operations, including integration with the high-speed rail system; and
d. Improve transit safety.
E. The Sacramento Valley Station Transit Center will provide the system integration of all transportation modes as envisioned in the 2018 State Rail Plan.
F. The joint agency grant application leverages more than $50 million of local, state, federal, and developer investment for the Phase 1 Track Relocation project completed in 2013.
G. The joint agency grant application leverages over $50 million of local, state and federal investment in seismic upgrades and historic renovation, which improved
Amtrak premises and provided new city lease opportunities and passenger amenities that will continue to serve useful life.
H. The joint application by the City of Sacramento, Sacramento Area Council of Governments, Sacramento Regional Transit, and Downtown Railyards Ventures, LLC with Capitol Corridor JPA as transit agency applicant presents a public- private opportunity to maximize the rail passenger ridership to the station and build on prior cooperative enhancements for the regional facility, Sacramento Valley Station.
BASED ON THE FACTS SET FORTH IN THE BACKGROUND, THE CITY COUNCIL RESOLVES AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Submitting the application to the California State Transportation Agency for up to $80 million in total project cost for FY 2022 Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program grant request is approved.
Section 2. Upon award of the FY 2022 Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program grant, the City Manager or the City Manager’s designee, is authorized to execute the grant agreement and any related grant documents.
Section 3. Upon award of the FY 2022 Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program grant, the City Manager or the City Manager’s designee, is authorized to execute agreements and any related documents with Downtown Railyards Ventures, LLC for reimbursement of construction funds from TIRCP grant funds.