ORDINANCE NO. 1780
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN CLEMENTE, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING SAN CLEMENTE MUNICIPAL CODE TITLE 10 – VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC, CHAPTER 10.16 TO ESTABLISH CITYWIDE POSTED SPEED LIMITS AND FINDING THE ACTION CATEGORICALLY EXEMPT FROM THE CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT WHEREAS, the City of San Clemente, California (“City”) is a municipal corporation, duly organized under the constitution and laws of the State of California; and WHEREAS, existing municipal code provisions under San Clemente Municipal Code (SCMC) Chapter 10.16 regulate the posted speed limits within the City, and WHEREAS, California Vehicle Code (CVC) Sections 22348-22358 and 40802 provide that state and local agencies should conduct engineering studies at least once every 5, 7 or 14 years to reevaluate non-statutory speed limits on segments of their roadways that have undergone significant changes since the last review, such as the addition or elimination of parking or driveways, changes in the number of travel lanes, changes in the configuration of bicycle lanes, changes in traffic control signal coordination, or significant changes in traffic volumes; and WHEREAS, the City has conducted the required speed surveys and engineering studies upon existing and new streets in the City; and WHEREAS, CVC Section 22358.6 provides that when a speed limit is to be posted, it shall be established at the nearest 5 mph increment of the 85th-percentile speed of free-flowing traffic, except as shown in the two Options below for rounding down and using 5 mph speed reduction, or rounding up, or if using additional 5 mph speed reduction on local agency roadways for safety corridor designation (CVC Section 22358.7(a)(1)) or adjacent to land or facility generating high concentrations of bicyclists and pedestrians (CVC Section 22358.7(a)(2)). If the speed limit to be posted has had the 5 mph reduction applied, then an E&TS shall document in writing the conditions and justification for the lower speed limit and be approved by a registered Civil or Traffic Engineer. The reasons for the lower speed limit shall be in compliance with CVC Sections 627 and 22358.5; and WHEREAS, CVC Section 22358.8(a) provides that a city may, by ordinance, retain the current speed limit or restore the immediately prior speed limit if, after the completion of an engineering and traffic study, the local authority finds that the speed limit is still more than is reasonable or safe, if that speed limit was established with an engineering and traffic survey and if a registered engineer has evaluated the section of highway and determined that no additional general purpose lanes have been added to the roadway since completion of the traffic survey that established the prior speed limit; and WHEREAS, the City’s Traffic Engineer has reviewed the street segments and has identified justifiable zoning, street configurations, and safety considerations and recommends that the necessary determinations to be made in order to uphold the current speed limits while also ensuring compliance with all relevant CVC codes; and WHEREAS, the Planning Commission at their regular meeting of June 26, 2024 made a recommendation to the City Council to approve the establishment of speed limits based on the recent Engineering and Traffic Survey that would maintain current speed limits, and determine the project as categorically exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act under Class 1 (Existing Facilities, 14 CCR section 15301(c)), and Class 21 (Enforcement Actions by Regulatory Agencies, 14 CCR section 15321) of the State CEQA Guidelines.
NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of San Clemente, California, hereby ordains as follows:
Section 1: Incorporation of Recitals. The recitals above are true and correct and are hereby incorporated as findings as if fully set forth herein.
Section 2: CEQA. Based on the entire record as a whole, the City Council finds and determines that this Ordinance is categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) under Class 1 (Existing Facilities, 14 CCR section 15301(c)), and Class 21 (Enforcement Actions by Regulatory Agencies, 14 CCR section 15321) of the State CEQA Guidelines because it maintains existing speed limits, allows existing speed limits to be enforced and has no possibility of making a direct or foreseeably indirect substantial impact on the environment.
Section 3: Under California Vehicle Code 22358.8 and based on the evaluation of the Engineering and Traffic Survey and street configuration by the City’s Traffic Engineer, the City Council finds and determines that the current speed limits for the following streets were established with an engineering and traffic survey, that a registered engineer has evaluated the section of highway and determined that no additional general purpose lanes have been added to the roadway since completion of the traffic survey that established that speed limit, that the posted speed limits on the following streets are still more than is reasonable or safe, and that the currently adopted speed limits on the following street shall be retained based on the following justifications:
Name of Street or Portion Affected
Declared Prima Facie Speed Limit
Justification
Cerro, Calle Del from Avenida Pico to Avenida Vista Montana (west) Thirty-five miles per hour
Rolling grades, limited line of sight, residential communities, and Class 2 bike lanes on both sides of the street Estrella, Avenida De La from Calle De Los Molinos to East El Portal Twenty-five miles per hour
Direct access to multi-family and single family residential and commercial establishments, driveway density, and multimodal activity Guadalajara, Calle from Calle Nuevo to Avenida Vaquero
Twenty-five miles per hour
Fronting residential, high driveway density and on-street parking demand Hermosa, Avenida Vista from Via Turqueza to Camino Vera Cruz Forty miles per hour
Direct access to Marblehead Elementary School and Marblehead Park, Class 2 bike lanes, adjacent path, and multimodal activity Mira Costa, Camino from Camino Capistrano to Camino De Estrella Thirty-five miles per hour
Access to multiple residential tracts, commercial establishments, and park use Presidio, Avenida from El Camino Real to Calle Escuela
Twenty-five miles per hour
Residential driveway density, proximity/access to San Clemente High School, areas with limited sight distance, and multimodal activity Saluda, Calle from Avenida La Pata to Avenida Talega
Thirty-five miles per hour
Direct access to residential tracts, Class 2 bike lanes, and multimodal activity Salvador, Avenida from Avenida Presidio to Avenida San Pablo Twenty-five miles per hour
Horizontal curvature and steep grades, and high residential driveway density San Pablo, Avenida from Avenida Acapulco to northerly terminus Thirty-five miles per hour
Steep grade, access to single and multi-family residential tracts, and trail access at the street terminus Vera Cruz, Camino from Via Blanco to Camino De Los Mares Thirty-five miles per hour
Vertical and horizontal curvature, limited line of sight, schools and Class 2 bike lanes Section 4: Section 10.16.010 of the Municipal Code of the City of San Clemente is hereby repealed and replaced in its entirety to read as follows:
10.16.010 Increasing state speed limit in certain zones.
It is determined upon the basis of an engineering and traffic investigation that the speed permitted by state law upon the following streets is less than is necessary for safe operation of vehicles thereon by reason of the designation and sign-posting of such streets as through highways and/or by reason of widely spaced intersections, and it is declared that the prima facie speed limit shall be hereinafter set forth on those streets or parts of streets herein designated when signs are erected giving notice thereof:
Name of Street or Portion Affected
Declared Prima Facie Speed Limit
N/A
N/A
Section 5: Section 10.16.020 of the Municipal Code of the City of San Clemente is hereby repealed and replaced in its entirety to read as follows:
10.16.020 Decrease of state law maximum speed per CVC Section 22358.6 It is determined upon the basis of an engineering and traffic investigation that the speed permitted by state law outside of business and residential districts as applicable upon the following streets is greater than is reasonable or safe under the conditions found to exist upon such streets, and it is declared that the prima facie speed limit shall be as herein set forth on those streets or parts of streets herein designated when signs are erected giving notice thereof:
Name of Street or Portion Affected
Declared Prima Facie Speed Limit
Acapulco, Avenida from Avenida San Pablo to Avenida San Pablo Thirty-five miles per hour
Aguilla, Calle from Avenida Vista Montana to Calle Pastadero Thirty miles per hour
Altea, Calle from Calle Pedriza to terminus
Thirty-five miles per hour
Amanecer, Calle from Avenida Pico to Avenida La Pata
Thirty-five miles per hour
Capistrano, Camino from El Camino Real (Pacific Coast Highway) to North City limit Thirty miles per hour
Cerro, Calle Del from Avenida Vista Montana (west) to Avenida La Pata Thirty-five miles per hour
Del Rio, Camino from Camino De Los Mares to Avenida La Pata Forty miles per hour
El Camino Real from Calle De Los Molinos to El Portal
Thirty-five miles per hour
El Camino Real from El Portal to Avenida Palizada
Thirty miles per hour
El Camino Real from Avenida Presidio to Avenida Valencia Thirty miles per hour
El Camino Real from Avenida Valencia to Southern City Limit Thirty-five miles per hour
El Portal, East from El Camino Real to Avenida De La Estrella Twenty-five miles per hour
Estrella, Avenida De La from East El Portal to Avenida Presidio Twenty-five miles per hour
Faro, Camino from Calle Frontera to Avenida Vista Hermosa Twenty-five miles per hour
Frontera, Calle from Avenida Pico to to 600’ s/o Calle Cuadra Thirty miles per hour
Frontera, Calle from 600’ s/o Calle Cuadra to Calle Vallarta Twenty-five miles per hour
Hermosa West, Avenida Vista from Avenida Costa Azul to Avenida Pico (west) Forty miles per hour
Hermosa, Avenida Vista from I-5 Southbound Off-ramp to Via Turqueza Forty miles per hour
Hermosa, Avenida Vista from Camino Vera Cruz to Avenida La Pata Forty-five miles per hour
La Pata, Avenida from Camino Del Rio to County of Orange Limit Line Fifty-five miles per hour
La Pata, Avenida from Camino Del Rio to South City Limit Forty-five miles per hour
La Pedriza, Camino from Via Amor to Avenida Pico
Forty miles per hour
Mares, Camino De Los from Interstate 5 to Avenida Vaquero Thirty-five miles per hour
Mares, Camino De Los from Avenida Vaquero to East City Limit Forty-five miles per hour
Montana, Avenida Vista from Calle Del Cerro to Calle Del Cerro Thirty-five miles per hour
Negocio, Calle from Calle Amanecer to its terminus
Thirty-five miles per hour
Ola Vista, South from Avenida Del Mar to Avenida Calafia Twenty-five miles per hour
Pastadero, Calle from Avenida Vista Montana to its terminus Thirty miles per hour
Pico, Avenida from El Camino Real to Calle Frontera / Avenida Presidio Thirty-five miles per hour
Pico, Avenida from Calle Frontera/Avenida Presidio to Calle Amanecer Forty-five miles per hour
Portico Del Sur / Norte from Camino De Los Mares to Camino De Los Mares Thirty-five miles per hour
Presidente, Avenida Del from Avenida Valencia to Cristianitos Road Thirty miles per hour
Presidio, Avenida from Calle Escuela to Avenida Pico
Twenty-five miles per hour
Puente Del Sol / Hermosa, Avenida Vista from Avenida Pico to Avenida Pico Thirty miles per hour
San Pablo, Avenida from San Gabriel to Avendia Acapulco Twenty-five miles per hour
Sarmentoso, Calle from Camino Vera Cruz to Camino Del Rio Thirty miles per hour
Talega, Avenida from Avenida Vista Hermosa to Calle Saluda Thirty-five miles per hour
Talega, Avenida from Calle Saluda to East City Limit
Forty miles per hour
Vaquero, Avenida from Camino De Los Mares to Camino Capistrano Thirty miles per hour
Vera Cruz, Camino from Avenida Pico to Via Blanco
Forty miles per hour
Section 6: Section 10.16.025 of the Municipal Code of the City of San Clemente is hereby repealed and replaced in its entirety to read as follows:
10.16.025 Maintaining state speed limit in certain zones.
It is determined upon the basis of an engineering and traffic investigation that the speed permitted by state law upon the following streets is appropriate for safe operation of vehicles thereon by reason of the designation of such streets, and it is declared that the prima facie speed limit shall be herein set forth on those streets or parts of streets herein designated when signs are erected giving notice thereof:
Name of Street or Portion Affected
Declared Prima Facie Speed Limit
Calafia, Avenida from Avenida Del Presidente to terminus Twenty-five miles per hour
El Camino Real (Pacific Coast Highway)
from Camino Capistrano to Avenida Estacion
Forty-five miles per hour
El Camino Real from Avenida Estacion to Calle De Los Molinos Thirty-five miles per hour
El Camino Real from Avenida Palizada to Avenida Presidio Thirty miles per hour
Estrella, Camino De from Interstate 5 to West City Limit Thirty-five miles per hour
Hermosa West, Avenida Vista from I-5 Southbound Off-ramp to Avenida Costa Azul Forty miles per hour
Hermosa, Avenida Vista from Avenida La Pata to Avenida Pico Forty-five miles per hour
La Pedriza, Camino from Avenida Vista Hermosa to Via Amor Forty miles per hour
Mares, Camino De Los from Camino Vera Cruz to East City Limit Forty-five miles per hour
Pico, Avenida from Calle Amanecer to Avenida La Pata
Forty-five miles per hour
Pico, Avenida from Avenida La Pata to East City Limit
Fifty miles per hour
Section 7: Section 10.16 of the Municipal Code of the City of San Clemente is hereby repealed and replaced in its entirety to read as follows:
Retaining state law maximum speed to the current speed limit per CVC Section 22358.8 It is determined upon the basis of an engineering and traffic investigation that the speed permitted by state law upon the following streets is appropriate for safe operation of vehicles thereon by reason of the designation of such streets, and it is declared that the prima facie speed limit shall be herein set forth on those streets or parts of streets herein designated when signs are erected giving notice thereof:
Name of Street or Portion Affected
Declared Prima Facie Speed Limit
Cerro, Calle Del from Avenida Pico to Avenida Vista Montana (west) Thirty-five miles per hour
Estrella, Avenida De La from Calle De Los Molinos to East El Portal Twenty-five miles per hour
Guadalajara, Calle from Calle Nuevo to Avenida Vaquero
Twenty-five miles per hour
Hermosa, Avenida Vista from Via Turqueza to Camino Vera Cruz Forty miles per hour
Mira Costa, Camino from Camino Capistrano to Camino De Estrella Thirty-five miles per hour
Presidio, Avenida from El Camino Real to Calle Escuela
Twenty-five miles per hour
Saluda, Calle from Avenida La Pata to Avenida Talega
Thirty-five miles per hour
Salvador, Avenida from Avenida Presidio to Avenida San Pablo Twenty-five miles per hour
San Pablo, Avenida from Avenida Acapulco to northerly terminus Thirty-five miles per hour
Vera Cruz, Camino from Via Blanco to Camino De Los Mares Thirty-five miles per hour
Section 8: Publication. The City Clerk shall certify to the adoption of this ordinance by the City Council and cause it, or a summary of it, to be published once within 15 days of adoption in a newspaper of general circulation printed and published within the City of San Clemente, and shall post a certified copy of this ordinance, including the vote for and against the same, in the Office of the City Clerk in accordance with California Government Code Section 36933.
Section 9: Records. The documents and materials associated with this ordinance that constitute the record of proceedings on which the City Council’s findings and determinations are based are located at City Hall, 910 Calle Negocio, San Clemente, CA 92673.
Section 10: Severability. If any provision of this ordinance or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity has no effect on the other provisions or applications of the ordinance that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this extent, the provisions of this ordinance are severable. The City Council declares that it would have adopted this ordinance irrespective of the invalidity of any portion thereof.
Section 11: Effective Date. This Ordinance shall become effective 30 days after its adoption.
Section 12: The City Clerk shall certify to the passage of this ordinance and cause the same to be published as required by law, and the same shall take effect as provided by law.
APPROVED AND ADOPTED this _____day of _________________, 2024.
ATTEST:
_______________________________ ___________________________ City Clerk of the City of Mayor of the City of San
San Clemente, California Clemente, California
STATE OF CALIFORNIA )
COUNTY OF ORANGE ) ss.
CITY OF SAN CLEMENTE )
I, LAURA CAMPAGNOLO, City Clerk of the City of San Clemente, California, hereby certify that Ordinance No. 1780 having been regularly introduced at the meeting of _______________________, was again introduced, the reading in full thereof unanimously waived, and duly passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council held on the _____day of _____________, _______, and said ordinance was adopted by the following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the official seal of the City of San Clemente, California, this _____ day of ______________________, 2024. __________________________
CITY CLERK of the City of
San Clemente, California
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
___________________________
Elizabeth A. Mitchell, City Attorney
Ordinance No. 1780 Page 2