VEHICLE MILES TRAVELED STUDY
ARMORLITE LOFTS
San Marcos, California
November 7, 2024
LLG Ref. 3-23-3814
Prepared by: Under the Supervision of:
Renald Espiritu John Boarman, P.E.
Transportation Engineer III Principal
LINSCOTT, LAW & GREENSPAN, engineers LLG Ref. 3-23-3814 Armorlite Lofts
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTION PAGE
1.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1
2.0 Project Description .................................................................................................................... 2
3.0 Vehicle Miles Traveled: Overview and Background .............................................................. 6
3.1 VMT Background ............................................................................................................... 6
3.2 Senate Bill 743 .................................................................................................................... 6
4.0 VMT Significance Criteria & Methodology ............................................................................ 7
4.1 Local / Regional Agency Transition to SB743 ................................................................... 7
4.2 Screening Criteria ............................................................................................................... 7
5.0 VMT Analysis ............................................................................................................................. 9
APPENDICES
APPENDIX
A. SANDAG VMT Screening Map
LINSCOTT, LAW & GREENSPAN, engineers LLG Ref. 3-23-3814 Armorlite Lofts
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LIST OF FIGURES
SECTION—F IGURE # F OLLOWING PAGE
Figure 2–1 Vicinity Map ................................................................................................................... 3 Figure 2–2 Project Area Map ............................................................................................................ 4 Figure 2–3 Site Plan .......................................................................................................................... 5
LIST OF TABLES
SECTION—T ABLE # P AGE
Table 5–1 Project Vehicle Miles Traveled Analysis ............................................................................ 9
LINSCOTT, LAW & GREENSPAN, engineers LLG Ref. 3-23-3814 Armorlite Lofts
N:\3814 - Armorlite Apartments\Report\VMT.3814 November 2024.docx 1 VEHICLE MILES TRAVELED STUDY
ARMORLITE LOFTS
San Marcos, California
November 7, 2024
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Linscott, Law & Greenspan, Engineers (LLG) has prepared this Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) study to determine the VMT impacts for the Armorlite Lofts project (hereafter referred to as “Project”). The Project proposes to construct 165 apartment un its and 5,600 SF of commercial use at 225 Las Posas Road in the City of San Marcos.
The VMT analysis presented in this report includes the following:
Project Description
Vehicle Miles Traveled: Overview and Background
VMT Significance Criteria and Methodology
VMT Analysis
Conclusions
LINSCOTT, LAW & GREENSPAN, engineers LLG Ref. 3-23-3814 Armorlite Lofts
N:\3814 - Armorlite Apartments\Report\VMT.3814 November 2024.docx 2 2.0 PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The project applicant is reque sting approval of a Specific Plan (SP-23-0001), General Plan Amendment (GPA23-0002), Rezone (R23-0001), S ite Development Plan (SDP23-0003) and a Conditional Use Permit (CUP23-0002). The General Plan Designation on the Proj ect site is Public Institutional (PI). A General Plan Amendment is proposed to change the designation to Specific Plan Area (SPA). The Zoning on the project site is Public-Institutional (P-1). A rezone is proposed to change the site zoning to Specific Plan Area (SPA ). If approved, these entitlements would allow for the development of 165 apartment units and 5,600 SF of commercial use at 225 Las Posas Road in the City of San Marcos. As proposed, 15% of the uni ts will be affordable at the very-low income level (30% to 50% of the Area Median Income or AMI). The Project is anticipated to start construction in 2026 with full occupancy in late 2027/early 2028.
Figure 2–1 shows the Project vicinity. Figure 2–2 shows a more detailed Project area map.
Figure 2–3 shows the Project site plan.
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S.D. COUNTYS.D. COUNTY
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Time: 2:56 PM
Date: 11/16/2023
N:\3814\Figures
Vicinity Map
Figure 2-1
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Figure 2-2
Armorlite Lofts
N:\3814\Figures
Date: 11/16/23
Project
Site
BENCH
BENCH BENCH
T
D
D
D
243.70'
ARMORLITE DRIVE
1 LEVEL
PARKING STRUCTURE
33.0 LAS POSAS ROAD
N 66°24'27" W
442.23' S 23°35'33" W
N 23°33'40" E200.00'
175.04'
S 69°12'43" E
10.0 10.0
79.4 51.6
24.0 24.0
9.0 18.0
93.9 10.1
171 SPACES
EVA
18.0 5.1 186.5
PALOMAR STATION APARTMENTS
SPRINTER RAIL
AT&T
GEORGE BURGERS
MAJOR TRANSIT STOP
PALOMAR COLLEGE STATION
10.1 24.0
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MAP
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BIKE RACKS
LOCATION
DOG
PARK
5256 S. Mission Ro
Bonsall, CA 92003
760.724.1198
ARCHITECTURE
SCALE:
NOVEMBER 4, 2024
SAN MARCOS, CA
LAS POSAS VENTURES, LLC
ARMORLITE LOFTS
PROJECT SUMMARY
4-STORY STACKED FLATS ABOVE 1 LEVEL POD
CONST. TYPE V-A OVER 1
OCCUPANCY R-2 / B / A-3
SPRINKLERS NFPA 13
ADDRESS 225 N LAS POSAS R D
APN 219-612-62-00
EXISTING ZONING P-1
PROPOSED ZONING SPECIFIC PLAN
TOTAL RESIDENCES 165 HOMES
AREA 2.44 AC
DENSITY 67 DU/AC
PARKING 254 SP
LOT COVERAGE 58%
FAR 2.3
UNIT MIX
10 PLAN 1 1BD/1BA 620 SF
83 PLAN 2 1BD/1BA 670 SF
45 PLAN 3 2BD/2BA 875 SF
3 PLAN 4 2BD/2BA 1000 S F
24 PLAN 5 2BD/2BA 1020 S F
165 TOTAL UNITS
RESIDENTIAL PARKING
RESIDENTIAL PARKING REQUIRED
93 X 1.5 140 SP
72 X 2.0 144 SP
165 X .33 55 SP
SUBTOTAL 339 SP
CAP REDUCTION
339 X 27% REDUCTION -92 SP
TOTAL REQUIRED 247 SP
RESIDENTIAL PARKING PROVIDED
GARAGE STANDARD 69 SP
GARAGE TANDEM 102 SP
TUCK UNDER 18 SP
OPEN 58 SP
TOTAL PROVIDED 247 SP
RESIDENTIAL ACCESSIBLE PARKING
247 X .02 5 SP
RESIDENTIAL EV PARKING
EV CAPABLE (EV1)
247 SP X 10% = 25 SP
EV READY (EV2)
247 SP X 25% = 62 SP
EV CHARGERS (EV3)
247 SP X 5% = 13 SP
BICYCLE PARKING
165 DU / 5 SP = 33 SP
PROVIDED 34 SP
OPEN SPACE SUMMARY
COMMON OUTDOOR OPEN SPACE
GROUND LEVEL PASSIVE 18,320
DOG PARK 1,876
2ND FLR COURTS 13,198
CA ROOM 700
S
ROOF DECK 800 S
TOTAL PROVIDED 34,894
COMMON INDOOR SPACE
FITNESS 1,200 S
LOUNGE 850 S
TOTAL PROVIDED 2,050 S
PRIVATE OPEN SPACE
PLAN 1 10 DU X 75 SF 760
S
PLAN 2 83 DU X 55 SF 4,565 S
PLAN 3 45 DU X 75 SF 3,420 S
PLAN 4 3 DU X 80 SF 246 S
PLAN 5 24 DU X 60 SF 1,440 S
TOTAL PROVIDED 10,431
TOTAL OPEN SPACE 47,375
N
0 20 40 60
CONCEPTUA
RETAIL/F
RETAIL/FL
5,600 X .0
CAP REDU
23 X 27%
TOTAL R
RETAIL/FL
OPEN
(10)RESID
BE AVAILA
USE FROM
THE (17)
RETAIL/FL
0-25 SP =
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0-9 SP =
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LEGEND
PATH OF TRAVEL
ACCESSIBLE SPACE
EV CAPABLE EV1
EV READY EV2
EV CHARGER EV3
Site Plan
Figure 2-3
Armorlite Lofts
N:\3814\Figures
Date: 11/06/24
LINSCOTT, LAW & GREENSPAN, engineers LLG Ref. 3-23-3814 Armorlite Lofts
N:\3814 - Armorlite Apartments\Report\VMT.3814 November 2024.docx 6 3.0 VEHICLE MILES TRAVELED: OVERVIEW AND BACKGROUND
This section presents background on an evaluation of potential transportation impacts of the Project per the California Governor's O ffice of Planning and Research (OPR ) to implement California State Law Senate Bill (S.B.) 743 and the City’s adopted Transportation Impact Analysis (TIA) Guidelines (dated November 16, 2020).
3.1 VMT Background
VMT is a measurement of miles traveled by vehicl es within a specified re gion and for a specified time period. VMT measures the efficiency of the transportation network. VMT is calculated based on individual vehicle trips genera ted and their associated trip lengths. VMT accounts for two-way (round trip) travel and is often estimated for a typical weekday to measure transportation impacts.
3.2 Senate Bill 743
In September 2013, the Governor 's Office signed SB 743 into law, starting a process that fundamentally changes the way transportation imp act analysis is conduc ted under CEQA. These changes include the elimination of auto delay, leve l of service (LOS), and similar measurements of vehicular roadway capacity and traffic congestion as the basis for determini ng significant impacts.
The guidance identifies VMT as the most approp riate CEQA transportation metric, along with the elimination of Auto Delay/LOS fo r CEQA purposes statewide. The justification for this paradigm shift is that Auto Delay/LOS impacts lead to improvements that increase roadway capacity and therefore induce more traffic and greenhouse gas emissions.
In December 2018, after over five years of stakeholde r-driven development, the California Natural Resource Agency certified and adopted the CEQA St atute. As of July 1, 2020, the VMT guidelines are applicable statewide.
LINSCOTT, LAW & GREENSPAN, engineers LLG Ref. 3-23-3814 Armorlite Lofts
N:\3814 - Armorlite Apartments\Report\VMT.3814 November 2024.docx 7 4.0 VMT SIGNIFICANCE CRITERIA & METHODOLOGY
4.1 Local / Regional Agency Transition to SB743
The City of San Marcos adopted the TIA Guide lines, that provides signi ficance determination thresholds for VMT and VMT analys is methodologies. The City’s TI A Guidelines was utilized as the basis for this VMT analysis.
4.2 Screening Criteria
Based on the City of San Marcos Transportation Anal ysis Guidelines (dated November 16, 2020) , the requirement to prepare a detailed transportation VMT analysis applies to all land development projects except for those that me et at least one of the provided screening criteria. A project that meets at least one of the screeni ng criteria listed below would be considered to have a less-than- significant impact due to the project or location characteristics. Small Projects (less than 110 daily vehicle trips)
Affordable Housing (100% deed restricted)
Local Serving Retail and Public Facilities (50,000 square feet gross floor area or less) Adjacency to High-Quality Transit. A high-quality transit area is defined as the one-half mile walkshed around either of the following:
o An existing major transit st op, defined as a site contai ning an existing rail transit station or the intersection of two or more bus routes with a combined frequency of service interval of 15 mi nutes or less during the mo rning and afternoon peak commute periods. In addition, a rail transit station must be within 0.25 miles of bus stops serving at least one bus route with individual service intervals no longer than 30 minutes during peak commute periods per route in order to qualify as a high-quality transit area.
o An existing stop along a high-quality transit corridor, defined as a corridor with fixed route bus service with combined service intervals (gaps between buses serving the corridor) no longer than 15 minutes during peak commute hours.
However, this presumption does not apply if the project:
1. has a floor area ratio (FAR) of less than 0.75;
2. includes more parking for use by residents, customers, or employees of the project than required by the City;
3. is consistent with the City’s current Ge neral Plan, as determined by the City; or, replaces affordable residential units with a smaller number of moderate- or high- income residential units.
Map-Based Screening (projects located in VMT efficient areas): Residential and employment projects that are proposed in areas that genera te VMT below adopted City thresholds can be presumed to have a less-than-significant tr ansportation impact and would not require a detailed VMT analysis. This determinat ion must be made using SANDAG’s online residential and employment VMT maps, which show census tracts in the city where the VMT
LINSCOTT, LAW & GREENSPAN, engineers LLG Ref. 3-23-3814 Armorlite Lofts
N:\3814 - Armorlite Apartments\Report\VMT.3814 November 2024.docx 8 is below the regional average. The following ty pes of projects could be screened out using this approach:
o Residential projects propos ed in census tracts with residential VMT per capita below the City’s threshold of exceed ing 85 percent of the SANDAG regional average
o Employment projects proposed in census tracts with work VMT per employee below the City’s threshold of exceed ing 85 percent of the SANDAG regional average
LINSCOTT, LAW & GREENSPAN, engineers LLG Ref. 3-23-3814 Armorlite Lofts
N:\3814 - Armorlite Apartments\Report\VMT.3814 November 2024.docx 9 5.0 VMT ANALYSIS
RESIDENTIAL COMPONENT
Per the City TIA Guidelines, a VMT analysis for CEQA purposes will not be required as the Project is located in a VMT efficient area (Residential proj ects proposed in census tracts with residential VMT per capita below the City’s threshold of exceeding 85 percent of the SANDAG regional average) based on the applicable location-ba sed screening map produced by SANDAG. The San Diego average regional VMT/cap ita is 18.9 (and 15% below 18.9 would equate to 16.0) per SANDAG Series 14 (Year 2016) data.
Using the SANDAG screening map for residentia l projects under per capita measurements, the Project is located in cen sus tract 200.29 and would be expected to generate 12.5 VMT/capita. This equates to 66.1% of the re gional average VMT/capita. Table 5–1 shows the VMT analysis results.
Appendix A includes the SANDAG VMT Screening Map.
TABLE 5–1
PROJECT VEHICLE MILES TRAVELED ANALYSIS
VMT per Resident
Geography VMT per
Resident
Exceeds
Threshold?
San Diego Region 18.9 –
Significance Threshold
(85% of Regional Average VMT) 16.0 –
Project Site 12.5 No
Source: SANDAG San Diego Region SB743 VMT Maps
Therefore, based on the City’s TIA Guidelines, a VMT analysis is not requi red as the Project is located in a VMT efficient area and VMT impacts are presumed to be less than significant.
COMMERCIAL COMPONENT
Per the City TIA Guidelines, loca l-serving retail projects that are 50,000 square feet gross floor area or less can be presumed to have a less-than-significant transportation impact and would not require a detailed VMT analysis. Retail ca n include shopping centers as well as standalone uses such as commercial shops, gas stations, and restaurants. Based on coordination with the applicant, the commercial use will be geared more towards the Armo rlite Lofts residents. Therefore, based on the City’s TIA Guidelines, a VMT analysis is not required as the proposed 5,600 SF of commercial use is far less than the screening criteria threshold for local-serving retail of 50,000 SF.
TECHNICAL APPENDICES
ARMORLITE LOFTS
San Marcos, California
November 7, 2024
LLG Ref. 3-23-3814
LINSCOTT, LAW & GREENSPAN, engineers LLG Ref. 3-23-3814 Armorlite Lofts
N:\3814 - Armorlite Apartments\Report\VMT Appendix.3814.doc
APPENDICES
APPENDIX
A. SANDAG VMT Screening Map
LINSCOTT, LAW & GREENSPAN, engineers LLG Ref. 3-23-3814 Armorlite Lofts
N:\3814 - Armorlite Apartments\Report\VMT Appendix.3814.doc
APPENDIX A
SANDAG VMT SCREENING MAP
TRANSPORTATION IMPACT
ANALYSIS GUIDELINES
City of San Marcos, CA
November 16, 2020
8 residential component separately to determine if that portion of the project screens out of a detailed VMT analysis.
2.1.2.3. Local-Serving Retail and Public Facilities
Retail projects that are 50,000 square feet gross floor area or less can be presumed to have a less- than-significant transportation impact and would not require a detailed VMT analysis. Retail can include shopping centers as well as standalone uses such as commercial shops, gas stations, and restaurants. This screening criteria applies to the entirety of a retail project; it would not be applied to multiple tenants at a retail site separately. For a mixed-use project, this screening criteria should be applied to the retail/commercial component separately to determine if that portion of the project screens out of a detailed VMT analysis.
Uses that are local-serving public facilities can be presumed to have a less-than-significant transportation impact and would not require a detailed VMT analysis, absent substantial evidence that they will generate significant VMT. These uses include, but are not limited to:
Public services (e.g., police, fire stations, public utilities) Local-serving neighborhood schools
Local neighborhood parks
2.1.2.4. Adjacency to High-Quality Transit
Projects that are located in a high-quality transit area can be presumed to have a less-than- significant transportation impact and would not require a detailed VMT analysis. A high-quality transit area is defined as the one-half mile walkshed around either of the following:
An existing major transit stop, defined as a site containing an existing rail transit station or the intersection of two or more major bus routes with a combined frequency of service interval of 15 minutes or less during the morning and afternoon peak commute periods (typically defined as 7:00 AM to 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM, respectively). In addition, a rail transit station must be within 0.25 miles of bus stops serving at least one bus route with individual service intervals no longer than 30 minutes during peak commute periods per route in order to qualify as a high-quality transit area. An existing stop along a high-quality transit corridor, defined as a corridor with fixed route bus service with combined service intervals (gaps between buses serving the corridor) no longer than 15 minutes during peak commute hours.
However, this presumption does not apply if the project:
has a floor area ratio (FAR) of less than 0.75;
includes more parking for use by residents, customers, or employees of the project than required by the City;
is inconsistent with the City’s current General Plan, as determined by the City; or,