City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: March 14, 2023
Agenda Item: 5.E
1 of 4
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Rick Valte, Public Works Director, Public Works, Engineering and Street Services
Subject: Adoption of a Resolution to Enter into an Updated Freeway Maintenance Agreement and Negotiate a Delegated Maintenance Agreement with Caltrans Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt a finding of Categorical Exemption (Class 1 Existing Facilities) pursuant to Section 15301 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines
2. Adopt the attached Resolution authorizing the City Manager to enter into a new updated Freeway Maintenance Agreement with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans).
3. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute a Delegated Maintenance Agreement with Caltrans to obtain reimbursement for maintenance work performed by the City on State routes within City boundaries.
Summary
The City and Caltrans have relied on a Freeway Maintenance Agreement (FMA) executed in 1966 to assign maintenance responsibilities associated with state highway routes running through the City. Features such as lighting, signage, roadway markings, and bicycle lane delineators have changed over the last 50 years and the FMA needs to be updated with a new agreement that reflects the changes. During this time, Lincoln Boulevard was relinquished to the City. To ensure both the City and Caltrans clearly understand areas of responsibility, staff recommends that City Council adopt the attached resolution (Attachment A) authorizing the City Manager to enter into a new maintenance agreement (Attachment B) with Caltrans.
2 of 4
Discussion
The Federal-Aid Highway Act passed in 1956 provided the framework and funding for the United States interstate system we know today. Throughout the U.S., interstate construction involved the relocation and reconfiguration of smaller highways and local streets, and required coordination and agreements between state transportation agencies and local agencies. In Santa Monica, the construction of Interstate 10 (I-10) was completed around 1965 and added another major roadway in addition to the existing smaller State Route 1 (SR-1). SR-1 at that time consisted of Lincoln Boulevard and Pacific Coast Highway, as the only state-controlled roadways in Santa Monica.
In 1966, the City and state entered into a Freeway Maintenance Agreement (FMA) which identified areas of responsibilities concerning the then recently reconfigured local streets, I-10, and SR-1. An updated agreement was executed in 1976 primarily to include the then recently constructed 5th Street off-ramp. The State subsequently relinquished part of SR-1, Lincoln Boulevard from I-10 to Dewey Street in 2012. In 1968, the City and State executed an agreement for the City to obtain reimbursement from the State when the City performed maintenance work on State routes.
The 1966 agreement clearly identifies maintenance responsibilities for both the City and Caltrans. However, it is only specific to the following: vehicular overcrossings, pedestrian overcrossings, roadway sections, and pedestrian undercrossings. The 1966 agreement does not specifically address bicycle paths, walls, or columns. In 2020, City staff commenced an application for a Caltrans encroachment permit to construct the Michigan Avenue/20th Street Bike Lane Project. Caltrans requested that the City update the agreement and execute a new FMA. Caltrans stated that because the existing FMA did not specifically address bicycle lanes within state rights-of-ways, that the City would need to either enter into a new FMA or a project-specific agreement. Since both agreements would take the same amount of time and effort, entering into a new FMA was the approach selected because it negates the need for project specific agreements for future City projects. The new agreement would address items in the old agreement plus the newer features mentioned above. A comparison of the 1966 agreement and new agreement is provided in Table 1.
Table 1. Summary Comparison of 1966 Freeway Maintenance Agreement & Proposed Agreement Item 1966 Freeway Proposed Freeway
3 of 4
Maintenance Agreement Maintenance Agreement
Vehicular Overcrossings
(bridges over I-10 such as
Main Street, Lincoln
Boulevard, 11th Street, etc.)
State maintains structure,
City maintains top layer of
asphalt concrete (if
installed)
No change
Pedestrian Overcrossings
(located across Pacific
Coast Highway)
City maintains structure in
its entirety
Caltrans maintains
structure in its entirety
Vehicular Undercrossings State maintains structure,
City maintains pavement
underneath
No change
Pedestrian Undercrossings State maintains structure,
City maintains pathway
No change
Landscaped Areas City and State to maintain
per exhibit delineating
areas of responsibility
No change
Walls & Columns
(applicable mostly at the
Stewart Street
undercrossing where there
are murals and on Pico
Blvd. where there is artwork
on columns and bridge)
Not addressed State maintains structure,
City maintains paint,
performs graffiti removal
Interchange Operation Not addressed State maintains efficient operation of interchanges
and ramps
Bicycle Paths
(those constructed by the
City)
Not addressed City maintains bike paths
on overcrossings
Past Council Actions
Meeting Date Description
07/26/1966
(Attachment C)
Resolution No. 3464 approving original agreement for
maintenance of State freeways in the City of Santa Monica 4/16/1968
(Attachment D)
Resolution No. 3723 of the City of Santa Monica Council approving agreement for maintenance of State highways in the City of Santa Monica (reimbursement agreement)
8/10/1976
(Attachment E)
Resolution No. 4784 of the City of Santa Monica Council approving a revised freeway agreement with the State of California which adds the Fifth Street off-ramp
Environmental Review
The project is categorically exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15301 of the CEQA Guidelines. Section 15301 exempts Class 1 (Existing Facilities) projects from CEQA, 4 of 4
which include the operation, repair, maintenance, permitting, leasing, licensing, or minor alteration of existing public or private structures, facilities, mechanical equipment, or topographical features, involving negligible or no expansion of existing or former use.
The maintenance agreement would address maintenance responsibilities of existing transportation infrastructure, and therefore, it has determined that the project is categorically exempt pursuant to Section 15301 of the CEQA Guidelines. Furthermore, staff has determined that none of the exceptions to Categorical Exemptions set forth in the CEQA Guidelines, section 15300.2 apply to this project.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
There are no financial impacts as result of this agreement. Staff would negotiate and execute a Delegated Maintenance Agreement with the State. Such agreement would allow the City to obtain future reimbursements from the State for the actual cost of all routine maintenance work on State routes.
Prepared By: Curtis Castle, Principal Civil Engineer
Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. Resolution to Enter into FMA
B. Proposed Freeway Maintenance Agreement
C. Resolution No. 3464 Approving Original Agreement for Maintenance of State freeways in the City of Santa Monica
D. Resolution No. 3723 of the City of Santa Monica Council Approving Agreement for Maintenance of State highways in the City of Santa Monica (reimbursement agreement)
E. Resolution No. 4784 of the City of Santa Monica Council Approving a Revised Freeway Agreement with the State of California
F. PowerPoint Presentation