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CC - Adoption of a Resolution Authorizing an Application to the SCAG Sustainability Planning Grants Program for Bicycle & Pedestrian Master Plan Corridor Studies
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Meeting Date: November 14, 2016
Contact Person/Dept: Eric Bruins/Public Works
Phone Number: 310-253-5616
Fiscal Impact: Yes [] No [X] General Fund: Yes [] No [X]
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [X] Attachments: []
Commission Action Required: Yes [] No [X]
Public Notification: (E-Mail) Meeting and Agenda - City Council (11/09/16);
Department Approval: Charles D. Herbertson, Public Works Director/City Engineer (11/04/16)
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RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council adopt a resolution authorizing an application to the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) 2016 Sustainability Planning Grants Program for Bicycle & Pedestrian Master Plan Corridor Studies.
BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION
In 2010, the City Council adopted the Culver City Bicycle & Pedestrian Master Plan (BPMP). The BPMP provided a foundation for the City’s recent progress in becoming a safer and more welcoming place for people to walk and bike. The City has completed several significant projects and programs since 2010, including bike lanes and pedestrian improvements on Jefferson Boulevard, bike lanes on Washington Boulevard and Washington Place, a bike route with sharrows connecting the Expo Line station to Downtown via Wesley/Higuera/Lucerne/Irving, and hundreds of new pedestrian countdown signals, among other improvements. In partnership with the Culver City Unified School District, the City has sponsored a highly successful Safe Routes to School program currently operating in all elementary and middle schools in the city. The City hosted a CicLAvia event drawing over 100,000 participants and is preparing for a second one in spring 2017.
Recent policy direction from the City Council has been to do more than envisioned in the current BPMP, including exploring protected bike lanes, bike share, and other innovative ideas to make Culver City more bicycle and pedestrian-friendly. While City staff has pursued these ideas through feasibility studies, it has become increasingly clear that the current BPMP does not provide the policy foundation needed for the more innovative initiatives under consideration.
A comprehensive update is needed in order to:
• Identify corridors for innovative bikeway designs, including protected bike lanes;
• Improve policy guidance and design standards for pedestrian corridors;
• More comprehensively address first/last mile access to the Expo Line and other transit centers;
• Set more defined performance measures for safety (e.g. Vision Zero), mode share, or other goals; and
• Identify and develop project ideas that are “grant-ready” for competitive funding programs.
The City Council has already set aside funding for a basic update to the BPMP. The SCAG Sustainability Planning Grants Program offers an opportunity to strategically leverage this funding to complete a more comprehensive update that addresses the needs identified above. A comprehensive update would enable the consideration of new citywide policy initiatives as well as more focused studies of specific opportunity corridors. This grant would also provide resources for more data collection, analysis, and community engagement than the City could otherwise undertake.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
The City Council allocated $150,000 in the FY 2015-2016 budget for a consultant to update the Bicycle & Pedestrian Master Plan. This proposal would designate all or a portion of that allocation as a local match for this grant application. No additional City funding is requested at this time.
ATTACHMENTS
1. 2016-11-14 - ATT SCAG Sustainability Planning Grants FAQ
2. Proposed Resolution
MOTION
That the City Council:
Adopt a Resolution authorizing the filing of an application for grant funds through the SCAG Sustainability Planning Grants Program for the purposes of a comprehensive update to the Culver City Bicycle & Pedestrian Master Plan and related corridor studies.