REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
April 5, 2018
FROM: SCOTT MOZIER, PE, Director
Public Works Department
BY: ANDREW J. BENELLI, PE, City Engineer / Assistant Director
Public Works Department
BRIAN RUSSELL, Public Works Manager
Public Works Department, Street Maintenance Division
SUBJECT
Title
RESOLUTION - Adopting a list of proposed Public Works projects to be submitted for Senate Bill 1 Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation Account funds for City of Fresno Fiscal Year 2019.
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the Council adopt a resolution approving the list of City of Fresno projects being submitted to the California Transportation Commission (CTC) for receipt of Senate Bill 1 (SB1) Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation Account (RMRA) funds for City of Fresno FY2019.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The CTC recently adopted its 2018 reporting guidelines for SB1 funding, which require that to receive funding in the 2018-19 fiscal year, the governing body of a local agency must adopt a resolution with the list of projects proposed for SB1 funds, prior to May 1, 2018. The attached resolution meets CTC’s submission criteria. The recommended projects reflect pavement condition indices, traffic studies, leveraging of dollars with grant funding, and significant input from Council district offices. is substantially consistent with the five-year plan of RMRA projects reviewed by Council in October 2017 (updated for current SB1 revenue projections).
BACKGROUND
On March 22, 2018, the CTC adopted the 2018 guidelines for SB1 RMRA funding designated for cities and counties. Pursuant to the guidelines, a proposed project listing must be submitted to the CTC prior to May 1, 2018, for consideration. The submission must include a resolution of the Council adopting the list. The CTC will then adopt a list of cities and counties which have met its guidelines at its June Commission meeting and forward that list to the State Controller, who will in turn release SB1 funds to appropriate recipients (cities and counties). The attached resolution is, therefore, required for the City to receive SB1 funding for its eligible street projects.
Should the City not adopt a proposed project list via resolution by May 1, 2018, the Controller will retain what would have been the City’s monthly share for a period of 90 days. Should a list not be provided within that time frame, the CTC will reapportion what would have been the City’s share of SB 1 funds to other eligible cities and counties. In order that SB1 projects not be delayed, staff recommends the project list be adopted by resolution and submitted to the CTC by May 1, 2018.
SB1 specifies the following eligible uses:
• Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation
• Safety Projects
• Railroad Grade Separations
• Complete Streets Components (including active transportation purposes, pedestrian and bicycle safety projects, transit facilities, and drainage and stormwater capture projects in conjunction with any other allowable project)
• Traffic Control Devices
Further, Streets & Highways Code Section 2030(b)(2) states that funds made available by the RMRA program may also be used to satisfy a match requirement in order to obtain State or Federal funds, provided that the projects fall into the eligible SB1 categories.
The Public Works Department utilizes a pavement management system for the City’s 1,700 centerline-miles to evaluate the condition of the street network and to recommend pavement treatments. Streets are rated using an industry-standard pavement condition index (PCI) ranging from 0 to 100, with zero being a pothole-riddled crumbling street and 100 being a newly surfaced roadway. A PCI score of 80-100 is rated as “very good-excellent”, 70-79 as “good”, 60-69 as “fair”, 50-59 as
“at-risk”, 25-49 as “poor” and 0-24 as “failed”. Based upon PCI ratings and field observations by trained engineering and maintenance professionals, projects are recommended including slurry seals, grinding and overlays, as well as total reconstruction. The City’s overall PCI has been in steady decline in recent years due to insufficient funding for street maintenance. In 2008, the overall PCI was estimated at 72, but the average was somewhat inflated due to the building boom and relatively large amount of new street mileage in residential subdivisions. By 2013, the average PCI had declined to 68 and as of 2016 stands at 63.
In October 2017, the Council adopted a list of SB1 projects for FY2018 and also considered a prioritized five-year list of projects for which SB1 funds would be used. Since that time, the League of Cities has revised its estimates for SB1 revenues. The latest projections (from January 2018) forecast $8.7 million for the City of Fresno for FY2019, a reduction from the original $11.9 million. However, the FY2020 and FY2021 revenues are projected at $12.8 million and $15.1 million respectively, an increase from the original projections. The proposed list for FY2019 includes preliminary engineering funding for several projects for which construction contracts would be awarded in FY2020; notwithstanding this, the vast majority of street repairs, concrete work and slurry seal treatment projects are to be fully constructed and completed in FY2019.
This action will not limit or reduce future Council authority to appropriate funding for projects each year in the City budget, in accordance with the Charter, but rather will comply with State requirements to become eligible for receipt of funds. Per the CTC’s adopted guidelines, the project list does not limit the flexibility of an eligible city or county to fund projects in accordance with local needs and priorities, so long as the projects are consistent with SB1 RMRA guidelines.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
Adoption of a budget or a project priority list is not defined as a project under the California Environmental Quality Act.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
Local preference is not applicable for adoption of a project priority list.
FISCAL IMPACT
Adoption of the attached resolution will not impact the General Fund, beyond what has already been appropriated. Project costs would be paid for from SB1 funds and funds already appropriated by the Council in the adopted budget.
Attachments:
Resolution
SB1 Project List for FY2019
SB1 RMRA Annual Reporting Guidelines