City Council

Agenda Request  

Agenda Of:

12-01-09

Agenda Request No:

III-B

Initiated By:

Patrick Walsh, P.E.

Transportation Director

Responsible Department:

Transportation

Presented By:

Patrick Walsh, P.E.

Transportation Director

Department Head:

 

Patrick Walsh, P.E.

Transportation Director

 

 

Additional Department. Head (s):

N/A

Subject / Proceeding:

Funding Resolution for U.S. 59 Pedestrian and Bicycle Project

Exhibits:

Map of Proposed Improvements; Resolution 09-45

Clearances

Approval

Legal:

Joe Morris

City Attorney

Executive Director:

Jim Callaway

Community Development

Purchasing:

N/A

Asst. City Manager:

N/A

Budget:

Bryan Guinn,

Budget Manager

City Manager:

Allen Bogard/for AB

Budget

Expenditure Required:  $

N/A

Amount Budgeted/Reallocation:  $

N/A

Additional Appropriation:  $

N/A

Recommended Action

Approve Resolution 09-45, stating the City’s commitment to providing the local 20% funding match or $468,321 for TxDOT Transportation Enhancement program funding towards pedestrian and bicycle improvements along U.S. 59 in the Town Center area.

Executive Summary

The City has developed a Town Center Pedestrian and Bicycle Project.  The intent of the project is to provide safe and convenient access for pedestrians and bicyclists to and within the higher-activity Town Center area of Sugar Land.  The project was originally conceived via a 2007 study jointly funded by the City and the Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC).  The study’s recommendations were reviewed through a 2009 strategic project.  The strategic project group proposed modifications to the study recommendations to coordinate the project with the City’s hike and bike trail system and to ensure the recommendations were feasible.

 

A primary focus of the strategic project was to identify funding for the project, and while significant funding has already been secured, a shortfall remains.  In September 2009, City Council approved a resolution committing the City to a 20% match to $2,154,507 in federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) funding identified by H-GAC.  In October, H-GAC amended its Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) to assign these funds to Sugar Land; however, the CMAQ funds and their local match were not adequate to fund the entire project. 

 

A funding opportunity has surfaced that could address this shortfall.  The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) recently announced a call for projects for its Transportation Enhancement (T.E.) program.  This program is expected to provide $67 million statewide for non-traditional transportation projects, including pedestrian and bicycle facilities.  These are federal funds that are available at an 80% level and require a 20% local match. Applications are due December 11, 2009.  Applications require a funding resolution for the local match.

 

City staff reviewed the benefits and drawbacks of receiving the T.E. funds and recommend that the City apply for the funding.  Since the City has secured CMAQ funds for the project, the project will already be subject to federal funding issues such as funding agreements, environmental requirements, and federal design standards.  The T.E. funds thus offer additional funding capacity for the project without significant additional disadvantages.

 

Two T.E. program requirements have influenced the structure of the City’s proposed T.E. project nomination.  First, the requested funds must be associated with a specific set of improvements.  Since the City already has CMAQ funding for the Town Center project, the T.E. nomination must designate a smaller portion of the Town Center project; the cost of this portion should approximate the funding shortfall.  Second, the T.E. rules require that projects already have all right-of-way or easement secured or have letters from property owners stating the owner’s willingness to provide the property.

 

The resulting “U.S. 59 Pedestrian and Bicycle Project” is a natural result of these requirements.  This project is a subset of the larger Town Center Pedestrian and Bicycle Project, has a cost that is roughly equal to the funding shortfall, and is contained within existing public right-of-way.  The project includes the following improvements along U.S. 59 between Williams Trace Boulevard and Ditch “H”:

 

·         Ten (10) foot wide shared use paths along the northbound and southbound frontage roads;

·         Continental-style crosswalks at driveways and roadway intersections;

·         Special pedestrian crossing improvements, including enhanced illumination and pedestrian railings, at the State Highway 6 and Sweetwater interchanges.

 

The funding resolution states the City’s commitment to providing $468,321, representing 20% of the anticipated cost for the U.S. 59 Pedestrian and Bicycle Project, which is estimated at a planning level at $2,341,607.  The requested 80% T.E. funding amounts to $1,873,286.  Funding for the 20% match, including identification of a funding source, will be considered through CIP development for FY11, which begins in spring 2010. If awarded, the timing of the project will be FY11.

 

MAP OF PROPOSED IMPROVEMENTS – PLANNING LEVEL

U.S. 59 AND TOWN CENTER PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE PROJECTS

 

 

 

 

RESOLUTION NO. 09-45

 

A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SUGAR LAND, TEXAS,

REQUESTING THAT THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION ALLOCATE FUNDS FOR THE CITY’S US HIGHWAY 59 PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE PROJECT; AND EXPRESSING THE CITY’S COMMITMENT TO FUNDING ITS SHARE OF THE PROJECT COSTS.

 

WHEREAS, as part of the US Highway 59 Pedestrian and Bicycle Project (Project), the City of Sugar Land (City) has developed a study and met with members of the public to identify measures to improve safety and mobility for pedestrians and bicyclists along the U.S. Highway 59 TxDOT right-of-way between Williams Trace Boulevard and Ditch “H” in the City of Sugar Land; and

 

        WHEREAS, the study identifies a recommended set of improvements for the Project that include:

 

·         Shared use paths along the northbound and southbound frontage roads;

·         Continental-style crosswalks at driveways and roadway intersections; and

·         Pedestrian crossing improvements, including enhanced illumination and pedestrian railings, at the State Highway 6 and Sweetwater Boulevard interchanges; and

 

            WHEREAS, TXDOT has indicated that federal funds are available in its Transportation Enhancement Program (TE Program) for pedestrian and bicycle projects; and

 

            WHEREAS, the TE Program provides for TXDOT to pay 80% of the costs of approved projects and the recipient to pay 20% of the project costs; and           

 

WHEREAS, the City’s 20% local match requirement for the TE Program funding for the Project is $468,321; and

 

WHEREAS, the Project will improve safety and mobility for pedestrians and bicyclists along US Highway 59 in the City of Sugar Land; NOW, THEREFORE,

 

BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL

OF THE CITY OF SUGAR LAND, TEXAS:

 

      Section 1.  That the City requests that TXDOT allocate $1,873,286 out of the Transportation Enhancement Program for the City’s US Highway 59 Pedestrian and Bicycle Project.
 
               Section 2. That the City expresses its commitment to funding of the 20% local match for the US Highway 59 Pedestrian and Bicycle Project in the amount of $468,321.

 

 

 

 

            APPROVED on   ____________________________, 2009.

 

           

           

                                                                                                _________________________

                                                                                                James A. Thompson, Mayor

 

 

 

 

ATTEST:

 

 

 

_____________________________

Glenda Gundermann, City Secretary

 

 

 

Reviewed for Legal Compliance: