PREPARED BY: MICHELE RODRIGUEZ DATE OF MEETING: 08/07/17
SUBJECT:
TITLE
RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN PABLO ADOPTING THE CITY OF SAN PABLO’S BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN
Label
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Adopt Resolution
Body
Compliance statements
FY 2015-17 Council Priority Workplan Compliance Statement
Strategic Planning / Special Projects - J. Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan Implementation is an adopted policy item contained in the FY 2015-17 Adopted City Council Priority Workplan, effective October 1, 2016.
CEQA Compliance Statement
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Section 15260 describes the circumstances when an exemption from CEQA can occur. Section 15262 discusses that a feasibility or planning study is exempt when, “the possible future actions which the agency, board, or commission has not approved, adopted, or funded does not require the preparation of an EIR or negative declaration but does require consideration of environmental factors. This section does not apply to the adoption of a plan that will have a legally binding effect on later activities.”
The City of San Pablo’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan (Plan) meets these criteria for an exemption because the Plan is a study that serves as the basis for future grant applications, and in the near future, the potential update of the San Pablo General Plan, San Pablo Avenue Specific Plan or other related documents to more fully implement the Plan. The Plan serves as a guiding document related to the education, encouragement, enforcement, and evaluation of future walking and bicycling network improvements. Therefore, this Plan has no legally binding effect on current activities (e.g. development project application review) or later activities (i.e., the General Plan Update).
In consideration of the environmental factors, such as health and safety, aesthetics, historical or other environmental resources, the policies and recommendations included within the draft Plan would not result in any physical impacts to the environment. Furthermore, implementation of the recommendations identified in the Plan would be dependent on the availability of funding sources and would be subject to future environmental review on a case-by-case basis. Therefore, no environmental impacts would occur in connection with the adoption of the Plan.
BACKGROUND
In 2014, the City of San Pablo submitted two grant applications to the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) for financial assistance to prepare a Citywide Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan (see Attachment B). The City was successful and was awarded $25,000 in grant money from CCTA, and $77,500 from MTC for a total of $102,500 for this planning work. The sole limitation for the financial assistance from both funders is the deadline for use of the grant funds. The City met the June 30, 2016 deadline from CCTA to expend these grant funds; the City met the deadline from MTC to use its grant funds by June 30, 2017.
In May 2016, City staff released a Request for Proposal (RFP) that was sent to six consulting firms who are familiar with the City of San Pablo and its various planning documents or had previously prepared a similar bicycle and pedestrian plan for a local City. Three firms submitted proposals: Alta Planning + Design, Fehr and Peers, and Questa. City staff, consisting of representatives from the Development Services and Public Works Departments, reviewed the proposals. Based upon their experience in creating similar plans, work product proposed, timeline, staffing, and cost, the City selected the Scope of Services prepared by Alta Planning + Design. In June 2016, the City Council approved the contract with Alta Planning + Design, and City staff and Alta began working on establishing the timeline and milestones for this planning project. The June 2016 staff report to the City Council can be viewed by clicking on this weblink:
<https://sanpablo.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=A&ID=441323&GUID=A7FCCA55-0EDA-4660-9C19-CFB039673046)>.
CITY DOCUMENTS USED TO CREATE THE PLAN
The following City documents were used as reference materials for the creation of the Plan:
1) General Plan 2030 General Plan, with particular emphasis on these elements of the General Plan: Land Use and Physical Design; Circulation, Parks, Schools, Community Facilities and Utilities; Open Space and Conservation; and Health
2) San Pablo Avenue Specific Plan (2011)
3) 23rd Street Specific Plan (2007)
4) Rumrill and San Pablo Avenue Complete Streets Study (2013)
5) Climate Action Plan (2012)
6) City’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP) to address the scheduling and funding of infrastructure improvements of citywide benefit
7) Contra Costa County Countywide Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan, adopted by the Contra Costa Transportation Authority, October 2009
Additionally, two other key approaches were a major component of the preparation of the Plan:
1) Public health goals for healthy transportation and physical activity; respond to public health issues such as obesity in adults and children; and incorporate the outcome of the Safe Routes to Schools (SR2S) programs in San Pablo; and
2) Capitalize on the network of enhanced creeks and create the opportunity for multi-use pathways adjacent to the creekways for bicycle and pedestrian use for commuting to work and recreational activity.
PUBLIC OUTREACH AND COMMUNITY INPUT
A critical aspect of this Plan has been to engage the residents of the City of San Pablo so City staff and Alta Planning + Design, the City’s Consultant (“Alta”), could understand the areas where residents may feel more or less safe, whether walking or bicycling. This information served as the first layer in assembling information and locations regarding the opportunities for improvement in the City. To gather this data, Alta prepared a survey, that posed questions about bicycling and walking in the City (see Attachment C). This survey was in English and Spanish, and was posted on the City of San Pablo Development Services webpage (<http://www.sanpabloca.gov/1491/Bicycle-and-Pedestrian-Master-Plan>). The survey was advertised on the City’s Facebook page and City’s eNewsletter, and provided to attendees at the various public outreach events. Business cards, in Spanish and English, were created to distribute to meeting attendees. These cards had the link to the City’s website where the survey could be completed online. This level of outreach was rewarded with a significant response: a total of 369 surveys were completed, with 286 responses to the survey in English, and 83 in Spanish.
City staff made presentations to various local community groups. Alta attended a Citywide event, the Nutrition Olympics, in September 2016, and was able to interview shoppers outside of Las Montanas in November 2016. Between Development Services staff, Public Works staff, staff from the San Pablo Economic Development Corporation, and Alta, presentations were made to eighteen (18) different groups to inform the community about the preparation of the Plan, the importance of completing the survey, and attending future public workshops (see Attachment D).
A Steering Committee was formed including a group of local advocates, a business representative, and a Planning Commissioner to help inform City staff and Alta about issues of importance to the community and provide feedback to the working documents that were prepared for the Plan. Other City staff from Community Services, the San Pablo Economic Development Corporation, and the Police Department also were on the Steering Committee. A series of documents, including background reports and working papers, became the foundation of the Plan for city data, and demographic information.
In order to get comments from the public about the recommendations for the locations and types of improvements that could be made for the pedestrian and bicycle network, two public workshops were held: one on November 17, 2016, where 41 attended this event, and on April 26, 2017, where 38 attended the event.
The first event presented general concepts on what can be included in a Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan, and existing conditions within the City of San Pablo that had been gathered by that time. The initial results from the surveys were included in the discussion of the existing conditions.
The first workshop consisted of:
• PowerPoint in English and Spanish
• Spanish translation
• Boards where the community members could provide feedback on the areas in the City that could benefit from the existing conditions and where improvements could occur to the bicycle or pedestrian network
• Activities for kids
• Light snacks
The second event had more specific ideas about the location and type of improvements. These improvements focused on creating a more robust bicycle network, and areas where pedestrian improvements might occur. As with the first workshop, workshop attendees were asked to provide feedback and vote on the level of improvements that were important to them.
The second workshop consisted of:
• Power point in English and Spanish
• Spanish translation
• Boards with recommendations on the range of improvements to the bicycle and pedestrian network, and feedback on these recommendations
• Child care in a dedicated room with activities for kids
• Dinner, provided by a local restaurant, drinks and fruit
The San Pablo Safety Commission recommended adoption of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan at its April 2017 meeting. In particular, the Safety Commission endorsed implementation of this program with its local schools (Safe Routes to Schools), as well as the Walking School Bus program.
The Public Draft was released in early June and the City received three comments from Bike East Bay:
a. Two options for Giant Road were shown at the public workshop: a buffered bicycle lane and separated bikeway options. Bike East Bay prefers a two-way path. Giant Road is included in the Plan as a section requiring further study and both alternatives will be added for future consideration in the Final Plan.
b. Bike East Bay would like to be included as a partner for the outreach portion of the plan. Staff will include this in the Plan.
c. They suggest simplifying the Municipal Code where it refers to bike licensing. Staff will consider this with other related Municipal Code updates.
At the June 20th Planning Commission, the Commission unanimously adopted Resolution 2017-12 recommending to the City Council the adoption of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan. The three big comments from the Commissioner’s included:
a. A Commissioner recommended including Dodson Marsh (previously Bruner Marsh) in Pinole as a destination. After some thought, Staff and the consultant decided to leave it out as it is not a heavily used destination for San Pablo residents.
b. A Commissioner recommended including Contra Costa College as a partner for some of the public outreach in the Plan. Staff will include this in the Final Plan.
c. A few commissioners were interested in a bike share program. Staff has communicated with Richmond staff who recently submitted a grant to pilot a bike share program. If Richmond receives the grant and expands the program to El Cerrito and San Pablo, staff would gladly welcome the collaboration. However, due to San Pablo’s size and the high cost of this program, starting it on our own is infeasible at this time.
OVERVIEW OF THE DRAFT BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN
After a discussion of the Vision and four (4) Goals of the Plan - Health, Safety, Mobility and Livability - the major component of the Plan presents information and options for the City to consider in order to enhance the walking and bicycling experience in the City of San Pablo. The specific details of the Plan are discussed in the balance of this report.
1. Enhancing the Pedestrian Experience
A list of tools (pages 3-5 and 3-6) and a map of priority pedestrian areas/network (page 3-7) is discussed in the Plan. The list of tools to potentially implement to improve the pedestrian experience are provided below:
• installing sidewalks in areas that are missing this feature
• installing pedestrian oriented lighting
• creating a physical barrier for pedestrians to use or allows pedestrians to be more visible to automobile drivers
• establishing speed humps or roundabouts to reduce traffic speeds; and
• creating inviting public spaces where pedestrians feel safer to congregate without the influence of automobiles.
2. Improving the Bicycling Experience
The locations where on-street identification for bicycling exists within the City is discussed as well as the locations for proposed new bicycle transportation opportunities in the City. Staff is using the term “facility” as a universal term to describe a new on-or-off street bicycle improvement as opposed to the term “route”. The term “route”, as defined below, has a specific set of characteristics that differentiate this kind of improvement from a bicycle lane, or separate bikeway. To avoid any confusion, the term “facility” means a new on-or-off street bicycle improvement.
There are four categories of bicycle facilities that are recognized by Caltrans. These are:
Class 1: Shared Use Path
These facilities are off-street, and exclusively dedicated for use by bicyclists, pedestrians, and in some cases, equestrians, and other non-motorized travel such as roller skating, and skateboarding. These facilities can be paved or treated with a natural surface. They must be at least eight (8) feet wide, with 10-12 feet in width preferred. The City of San Pablo has a Class I facility along Wildcat Creek from Rumrill Boulevard to 23d Street, which provides separated bicycle and pedestrian facilities.
Class II: Bicycle Lane
Class II bicycle lanes delineate a portion of the street for bicyclist through the use of pavement markings and signage. The bicycle lane is located directly adjacent to motor vehicle travel lanes, and used in the same direction as motor vehicle traffic. Bicycle lanes are typically on the right side of the street, between the adjacent travel land and curb, road edge, or parking lane. Bicycle lanes should be five (5) feet wide, but six (6) is preferred if adjacent to on-street parking.
A buffered bicycle lane is a conventional bicycle lane that is paired with a visual street surface buffer between the bicyclist and motor vehicle. Buffers should be two (2) feet in width. If a buffer area is four (4) feet or wider, white chevron or diagonal marking should be used on the street to make this delineation for all users of the roadway.
Class III: Bicycle Routes (including bicycle boulevards)
Class III is similar to the Class II bicycle lane, however, the bicycle route is often found on roads with low levels of motor vehicle traffic. Bicycle boulevards use signs, pavement markings, and traffic calming measures and these boulevard markings should be placed at regular intervals along the route to identify this as a bicycle boulevard.
Class IV: Separated Bikeways
Class IV separated bikeways are on-street facilities that are separated from vehicle traffic with a physical buffer or protection. This may take the form of a curb, flexible bollards, planters, or other similar separator. This buffer may even be on-street parking between the vehicle traffic and the bicyclist.
3. Figures Illustrating Existing and Proposed Bicycle Facilities
Figure 4-1 of the Plan is the map of the existing bicycle facilities, which is a total of 4.4 miles in the City. This is divided between two types of bicycle facilities: a 0.7 mile Shared Use Path and 3.7 miles of a Bicycle Lane.
Figure 4-2, Recommended Bicycle Network, proposes almost ten (10) miles of new bicycle facilities, and further study of local streets where over seven (7) miles of new bicycle facilities could be created for a total of 17.41 miles of new facilities and areas to be studied. The location of these facilities is to respond to the areas in the City where students walk to school, residents use local streets in order to access bus routes, or the destinations where residents or employees are using local services, such as City Hall, the Library, the United States Post Office, local medical facilities, or shopping centers and other commercial districts.
The proposed new facilities would be:
• 0.42 miles for a Class I Shared Use Path at two locations:
o Wanlass Park/Rheem Creek Trail: Create a connection to the Bayview Elementary School from the expansion of Wanlass Park. A pedestrian bridge over the creek is already in place to facilitate this connection.
o Princeton Plaza Trail: Create a connection through City-owned open space above the Princeton Plaza shopping center. Access points to this trail could be created at San Pablo Dam Road, Brentz Lane, and Parkview Terrace.
• 1.30 miles for a Class II Bicycle Lane:
• A buffered bicycle lane along San Pablo Avenue at Rumrill Boulevard and north towards and into the City of Richmond
• 6.53 miles for a Class III Bicycle Route:
o This designation comprises the majority of potential roadway improvements, and can be seen throughout the City. This proposed facility can be seen west of San Pablo Avenue on these streets:
§ On Miner, east of Giant Road to Espanola Court to San Pablo Avenue
§ South of Stanton along 11th and 14th Streets
§ Connections along Lake street, Road 20, Brookside Drive, Dover Avenue, Emeric Avenue, and California Avenue, and 19th Street
§ East of San Pablo, this facility is proposed to provide access across Interstate 80, and uses Riverside Drive and connects to Amador Street. This proposed facility would provide access to the Wildcat Canyon Regional Park, as well as a connection to San Pablo Dam Road.
• 1.67 miles for a Class IV Separated Bikeway:
o This is part of the Rumrill Complete Streets project, as this is along Rumrill Boulevard from the south at the boundary with the City of Richmond and concludes at San Pablo Avenue.
4. Areas where Additional Study is Needed
There are several streets in the City where bicycling facilities could be created, however, additional study of these streets is needed. The areas of additional study are along Giant Road, Broadway Avenue, Road 20, Church Lane, San Pablo Avenue, and San Pablo Dam Road from Amador Street to Morrow Drive. The specific details of the potential modifications are discussed on pages 4-10 through 4-12 of the Plan and accompanied with illustrations of these modifications. The issues that need to be studied along these streets are listed below:
Giant Road. Remove center turn lane to create either a buffered bicycle lane or separated bikeway.
Broadway Avenue. Remove parking on one side of the street to create bicycle lanes.
Road 20. Three possible options for the different bicycle facilities:
1. expand the sidewalk and narrow vehicle lanes to create a shared use path for pedestrians and bicyclists
2. remove parking on one side to create buffered bike lanes
3. remove the center turn lane to create buffered bike lanes
Church Lane. Remove parking on one side of the street or the center turn lane in order to connect the existing bicycle lane on Church Lane to San Pablo Avenue.
San Pablo Avenue. Narrow vehicle lanes to add a Class II bicycle lane to connect the bike lane north of Rumrill with the bike lane south of Road 20.
San Pablo Dam Road. Narrow existing drive lanes on Amador Street and convert existing road shoulder space to drive lanes. This would allow a connection from Amador Street to Morrow Drive along San Pablo Dam Road.
The illustration of the potential new bicycle facilities on Figure 4-2 represents an opportunity for residents, students of all ages, shoppers and employees of local businesses to travel to and through the City of San Pablo without an automobile. The streets listed above and the associated potential modifications require further study to understand the issues or challenges that may arise from making these improvements. Staff is recommending that research be conducted to seek grant funds that would allow further study of this range of improvements. Should grant funds be secured, staff will engage with the neighborhoods early in the study phase to better understand the localized issue(s) and provide opportunity for community comment and review of future potential bicycle facilities.
5. Potential Regional Connections
A significant opportunity for a regional connection in West Contra Costa County exists with the expansion of the Wildcat Creek Trail. A portion of this trail is complete within the City of San Pablo from Rumrill Boulevard to 23rd Street. However, the opportunity to create a multi-jurisdictional trail through Contra Costa County, and the City of Richmond that connects to the San Francisco Bay Trail to the west, and concludes at Alvarado Park and Wildcat Canyon Regional Park (in the East Bay Regional Park District) to the east of Interstate 80 should be studied. This kind of west-east trail could create a dedicated non-motorized pathway that provides transportation opportunities through the City and recreational enjoyment for bicyclists and pedestrians. The creation of this more regional trail would require significant funding sources as a comprehensive and strategic approach for potential land acquisition and construction of the trail and coordination with other local agencies as mentioned above would be required.
San Pablo Dam Road, east of Interstate 80, is a roadway that allows automobile drivers to use this as an alternate route to Highway 24. It’s also an area where bicyclists ride for recreational enjoyment and vigorous exercise. Creating a bicycle lane with buffer areas along San Pablo Dam Road, from San Pablo Avenue to Amador Street and over the Interstate 80 overpass, to connect to this corridor was not seen as a positive improvement for this high traffic street in San Pablo. Establishing a dedicated bicycle lane and buffer area and sidewalks on both sides of San Pablo Dam Road, from San Pablo Avenue to Amador Street, would require the removal of one lane of traffic in each direction. Comments from the workshop attendees stated that traffic is bad on this street and would get worse with this improvement. The cost of this improvement should also be taken into consideration as this approach would require widening of the Interstate 80 overpass, and could require the study or alignment of the on-and-off ramps to Interstate 80.
At its March 2017 meeting, the Steering Committee commented that priority bicycle routes should: 1) be a more connected and supportive bikeway network, which would be more effective in helping people who are less comfortable or experience with bicycling shift modes, and would align with the vision and goals of the Plan; and 2) that safety and comfort should be a priority in developing recommendations for the Plan.
With the reconstruction of the Riverside Avenue pedestrian and bicycle overpass, there is an existing and safer option to cross Interstate 80, and use of Amador Street for this kind of travel to access San Pablo Dam Road east of Interstate 80. While travel to Riverside Avenue and using the overpass may take more time, this dedicated facility is already in place, more safe, and provides access to Amador Street and San Pablo Dam Road.
Neither City staff nor Alta believe that creating a bicycle facility on San Pablo Dam Road, between San Pablo Avenue and Amador Street, should be recommended due to the anticipated increase in traffic congestion along this road and the cost for such a significant change to the existing roadway. As a result of the comments from the Steering Committee, workshop attendees, and the professional opinion of City staff and Alta, this Plan is not recommending that bicycle lanes be added to San Pablo Dam Road.
6. Additional Topics
Options for the design of bicycle racks on shown in Figure 4-13. Signage for the proposed on-street bicycle facilities are illustrated on pages 4-14 through 4-16. The important aspect of the decision making process for signage for bicyclists has three distinct phases: 1) alerting bicyclists at the point of making a decision on where the facility is (where to turn); 2) confirming that the correct decision before the turn where has been made; and 3) clarifying that the bicycle facility changes in direction.
7. Existing and Proposed Programs that support Walking and Bicycling in San Pablo
A. Existing Programs
The City of San Pablo Community Services Department operates several programs that are intended to create the opportunity for residents to increase their physical activity. One is the Walking Challenge that encourages residents to walk for physical fitness and track the number of steps the participants take weekly. Prizes are awarded weekly at the San Pablo Community Center for the number of steps that residents walk once they submit their tracking sheets with this information.
In 2012, the Childhood Obesity Prevention Task Force (“Task Force”) was created by the City Council. One of the responsibilities of the Task Force is to reduce the obesity rate in San Pablo. Improving park spaces, and establishing Play Streets in San Pablo (closing streets to traffic to allow residents to use the space for physical activities) are current programs that are attributed to the Task Force. Additionally, there are programs listed in the 2014 Community Action Plan (CAP) that are intended to be implemented within the City. These include: pedestrian and bicycle skills workshops, promoting competitive physical activities such as a City 5k, and Thanksgiving Turkey Trot, and Adopt-A-Spot (to improve and maintain parks, trails, and other public spaces).
B. Proposed Programs as part of the Plan
There is an existing program that could be established to support walking and bicycling in the City of San Pablo. The Safe Routes to Schools (SRTS) program is operated by the Contra Costa Health Services Department, and could be implemented in the West Contra County Unified School District (“District”) for the City of San Pablo elementary and junior high schools.
Additional potential City-wide programs are meant to educate, and encourage residents to use these programs. As these programs are implemented, assessment of these programs occurs with the enforcement of safe bicycle behavior and overall evaluation of these programs. Of the eleven (11) programs that are discussed in the Plan, five (5) are recommended as priority programs to implement. These programs are:
Educate
Safe Routes to Schools
Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Education
Walking School Bus
Evaluate
Progressive Safety Enforcement
Pre/Post Studies of New Infrastructure
The last two programs would be an evaluation of the success of the first three programs, and would be implemented one or more years after the educational programs were in effect. These recommendations came from the community input at the April 2017 workshop and endorsed by the San Pablo Safety Commission, City staff and Alta.
8. Implementation of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan
Chapter 6 of the Plan identifies the estimated cost to implement or construct the new bicycle facilities that have been discussed in this report. The costs are broken down by cost per mile, and, where applicable, by individual project. It’s recommended that the phasing of the projects be either incorporated into other projects (such as pavement marking for new bicycle facilities during road resurfacing) or grants be obtained in order to implement these projects. Long-term maintenance costs are also included so there’s an understanding of the cost and frequency of when these facilities need to be refreshed.
CONCLUSION
The Plan is a comprehensive approach to demonstrate where new bicycle facilities could be created, and to discuss the range of improvements that could be installed for an enhanced pedestrian experience in San Pablo. This framework on where new bicycle facilities could be installed may require additional funding for several of the smaller projects, and will require additional financial assistance from other transportation funding agencies (such as Contra Costa Transportation Authority or the Metropolitan Transportation Commission) when coordination with other local agencies needs to occur. It is expected that construction over multiple years is needed for a longer term project, such as the Wildcat Creek Trail shared path. Future funding should not prevent the City of San Pablo from collaborating with Contra Costa County, the City of Richmond, and the East Bay Regional Park District and working to construct a regional trail, such as the Wildcat Creek Trail, or implementing smaller projects, such as the creation of bicycle routes or coordinating with the School District on establishing programs that encourage walking to school.
The range of projects to implement within the City of San Pablo advance the goal of transportation options beyond private automobile ownership, and the desire to improve the physical health of its residents by creating a more enjoyable and safer pedestrian experience. Additionally, the Plan incorporates the comments from the community solicited through surveys, conducted in English and Spanish, presentations to local groups, comments from the Steering Committee at three different meetings, and feedback from two community workshops. Staff recommends the approval of the Plan so that the City of San Pablo can begin to apply for grants to assist with the creation or installation of these enhanced facilities, and for smaller, more discreet projects, or as part of routine maintenance of streets and implementation of improvements.
Economic Development/Project Management Standing Committee Review
On August 3, 2017, the Economic Development/Project Management Standing Committee (Cruz/Kinney) received an overview of the proposed Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan, and supported its consideration at the next regular City Council meeting on August 7, 2017.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no current impact to the General Fund associated with this action. The educational measures of the plan can be implemented with existing staff. Funding to cover the remaining measures will require grants or will need to be budgeted in future years.
ATTACHMENTS
A. Planning Commission Resolution 17-12
B. Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan
C. Surveys in English and Spanish
D. List of Outreach Events for the Plan
E. Steering Committee and Workshop Agendas