Honorable Mayor and Members of the Hermosa Beach City Council Regular Meeting of November 13, 2018
Title
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT (CIP) 14-173
8TH STREET IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT UPDATE
(Public Works Director Glen W.C. Kau)
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Recommended Action:
Recommendation
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Receive and file the project status update, which includes information for bringing the Plans, Specs and Estimates to 100% completion; and
2. Approve the recommendation to conduct a final project walk-through/field review meeting with 8th Street residents, for those affected properties that are interested, on November 28, 2018 in advance of solicitation for construction bids.
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Background:
Capital Improvement Project (CIP) 14-173, is along 8th Street, which is an east-west roadway with one lane in each direction, has on-street parking, and provides connectivity from Pacific Coast Highway to the beach area. It is one of five connector streets/paths within city limits that provides such connectivity. The other four streets are Herondo Street, 2nd Street, Pier Avenue and Gould Avenue. These streets along with the City’s roadway system provide accessibility for residents and visitors to and throughout the City’s beach community.
The project’s scope between Hermosa Avenue and Valley Drive consists of upgrading sidewalks to provide a continuous path of travel consistent and in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The project will bring all curb ramps and driveways current to ADA standards.
The existing street has several discontinuous sections of sidewalk and sections where the abutting residences encroach onto City right-of-way. There are segments where the accessible width is less than the minimum ADA requirement (36 inches; and 32 inches over 2 feet for constrictions more recognized as “pinch points”) due to obstructions such as, but not limited to, residential walls, landscaping, patio improvements, as well as power poles and utility cabinets. Most of the existing corner curb ramps are not ADA compliant, and there are some locations where no curb ramps exist. The public right-of-way width between Hermosa Avenue to Loma Drive is 60 feet from property line to property line; between Loma Drive and Valley Drive it narrows to 40 feet.
At its March 13th, 2018 regular meeting, City Council directed staff to move forward with the completion of the design phase of the project (proceeding from 60% phase to 90% plan completion), implementing a four-foot wide sidewalk path while incorporating Public Works Commission recommendations; and directed staff to conduct a final project walk-through with 8th street residents.
Analysis:
This report presents the current status of the project.
Following City Council direction to maintain a minimum four-foot travel width on all sidewalk pathways for this project, staff proceeded with the design of this project. Harris and Associates (Harris), the City’s consultant design firm for the project, was issued a Notice to Proceed from City Staff and revisited the 60% design plans to determine the additional impacts stemming from the additional directives.
Harris has since provided the City with 90% plans and its analysis shows additional properties, in addition to the originally affected properties, that require frontage modifications in order to provide a four-foot minimum path of travel. Additionally, there are six properties that now will have slightly increased impacts than originally reported. They are listed and depicted below: (concrete work on private property, lightly shaded in grey and denoted by Construction Note 25) 119 8th Street (at Palm Drive); 207 8th Street (at Manhattan Avenue); 801 8th Street (at Bayview Drive); 802 8th Street (at Sunset Drive); 804 Loma Drive; and 440 8th Street (at Cypress Avenue).
119 8th Street (at Palm Drive)
8th Street (at Manhattan Avenue)
801 8th Street (at Bayview Drive)
802 8th Street (at Sunset Drive)
804 Loma Drive
440 8th Street (at Cypress Avenue)
Staff will mail notifications to these six property owners that will have mostly flat concrete replaced (to achieve compliant curb ramp slopes) outside of City right-of-way. In addition, efforts toward an easement of a small portion of the private property located at 558 8th Street, in order to acquire the 48” wide sidewalk and to achieve the proper clearance adjacent to the power pole, are near completion.
General Plan Consistency:
This project corresponds with PLAN Hermosa, the City’s General Plan, that was adopted by the City Council in August 2017, by integrating future growth and updating infrastructure development including the implementation of living street principles. This follows the goals and policies of PLAN Hermosa including:
Mobility
Goal 1. Complete Streets that serve the diverse functions of mobility, commerce, recreation, and community engagement for all users whether they travel by walking, bicycling, transit, or driving.
Policies
1.1 Consider all modes. Require the planning, design, and construction of all new and existing transportation projects to consider the needs of all modes of travel to create safe,
livable and inviting environments for all users of the system.
1.4 Target investments. Target public streetscape and infrastructure investments in locations with high potential for both public and private return on investment and long-term community value.
Goal 2. A public realm that is safe, comfortable, and convenient for travel via foot, bicycle, public transit, and automobile and creates vibrant, people oriented public spaces that encourage active living.
Policies
2.1 Prioritize public right-of-ways. Prioritize improvements of public right-of-ways that provide heightened levels of safe, comfortable and attractive public spaces for all non-motorized travelers while balancing the needs of efficient vehicular circulation.
2.5 Require sustainable practices. Incorporate environmental sustainability practices into designs and strategic management of road space and public right-of-ways, prioritizing practices that can serve multiple infrastructure purposes.
2.6 Safe east-west connections. Strive to provide safe and convenient east-west connections for pedestrians and bicycles throughout the city roughly every one-quarter mile (roughly every four to six blocks) and evaluate the costs, safety, and engineering considerations of various segment options.
Goal 3. Public right-of-ways supporting a multimodal and people-oriented transportation
system that provides diversity and flexibility on how users choose to be mobile.
Policies
3.1 Enhance public right-of-ways. Where right-of-way clearance allows, enhance public right-of ways to improve connectivity for pedestrians, bicyclists, disabled persons, and public transit stops.
3.2 Complete pedestrian network. Prioritize investment in designated priority sidewalks to ensure a complete network of sidewalks and pedestrian-friendly amenities that enhances pedestrian safety, access opportunities and connectivity to destinations.
3.4 Access opportunities. Provide enhanced mobility and access opportunities for local
transportation and transit services in areas of the city with sufficient density and intensity of uses, mix of appropriate uses, and supportive bicycle and pedestrian network connections that can reduce vehicle trips within the city’s busiest corridors.
3.6 Complete bicycle network. Provide a complete bicycle network along all designated
roadways while creating connections to other modes of travel including walking and transit.
3.7 Transportation project considerations. Ensure transportation planning projects provide
consideration to access, health and safety, and individual responsibility that enhances the
quality of life of residents in the community.
3.10 Require ADA standards. Require that all public right-of-ways be designed per Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards by incorporating crosswalks, curb ramps, pedestrian signals, and other components to provide ease of access for disabled persons.
3.11 Site specific conditions. Evaluate and incorporate any site specific conditions or restrictions on public property or right-of-ways during the design and engineering phases for pedestrian and bicycle facilities.
3.12 Right of way standards. Establish and maintain right of way standards and inventory
sidewalks to assist in consistently applying roadway and sidewalk design standards.
Goal 7. A transportation system that results in zero transportation-related fatalities and which minimizes injuries.
Policies
7.1 Safe public right-of-ways. Encourage that all public right-of-ways are safe for all users at all times of day where users of all ages and ability feel comfortable participating in both motorized and non-motorized travel.
7.4 Traffic safety programs. Prioritize traffic safety programs oriented towards safe access to schools and community facilities that focus on walking, biking, and driving in school zones.
7.5 Appropriate sidewalk widths. Encourage design and construction plans that incorporate
sidewalks that are consistent in width to match pedestrian activity.
7.7 Formalize City procedures. Encourage formalizing City procedures for analysis and
evaluation of crosswalks and crossing locations citywide, and adopt state-of-practice
pedestrian improvement guidance aimed at increasing pedestrian safety.
7.8 Active transportation education and safety. Promote the participation in pedestrian,
bicycle, and skateboard safety and education programs to facilitate safe and confident use of alternative modes of transportation.
Infrastructure
Goal 1. Infrastructure systems are functional, safe, and well maintained.
Policies
1.1 Infrastructure systems plan. Establish and adopt an integrated, holistic systems approach to guide infrastructure development, improvement, maintenance, and resilience.
1.2 Priority investments. Use City Council established priorities and the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) to identify and allocate funding for projects identified in the infrastructure plan.
1.3 Right-of-way coordination. Ensure infrastructure maintenance and repair projects within the public right-of-way are coordinated with utilities and agencies to minimize additional roadway repaving or accelerated deterioration.
1.8 Minimize recurring repairs. Ensure that recurring repairs to City facilities are minimized by investing in low maintenance materials and performing preventive procedures where available.
Goal 2. Roadway infrastructure maintenance supports convenient, attractive, and complete streets and associated amenities.
Policies
2.1 Preventive street maintenance. Maintain streets, sidewalks and other public rights-of-way to provide a reliable network for circulation through a proactive preventive maintenance
program.
2.3 Street and sidewalk standards. Require the use of standardized roadway, sidewalk, parkway, curb and gutter designs to ensure continuity and consistency as property redevelops over time.
2.4 Sidewalk improvements. Consider innovative funding strategies, such as cost-sharing, ADA accessibility grants, or sidewalk dedications, to improve the overall condition, safety, and accessibility of sidewalks.
2.5 Active transportation dedications. Require new development and redevelopment projects to provide land or infrastructure necessary to accommodate active transportation, such as widened sidewalks, bike racks, and bus stops, in compliance with ADA accessibility standards.
2.7 Restore to City standards. Require utility, other service providers, and private construction projects working in the public right-of-way to restore or improve trench areas to return the site to conditions that comply with City standards and prevent roadway and sidewalk deterioration.
Goal 6. Utility services are reliable, affordable, and renewable.
Policies
6.2 Below ground utilities. Encourage the phase out and replace overhead electric lines with subsurface lines to reduce visual obstructions and the need for utility poles which can impede sidewalk accessibility.
This project falls within the Sand Section Neighborhood, where the City attempts to enhance multimodal connectivity and access while preserving the building form, scale, and orientation in this neighborhood. Enhancing the pedestrian realm along 8th Street, re-orienting existing building structures to activate the corridor, and improve walkability and pedestrian accessibility. This falls in line with the goal of helping to reduce traffic collisions. This also falls in line with the updated mobility element which features a balanced emphasis on automobiles and pedestrians by eliminating inconsistent sidewalks which ultimately impede pedestrian access. For example, this local street features sidewalks on only one side of the street or not at all while other areas feature narrow or obstructed sidewalks or lack curb ramps. This project will help to address some of the key mobility issues raised in in PLAN Hermosa.
Next Steps:
Staff recommends conducting a project walk-through/field review meeting for interested property owners and residents along 8th Street (within project limits) to provide project details and address questions or concerns they may have. City staff is tentatively scheduling a project walk through on November 28, 2018.
Project Schedule: Below is the estimated project milestones for the design and construction phases of the project:
City Council update November 2018
Project walk-through Late November 2018
Final design December 2018
Advertisement construction bids Early February 2019
Contract award March 2019
Start construction mid-April 2019
End construction July 2019
Fiscal Impacts:
The revised preliminary line item cost estimates and approved budgeted amounts for the project are listed below:
The probable construction cost reported to City Council in March 2018 was $1,098,700, which included a 15% contingency. The updated project total (including latest construction cost estimate) is $1,001,616, which includes a 15% contingency. Per the approved FY 2018-19 Budget, $1,056,542 is available for this project.
Staff recommends that the Council receive and file the project updates in order to complete preparation of the construction documents, proceed with advertisement for construction bids in early Spring 2019, and allow for the final project walk through on November 28, 2018.
Attachments:
1. PowerPoint Presentation
Respectfully Submitted by: Reed Salan, Associate Engineer
Concur: Glen W.C. Kau, P.E., Director of Public Works/City Engineer
Legal Review: Mike Jenkins, City Attorney
Noted for Fiscal Impact: Viki Copeland, Finance Director
Approved: Suja Lowenthal, City Manager