| ITEM #: 6. DATE: 12/05/2022 AI #:1148 |
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CITY COUNCIL ACTION REPORT
| SUBJECT: | CAMELBACK ROAD WIDENING RAISE GRANT |
| STAFF PRESENTER(S): | Christopher Bridges, Transportation Planning Manager |
SUMMARY
Council consideration and possible authorization for staff to submit an application for a Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) Discretionary Grant program for the construction of the Camelback Road Widening project between SR 303 and 152nd Avenue, to be prepared by contracted professionals.
Recommendation
ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 2022-2276, AUTHORIZING THE SUBMISSION OF AN APPLICATION FOR FY 2022- 2023 REBUILDING AMERICAN INFRASTRUCTURE WITH SUSTAINABILITY AND EQUITY, (RAISE) DISCRETIONARY GRANT PROGRAM FUNDS TO THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (USDOT), AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE ALL DOCUMENTS RELATING TO SAID APPLICATION, AND AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE A GRANT AGREEMENT, AND AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO APPROVE REQUIRED BUDGET AMENDMENTS. (Christopher Bridges, Transportation Planning Manager)
FISCAL IMPACT
RAISE grants have a local matching funds requirement in order to receive the federal funding associated with this program. The resources for the local match requirement in the amount of 20% of the awarded amount out of a maximum $25,000,000 possible award (up to $5,000,000) have been identified in the currently programmed CIP project 42038 - Camelback Road SR303 to 152nd Avenue's total project budget of $49.5 million. All project costs are planned to be split proportionately with the City of Glendale, however Glendale has yet to commit funds to their portion of this project. If grant funds are awarded, representatives from the City of Glendale have stated that they will fund their portion of the local match pursuant to a future Intergovernmental Agreement.
Grant preparation fees will be paid to contracted professionals in the amount of $62,707, from project 42038 - Camelback Road SR303 to 152nd Avenue, utilizing the funds appropriated for this project, by the State Legislature.
Grant preparation fees will be paid to contracted professionals in the amount of $62,707, from project 42038 - Camelback Road SR303 to 152nd Avenue, utilizing the funds appropriated for this project, by the State Legislature.
BACKGROUND AND PREVIOUS ACTIONS
Camelback Road is a major east-west arterial in the City of Goodyear that will continue to experience an increase in truck traffic and other traffic volume as our region continues to experience economic development in the area. As such, the Goodyear City Council has made it a priority to proactively widen the roadway before residents in the surrounding neighborhoods feel the full impact to their quality of life and mobility to and from their homes, jobs, and entertainment. To better understand the needs of the corridor the city completed an Initial Corridor Assessment Report in June of 2021, which included a Camelback Road Access Management Plan. The intent of this planning effort was to ultimately provide safe and efficient access management for the Camelback corridor while also balancing the needs of adjacent landowners and neighboring jurisdictions, and to obtain a well-informed cost estimate for the project. Following the completion of the Corridor Assessment Report, the full project was programmed within the City’s Capital Improvement Program in Fiscal Year 2022 with a total project of $56.0 million. In the spring of 2022, the Arizona State Legislature appropriated $8.0 million from the State's General Fund towards the completion of Camelback Road Widening project - this funding is currently being utilized to design the entire Camelback Road corridor including sections within Goodyear, Glendale, Litchfield Park and Maricopa County. The total project budget was reduced to $49.5 million to exclude construction and land acquisition of the portion of this project located in Litchfield Park based upon their stated intent to not improve the portion within their jurisdiction. Full funding for this project is included in the FY2023 CIP Budget with costs split evenly between the City of Goodyear and Glendale. The Camelback Road Widening project is currently in the preliminary design phase and in an effort to help alleviate the financial impact of such a large project, staff has proactively sought out alternate funding mechanisms.
STAFF ANALYSIS
The RAISE Discretionary Grant program provides a unique opportunity for the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) to invest in transportation projects that promise to achieve national objectives. Previously known as the Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) and Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) Discretionary Grants, the program has previously awarded approximately $10 billion of funds for a wide variety of projects across the entire country. A benefit of this program is that RAISE can provide capital funding up to a maximum award amount of $25 million directly to any public entity, including municipalities such as the City of Goodyear. Should the City be awarded funding from a RAISE Grant it would significantly ease the financial burden to the City and our regional stakeholders in order to construct the full project. The utilization of the engineering firm of HDR for grant preparation provides a high level of expertise with the development of these types of grants and will result in a high quality submittal increasing the chances of potentially receiving an award. A large portion of the work to be completed by HDR for this grant will also be applicable to additional funding sources that may be identified in the future.