Meeting_Body
PLANNING AND PROGRAMMING COMMITTEE
SEPTEMBER 14, 2016
Subject/Action
SUBJECT: OPEN STREETS GRANT PROGRAM
ACTION: APPROVE OPEN STREETS GRANT PROGRAM - CYCLE TWO
Heading
RECOMMENDATION
Title
CONSIDER awarding and programming a total of $4.14 million for Cycle Two (2) of the Open Streets Grant Program per the Metro Board Motion 72 (Attachment A) and programmatic support as follows:
A. AWARDING $4.04 million to 17 new Open Street events scheduled through December 2018 (Attachment B-1);
B. PROGRAMMING the Cycle One (1) 626 Golden Street event with up to $200,000 of supplemental funds to execute the event due to postponement from the June Reservoir and Fish fires. The costs to stage the 626 Golden Streets event will not exceed the $393,600 amount as was originally allocated by the Board; and
C. REPROGRAMMING $100,000 from canceled Cycle One Open Street event Car Free Carson towards Cycle Two.
Issue
ISSUE
In September 2013 the Metro Board approved the Open Streets Competitive Grant Program framework to fund a series of regional car-free events in response to the June 2013 Board Motion 72. The approved framework includes the following:
• An annual allocation up to $2 million.
• Competitive process and program.
• Technical process to collect data and evaluate the events.
In March 2016 The Metro Board approved initiation of Cycle Two of the Open Streets Grant Program (Attachment C). The Cycle Two recommendation includes funding for 17 new events and supplemental programmatic elements per the June 2013 Motion 72, for a total of $4.14 million over 2.5 fiscal years. This funding recommendation is within the approved framework of an annual allocation of up to $2 million. Board approval is necessary to program the funds to 17 Cycle Two events, supplemental funding for one (1) postponed Cycle One event and reprogramming of one (1) Cycle One event.
Discussion
DISCUSSION
Open Street events are temporary one-day events that close the streets to automotive traffic and open them to people to walk, bike or roll. The goals of the Open Streets Grant Program are to provide opportunities for 1) riding transit, walking and riding a bike, possibly for the first time, 2) to encourage future mode shift, and 3) civic engagement to foster the development of multi-modal policies and infrastructure at the local level.
Cycle One Summary
In response to the June 2013 Metro Board Motion 72 staff developed a comprehensive framework and competitive grant process to solicit and evaluate applications for Open Street events throughout Los Angeles County. At the June 18, 2014 meeting, the Board awarded $3.7 million to 12 jurisdictions. 10 of the 12 events awarded in Cycle One were implemented totaling 68 miles of Open Streets in Los Angeles County. The Car Free Carson event was canceled, at the request of the City, due to financial constraints. We are requesting the Car Free Carson grant award of $100,000 be reprogrammed in Cycle Two. The South Pasadena 626 Golden Streets event was postponed due to public safety concerns related to the nearby Reservoir and Fish wild fires. The South Pasadena led event will be rescheduled for winter/spring 2017 during Cycle Two. The City and their partners have spent funds on marketing, traffic control, event coordination, planning and logistic costs related to the postponed event that the Grantee is unable to recoup. We are requesting that Cycle Two programming include up to $200,000 to cover any costs necessary for the Grantee to move forward and implement the 626 Golden Streets event. Not including non-recoupable costs, the cost to stage the 626 Golden Streets event during Cycle Two will not exceed the $393,600 amount as was approved by the Board during Cycle One. Staff will coordinate with the Grantee to ensure that any potential scope changes are consistent with the original Cycle One funding recommendation.
Per Board Motion 72, staff has initiated an evaluation of the events implemented in Cycle One utilizing grantee’s post implementation reports, transit TAP data and other sources. The initial event data shows the following:
• Boarding increased an average of 10% systemwide on the day of events
• Boarding on the Metro Expo Line increased 26% during the December 7, 2014 CicLAvia: South LA;
• Metro Gold Line Boardings increased by 32% during the May 31, 2015 CicLAvia: Pasadena;
• Systemwide Day Pass sales increased an average of 17% on the day of events and;
• Systemwide 30 Day Pass sales increased an average of 12% on the day of events.
A Request for Proposals (RFP) package was released in spring 2016 to conduct an in depth evaluation study of the 10 events implemented in Cycle One. Proposals are currently being evaluated. The evaluation study will be completed upon receipt of all Cycle One post event evaluation reports.
The evaluation study consultant will also work with Cycle Two grantees to collect data on participation numbers, participants, business response to the event and the number of bikes utilizing rail to get to and from the event. The consultant will unify these reports by providing a standardized methodology to count participation and collect responses from participants and businesses. The outcome of the study will be a comprehensive analysis of all 17 Cycle Two events. By selecting one group to lead an evaluation, instead of each city collecting their own data, we will ensure a consistent methodology across all the events and thus produce a more cohesive, valid and uniform evaluation of these events.
Open Streets Cycle Two
Outreach
In March 2016 The Metro Board approved initiation of Cycle Two of the Open Streets Grant Program (Attachment C). Following the Board approval of the Open Streets Grant Program Cycle Two, staff conducted extensive outreach, presenting the program to the Councils of Governments (COG), the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) and the Streets and Freeways Subcommittee. Staff released the Open Streets Grant Application online on March 31, 2016 and subsequently hosted an Open Streets Program Workshop on April 14, 2016. The workshop featured speakers from across the region, who have implemented open street events, sharing guidance on how to plan and implement an event and Metro staff providing instructions on how to apply for grant funding. Over 100 people representing the cities and agencies across the Los Angeles Region attended the events that Metro attended and hosted.
Evaluation and Recommendation
A total of 19 project applications were received on May 12, 2016 that included a total of $4.25 million of funding requests. The event applications are diverse in scope ranging from 0.5 to 6.6 miles in length and are representative of the region (Attachment B-2). The application evaluation was conducted by an internal technical team with experience in multi-modal transportation, including representatives from Planning and Operations. The events were evaluated based on their ability to meet the project feasibility and route setting guidelines approved by the Board that stressed readiness, partnership expertise and connections to transit and existing active transportation infrastructure. Additional criteria requested by the Board and new to this Cycle include extra points for disadvantaged communities as determined by CalEnviroScreen Score, cities who have never hosted an Open Street event, and multi-jurisdictional events. Of the 19 applications received, 13 were for routes along disadvantaged communities, 11 applicant cities have not hosted an Open Street event, and 7 applications received were for multi-jurisdictional events. Of the 19 applications submitted, 17 received passing scores for a total of $4.04 million of recommended funding requests, allocating the applicants’ full funding request.
There were two applications that did not receive passing scores from the Cities of Redondo Beach and Artesia. The events proposed were both approximately a mile or less in length; they did not score competitively in the route setting, project feasibility and regional significance categories; and did not meet the goals of the program as outlined in Metro Board Motion 72. Shall the Board authorize additional funding for a future program cycle; staff will work with these two cities to develop more competitive applications. Specifically, in the future staff could work with the cities to consider a route that more closely meets the industry standard of four miles.
Cycle Two includes 2.5 years of Open Street programming, with the first event being proposed for fall 2016 and the final event being proposed for winter 2018. The 2.5 year timeline will allow for the staging of events within the December 2018 deadline and ensure that events will maximize attendance and regional participation by not being held on consecutive dates. Funded events are regionally diverse, connected to transit stations, regional bikeways and major activity centers.
Up to an additional $200,000 is being recommended in order to make the City of South Pasadena whole for expenses incurred in planning the 626 Golden Streets event during Cycle One. The 626 Golden Streets event was postponed four days prior to the event due to the wild fires. The award will allow the City of South Pasadena to carry out planning, coordination and other related work in order to stage the Cycle One funded event during Cycle Two. The costs to stage the new 626 Golden Streets event will not exceed the $393,600 amount as was originally allocated by the Board.
Staff will utilize funds from the FY 16/17 budget allocation to cover expenses for Rail Operations, Marketing and Community Relations support for Open Streets events through December 2018. Operations is required to support the events with increased rail supervisors at grade crossings, at stations for crowd control, and to provide a bus and operator for community outreach on the day of events. Community Relations and Marketing is needed for event day of support, management and procurement of marketing materials, transport of marketing and outreach goods, staff training and TAP outreach and sales.
Determination_Of_Safety_Impact
DETERMINATION OF SAFETY IMPACT
The Open Streets Grant Program Cycle Two will not have any adverse safety impacts on our employees and patrons.
Financial_Impact
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The funding of $1.1 Million for the first year of the program is included in the FY17 budget in cost center number 0441, Active Transportation and Sustainability, under project number 410077, Open Street Grant Program. We expect $1.1 Million to cover anticipated invoices for events (including Cycle One and Two) in this fiscal year. Since this is a multi-year program, the cost center manager and Chief Planning Officer of Countywide Planning will be responsible for budgeting the costs in future years.
Impact to Budget
A local funding source, Proposition C 25%, will be utilized for Open Streets. These funds are not eligible for Bus and Rail Operating and Capital expenses.
Proposition C 25% funds are eligible for transportation system management/demand management (TSM/TDM) programs such as Open Streets events. SCAG identifies Open Street Events as Transportation System Management / Demand Management (TSM/TDM) programs in the 2012 RTP Congestion Management Appendix in the section titled Congestion Management Toolbox - Motor Vehicle Restriction Zones. Should other eligible funding sources become available, they may be used in place of the identified funds.
Alternatives_Considered
ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED
The Board may choose to not approve the recommended funding of Cycle Two of the Open Streets Grant Program. This alternative is not recommended as it is not in line with the June Board Motion 72 establishing a Metro Open Streets Grant Program.
Next_Steps
NEXT STEPS
Upon approval, we will notify project sponsors of the final funding award and proceed to initiate memorandum of understanding.
Attachments
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A June 2013 Metro Board Motion 72
Attachment B-1 Open Streets Grant Program Cycle Two Summary of Funding and Recommendations
Attachment B-2 Open Streets Grant Program Cycle Two Map
Attachment C March 2016 Metro Board Approved Cycle Two Application and Guidelines
Prepared_by
Prepared by: Brett Thomas, Transportation Planner, (213) 922-7535
Avital Shavit, Senior Manager, Ttransportation Planning, (213) 922-7518
Laura Cornejo, Deputy Executive Officer, (213) 922-2885
Calvin Hollis, Executive Officer, (213) 922-7319
Reviewed_By
Reviewed by: Therese McMillan, Chief Planning Officer, (213) 922-7077
