Title
Endorse the 2023 Annual Reports on the General Plan/Housing Element, Active Transportation Plan, Vision Zero Action Plan, Transportation Choices Plan, Climate Action and Resiliency Plan, and Climate Adaptation and Hazard Mitigation Plan. (Action)
Body
To: Honorable Chair and Members of the Transportation Commission
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Annual Report includes annual reports on the General Plan, Active Transportation Plan, Vision Zero Action Plan, Transportation Choices Plan, Climate Action and Resiliency Plan, and Climate Adaptation and Hazard Mitigation Plan:
• Transportation 2023 Annual Report & 2024 Work Plan Draft (Exhibit 1)
• Climate Action and Resiliency Plan (CARP) and Climate Adaptation and Hazard Mitigation Plan 2023 Annual Report & 2024 Work Plan Draft (Exhibit 2)
• General Plan and Housing Element Annual Report (Exhibit 3)
These documents show City progress towards its goals as well as priority actions for the coming calendar year. Transportation Commission comments on these Annual Reports and associated priorities for the upcoming years will be transmitted to the City Council in March, in time for the City Council’s June public hearings and adoption of budget decisions. These reports will be professionally formatted for the City Council agenda item.
BACKGROUND
The following describes the Annual Reports:
General Plan Annual Report. Every city and county in California is required to adopt and maintain a General Plan establishing the local development and conservation policies necessary to guide physical development and protect the health, safety, and welfare of the community. The Annual Report on the General Plan provides an assessment of the City’s General Plan and progress made toward meeting the city’s regional housing need in 2023, the first year of the current 2023-2031 Housing Element planning period. This allows the City Council to conduct its annual review as required by Government Code section 65400 et seq.
Transportation Annual Report. The Transportation Annual Report fulfills Active Transportation Plan (2022), Vision Zero Action Plan (2021), and Transportation Choices Plan (2018) requirements for an annual review of progress made toward meeting the City’s transportation goals. Transportation goals set by these plans include: enabling people of all ages and abilities to walk, use mobility devices, and bike to destinations; eliminating traffic fatalities and severe injuries by 2035; providing for the mobility needs of the full diversity of Alameda community members; and improving alternatives to low occupancy automobile trips.
Climate Action and Resiliency Plan Annual Report. The CARP Annual Report fulfills the annual reporting requirement for the CARP (2018) as well as the Climate Adaptation and Hazard Mitigation Plan (2022). The goals of the CARP are reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions 50 percent below 2005 levels by 2030 through transportation, building energy, carbon sequestration and waste reduction actions; increasing resiliency to flooding, drought, extreme heat, hazardous air quality and earthquakes; and building social resilience and local government capacity. In addition to the numerical GHG reduction goal, the CARP aims to achieve net zero carbon emissions as soon as possible in accordance with Alameda’s Climate Emergency Declaration, which was passed in March 2019 by the City Council. The Climate Adaptation and Hazard Mitigation Plan outlines the actions Alameda will take to reduce the impacts on natural and climate disasters on Alameda.
DISCUSSION
Implementation of the 2023 Transportation Work Plan was affected by several factors, including staff hiring, funding, and other factors not within the City’s control. Despite those challenges, the City was able to make good progress on various deliverables.
In 2023, the City experienced staffing challenges, particularly in hiring qualified candidates to fill key positions supporting the Transportation Work Plan. Last year, two engineering staff members departed the City, leaving up to five engineering vacancies in the Public Works Department for part of the calendar year 2023. While four of the five vacancies were filled by the start of 2024, the challenges in hiring affected several projects. In addition, the Planning, Building, and Transportation Department (PBT) has a Transportation Planning Manager vacancy and a 0.7 deficit in one of the Transportation Planning positions. The City Council approved mid-year budget adjustments on February 20, 2024, to correct the deficit and enable hiring a Transportation Planning Manager in spring 2024.
It is important to note that not all projects are fully funded. For example, while the City Council approved the Lincoln/Marshall/Pacific improvements in 2023, the City needed funding for the $20 million project which the City applied for grants in 2023 but did not get the award. Staff will continue to seek funding for such projects through different funding sources. As the City becomes fully staffed, identifying funding for capital improvements remains an important focus for the City.
Funding availability and other factors beyond the City’s control also affected project delivery. For example, the Central Avenue project received funding for a third roundabout and flood management elements, necessitating additional design time; the Estuary Water Shuttle unexpectedly required purchasing and retrofitting a boat, taking additional staff time; and the Grand Street project needed a new community process. Certain projects also face unique challenges involving review and approval from outside agencies, often requiring extended timing beyond City control. For example, the Clement/Tilden improvements required Calfornia Department of Toxic Substance Control review and approval on remediation plans to address soil contamination. The revised Central Avenue Improvements are currently under review by Caltrans, a review process that has taken well over 30 days.
Despite these challenges, City staff accomplished major tasks in 2023, such as completing design concepts that the City Council approved for the Lincoln Ave/Marshall Way/Pacific Ave, Grand St, and Clement Ave/Tilden Way projects. Most construction projects that did not begin in 2023 still underwent significant progress during the year. Two already began construction in early 2024: the Clement Avenue project and Cross Alameda Trail traffic signal and crossing improvements. See Exhibit 1 for project status updates and a full list of 2023 successes.
The 2024 Transportation Work Plan is still ambitious. The City Council has adopted plans and policies that call for significant work to meet the community’s needs and improve safety, and this plan keeps its eye on these important goals. However, it is better tied to available staffing resources and includes more caveats to show the need for contingency planning.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Acceptance of the annual reports will have no financial impact. The recommended priority actions led by the City are designed to be accomplished within existing or anticipated budgets. Final budget decisions on specific programs and capital projects are made by the City Council as part of the budgeting process.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
An annual review of the General Plan, Active Transportation Plan, Vision Zero Action Plan, Transportation Choices Plan, CARP, and Climate Adaptation and Hazard Mitigation Plan are required by the respective plans. Undertaking the annual reports is consistent with the City's General Plan.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Endorsement of the annual reports is statutorily exempt from environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), the general rule that CEQA only applies to actions that have the potential to cause a significant impact on the environment.
CLIMATE IMPACT
These planning documents support improvements transportation, energy and water efficiencies, carbon sequestration, and waste reduction to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and also will improve the resiliency to the impacts of climate change.
RECOMMENDATION
Endorse the 2023 Annual Reports on the General Plan/Housing Element, Active Transportation Plan, Vision Zero Action Plan, Transportation Choices Plan, the Climate Action and Resiliency Plan, and Climate Adaptation and Hazard Mitigation Plan.
Respectfully submitted,
Allen Tai, Planning, Building and Transportation Director
By,
Steve Buckley, Planning Services Manager
Lisa Foster, Acting Transportation Planning Manager
Nancy McPeak, Executive Assistant
Danielle Mieler, Sustainability and Resilience Manager
Exhibits:
1. Transportation 2023 Annual Report & 2024 Work Plan Draft
2. CARP and Climate Adaptation and Hazard Mitigation Plan 2023 Annual Report & 2024 Work Plan Draft
3. General Plan and Housing Element Annual Report