Title
Adoption of Resolution Appropriating $40,000 in the American Rescue Plan Act Project (C90300) for a Parklet Insurance Reimbursement Program; and Authorizing the Interim City Manager, or Designee, to Disburse Funds Consistent with Program Requirements. (Planning, Building and Transportation/Public Works 20962730)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
At its November 2, 2021 meeting, the City Council approved a two-year extension of the Park Street and Webster Street Commercial Streets/Parklet program through November 2023. The City Council also increased the required insurance coverage for parklets. To help local businesses cover the costs for the additional insurance coverage, the City Council agreed to reimburse those businesses for the incremental additional cost for the higher insurance costs above what they were already paying. Although the City Council endorsed the concept of the insurance reimbursement program, the City Council did not appropriate the necessary funds for the reimbursements.
Staff is now requesting that City Council appropriate $40,000 for the insurance reimbursement program for eleven businesses to cover the incremental additional insurance costs for those businesses through the end of the program in November 2023 and to give the Interim City Manager, or designee, the authority to disburse those funds consistent with the program’s requirements.
BACKGROUND
The City Council approved the Commercial Streets program in May, 2020. At the November 2, 2021 meeting, the Council approved an extension of the program through November 2023 provided that the parklets meet a higher safety and aesthetic standards. The City Council required that all parklet owners increase their insurance coverage to meet new minimum requirements. At the request of the business community, which was concerned about businesses suffering financially due to the pandemic, City Council approved the concept of an insurance reimbursement program to defray these increased costs.
At the meeting, staff presented an initial estimate that costs for the reimbursement of insurance costs would be $30,000 to $50,000. This estimate was made not knowing how many businesses would continue their parklets, how many businesses would request the reimbursement, and the amounts of those reimbursement requests. While this cost range was surprisingly accurate, staff did not ask the City Council to appropriate the funds at that time.
DISCUSSION
Since last November, 23 businesses have submitted applications for new or updated parklets. Of these, six (6) businesses have fulfilled all of the permitting, agreement, insurance and inspection requirements. The remaining 17 are still at varying stages of review and compliance. Eleven of the businesses have requested an insurance reimbursement to cover the increase in their costs due to the higher insurance requirements. The requests represent the difference between the cost to maintain their current levels of liability insurance and the cost to increase that insurance to the level required by the City of Alameda (City). Five of the eleven applicants (identified by asterisk in table below) are corner locations that require the $5 million insurance policy required by City Council. In total, the cost to the City to reimburse the eleven businesses is $26,905.38. The eleven businesses and their reimbursement needs are:
The Business Improvement Areas have been informed that the insurance reimbursement program will end after November 2023, and all businesses at that time are expected to pay the increased insurance costs--without reimbursement from the City--in order to maintain a parklet. Staff is requesting a contingency allocation, in the event that one or more of the businesses has underestimated their costs during the program duration or a new parklet application is received. Staff is also requesting that the Interim City Manager, or designee, be authorized to disburse the funds to businesses consistent with the insurance reimbursement program’s requirements.
Next Steps Staff is currently working with a consultant firm to finalize the striping and concrete barricade plans and costs for Park Street and Webster Street. These plans will be presented to the City Council for approval in October, at which time staff will be requesting final approval and authorization to purchase the necessary barricades and implement the striping plans.
In October, staff will be presenting several alternative actions for City Council review and decision, including:
• Final decision as to whether to provide continuous concrete barricades to replace the plastic cones or retain the plastic vertical cones and limit the use of concrete barriers to encase each parklet on all three sides. These two alternatives have different costs and benefits.
• Final decision as to whether to require concrete barriers on the side of mid-block parklets. Doing so, further limits on street parking supply for the business districts. Alternatively, the City could consider utilizing car parking to protect the side of a mid-block parklet. This alternative would increase parking supply and reduce concrete barrier costs. Protection for the parklet would be equivalent when a car is parked in the space, but less when the parking space is unoccupied.
• For Webster Street, which has only three parklets, staff is working on two alternative designs: one that preserves the current configuration and one that relocates the on street parking back to the curb and introduces a striped bicycle lane between the parking lane and the travel lane.
ALTERNATIVES
The City Council may:
• Approve the budget resolution as recommended.
• Modify the budget resolution
• Not approve the budget resolution
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Staff recommends that $40,000 be appropriated for the parklet insurance reimbursements in the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) project (C99300).
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
Actions to support the health and economic survival of the Alameda business community are consistent with General Plan Land Use Element policies.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The appropriation of funds for insurance reimbursement is exempt from the requirements of California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b) (3). The action will not have a significant effect on the environment. As a separate and independent basis, the program is also exempt from CEQA Guidelines Sections 15301 Existing Facilities, 15304(e) Minor Temporary Use of Land, and 15305 Minor Alterations to Land Use Limitations, and none of the exceptions apply. No further environmental review is needed.
CLIMATE IMPACT
Supporting walking, bicycling, and transit use will help the City meet its goals to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by supporting mode shift away from automobiles. The City’s 2019 Climate Action and Resiliency Plan found that transportation accounts for 70% of the City’s GHG emissions, and that moving people out of automobiles is paramount to reducing transportation-related emissions. Creating streets focused on people, rather than cars, encourages these modes of transportation, and can reduce emissions from people driving to their destinations, and help the community develop lifelong habits of walking, bicycling and taking transit.
RECOMMENDATION
Adopt a Resolution appropriating $40,000 in the American Rescue Plan Act Project (C90300) for a Parklet Insurance Reimbursement Program; and authorizing the Interim City Manager, or designee, to disburse funds consistent with the program’s requirements.
Respectfully submitted,
Andrew Thomas, Planning, Building and Transportation Department Director
By,
Rochelle Wheeler, Senior Transportation Coordinator
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Margaret L. O’Brien, Finance Director
cc: Nancy Bronstein, Interim City Manager