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Published April 23rd, 2014
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Protecting and Preserving Orinda's Infrastructure
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| Orinda leaders tweak city's Capital Improvement Plan |
| By Laurie Snyder |
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| Spring has sprung in Orinda! Carefree days like this one captured by photographer, Ohlen Alexander, are made possible by the city's Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), which helps city leaders ensure that structures like this gazebo are built and parks are pristinely maintained. Photo Ohlen Alexander |
"The future starts today, not tomorrow." Reportedly made by Pope John Paul II, that statement might just as easily serve as the 2014 mission statement for the Orinda City Council as evidenced by its latest annual re-review of the city's Capital Improvement Plan.
The Orinda CIP, for those who have never held one in their hands, is a dense document packed with dreams - immaculate city buildings, meticulously maintained parks, weather resilient drainage systems, smooth roads, and a healthy, contented populace able to bike, walk, drive and park conveniently and safely. As described in a recent staff report, the CIP "identifies projects and funding sources for long-term investments that are designed to protect, preserve, and enhance the City's infrastructure, extend the useful service life of public facilities and improve or enhance delivery of City services." A well-crafted CIP also presents the details of just exactly how - and when - a city will make those dreams come true.
It was that "nitty" that Orinda City Council members got "gritty" with April 8. Staff provided updates regarding the completion of Manzanita Bridge, Tarabrook storm drain repairs and other infrastructure upgrades, discussed the possibility of moving several unfunded initiatives from the Bikeways, Trails, and Walkways Master Plan to the CIP, and outlined funding sources for newly recommended projects (see sidebar).
Existing initiatives still slated for completion include the Ivy Drive Pavement Rehabilitation and Ivy Drive and Coral Drive Sidewalk Improvements, anticipated to cost $712,000 and $195,000, respectively. Orinda was awarded Federal Safe Routes to School and Transportation Act grants to cover about half of the sidewalk budget, and expects to receive federal grants for the Ivy Drive pavement project to fix roughly 4,225 feet of roadway from Fiesta Circle to Moraga Way via Transportation Improvement Plan funds for construction contract and management. To make it happen, Orinda will still need to pony up a match of $72,000 for actual construction plus $88,000 for design. So, project leaders plan to shift $85,000 from fiscal year 2014 to 2015, and utilize $75,000 of city gas tax revenues. If Caltrans approves the design, construction could begin after school ends in 2015.
Tennis court, park and community center improvements, school safety initiatives, road maintenance, and drainage upgrades slated for various neighborhoods would rollover to FY15 with unspent FY14 funds shifted to facilitate their completion. Miner Road's seismic upgrades and pavement rehabilitation would be pushed back to FY16.
The bulk of the City Council's time, however, centered on review of one particular project - Camino Sobrante Pedestrian Improvements. Initiated by Orinda's Traffic Safety Advisory Committee at the request of residents to calm traffic and make life safer for walkers, the proposed $44,000 project would widen the asphalt roadway between Orinda Way and La Plaza by 6 feet and reduce vehicle shoulder drift via the installation of channelizers without adversely affecting the driveway slope and on-street parking at 4 Camino Sobrante - the residence most likely to be impacted by the changes. "I can't emphasize how important this project is to the neighbors," stressed one resident. Calling it "a relatively inexpensive fix for a high priority," he said the area currently sees "hundreds of people walking up to the country club" on a "gravel surface that right now is not safe to walk on."
Several council members expressed concern regarding channelizer aesthetics since the area is seen by day trippers as well as residents. Councilmember Amy Worth recalled that the street's walkability was very good when paved initially, but has since deteriorated as rains have washed away the shoulder. She pushed staff to ferret out and factor in potential drainage issues contributing to the problem before returning with a revised project proposal.
Further discussions about the Camino Sobrante project and other CIP elements will continue at future meetings. As deliberations progress, staff will incorporate relevant input into a revised 5-year CIP as directed by the City Council. The final CIP draft will then likely be adopted sometime this June.
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Proposed New CIP Projects (as of April 8)
Camino Pablo Pavement Rehabilitation: Designed to improve the pavement condition of Camino Pablo between Miner Road and Brookwood Drive as well as a segment of Brookwood, staff hope to begin work in August 2014 - after BART has wrapped up its efforts to earthquake retrofit the Orinda station, or with minimal overlap. New traffic signage, striping and markings will be added, traffic signals will be adjusted at the Camino Pablo/Santa Maria/Brookwood intersection and ADA compliance will improve. Estimated cost: $2,495,900. Funding: Southwest Area Transportation Committee (SWAT) Return to Source (RTS) Major Streets Program; Measure C construction funds.
BART Path Access Ramp (design): With construction of an ADA-accessible ramp between the Crossroads Area of Camino Pablo and the end of Bryant Way dependent on the city's receipt of Transportation Development Act (TDA) grant funding, staff have asked the city council for money to initiate a topographic study to more effectively "design a preliminary alignment to better scope the project for future grant opportunities." Estimated cost: $20,000 from city budget.
Bikeways, Trails, and Walkways Master Plan Initiatives: Ranging from projects clearing vegetation to making road shoulders more walkable to crosswalk and bike route signage upgrades, the construction of additional trails and thoroughfare restriping, more and more projects could make their way into Orinda's CIP over the next several years, ultimately helping pedestrians and bicyclists coexist more easily with drivers city-wide. Estimated cost: Too early to tell, but potentially may be offset by federal, state or local grants. |
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Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA