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Home My Public Portal About14) 10A Resolution 16-5159 Establishment of a green complete streets program as part of Measure R2. - CopyAGENDA ITEM 10.A. COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM DATE: April19 , 2016 TO: The Honorable City Council FROM: Bryan Cook, City Manager Via: Michael D. Forbes , AICP, Community Development Dire ctor ~ By: Andrew J . Coyne, Management Analyst SUBJECT : ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION NO . 16-5159 REQUESTING THAT METRO DESIGNATE 2% OF GROSS ANNUAL REVENUES OF PROPOSED MEASURE R2 FOR A GREEN COMPLETE STREETS PROGRAM TO ASSIST CITIES IN FUNDING STORMWATER PROGRAMS AS REQUIRED BY THE MS4 PERMIT. RECOMMENDATION: The City Council is requested to adopt Resolution No . 16-5159 (Attachment "A") and authorize the Mayor to sign a letter (Attachment "B") request ing that Metro designate 2% of gross annua l revenues of proposed Measure R2 for a green complete streets program to assist cities in funding storm water programs as required by the Municipa l Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit. BACKGROUND: 1 . On December 17 , 1972 , Congress passed the Clean Water Act to address contam ination of the nation 's rivers and waterways . 2 . On November 16 , 1990, the U .S. Environmental Protection Agency publis he d regulations requiring Nati ona l Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits for MS4 runoff, which fundamentally changed the way stormwa ter runoff is regulated at the State and Federal levels . 3 . On December 13 , 2001 , the Regional Water Quality Control Board , Los Angeles Reg ion ( R W Q C B) issued a countywide MS4 permit to Los Angeles County and 79 participating cities , including Temple C ity. The permit includes requirements for the County and cit ies to address stormwater runoff and pollution . City Council April19 , 2016 Page 2 of 3 4 . On November 8 , 2012 , the RWQCB issued Order No. R4-2012-0175 regarding waste discharge req uireme nts for MS4 discharges within the coastal watersheds of Los Angeles County and issued an updated MS4 permit reflective of the new requirements . 5. On October 14, 2014 , the Los Angeles Division of the League of California Cities and the California Contract Cities Association released a report entitled "Stormwater Funding Options , Providing Sustainable Water Quality in Los Angeles County." The report determined that the urban runoff programs required by the updated MS4 permit are so complex and costly that jurisdictions cannot follow a single funding strategy . The report made policy recommendations , including des ignating revenues for a green complete streets program in Measure R. 6 . On March 24 , 2016 , the Metro board released a draft expenditure plan for a ballot measure that would augment Measure R with a proposed half-cent sales tax and extend the current Measure R tax rate to 2057 , referred to as Measure R2 . ANALYSIS: The requirements of the updated MS4 permit issued in 2012 are considerably more complex than the previous MS4 permit requirements. The requirements address stormwater runoff and notably prohibit discharge of dry weather runoff (e .g . irrigation runoff) into storm drains. The Upper Los Angeles River Watershed Group (ULAR), of which Temple City is a member, has prepared an Enhanced Watershed Management Program (EWMP) to provide a pathway for each agency to ensure compliance with the MS4 permit. The cost to c ities for complying with the MS4 permit is expected to be in the billions of dollars. Temple City is projected to spend as much as $51 million in capital and maintenance costs over the next two decades to comply with the permit. To provide assistance and help alleviate some of the financial burden to municipalities , the agencies of Los Angeles County are requesting that Metro designate funding for green streets projects in its proposed Measure R2 . Green street retrofit projects, which involve the installation of roadway features designed to capture and filter water run-off into the ground , are one of the three primary strategies cities will use to improve water quality and ensure compliance with the MS4 permit. The ULAR EWMP identifies green streets as being 23 % of its "compliance recipe" for capturing and diverting stormwater and dry weather runoff. The other two strategies are low impact de ve lopment (LID) and regional projects , which capture water runoff at the parcel-level and reg ional level , respectively. With only general fund resources available for such projects, the City will need to identify additional sources to help fund these projects . Measure R2 is a proposed half-cent sales tax being considered by Metro that would augment the existing Measure R and would be used to fund transportation projects City Council April 19 , 2016 Page 3 of 3 throughout Los Angeles County . The draft expenditure plan for the proposed Measure R2 is currently open for public com ment, and base d on the feedback rece ived , the Metro board wi ll decide whether to place it on the ballot in November 2016 . Several ci ties in Los Angeles County are re questing that 2% of the gross annual revenues generated by the mea sure be availab le to cities in order to fund green street retrofit projects . Such a recommendation was also made by The Los Angeles Div is ion of the League of California Cities and th e California Contract Cities Association in a 2014 report, "Stormwater Funding Options: Providing Sustainable Water Quality Funding in Los Angeles County." For this reaso n , sta ff recommends that the City Counc i l adopt Reso lution No .16-5159 , and authorize th e Mayor to si gn a letter requesting that Metro designate 2% of gross annual reve nues of proposed Measure R2 for a green complete streets program . This reso lu tion does not constitute support for Measure R2 , just the proposed method of funding a ll ocations if the measure is implemented . CITY STRATEGIC GOALS: Approval of Resolution No . 16-5159 furth ers the City's Strategic Goals of Good Governance , Public Health and Safety, and Sustainable Infrastructure. FISCAL IMPACT: The recommended action presents no fiscal impact to the Fiscal Year (FY) 2015-16 City Budg et. However, if Measure R2 is approved by vo ters i n November 2016 and funding is designated for green streets , this could help to alleviate some of the Ci ty's expected significant future costs of compliance with the MS4 permit requirements. ATTACHMENTS: A. Reso lu tion No.16 -5159 B. Letter to Metro ATTACHMENT A RESOLUT ION NO . 16-5 159 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF T HE CITY OF TEMPLE CITY, CALIFO RNIA , REQUESTING THAT METRO DESIGNATE 2% OF GROSS ANNUAL REVENUES OF PROPO SED MEASURE R2 FOR A GREEN COMPLETE STREETS PROGRAM TO ASSIST CITIES IN FUND ING STORMWATER PROGRAMS AS REQU IRED BY T H E MS4 PERMIT. WHEREAS , t he Reg io nal Water Quality Control Board , Los Angeles Region adopted National Poll utant Discharge Eli m ination System Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System Order No . R4-2012- 0175 (MS4 Perm it); and W HEREAS , the MS4 Permit beca me effective on December 28, 2012 and requ ires that cit ies within the County of Los Angeles comply wi th the prescribed eleme nts of the MS4 Permit ; and WHEREAS , the Los Angeles Division of the League of California Cit ies and the Cal ifornia Contract Cities Association issued a re port entitled "Stormwater Fund ing Options, Provid ing Sus ta inab le Water Quality in Los Ange les County", fin di ng that fu nd ing the storm water programs requ ired by the new MS4 permit is so comp le x and costly that juri sdi ct ions cannot follow a single fund i ng strategy; and WHEREAS , the Los Angeles Division of the League of Ca li forn ia Cities and the Ca li fornia Contract C ities Association made policy recommendat ions , including designating revenues for green comp lete streets programs as part of future transp ortat ion measures ; and WHEREAS , the METRO Board is co nsid eri ng a ballot measure for November 2016 that would augment the Meas ure R w ith a new half-cent sales tax and has released the draft expenditure plan for public comme nt; NOW, T HERE FORE, BE IT RESOLVED tha t by the adoptio n of th is resoluti on , the City of T emple City prov ides its support for the establishment of a green complete streets program as part of Measure R2 . PASSED, A PPROVED AND ADOPTED th is 191h day of Apr il 2016 MAYOR ATTEST: AP PROVED AS TO FORM : CITY CLER K CITY ATTORNEY I, City Clerk of th e City of Temp le City , hereby certify th at the foregoing reso lu tion , Reso lution No. 16-5159 was duly adopted by the City Counci l of the City of Temp le City at a regular meeting held on the 191h da y of Apri l, 2016 , by the followi ng vote : AYES : NOES: ABSE NT: ABST AIN : Counc il member - Counci lmember- Counc il member - Councilmember - City Cle rk ATTACHMENT B 9701 LA S TUNAS D RIVE • TEMPLE C IT Y • CALI FORNIA 91780-2249 • (626) 285-2171 April 19 , 2016 Phillip A. Washington , CEO METRO One Gateway Plaza Mail Stop 99-25 -1 Los Angeles , CA 90012 -2952 Re : Green Streets Program-Measure R2 Dear Mr . Washington : The City of Temple City is writing to request that METRO add funding for a green complete streets program to the proposed Measure R2 . Specifically , we are requesting that 2 % of the gross annual revenues be designated for a green comp lete streets program outside of the Local Return programs . The cities in Los Angeles County are facing significant financial hurdles in order to meet the requirements of increasingly strict storm water permit requirements and make substantial improvemen ts to surface water quality. A majority of th e cities in Los Angeles County, as well as the County itself, rely on green streets projects to comply with the stringent National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit requirements adopted by the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board in 2012 . There is a strong link between transportation projects and surface water pollution . Streets, highways , and inte rsections generate significant e nvironmental impacts , since approximately thirty-percent of urban land use is re lated to streets , h ig hways and intersections . It has long been known that automobiles , trucks and busses generate substantial water pollution , from copper in brake pads , zi nc in tires , antifreeze and oils, and grease dripp ing onto th e pavement, as well as num erous pollutants from exhaust discharges . It is estimated that almost 50 % of zinc pollution found in the region 's surface water is generated from tire wear alone . Pollutants from vehicles are deposited on the streets and highways in our comm unities and then are mobilized by rainfa ll and washed into the region 's storm drains , flood contro l channels , rive rs , bays and lakes ; the number one cause of water pollution . Green stre ets are one of the primary strategies the cities will use to reduce water pollution and ensure comp lian ce with the storm water permit. Implementation of th e NPDES permit requir ements is es timat ed to cost our region 's commu nities between millions , if not billions of d ollars , over the next two decades . To reduce Page 2 of 3 costs , the region 's 85 cities are working collaboratively to address water pollution and captu re storm water in dozens of watersheds. Temp le C ity is a member of the Upper Los Angeles River Watershed Group, which has prepared an Enhanced Watershed Management Plan (EWMP) to provide a c omp liance path w a y for each of the member agencies to meet the storm water requirements . Collective ly , t his watershed wi ll have to spend over $6.1 billion in capital costs over the next two decades just to imp lement these requ ire ments. In our watershed , 23 % percent of our comp l ia nce will be met th rough green street projects , while i n other watersheds it w ill be as high as 80 %. The table be low illustrates the importance that green street implementation will have for al l of the watersheds: L os An ge les Coun ty -Stormwater Compl iance Pl a ns by W atersheds BMP Type D istribution Lower San Gabriel River Santa Moni ca Bay Los Cerritos Channel East San Gabriel River Uppe r Sa nta Clara River Lo wer Los Angeles River Dominguez Channel Upper San Gabriel River Ballona Creek Upper Los Angeles River • Green Streets • Regional BMP s Total BMP Storage (acre-feet) Specifically , our own community is expected to spend ove r $51 million annually over the next two decades to implement the storm water requirements. Since the City currently has no funding source , othe r than general funds , to implement these storm water programs, we would greatly benefit from a green complete streets program as part of Measure R2 . For this reason , we co nsider our request to be a modest and prudent one . Rather than making a green comp lete streets program part of the Call for Projects , we believe the revenues should be made available to a ll communities to retrofit existing streets , highways , and intersections into "green streets". Many of the region 's communities do not have substantial "matching funds " to compete with the green street projects of larger communities, who overcomm it matching funds in order to score more grant points . A portion of these local sales tax revenues should be returned to local government for use in these programs . We appreciate the consideration of this request by the METRO Board . Page 3 of 3 Sincerely , Vincent Yu Mayor cc: City Council City Manager