RECEIVED Item No. 2 i\W 7 Z018 of CITYOFSOUTH GATE City South Gate WFICEOFTHECITYMANAGER3bpm CITY COUNCIL ATN]ThA Lll]L]L For the Regular Meeting of August 14, 2018 Orj4ating Deartment: ftZ4’ i7’frC1t Manager Department Director Joe Perez! SUBJECT: COMMENT LETTER FOR THE WEST SANTA ANA BRANCH TRANSIT CORRIDOR PROJECT PURPOSE: To submit comments and concerns to the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) regarding potential impacts related to the West Santa Ana Branch Transit Corridor Project. Metro is receiving public input until August 24, 2018, which marks the end of their formal public comment period for a revised Notice of Preparation of a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)/Environmental Impact Report (EIR). RECOMMENDED ACTION: Authorize the Mayor to execute the comment letter regarding potential impacts related to the West Santa Branch Transit Corridor Project to the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority prior to August 24, 2018. FISCAL IMPACT: None. ANALYSIS: Metro is evaluating a new light rail transit line that would connect downtown Los Angeles to southeast LA County, serving the cities and communities of downtown Los Angeles, unincorporated Florence-Graham community of LA County, Vernon, Huntington Park, Bell, Cudahy, South Gate, Downey, Paramount, Bellflower and Artesia. The West Santa Ana Branch (WSAB) Transit Corridor Project is a 20-mile corridor that is undergoing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)/Environmental Impact Report (EIR) process to prepare the corridor for light rail use. The project’s name originates from the southern portion of the route south of the Metro Green Line that follows the old Pacific Electric streetcar alignment known as the West Santa Ana Branch Corridor. It is recommended that the City submit a formal comment letter to Metro to have the City’s concerns regarding the project’s potential impacts addressed as part of the revised EIS/EIR process. Attached is a draft comment letter which addresses primary areas of concern which include rail alignment alternatives, at-grade crossings, bike and pedestrian access to stations, maintenance yard location, station design, economic development, construction impacts and safety/security issues. BACKGROUND: Metro’s project to build the West Santa Ana Branch Transit Corridor is in the planning stages. 1 Updated Scoping Meetings have provided the public opportunities to learn more about the project, including the two northern route options the Metro Board selected in May 2018 for further study. The public can also comment on anything related to the project verbally or in writing. The formal public comment period began on Wednesday July 11, 2018 and runs through Friday, August 24, 2018. ATTACHMENT: Draft Comment Letter 2 August 14, 2018 Ms. Teresa Wong, Transportation Planning Manager LA County Metropolitan Transportation Authority One Gateway Plaza, MIS 99-22-4 Los Angeles, CA 90012 RE: CITY OF SOUTH GATE’S SCOPING COMMENTS FOR THE WEST SANTA ANA BRANCH TRANSIT CORRIDOR PROJECT Dear Ms. Wong: Thank you for this opportunity to provide input during the lbrmal public comment period for the West Santa Ana Branch Transit Corridor Project. Based on our review of the scoping documents as well as the revised and recirculated Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)/Environmental Impact Report (EIR), we are requesting the following City comments be considered and addressed: Crossings at Roadway Intersections 1. Elevated/At-Grade Crossings: In the current project concept, at-grade crossings are proposed at intersections south of Atlantic Avenue. Due to the close proximity of these arterials along the alignment, crossings at these locations would require closure of streets to traffic operations, causing significant interruption to traffic flow and adjacent intersection operations. These concerns are exacerbated during peak travel periods where vehicle queuing from the intersections may extend to the crossings. Moreover, these intersections are heavily traversed by pedestrians going to and from school, work and commercial destinations thereby creating a hazardous environment. To mitigate these conditions and safeguard the public, it is imperative that crossings at Firestone Boulevard, Garfield Avenue and Imperial Highway be a grade separated configuration. Some discussion regarding the frequency of crossings that will be anticipated during operation will be helpful to assess the impacts upon the intersections and other City facilities along the alignment. 3 City of South Gate’s WSAB Scoping Comments August 14, 2018 Page 2of 13 There needs to be a careful examination of creating an alignment profile that can accommodate the estimated ridership and maintain or mitigate impacts on community character. The alignment profile chosen to accommodate demand may include significant grade separated crossings and grade separated segments. Both elevated track as well as trenched or cut and cover profiles should be examined to integrate the alignment into the built environment. Most of the PEROW runs through low profile built-out urban environments where an aerial structure might impact the community aesthetic as well as create privacy issues for backyards and windows that are immediately adjacent to the ROW. At-grade or elevated structures potentially may divide communities through the creation of barriers. In addition to considering all potential project profiles to minimize community separation; the use of landscaping and screening, pedestrian pathways and bike trails may mitigate this effect. Bike/Pedestrian Access along WSAB Line and Parking 2. Bike/Pedestrian Access and Parking.. It is critical that pedestrian and bike access be provided along the rail alignment to enable the public to safely access the WSAB stations in and around South Gate. This is particularly necessary for the station at Firestone Boulevard and Atlantic Avenue, which is expected to be one of the busiest stations along the line and is located at an intersection with high volumes of automobile/truck traffic. Again, a bike/pedestrian facility that runs parallel with the WSAB line is needed to ensure the public has both safe and convenient access to the stations along the WSAB line. The City has several planned Class’J and II bike facilities to build out its bicycle network. The City believes it is critical that Metro construct a Class I bike path along the proposed rail alignment to supplement the build out of the City’s bike network. Such a bike facility would offer greater options for multi-modal access between the three stations while promoting greater transit access from the LA River as well as providing a more safe and convenient access from different parts of the City to the new stations. This additional bike path would help solve critical first and last mile issues for transit users who are more likely to use pedestrian and bike access and thereby reduce parking demand at LRT stations. The WSAB project, where it has an exclusive alignment must include the addition of a Class I bike lane wherever feasible. There is currently a class I in Bellflower and another planned in the City of Paramount and Artesia along with a number of regional bike projects currently underway. Active Transportation facilities need to be planned within or adjacent to the alignment wherever feasible. The Gateway Cities Strategic Transportation Plan Active Transportation element should be integral to the planning for any facility. To minimize impacts to the surrounding communities within the vicinity of the proposed stations, the City is concerned that adequate infrastructure facilities for parking and pedestrian/bike access will be sufficient to support future transit demand at the new stations. As such, please include bike sharing program/facilities and other TDM 4 City of South Gate’s WSAB Scoping Comments August 14, 2018 Page3ofl3 type improvements (bike lockers, bike racks, information kiosks, etc.) to support future multi-modal access to these stations. Station locations and station access including first/last mile considerations and their impact to the built environment and potential for development. The WSAB differs from other lines in that most station areas have development plans associated with them that were developed with the TOD and TOC planning efforts. The environmental review should include these city plans to the greatest extent possible. Follow Metro Board direction, Eco-Rapid Transit Guidelines and City specific plans, safe and accessible first/last mile routes need to be studied and implemented as part of the station area construction There are opportunities for shared transit/cornitercial parking and other first/last mile improvements. We would like to see plans that include ride-share or car-share into station area environments as well as bike stations and opportunities for shared ride drop off. Station areas should also be planned with personal electric vehicles in mind (bicycles, Segways, skateboards) as well as traditional active transportation modes. Wayfinding to and from the station areas must be incorporated into the station area plans. We must not assume that people will be using their smartphones to orient and navigate themselves. The issues raised in this section have the potential to create significant impacts in Air Quality, Land Use and Planning, and Public Services and must be analyzed. Eco-Rapid Transit has already established the principle of comprehensive on-street and off-street parking policies which support transit oriented