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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12716SE RESOLUTION NO. 12716 A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY OF PUEBLO AND PUEBLO COUNTY TO SUBMIT TWO APPLICATIONS TO THE COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION REQUESTING THE ACCELERATION OF FUNDING FROM THE RESPONSIBLE ACCELERATION OF MAINTENANCE AND PARTNERSHIPS PROGRAM FOR CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS RELATED TO INTERSTATE 25 AND US-50 AND AUTHORIZING THE PRESIDENT OF CITY COUNCIL TO EXECUTE THE SAME WHEREAS, the Pueblo Area Council of Governments (PACOG) submitted pre- applications to the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) on May 1, 2013 requesting the acceleration of funds through the Responsible Acceleration of Maintenance and Partnerships Program (RAMP) for the construction of safety, congestion mitigation, and other improvements on Interstate 25 (I-25) through the City of Pueblo and US-50 between Wills Boulevard and Purcell Boulevard; and WHEREAS, CDOT determined that the pre-applications submitted by PACOG met the criteria and intent of the RAMP Program and authorized the submittal of final applications requesting the acceleration of funding for the I-25 and US-50 corridors; and WHEREAS, the final applications will be jointly submitted by the City of Pueblo and Pueblo County, rather than PACOG, in order to include commitments to provide local matching funds including cash contributions and commitments to accept the long- term ownership and maintenance (devolution) of CDOT owned roadways; and BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF PUEBLO, that: SECTION 1. An application jointly submitted by the City of Pueblo and Pueblo County requesting the acceleration of $32 million in RAMP Program funds through the Colorado st Department of Transportation to complete improvements to I-25 from Ilex Bridge to 1 Street including multi-modal and energy sustainability improvements at a future Ilex Park n’ Ride facility, a copy of which is attached hereto, is hereby approved. SECTION 2. An application jointly submitted by the City of Pueblo and Pueblo County requesting the acceleration of $17,844 million in RAMP Program funds through the Colorado Department of Transportation to complete improvements to US-50 from Wills Boulevard to Purcell Boulevard including multi-modal and energy sustainability improvements, a copy of which is attached hereto, is hereby approved. INTRODUCED: June 24, 2013 BY: Ami Nawrocki Background Paper for Proposed RESOLUTION DATE: JUNE 24, 2013 AGENDA ITEM # Q-1 DEPARTMENT: PLANNING & COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT JULIE ANN WOODS, AICP/ASLA, DIRECTOR TITLE A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY OF PUEBLO AND PUEBLO COUNTY TO SUBMIT TWO APPLICATIONS TO THE COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION REQUESTING THE ACCELERATION OF FUNDING FROM THE RESPONSIBLE ACCELERATION OF MAINTENANCE AND PARTNERSHIPS PROGRAM FOR CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS RELATED TO INTERSTATE 25 AND US-50 AND AUTHORIZING THE PRESIDENT OF CITY COUNCIL TO EXECUTE THE SAME ISSUE Should the City Council authorize the submittal of two applications, jointly submitted by the City and County, to the Colorado Department of Transportation requesting the acceleration of funding from the Responsible Acceleration of Maintenance and Partnerships Program (RAMP) for the construction of safety, congestion mitigation, and st other improvements on Interstate 25 (I-25) between the Ilex Bridge and 1 Street and US-50 between Wills Blvd and Purcell Blvd? RECOMMENDATION Approval of the Resolution. BACKGROUND The RAMP Program accelerates funding for selected projects that are included within the FY2014 and FY2015 Colorado Statewide Transportation Improvement Plan. The City and Pueblo County are working in cooperation with the staff of CDOT Region 2 to prepare two RAMP applications that have been approved to compete for final funding by the State of Colorado. These applications propose accelerating local, Federal Highway Administration, and state transportation funds to complete improvements to st Interstate 25 between the Ilex Bridge structure and 1 Street, and within the US-50 West corridor between Wills Boulevard and 1/4-mile west of Purcell Boulevard. The applications are in the process of being completed. The majority of the information needed is transportation safety and congestion data that is being provided by CDOT staff. The information will be provided by the July 1, 2013 deadline. Sections of the application that are attached include a project description and sources of revenue to fund the project. The I-25 Project includes noise walls, aesthetic improvements on the bridge structure st and along the 1 Street and I-25 Interchange. A Park n’ Ride facility will be constructed at the Ilex intersection on the former Cliff Brice fuel station site that also includes two electric vehicle charging stations and a bus transit stop for the Red Creek bus route. The Park n’ Ride area will also serve as overflow parking for events at the Runyon Sports Complex. Additionally, a 600’ long paved bike/pedestrian trail will be connected from the Park n’ Ride to the Thomas Phelps Trail providing access to the Historic Arkansas Riverwalk Project. The US-50W Project will include a Park n’ Ride facility near the existing CDOT maintenance facility at US-50W and SH-47 (Pueblo Blvd) that will include two electric vehicle charging stations. Staff has been working cooperatively with CDOT Region 2 staff on these Projects which are designated as key federal highway corridors within the National Highway System. The I-25 Project is included in the Modified I-25 Alternative for the New Pueblo Freeway as set forth in the New Pueblo Freeway Environmental Impact Statement endorsed and supported in City Council Resolution No. 12626 approved on March 25, 2013, and the US-50W Pueblo Planning and Environmental Linkage Study approved by City Council Resolution No. 12286 on December 27, 2011. The final applications propose a collaborative approach between the City and County working cooperatively with CDOT that provides for an over-match of local funding for each Project that exceeds the RAMP Public-Public (devolution) program requirements and the overall intent and strategy of the RAMP program policies and guidelines. FINANCIAL IMPACT Project funding necessary to complete the Projects includes a total of $49.844 million of RAMP accelerated project funds and other state and local funding that is more specifically broken down as follows: st ● $32 million in RAMP funding for the I-25 Project (Ilex Bridge to 1 Street) ● $30.4 million for the US-50W Project including $17.844 million in RAMP funds, $6.8 million in CDOT Asset Management funds, $4.756 million in FASTER Safety/Congestion Mitigation funds, and $1 million in CDOT Operational funds for the US-50W Project (Wills to Purcell) ● $1.2 million of City Underground Utility Funds provided over a four year period between 2014 and 2017 that will be included as part of the Project IGA with CDOT if the Project is included in the final RAMP accelerated projects program. ● State FASTER Transit Funds in the amount of $726,180 are being allocated for multi-modal improvements including the construction of the Park n’ Ride, transit stop, and bike/pedestrian connection to the Thomas Phelps Creek Trail. ● The City and County will assume the ownership and maintenance responsibilities for roadways that are currently owned and maintained by CDOT (commonly referred to as “devolution”) that total up to 20 percent of the value of the final overall RAMP accelerated project funds. CDOT Region 2 Staff are currently determining an estimated value of roadways that could be included on a list of devolution roadways that would be accepted by the City and County. A final agreement specifying which CDOT roadways will be accepted by the City and which roadways will be accepted by the County will need to be approved by City Council and the Board of County Commissioners as a key part of the overall RAMP project implementation action. The City will appropriate and budget funds for the Projects that are approved for RAMP project acceleration funding prior to approval of the grant agreements with the Colorado Department of Transportation.