TO: Board of Supervisors
FROM: Steven Lederer, Director of Public Works
REPORT BY: Graham Wadsworth, P. E., Engineering Supervisor
SUBJECT: Approval of Funding Agreement with Napa Valley Vine Trail Coalition for the design of the Napa Valley Vine Trail between Yountville and St. Helena
RECOMMENDATION
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Director of Public Works requests the following actions:
1. Approval of and authorization for the Chair to sign Agreement No. 240148B with the Napa Valley Vine Trail Coalition regarding the design of the Yountville to St. Helena Segment of the Napa Valley Vine Trail; and
2. Authorization to submit an application for an Active Transportation Program (ATP) Cycle 7 grant, and approval of a commitment of $5 million of future County funding no sooner than Fiscal Year 2025-26 for the construction of the Project.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
On June 7, 2022, the Board of Supervisors authorized the Director of Public Works to submit an application for an Active Transportation Program (ATP) Cycle 6 grant for the Napa Valley Vine Trail (NVVT) Yountville to St. Helena Segment and committed up to $5 million of County funding for the construction. The County did not receive a grant and the Director is requesting authorization to submit an application for the next cycle of the same program, known as ATP Cycle 7.
Congressman Thompson included $4 million of Community Project Funding in the federal fiscal year 2023-2024 budget for the Napa Valley Vine Trail Coalition (NVVTC) to complete the planning, engineering, and environmental work of over 10 miles of Class 1 and Class III multiuse path between the existing path in Yountville and the path under construction St. Helena.
Because of the federal funding requirements, NVVTC and County staff recommend that the Board approve a Funding Agreement for the County to administer the design and right-of-way acquisition phases of the Project.
FISCAL & STRATEGIC PLAN IMPACT
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Is there a Fiscal Impact? |
Yes |
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Is it currently budgeted? |
No |
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Where is it budgeted? |
Proposed transfer from the Accumulated Capital Outlay (ACO) budget (Fund3000, Org 3000000). |
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Is it Mandatory or Discretionary? |
Discretionary |
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Discretionary Justification: |
The Napa Valley Vine Trail is a public amenity that reduces vehicle trips and promotes health and wellness. If the County does not enter into the agreement, then the NVVTC would need to enter into an agreement with another agency to design the project or the NVVTC would not use the federal grant funding for the design. |
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Is the general fund affected? |
Yes |
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Future fiscal impact: |
If the County obtains grant funding for the construction, then the County would be responsible for maintaining the portion of the trail between the Town of Yountville and the City of St. Helena. In the Maintenance Agreement for the St. Helena to Calistoga Segment, the County and the NVVTC share the cost. It is anticipated that the County and NVVTC will enter a similar agreement for the Yountville to St. Helena Segment. |
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Consequences if not approved: |
The NVVTC would need to enter into an agreement with another local public agency for this phase of the Project. There is a risk that the $4 million would not be expended on the Project and the NVVTC and County would need to find some other source of funding for this section of the Vine Tail. |
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County Strategic Plan pillar addressed: |
Livable Economy for All |
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Additional Information |
The NVVTC has expended approximately $350,000 in private philanthropy on the preliminary design and environmental studies. |
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION: The proposed action is not a project as defined by 14 California Code of Regulations 15378 (State CEQA Guidelines) and therefore CEQA is not applicable. The County would be responsible for preparing and adopting a CEQA document, such as a Mitigated Negative Declaration, for this segment of the Napa Valley Vine Trail Project.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
The Napa Valley Vine Trail (NVVT) will be a 47-mile walking and biking trail system to physically, artistically and culturally connect the entire Napa Valley from Calistoga to the Vallejo Ferry and the greater Bay Area. A 12.5-mile segment of the Vine Trail is complete between Kennedy Park in Napa and Yountville. Between 2018 and 2020, annual Vine Trail usage increased by 50% from 348,000 to 523,000, and 70% of the users live in Napa County.
Many sections of the trail have been completed in the cities of Calistoga, Napa, American Canyon, Vallejo, and the Town of Yountville. It is anticipated that the St. Helena to Calistoga Segment will open in 2023. The Vallejo Segment is under construction and could open in 2024.
The proposed project is to construct the NVVT adjacent to Highway 29 between Madison Street at the north end of Yountville and Pratt Avenue at the north end of St. Helena. The Project would reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance accessibility and connectivity by promoting the use of transit, biking and walking. Approximately eight of the ten miles of the proposed NVVT are in the unincorporated County, with the remaining sections within the City of St. Helena and Town of Yountville. There is an alternative to continue the NVVT on the west side of Highway 29 between Madison Street and California Drive.
On August 11, 2020, the Board of Supervisors approved up to $4.5 million County Accumulated Capital Outlay (ACO) contribution to the future Yountville to St. Helena Vine Trail Segment as the County match to a $10 million ATP Cycle 5 grant application to the California Transportation Commission (CTC) and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC). The CTC and MTC did not award ATP funding to the County for the Project.
On April 5, 2022, the Board of Supervisors approved and authorized the Chair to sign Amendment No. 6 to Agreement No.190311B with NVTA to provide funding in the amount of $2,000,000 for the NVVT St. Helena to Calistoga Segment, in exchange for NVTA support of $2,000,000 in future State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) funding for the NVVT Yountville to St. Helena Segment. The County submitted the Resolution of Local Support to apply for the $2 Million in STIP funding.
On June 7, 2022, the Board of Supervisors authorized the Director of Public Works to submit an application for an Active Transportation Program (ATP) Cycle 6 grant for the NVVT Yountville to St. Helena Segment and committed up to $5 million of County funding for the construction. The CTC and MTC did not award a grant to the County. The County applied for design phase funding and most of the grant recipients applied for construction funding and were “shovel ready”.
In 2022, Congressman Thompson included $4 million of Community Project Funding (CPF) in the federal fiscal year 2023-2024 Budget for the Napa Valley Vine Trail Coalition (NVVTC) to complete the planning, engineering, and environmental work of over 10 miles of Class I and Class III multiuse path between the existing paths in Yountville and St. Helena. This funding could help the County to be closer to “shovel ready” and submit a more competitive application.
The CPF program requires the implementing agency to be a local public agency such as a city or county. MTC and Caltrans Local Assistance staff stated that the NVVTC and County would need to enter into a funding agreement for the County to administer the preliminary engineering and right-of-way phase of the Project. NVVTC also wants the County to be the lead agency for adopting California Environmental Quality Act documents and executing easement agreements along the alignment, which the Napa Valley Transportation Agency (NVTA) did for the St. Helena to Calistoga Segment. NVTA staff want the County to administer the Yountville to St. Helena Segment and will continue to support the County in this effort.
Because 20% of the Project is within the Caltrans Highway 29 right-of-way, the County will need to enter into a cooperation agreement for Caltrans to review the design documents and adopt the National Environmental Policy Act document. The County does not have the staff with capacity or expertise to design the Project and is in the process of hiring an engineering, environmental and right-of-way acquisition consultant. The County will request reimbursement from the CPF for these expenses; however, the County needs a budget to enter into the cooperation agreement and professional services agreement.
The preliminary estimate for the engineering, environmental and right-of-way acquisition phase of the Project is $5 million. The NVVTC committed up to 15% of the $5 million estimate ($750,000) for this phase of the Project and is asking the County to do the same (this provides some contingency above the $5 million estimate). At a future Board Meeting, staff will request the Board to approve the agreements and a budget transfer of $5 million for the professional service agreement, cooperation agreement, and staff time to administer the Project. $4 million of the $5 million will be reimbursed by the Federal CPF funding and the remaining costs will be split between the County, the NVVTC, and the City of St. Helena.
Because of the federal funding requirements, County staff recommends that the Board approve a Funding Agreement for the County to be the Implementing Agency for the Project and authorize the Director to apply for the ATP Cycle 7 grant.