TITLE
Recommendation to adopt resolution awarding a contract to URS Corporation in an amount not to exceed $2,188,800 to prepare a Project Initiation Document (PID) and Project Approval/Environmental Document (PA/ED) for the Realignment of the Shoemaker Bridge and Ramps. (District 1)
DISCUSSION
On June 22, 2004, the City Council approved the Locally Preferred Strategy for the 1710 Freeway Major Corridor Study. That study included the realignment of the Shoemaker Bridge and ramps into downtown to improve the safety of the bridge and ramps, resulting in almost doubling of the size of Cesar Chavez Park (see attachment).
The project was awarded $2.4 million in federal funding in the SAFETEA-LU Federal Transportation Program that was adopted in 2005.
The Shoemaker Bridge provides downtown access to and from the 1-710 Freeway and it remains under local control. As such, the bridge and ramp realignment may progress as an early action project that will be constructed independent of any potential improvements to the state-owned 1-710 Freeway. The resulting benefits to the community of improved safety on the ramps and expanded green space at Chavez Park may be realized in the short-term, whether or not any improvements to the full 1-710 Corridor are ever constructed in the long-term.
The next step toward constructing this improvement requires the development of a Project Initiation Document (PID) and Project Approval/Environmental Document (PAlED). On July 26, 2007, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority awarded a contract to URS Corporation to prepare an EIR/EIS and engineering project report for the 1-710 Corridor through a competitive bid process. Awarding this contract to the same firm will allow the City to take advantage of the work effort that URS will already be putting forward in the overall 1-710 Corridor project and result in some economies of scale. The schedule for this project is to complete the Project Initiation Document in early, 2008 and the Proje...
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