Minutes 2001-08-23 SP
MINUTES
SPECIAL MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL
THURSDAY, AUGUST 23,2001
COUNCIL CHAMBERS, 214 E. BRANCH STREET
ARROYO GRANDE, CALIFORNIA
1. CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara called the Special City Council meeting to order at 6:37 p.m.
2. ROLL CALL
City Council: Council Members Lubin, and Runels; and Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara were
present. Council Member Dickens and Mayor Lady were absent.
City Staff: City Manager Adams; City Attorney Carmel; Director of Administrative
Services Wetmore; General Plan Update and EIR Consultant Rob Strong, AICP; and
Traffic Consultant Keith Higgins were present.
Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara announced that due to a work related commitment, Council
Member Dickens would arrive at 8:30 p.m.
3. FLAG SALUTE
Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara led the Flag Salute.
4. CITIZENS' INPUT. COMMENTS. AND SUGGESTIONS:
Betty Livingston addressed the Council concerning the proposed development on
Camino Mercado and the potential traffic impacts. She urged the Council to consider the
cumulative traffic impacts when approving projects.
Wayne King addressed the Council concerning traffic circulation issues within Tract 256,
Greenwood Manor and suggested this segment be considered as part of the Circulation
Element.
5. CONSIDERATION OF THE 2001 GENERAL PLAN UPDA TEPOLlCY
DOCUMENTS AND ELEMENTS AND FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
REPORT (FEIR)
City Manager Adams gave a brief overview of the format for the meeting, which
would include accepting public comment on new items; receiving a presentation of
the traffic model from the traffic consultant; and a review and discussion of the
Circulation Element policies and objectives.
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Special City Council Meeting
August 23, 2001
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Keith Higgins, Higgins and Associates, gave an overview of the traffic model analysis
and responded to questions from Council regarding his qualifications and
background, ~s well as that of his staff; traffic counts; defining "level of service";
explaining level of service threshold volumes for various roadway types; methods of
calculating level of service; whether there would be impacts to circulation on local
streets over the next twenty years if expansion to Highway 101 were not made;
explaining that annual increases in traffic are typically based on economic factors;
and explaining that Caltrans has not given any timeline for the expansion of Highway
101 to six lanes.
Rob Strong, General Plan Consultant, responded to questions from Council f
regarding the relation between the traffic model and Circulation Element. He
explained that the traffic model attempts to identify deficiencies as a result of land I
use proposals; explained the CEQA process and analysis to identify where traffic falls \
below a level of service "C"; and explained that the model basically identifies existing
deficiencies in the circulation system and provides a technical basis for the overall
General Plan.
Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara opened the Public Hearing. Members ofthe Public speaking
to the Council were:
Carie Randolph, Sierra Drive, stated that traffic considerations must be taken into
account before projects are approved. She commented that the City has the
opportunity to limit growth due to traffic impacts. I
Jane Line, rural Arroyo Grande, referred to Traffic Analysis Zone 66 and 69 (Exhibit I
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10) and asked for clarification about the plans for this area. I
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Consultant Higgins responded that the EI Campo/101 Project Study Report identifies
an alternative for an interchange configuration at that location.
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City Manager Adams briefed the Council and public on the status of the EI
Campo/101 Project Study Report, noting that the item was scheduled for
consideration by the Council next week to address adding an additional altemative to
the Report.
Patty Welsh, Arroyo Grande, thanked the City for paving Huasna Road. She referred
to the intersection of W. Branch and E. Branch and stated she would like to see a
traffic signal at this intersection.
Consultant Strong responded that improvements to that intersection are being
considered as part of the Brisco Road/101 Project Study Report.
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August 23, 2001
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Hearing no further public comments, Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara closed the Public
Hearing.
Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara called for Council comments on the traffic model and
Circulation Element objectives and policies.
Council Member Runels commented there ha!! been a lot of talk about closing
freeway ramps and he opposed closing or restricting any access to the freeway. He
stated that more ramps would assist in relieving. traffic; and that the existing
circulation problem was not only a congestion problem.
Council Member Lubin complimented Mr. Higgins on the quality and detail of work on I
the traffic model, stating he understood the policies as presented. His comments
included that the City must look at the circulation issues as a whole; the City needs to
maintain a level of service "C"; that the proposed set of policies will help guide the
City in the future; that traffic circulation is important and critical and will become more
critical as development occurs. He supported the proposed policies and reserved his
right to provide additional comments as discussion progressed.
Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara asked for clarification of the process for discussing the
proposed policies and objectives. Due to the fact there were only three Council
Members present, it was unanimously agreed that if there were not unanimous
support on any of the items of discussion, the Council would table the item and defer ,
decisions until a full Council was present. I
Council Member Dickens arrived at 8:18 p.m. and took his place at the dais.
Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara referred to his memorandum dated August 16, 2001
addressed to the City Council, City Manager, Community Development Director, !
Public Works Director, and General Plan Consultant which categorized and
summarized his observations and areas of concem within the draft General Plan and
EIR documents. He asked questions of the traffic consultant concerning the intent I
and purpose of the traffic model and how it was used to draw conclusions and I
assumptions relative to circulation; expressed concerns with regard to the validity of I
the data entered into the traffic model in several categories; expressed concerns with
the absence of growth data, which must factor into traffic counts; and asked for i
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clarification for the scope of potential development estimates relative to the Traffic I
Analysis Zones. With regard to traffic counts, Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara stated that the
traffic analysis, model results, and other findings in the study relied on numbers that
were at I~ast two years old. I
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Upon consensus, Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara called a break at 8:40 p.m. The Council I
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reconvened at 8:55 p.m. i
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I Mayor Pro T em Ferrara referred to Exhibits 15 & 16 of the Traffic Model Analysis and
, questioned how delay times were determined, specifically referring to delay times at
Camino Mercado and W. Branch. Discussion ensued regarding how estimations and
calculations are derived to obtain intersection levels of service.
Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara asked questions regarding the Traffic Analysis Zones (TAZ)
as follows: If TAZ 3 included the Sheppel #3 project and if TAZ 4 included the
proposed senior housing project on Camino Mercado. Consultant Strong replied that
those projects were not included. Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara requested the traffic model
be updated and refined to incorporate these projects. He asked if the buildings not
yet constructed within the Five Cities Center were factored in to the analysis.
Consultant Strong replied yes, the policies provide for project-related traffic study.
Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara asked if TAZ 35 includes the acreage southof"Halcyon at EI
Camino Real. Consultant Strong replied yes. Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara stated there
was no designation for TAZs 65 and 66. Consultant Strong replied that TAZ 65 is
located on the east side of S. Valley Road and TAZ 66 is the area called Vista Del
Mar (Tract 2207). Mayor Pro Tem asked that this information be reflected in the
model. Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara asked which TAZ encompasses the. proposed ALC
annexation. Consultant Strong replied TAZ 70.
Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara referred to Intersection/Street Segment Operations and
pointed out that the intersection at Halcyon/EI Camino and the roadway segment
south of EI Camino Real were the most problematic segments in the City. He asked
if these areas were addressed in this analysis. Consultant Higgins replied no, due to
the interchange alternatives that are addressed in the Brisco RoadlHalcyon/Hwy 101
PSR. Discussion ensued on additional costs associated with analyzing the areas.
Consultant Higgins estimated it would cost approximately $500 to add this study area
to the model. Following discussion, there was consensus of the Council to direct
staff/consultant to add the Halcyon/EI Camino intersection to the study model at a I
cost not to exceed $500. I
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There was discussion regarding use of the terms "peak hour" versus "peak period". '/
Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara suggested the City conduct its own traffic counts to
determine what "peak periods" Arroyo Grande really experiences, not based on
dated reference manual data, in order to establish a realistic LOS policy.
At this time, discussion began on the draft Circulation Element objectives and
policies. Mayor Pro Tem Ferrara referred to CT2 - Attain and maintain Level of
Service (LOS) 'C' or better on all streets and controlled intersections. He expressed
concem with the proposed wording of policy CT2-1, stating he was not comfortable
with mitigating to LOS '0' with a promise of future improvement. Consultant Strong
explained that the proposed policy allows flexibility in order to mitigate potential I
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impacts. Council Member Dickens commented that if the City allows mitigation to
LOS '0', there would be deterioration of the City's circulation system. He suggested
holding firm on the LOS 'C' standard and making it difficult to degrade circulation
within the City. He suggested re-wording the policy statement to allow projects with
Statement of Overriding Considerations and mitigation to LOS '0' to proceed. He
said the goal was to maintain an LOS 'C'. Consultant Strong addressed "potential"
versus "existing" deficiencies within the circulation system. Mayor Pro Tern Ferrara
suggested "raising the bar" on policy CT2-1. Council Member Lubin agreed,
however, he believed that because the policy would be in effect city-wide, some
flexibility was necessary. Mayor Pro Tern Ferrara stated he would agree with
mitigation to LOS 'D' if such mitigation occurs within a specific period of time.
Council Member Lubin moved to direct staff to come back with modified wording for
policy CT2-1. The Council unanimously concurred. I
Mayor Pro Tern Ferrara referred to policy CT2-3 and suggested reviewing and
lowering the 20-peak hour trip standard. He commented that he believed Santa
Barbara County has a 5 peak-hour trip trigger. He stated that as the City gets closer
to build-out, the City will need to look harder at cumulative traffic impacts.
Council Member Lubin concurred and stated he would like to see charts listing peak
hour trip standards from other jurisdictions in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara
Counties. He suggested directing staff to compile the information and return to
Council for further discussion. The Council unanimously agreed.
6. ADJOURNMENT
At 10:40 p.m. Mayor Pro Tern Ferrara continued the Public Hearing to the Regular I
Meeting on Tuesday, August 28, 2001, at 7:00 p.m. in City Council Chambers, 214 E. I
Branch Street. I
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Attest: I
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Kelly etm e, Director of Administrative Services! i
Deputy City Clerk I
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