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Home My WebLink About18 TOLL ROAD EXTENSION SUPPORT 06-05-06MEETING DATE: JUNE 5, 2006 TO: WilLIAM A. HUSTON, CITY MANAGER FROM: PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT SUBJECT: ADOPT RESOLUTION NO.06-66 OPPOSING STATE ASSEMBLY EFFORTS TO PROHIBIT CONSTRUCTION OF A TOll ROAD THROUGH THE SAN ONOFRE STATE BEACH PARK SUMMARY: A subcommittee of the California Assembly has recommended that the Assembly approve a law which would prohibit construction of the Foothill South Toll Road through the San Onofre State Beach Park. The Foothill/Eastern Transportation Corridor Agency (F/ETCA) Board of Directors has requested support from Cities to urge Orange County's state representatives to oppose this recommendation. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the City Council adopt resolution number 06-66 opposing State Assembly efforts to prohibit construction of a toll road through the San Onofre State Beach Park. DISCUSSION: At it's May 3rd, 2006 meeting, The California Assembly Budget Subcommittee #5 for Transportation and Information Technology adopted a recommendation to the full Assembly Budget Committee to prohibit the Orange County Transportation Corridor Agencies (TCA) from building a toll road through the San Onofre State Beach Park. The TCA was created in 1986 to plan, finance, build and operate State Routes 241, 261, and 133, also known as the Foothill and Eastern Toll Roads in eastern and southern Orange County. The Foothill/Eastern Transportation Corridor Agency (F/ETCA) Board of Directors is requesting Cities support to urge Orange County's state representatives to oppose any recommendations that are designed to stop completion of Orange County's toll road system. Such recommendations would take local control away from Orange County and prevent the completion of a long-planned highway project that is critical in improving mobility and reducing traffic congestion in Southern California. Tim D. Serlet Public Works Director Attachment: Assembly Budget Subcommittee Recommendation Resolution Number 06-66 SUBCOMMITTEE No.5 ON TRANSPORTATION AND INFO TECH MAY 3. 2006 ISSUE 5: THE TOLL ROAD FORMERLY KNOWN AS "SAN ONOFRE STATE BEACH" The Orange County Transportation Corridor Agencies (TCA) has proposed a sixteen- mile extension of Route 241 (toll road) from Orange to San Diego Counties that would essentially bisect the entire length of San Onofre State Beach. (See map on page 14) San Onofre State Beach was created by Executive Order by President Nixon and is on land that the Department of Parks and Recreation leases from the federal government. San Onofre State Beach adjoins the Camp Pendleton U.S. Marine Corps Base San Onofre State Beach is the sixth most visited park in the State Park System. While Caltrans is not the lead agency in the proposed expansion project (the TCA is the lead), the department does playa roll in the reviewing and approving of the construction plans. I COMMENTS: 1. San Onofre includes world famous beaches, natural preserves, endangered species, and campgrounds used by families seeking low cost vacation sites. With the creation of the State Beach in 1971, Governor Regan said in part, "This is a momentous and proud day for California... This expanse of acreage, San Onofre Bluffs State Beach, now has its future guaranteed as an official state park." But Reagan went on to warn, "As stewards of this land, we must use it judiciously and with a great sense of responsibility." Caltrans should report at the hearing whether the building of a toll road through the San Onofre State Beach is a judicious and responsible use of the State Beach. 2. Caltrans should also report on the Caltrans exact role in the proposed project and what powers the state has in stopping the project under current law. 3. The subcommittee should consider approving each of the following: a. Approve Trailer Bill Language amending the authorizing statute of the TCA to prohibit their authority to build a toll road through San Onofre State Beach. b. Approve Trailer Bill Language amending the Public Resources Code prohibiting the construction of a private toll road through the San Onofre State Beach. ASSEMBLY BUDGET COMMITTEE 1 SUBCOMMITTEE NO.5 ON TRANSPORTATION AND INFO TECH MAY 3. 2006 c. Increase Caltrans budget by $450,000 (State Highway Account) to provide reimbursement to the University of California to conduct an independent study to identify alternatives for relieving traffic congestion to the proposed extension of the 241 toll road through the San Onofre State Beach. ASSEMBLY BUDGET COMMITTEE Color copies are available in Room 6026 and at the hearing. 2 RESOLUTION NO. 06-66 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCil OF THE CITY OF TUSTIN, CALIFORNIA OPPOSING STATE ASSEMBLY EFFORTS TO PROHIBIT CONSTRUCTION OF A TOll ROAD THROUGH THE SAN ONOFRE STATE BEACH PARK WHEREAS, the Foothill Transportation Corridor, or State Route 241, was placed on the County of Orange's Master Plan of Arterial Highways in 1981 to handle projected increased in population, housing, and jobs and is a key component of the Southern California Regional Transportation Plans adopted by the Southern California Association of Governments and the San Diego Association of Governments; WHEREAS, the Foothill/Eastern Transportation Corridor Agency (F/ETCA), a joint-powers government agency made up of the County of Orange and 12 cities, was created in 1986 to plan, finance, build and operate State Routes 241, 261, and 133, also known as the Foothill and Eastern Toll Roads in eastern and southern Orange County. These roads, initially planned as state-funded highways, were financed by toll-revenue bonds by the F/ETCA because state funds were not available to build them as traditional highways; WHEREAS, the Foothill and Eastern Toll Roads currently carry nearly 300,000 trips per weekday. The final 16-mile segment of the foothill Toll Road, a project known as Foothill-South, would extend the 241 south to the 1-5 Freeway and is the last piece of Orange County's planned 65-mile toll road system; WHEREAS, since the mid-1990's the F/ETCA has worked in an unprecedented collaborative effort with the Federal Highway Administration, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Caltrans, and U.S. Marine Corps Camp Pendleton. These agencies have worked to identify and analyze various project alternatives to address the increasing traffic congestion and the facility of goods movement in South Orange County while minimizing the environmental impacts; WHEREAS, this collaborative effort by the F/ETCA, state, and federal agencies included the development of a $17-million Environmental Impact Report/Subsequent Environmental Impact Statement ('EIR/SEIR) over the past six years that exhaustively analyzed the potential impacts of numerous toll road and non-toll road project alternatives, including the widening of the 1-5 Freeway. WHEREAS, the conclusion of this collaborative effort resulted in the F/ETCA Board of Directors, on February 23, 2006, certifying the Final EIR and selecting a preferred toll-road alternative; WHEREAS, the federal environmental agencies have determined that the alternative approved by the F/ETCA provides the greatest amount of traffic relief to 1-5 and is the Least Environmentally Damaging, Practicable Alternative; WHEREAS, studies show that other alternatives, such as widening the 1-5 Freeway, have severe negative impacts to local communities. Widening the 1-5 through south Orange. County to handle the projected increase in traffic on 1-5 would require the removal of more than 800 homes, nearly 400 businesses, resulting in the elimination of 5,000 jobs at cost to state taxpayers of $2 billion; WHEREAS, there is no identified funding to adequately widen 1-5 to meet future traffic demand, nor is funding included in the State's infrastructure bond measure recently passed by the Legislature; WHEREAS, construction of Foothill-South requires no state tax dollars. As with the TCA's existing toll roads, construction of these publicly owned highways is funded primarily through toll-revenue bonds, serving as a model of how public-private partnerships can successfully meet major infrastructure needs; WHEREAS, a portion of the toll road crosses through Camp Pendleton inland of the 1-5 Freeway, not on the beach. The portion that crosses through Camp Pendleton is leased to the State for operation of San Onofre State Park. No inland or coastal campsites will be removed; WHEREAS, the United States Marine Corps has determined that the alignment adopted by the F/ETCA is the only alternative on Camp Pendleton that is consistent with the mission and operation of the U.S. Marine Corps Base - Camp Pendleton; WHEREAS, polls consistently show that a majority of Orange County residents support the completion of the 241 Toll Road; WHEREAS, in association with construction of the existing 51-mile toll road system, the Transportation Corridor Agencies have preserved or restored nearly 2,000 acres of sensitive native habitat and have successfully implemented numerous mitigation measures that have protected wildlife species, proving that projects can built and balanced with environmental protection; WHEREAS, the recommendations by Assembly Budget Subcommittee #5 to prohibit a "private" toll road through San Onofre State Beach inaccurately characterizes the project in fact, the Foothill Toll Road will be a public facility operated by a public agency that is governed by elected officials, just as the existing 51-mile toll-road system is protected today; WHEREAS, the recommendation by Assembly Budget Subcommittee #5 to increase Caltrans' budget by $450,000 to fund a study of transportation alternatives is a waste of scarce transportation funds and would constitute a misuse of taxpayers dollars. Numerous possible toll road and non-toll road alternatives, and the potential impacts of those alternatives have been thoroughly analyzed by local, state and federal agencies, as documented in the Final EIR document certified by the F/ETCA Board on February 23, 2006; NOW THEREFORE, be it resolved, that the City of Tustin City Council opposes the actions of the Assembly Budget Subcommittee #5 and urges all elected state representatives in their efforts to protect local control and Orange County's ability to build transportation improvements that enhance mobility, improve quality of life, and create jobs with the least impact to the environment and local communities. DOUG DAVERT, Mayor ATTEST: PAMELA STOKER City Clerk