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Home My WebLink AboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 11/15/2011 - SECOND READING OF ORDINANCE NO. 146, 2011, APPROPRDATE: November 15, 2011 STAFF: Marlys Sittner Kurt Ravenschlag AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY FORT COLLINS CITY COUNCIL 8 SUBJECT Second Reading of Ordinance No. 146, 2011, Appropriating Unanticipated Revenue in the Capital Projects Fund, Mason Corridor Project for the Purchase of One Rapid Transit Bus. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The MAX BRT project is a five mile; primarily fixed guideway located about one block to the west of College Avenue. The BRT includes seven park-n-ride lots, eight BRT stations with pedestrian and bicycle access, eight BRT curb-side stops, a transit center at the southern and northern termini, and off-line upgrades to an existing transit maintenance facility to provide MAX BRT service. Six exclusive BRT buses will be acquired and added to the existing City bus fleet in order to provide MAX BRT services. All six buses will be new bus purchases, and will replace older buses beyond their useful life. The six BRT buses will be purchased at the same time, once the Project Construction Grant Agreement (PCGA) has been executed in March 2012. The one BRT bus funded by this grant will be purchased at the same time as the other five BRT vehicles. Three BRT vehicles are funded through CDOT grants (SB-1, FASTER), while the other three are funded through the federal Small Starts grant. This Ordinance, unanimously adopted on First Reading on November 1, 2011, appropriates the grant funds received from CDOT. Ordinance No. 146, 2011, has been amended on Second Reading. The provision of the local match for the FASTER project contract (Resolution 2011-096) is being met from existing appropriations in the Capital Projects Fund, Mason Corridor project accounts. As a result, Transfort does not require the appropriation of $350,000 in local match from the Transit Capital Reserve Fund, as originally outlined in the First Reading Agenda Item Summary. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends adoption of the Ordinance on Second Reading. ATTACHMENTS 1. Copy of First Reading Agenda Item Summary - November 1, 2011 (w/o attachments) COPY COPY COPY COPY ATTACHMENT 1 DATE: November 1, 2011 STAFF: Marlys Sittner Kurt Ravenschlag AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY FORT COLLINS CITY COUNCIL 15 SUBJECT Items Relating to the Purchase of a Rapid Transit Bus. A. Resolution 2011-096 Authorizing the Execution of a Contract Between the City of Fort Collins and the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) for the Purchase of One Bus Rapid Transit Bus. B. First Reading of Ordinance No. 146, 2011, Appropriating Prior Year Reserves in the Transit Services Fund for Transfer to the Capital Projects Fund and Appropriating Unanticipated Revenue in the Capital Projects Fund, Mason Corridor Project for the Purchase of One Bus Rapid Transit Bus. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Colorado Department of Transportation has awarded FASTER (Funding Advancements for Surface Transportation and Economic Recovery) funding to purchase one of the six Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) buses needed for MAX operations. The Colorado Department of Transportation approved funds that will be applied toward the BRT bus purchase. This request appropriates funds and executes the contract with CDOT. The MAX BRT project is a five mile; primarily fixed guideway located about one block to the west of College Avenue. The BRT includes seven park-n-ride lots, eight BRT stations with pedestrian and bicycle access, eight BRT curb-side stops, a transit center at the southern and northern termini, and off-line upgrades to an existing transit maintenance facility to provide MAX BRT service. Six exclusive BRT buses will be acquired and added to the existing City bus fleet in order to provide MAX BRT services. All six buses will be new bus purchases, and will replace older buses beyond their useful life. The six BRT buses will be purchased at the same time, once the Project Construction Grant Agreement (PCGA) has been executed in March 2012. The one BRT bus funded by this grant will be purchased at the same time as the other five BRT vehicles. Three BRT vehicles are funded through CDOT grants (SB-1, FASTER), while the other three are funded through the federal Small Starts grant. BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION The implementation of the MAX BRT is an essential step to achieving the Transfort transit system vision. Removing bus traffic from the highly congested College Avenue corridor and creating an exclusive guideway will provide the backbone for the future transit system. The MAX BRT will provide the essential infrastructure to redesign the transit system to improve effectiveness. Six exclusive BRT buses will be acquired and added to the existing City bus fleet in order to provide MAX BRT services. The CDOT FASTER funding contract for the purchase of one BRT bus will be leveraged as local match towards the federal funding of the Mason Corridor Bus Rapid Transit project. The State contribution approved for purchase of one BRT bus is $500,000. Project Schedule Finalize Bus Specifications: December 2011 Order Bus: March 2012 The order and purchase of one BRT bus will be coordinated with the order and purchase of the five remaining BRT buses needed for the operation of the MAX BRT. It is important to order the buses early as there is an eighteen month production schedule from the time of order. Ordering the MAX BRT buses in March 2012 ensures they are ready by mid-2013. COPY COPY COPY COPY November 1, 2011 -2- ITEM 15 FINANCIAL / ECONOMIC IMPACTS This funding contract between the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) and the City of Fort Collins is for the purchase of one BRT bus, which is a component of the Mason Corridor/MAX BRT Project. CDOT's FASTER funding program is an 80/20 grant program with the State providing 80% of the total cost. Although the City requested $680,000 for 80% of the cost to fund one BRT bus, CDOT awarded $500,000 of State FASTER funding, and the City of Fort Collins will overmatch with a contribution of $350,000 from the Transfort Capital Reserve. Capital State of Colorado FASTER (58.8%): $500,000 Local Match (41.2%): City of Fort Collins (Transfort Capital Reserve) $350,000 Total Capital Project Cost (One BRT bus): $850,000 The State Transportation Commission approved a total amount of $500,000 for the purchase of one BRT bus. The approved FASTER funds are part of the City's overall local matching funds for the Federal Transit Administration federal funding for the overall Mason Corridor BRT Project. The BRT buses will be delivered in 2013 and will replace six older Transfort buses. The new BRT buses will be operational in the first quarter of 2014. The new buses will reduce Transfort’s annual maintenance expenses by $12,800 per bus, due to the lower maintenance costs for new buses. The following maintenance expenses for one new BRT bus will be submitted as an offer in the 2013 and 2014 Budgeting for Outcomes process. 2013 Maintenance Costs for One BRT Bus BRT Bus Maintenance per Year $ 16,000 Total Maintenance expense for one BRT Bus: $ 16,000 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS The BRT buses were included in the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Environmental Assessment for the Mason Corridor Bus Rapid Transit Project. On September 9, 2008, the Federal Transit Administration declared a Finding of No Significant Impact would result from the construction and on-going operation of the MAX BRT system. The Environmental Assessment analyzed Impacts on the following categories: Land Use and Zoning Social Conditions Economic Conditions Environmental Justice Right-of-way Air Quality Noise and Vibration Water Resources and Water Quality Wetlands Flooding and Floodplain Management Vegetation Noxious Weeds Wildlife/Ecological Threatened and Endangered Species Visual Quality Cultural Resources COPY COPY COPY COPY November 1, 2011 -3- ITEM 15 Hazardous Materials Parks and Recreation Resources Farmland Public Safety and Security Construction Transportation Cumulative Impacts For more detailed information concerning the environmental impacts and mitigation measures please refer to the Mason Corridor Environmental Assessment located at www.fcgov.com/mason/environment.php. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends adoption of the Resolution and the Ordinance on First Reading. BOARD / COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION On September 20, 2000, the Transportation Board unanimously voted to approve the Mason Street Corridor Master Plan, which included plans for the purchase of BRT buses. Since 2000, staff has regularly updated the Transportation Board regarding the progress of the Mason Corridor, most recently on May 18, 2011. Minutes from the Transportation Board can be seen in Attachment 3. PUBLIC OUTREACH Significant public outreach has been conducted since 1998 with 48 public meetings held for the Mason Corridor project. The most recent public outreach event was an Open House held June 2, 2010. Information and renderings of the project and buses were included. ATTACHMENTS 1 Photo of BRT bus 2 Intergovernmental Agreement between Colorado Department of Transportation and City of Fort Collins for the purchase of one BRT bus 3 Transportation Board Minutes, May 18, 2011, July 21, 2010, and September 20, 2000 ORDINANCE NO. 146, 2011 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS APPROPRIATING PRIOR YEAR RESERVES IN THE TRANSIT SERVICES FUND FOR TRANSFER TO THE CAPITAL PROJECTS FUND AND APPROPRIATING UNANTICIPATED REVENUE IN THE CAPITAL PROJECTS FUND, MASON CORRIDOR PROJECT FOR THE PURCHASE OF ONE RAPID TRANSIT BUS WHEREAS, the MAX transit system project (“MAX”) is a five-mile, north-south byway extending from Cherry Street to just south of Harmony Road; and WHEREAS, MAX includes seven park-n-ride lots, eight stations with pedestrian and bicycle access, eight curb-side stops, and two transit centers; and WHEREAS, six new buses will be acquired and added to the existing City bus fleet to provide the MAX service; and WHEREAS, the City Council has adopted Resolution 2011-096 authorizing the City to enter into an intergovernmental agreement with the Colorado Department of Transportation (“CDOT”) for the purchase of one of the Max buses; and WHEREAS, CDOT’s FASTER (Funding Advancements for Surface Transportation and Economic Recovery) funding will provide $500,000, and the local match in the amount of $350,000 will be provided from prior year reserves in the Transit Services Fund existing appropriations in the Capital Projects Fund, Mason Corridor Project; and WHEREAS, Article V, Section 9, of the City Charter permits the City Council to appropriate by ordinance at any time during the fiscal year such funds for expenditure as my be available from reserves accumulated in prior years, notwithstanding that such reserves were not previously appropriated; and WHEREAS, Article V, Section 9, of the City Charter authorizes the City Council to make supplemental appropriations by ordinance at any time during the fiscal year, provided that the total amount of such supplemental appropriations, in combination with all previous appropriations for that fiscal year, does not exceed the current estimate of actual and anticipated revenues to be received during the fiscal year; and WHEREAS, City staff have determined that the appropriation of the revenue as described herein will not cause the total amount appropriated in the Capital Projects Fund to exceed the current estimate of actual and anticipated revenues to be received in that fund during any fiscal year; and WHEREAS, Article V, Section 10, of the City Charter authorizes the City Council to transfer by ordinance any unexpended and unencumbered appropriated amount or portion thereof from one fund to another fund, provided that the purpose for which the transferred funds are to be expended remains unchanged. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows: Section 1. That there is hereby appropriated for expenditure from prior year reserves in the Transit Services Fund the amount of THREE HUNDRED FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS ($350,000) to be transferred to the Capital Projects Fund, Mason Corridor Project and appropriated therein for the purchase of one rapid transit bus. Section 2. Tthat there is hereby appropriated from unanticipated revenue from CDOT grant funds in the Capital Projects Fund the sum of FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS ($500,000) for expenditure in the Capital Projects Fund, Mason Corridor Project for the purchase of one rapid transit bus. Introduced, considered favorably on first reading, and ordered published this 1st day of November, A.D. 2011, and to be presented for final passage on the 15th day of November, A.D. 2011. _________________________________ Mayor ATTEST: _____________________________ City Clerk Passed and adopted on final reading on the 15th day of November, A.D. 2011. _________________________________ Mayor ATTEST: _____________________________ City Clerk