TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Bruce Moe, City Manager
FROM:
Erick Lee, Public Works Director Katherine Doherty, City Engineer Tim Birthisel, Senior Civil Engineer
SUBJECT:Title
Conduct a Public Hearing Regarding the Proposed Use of Community Development Block Grant Funds (CDBG) for Fiscal Year 2022-2023 and FY 2023-2024 as Required by the Federal Housing and Urban Development Program and Consideration of a Resolution Authorizing the Allocation of the CDBG Funds (Public Works Director Lee).
(Estimated Time: 15 Mins.)
A) CONDUCT PUBLIC HEARING
B) ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 22-0155
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Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council conduct a Public Hearing and adopt Resolution No. 22-0155 authorizing the use of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds in the amount of $200,000 to fund the construction of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)-compliant curb ramps throughout the City. This proposed project is consistent with the City’s 5-Year Capital Improvement Program (CIP) Plan.
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FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Each fiscal year, the Los Angeles County Development Authority (LACDA) provides the City a notice regarding an authorized amount of eligible expenditures that the City is able to submit for reimbursement as part of the Federal CDBG Program. Estimated expenditures of $100,000 per year have been approved as part of the current 5-Year CIP Budget, but were not assigned to a specific project. The actual FY 2023-2024 CDBG authorized amount for the City will be provided by the LACDA in Spring 2023. There are no fiscal implications associated with the recommended action at this time.
BACKGROUND:
The mission of the CDBG Program is to improve the quality of life for low- and moderate-income persons, aid in the prevention of neighborhood deterioration, and meet other urgent community development needs. As part of this program, CDBG funds may be used to improve the mobility and accessibility of disabled persons and senior adults by removing architectural barriers that impede paths of travel.
The City of Manhattan Beach has participated in the federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) CDBG Program, administered by the LACDA, for the past 25 years. On May 19, 2020, the City Council approved the current Participating City Cooperation Agreement with LACDA to continue its participation in the Los Angeles Urban County CDBG Program for the three-year funding cycle beginning July 1, 2021, and ending June 30, 2024. FY 2023-2024 will be the final year of the current three-year funding cycle. The City’s estimated CDBG funding allocation for FY 2023-2024 will be approximately the same as the prior year FY 2022-2023 amount of $100,000. LACDA will confirm the City’s final FY 2023-2024 CDBG allocation in Spring 2023.
The City has not yet identified an eligible project for the use of its FY 2022-2023 CDBG funds. The last City approved CDBG-funded project, the Manhattan Senior Villas ADA Pathway Project, began construction in FY 2022-2023. With construction of the Manhattan Senior Villas ADA Pathway Project currently underway and anticipated to be completed by May 2023, consideration of a new CDBG project may be initiated.
DISCUSSION:
The City typically uses its CDBG funds to ensure compliance with ADA requirements. Previously, the City successfully installed or upgraded approximately 75 ramps to comply with ADA requirements. The City’s current 5-Year CIP Plan adopted by the City Council identifies continuation of this initiative with CDBG funds. It is worth noting that due to the economic profile of Manhattan Beach, the only qualifying uses that have been identified for CDBG funding are related to access improvements for the disabled.
Continuing construction of ADA-compliant curb ramps will increase pedestrian mobility and promote safety improvements. Using both the City’s unallocated FY 2022-2023 CDBG funds plus the upcoming FY 2023-2024 CDBG allocation will cover the cost to upgrade approximately 20 accessible curb ramps (see attached CDBG Project Location Map). These locations prioritize intersections near local schools and prevailing walking routes to schools. Additionally, up to a maximum of 20% of the total project budget may be allocated for construction management, grant administration, and federal labor compliance services.
PUBLIC INTEREST:
In order to comply with federal regulations, the City must conduct a Public Hearing to provide the public an opportunity to comment on the City’s proposed use for the CDBG Program funds. The Resolution identifies the proposed CDBG project, funding amount, and staff’s delegated authority to make minor adjustments, if necessary, to the CDBG project that may occur due to minor variations in CDBG programmatic requirements, CDBG funding level allocation changes, and other administrative matters, as may be directed by LACDA. Therefore, staff recommends that City Council adopt the attached resolution and conduct the public hearing.
In order to comply with federal requirements pertaining to citizen participation and public outreach, the public was afforded a minimum of 14-day notice of this Public Hearing. The Public Hearing Notice was posted on October 27, 2022 and November 3, 2022 in The Beach Reporter and on the bulletin boards at City Hall, Joslyn Community Center, and Manhattan Heights on October 24, 2022.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
The City has reviewed the proposed project for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and has determined that the project qualifies for a Class 1(c) categorical exemption pursuant to Section 15301, Existing Facilities of the State CEQA Guidelines. Thus, no further environmental review is necessary.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has reviewed this report and determined that no additional legal analysis is necessary.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Resolution No. 22-0155
2. CDBG Project Location Map
3. Notice of Public Hearing
4. PowerPoint Presentation