Agenda Date: 12/11/2018
Subject:
Title
Envision Littleton Comprehensive Plan Project and 2019 Budget Proviso
Body
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Presented By: |
Jocelyn Mills, Community Development Director, Keith Reester, Public Works Director, and Tiffany Hooten, Finance Director |
REQUESTED COUNCIL ACTION:
Does city council support proceeding with the next phases of the Comprehensive Plan, including the Transportation Master Plan and thereby, releasing the 2019 budget proviso?
BACKGROUND:
Council’s imperative 2 set the direction for creation of a vision plan and an update to the city’s comprehensive plan, as outlined below:
IMPERATIVE 2: Vision to Comprehensive Plan
Includes completion of a community driven vision and comprehensive plan within two years, and changes to/additional plans and code updates both during the process and after completion of the vision and comprehensive plan, ensuring consistency throughout.
The Envision Littleton 2040 Report, which outlines the city’s vision for the future, is set for consideration by Planning Commission December 10th, and adoption on December 18th by city council. Next steps are to undertake an update to the city’s comprehensive plan and to create a transportation master plan by the fall of 2019.
In order to manage these two projects, staff will be developing a combined project management plan for the comprehensive plan and transportation master plan by November 30th, and a public engagement plan by December 31st. As part of the public engagement plan, the city will host a four-part speaker series to coincide with the phases of Envision Littleton in 2019.
The aggressive timeline to complete all five phases by fall 2019 for council adoption will require the assistance of three advisory groups:
• Joint Leadership Team - city council, planning commission, and future transportation advisory board
• Internal Envision Littleton Team -- department directors, key staff, and consultants
• Community Coordinating Committee -- city boards and commission members and community stakeholders
STAFF ANALYSIS:
The comprehensive plan update as well as the transportation master plan processes will include the following five phases:
• Phase 1: Data & Overview of the Existing City of Littleton
• Phase 2: Direction for the Plans and Key Assumptions
• Phase 3: The Future City of Littleton
o Visioning for Transportation & Land-Use
o Future Land-Use & Character Map
o Corridor Evaluation
o Travel Demand Forecasting
• Phase 4: Strategies & Implementation Plan
o Funding Strategies
o Fiscal Impact Analysis
• Phase 5: Draft Plan & Adoption
Topics to be addressed throughout the comprehensive plan phases include - demographics, housing, community character, parks, trails and open space, land use, historic preservation, transportation, utilities and infrastructure, and economic development.
The KKC scope of services (an attachment to this staff communication) includes initial project activities during November-December 2018, to expedite authorization of this work while the balance of the scope is finalized for work activities during 2019. Kendig Keast Collaborative activities in 2018 will include compiling and assessing a base of information on the existing conditions and outlook for Littleton, focusing especially on key influences that will shape the community’s future. This will provide background and assumptions to support needs assessment and long-range and strategic planning decisions throughout the comprehensive planning process in 2019.
The transportation master plan (TMP) will develop the first comprehensive mobility and transportation plan for the city. The objectives include traffic modeling on current conditions and projected transportation needs based on the projected land uses within the city and growth associated with those land uses. The modeling incorporates regional impacts on mobility and congestion in Littleton. The TMP project will include significant public engagement, future mobility needs, the establishment of a level of service standard, and estimates for the projected needs. The plan is the first Littleton has ever completed and thus will set the baseline for future work. The scope of the project has been streamlined to control costs, for instance, reliance on DRCOG data and modeling at limited cost and incorporation of the project in parallel to the Comprehensive Plan project which will enhance alignment, this parallel work allows for the maximization of collaborative public engagement to reduce costs.
It is important to note that the detailed schedule for the comprehensive plan and transportation master plan will be presented to the city council at the upcoming council retreat in January, 2019.
FISCAL IMPACTS:
Both the 2018 and 2019 budgets include funds allocated for these plans. The comprehensive plan is budgeted at $400,000 in the 2019 budget with a budget proviso. There is $30,000 included in the communications and marketing department for citizen engagement of strategic imperatives. In August 2018, a budget amendment for the transportation master plan was approved for $150,000 from the transportation impact fee fund. This is a total budget of $580,000.
Based on the results of the proposals for the transportation master plan and the need to coordinate community outreach and communication for both plans, the total funding need is $719,706. There is an additional funding need of $139,706.
The TMP was originally budgeted at $150,000 based on available funds in the transportation impact fees fund. This allowed staff to proceed with the RFP for the Transportation Master Plan. It was projected that additional funds would be needed to supplement this in the 2019 budget based on likely proposals from consulting firms and the market. HDR has been selected for the TMP at $210,424.
In order to maximize the public engagement strategy and assure continuity with the Comprehensive Plan outreach, staff engaged HDR to provide a proposal to complete the outreach for both the Comprehensive Plan and TMP. HDR has extensive background in high performing public engagement and this was a key criterion in the selection process. In addition, it is clear that a local presence is necessary to project manage the Comp Plan and the public engagement execution; this is not part of KKC’s scope of work. The local project management component was also scoped by HDR. This additional fee is $166,358; $69,630 is attributable to the project management needed to execute the two plans, while $96,728 is for public engagement.
Staff is proposing $178,418 to be funded from transportation impact fees for the transportation master plan portion of the project. This will reduce the amount needed from the General Fund and leave an additional $38,712 available in the General Fund. The following chart reflects the budget needs.
Taking into consideration the 2018 transportation impact fee revenues and the estimated revenues in 2019, the estimated ending fund balance in the transportation impact fee fund in 2019 is $293,218. There is adequate fund balance in the transportation impact fees to fund an additional $178,418 for this project.
If council is supportive of the projects scope, timeline and costs, staff will be presenting a budget resolution to release the 2019 budget proviso at the December 18, 2018 council meeting and a budget amendment for the additional $178,418 from transportation impact fees will be brought to council in January 2019.
OPTIONS/ALTERNATIVES:
Council has the following options and alternatives:
1. Direct staff to present a budget resolution to release the 2019 budget proviso at the December 18, 2018 council meeting, and undertake the processes needed to update the city’s comprehensive plan and create a transportation master plan, to be completed by fall, 2019.
2. Direct staff to not present a budget resolution to release the 2019 budget proviso at the December 18, 2018 council meeting, and do not undertake an update the city’s comprehensive plan and create a transportation master plan in 2019.