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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2007/01/23 Item 7 CITY COUNCIL AGENDA STATEMENT .:S-'Yf::. (llY OF ,,-<:='~ CHUlA VISTA January 23, 2007, Item~ ITEM TITLE: RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CHULA VISTA APPROVING FEDERAL FUNDING REQUESTS FOR SUBMISSION ../ ASSISTANT CITY ~AGE~ CITY MANAGER r; I SUBMITTED BY: REVIEWED BY: 4/5THS VOTE: YES D NO [!] BACKGROUND The City of Chula Vista has, for many years, worked cooperatively and effectively with its Congressional representative on issues concerning this community. Among the ways we have benefited from this effort is through Federal funds to support projects and programs that the City Council has endorsed. This includes $22 million for the Chula Vista Veteran's Home, $5 million for Olympic Parkway, $2.7 million for work at H Street and 1-5 and $2.8 million for Heritage Bridge. As the 110lh Congress convenes, Chula Vista has prepared a list of projects for submittal in 2007. Attachment A was submitted to the City Council for review and comment in an Information Item on December 14,2006. As of January 16,2007, no comments had been received. The list is brought to you now for formal approval. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW The Environmental Review Coordinator has reviewed the proposed activity for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and has determined that the activity is not a "Project" as defined under Section 15378 of the State CEQA Guidelines; therefore, pursuant to Section 15060(c)(3) of the State CEQA Guidelines the activity is not subject to CEQA. Thus, no environmental review is necessary. RECOMMENDATION Council approve the Resolution BOARDS/COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION Not Applicable 7-1 January 23,2007, Item-L Page 2 of2 DISCUSSION Department heads and other key city staff members have developed a package of proposed City projects for which Federal funding assistance may be available in the 2007 legislative session. Brief descriptions of the listed projects are attached. There have been two informal meetings about these proposals with Chula Vista's Congressional representative, Bob Filner, as well as follow-up conversations with members of his staff here in Chula Vista and in Washington, D.C. While there are no guarantees that funding will be received for any of these projects, we have been encouraged to submit formal requests to the Congressman's office and to work with him to determine what opportunities may be available to the City. With Council approval, staff will begin that effort and provide updated information to the Council as it becomes available. DECISION MAKER CONFLICT Staff has reviewed the decision contemplated and determined that some of the proposed funding requests are not site specific, and consequently the 500- foot rule found in California Code of Regulations section I 8704.2(a)(l) is not applicable to those funding requests. For those funding requests that are site specific, staff has reviewed the property holdings of the City Council and has found no property holdings within 500 feet of the boundaries of the properties which are the subject of this action. FISCAL IMPACT There is no direct fiscal impact associated ~th passing the Resolution. Should the City succeed in obtaining funds for one or more of the projects submitted with this report, city staff will return to Council with a more detailed proposal and scope of work. ATTACHMENTS A. Project Descriptions Prepared by: Colleen M Carnevale, Communications Manager, Office of the City Manager 7-2 January 23, 2007, Item~ Attachment A Alternative Fuels Pilot Project $750,000 The City proposes taking the next important step in becoming a national showcase for finding and demonstrating practical sustainable energy alternatives by moving two alternative fuels beyond the "experimental" to the practical and accessible. Chula Vista would convert two of its CNG fuel buses to HCNG fuel use. A successful pilot could lead the City to convert it's entire fleet ofCNG buses to cleaner burning HCNG(80% CNG enriched with 20% hydrogen). The resulting mix is cleaner than CNG, with 50% fewer nitrous oxide emissions at little or no additional cost. HCNG is the next generation of low-emission fuels and one alternative that has significant promise. The project would also offer the only public dispenser of CNG in the South Bay Region to keep pace with growing demand by truck fleets and private passenger vehicle owners. The next nearby source is in the City Heights area of San Diego (15 miles away). CNG itself provides a significant reduction in polluting emissions when compared to diesel fuel or gasoline. As a result of Chula Vista's participation in prior demonstration projects, the City already owns almost all of the equipment required to produce and deliver HCNG and CNG fuels. Our existing hydrogen electrolyzer, which is the largest in California, was purchased as part of a recent Federal demonstration program funded by the Department of Transportation, the Department of Energy, the California Energy Commission and the City of Chula Vista. This is a very high production electrolyzer, generating as much hydrogen in one hour as many stations generate in a day. To fully utilize the $1 million investment in this equipment, the City plans to produce hydrogen for the HCNG bus demonstration and eventually for the fleet. Chula Vista also owns a CNG compressor station, currently used to dispense CNG to City buses. To combine the hydrogen and CNG into HCNG for the bus demonstration, and to dispense CNG to the public, the project site only requires fuel lines, storage capacity, and a new mixer/dispenser that is weights-and-measures certified for use in private vehicles. $750,000 would purchase the station equipment necessary to transfer, mix, store and dispense the two fuels for this region wide alternative fuels demonstration. There will be a cost to the public for purchase of CNG fuel at the site, as with any other fueling station. The cost would vary with CNG market fluctuations, but in general would be roughly equal to the prevailing cost in Southern California. Cost components would include the City's fuel purchase price plus a small increment to cover City costs for maintenance, delivery, and program administration including bank costs. The City is in the process of completing a bank agreement to accept credit cards. Bank charges will be recouped from the fuel charge. There is already a demand for CNG fuel by the public, but to heighten public awareness about the Chula Vista station, $15,000 in public outreach costs has been factored into the appropriation request. The station would also be listed on Internet natural gas fueling maps for travelers including Clean Car Maps, the California Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition map, and possibly the SDG&E map. . 1-3 Page I January 23, 2007, Item q- Attachment A Hi-National University Park & Research Center Master Plan $3 - 5 Million The Master Plan project will develop an organizational and funding structure for the creation and operation of the campus for the region's first bi-national university; prepare the detailed planning, infrastructure and environmental documents for the campus; and provide an initial capital fund to seed philanthropic support for the construction of campus buildings. A U.S. - Mexico consortium of colleges and universities has developed a prospectus for a bi- national University Park and Research Center on a 450 acre site centered between downtown San Diego and downtown Tij uana - an international metropolitan area of more than 6 million people that includes the busiest land border crossing in the world. With a focus on international issues related to trade, transportation, economic development, energy, security and the environment - the University Park and Research Center campus will become a center for the analyzing and addressing shared challenges in the countries' border regIOns. The campus will provide higher education opportunities in a traditionally underserved area of the region, help to address a significant jobslhousing imbalance, and provide a major forum for the exchange of ideas and solutions for students, faculty, and local, state and federal officials from. the U.S. and Mexico. The City ofChula Vista has provided more than $1.2 million in initial funding and will donate the site for the campus. 1-q Page 2 January 23,2007, Iteml Attachment A Community Safety and Communication System $5 - 6 Million A comprehensive wired and wireless safety communications system that could serve as the backbone of an improved regional interagency communication system. It could also stabilize future public agency communication costs and provide free WiFi-WiMax services for the public. The project would build on the City's hard wired system that has begun to connect major public facilities and complement that system with a compatible wireless system that uses free public airwaves to interconnect mobile safety vehicles, personnel and critical infrastructure such as traffic lights and emergency operation centers. Having control of the system infrastructure, intellectual property and airwaves required to run the system would allow Chula Vista to stabilize future costs, establish and maintain emergency priorities and establish a model that will enhance interagency communication. Tbe WiFi- WiMax backbone for safety communications can also stabilize costs for other public service field personnel, replace City broadband capacity and be expanded to provide a free public wireless business model that also enhances local government public education capacity. The proposed project would: . Fund fiber infrastructure to connect the Police Department, Emergency Operations Center, Fire Administration, Fire Stations, Dispatch, traffic signals and other key emergency servIces, . Simultaneously create fiber backbone to reduce costs for connecting the rest of the City facilities, and provide a back up to emergency communications, . Have the capacity to provide some access to agencies with overlapping jurisdiction and further demonstrate the system's interagency communication and financial effectiveness, . Have the potential to replace the current broadband support losses in 2009 from state cable franchises and, stabilize or eliminate the City's future landline, intemetlintranet and related communication operating costs, . Fund Wireless- WiFi - WiMax backbone to provide stable, reduced cost mobile safety service, . Provide Chula Vista/South Bay with a competitive edge in the WiFi/WiMax development market in San Diego and catch up with North County San Diego and others that have established or are exploring free and low cost WiFi business models, . Fund video production capacity to initially target safety communication messages and ultimately expand Chula Vista and South Bay's public communication outreach and marketing capacity (public and cable franchise video production has often been shared regionally, Chula Vista has never had the benefit of being the host). . Attract complementary funding to enhance public services and free communication access, . Complement Chula Vista's developing education, research and commercial infrastructure with broadly available state of the art communications, . Develop a model to invest in all of the above in a manner that reduces existing general fund costs to participating local agencies, stabilizes future costs and expands the City's open, transparent and inclusive public participation and emergency service programs. 1-5 Page 3 January 23, 2007, Item~ Attachment A Installation of Permanent Domestic Water Line & Resurfacing of Access Road Serving the Chnla Vista Nature Center $460,660 The former underground domestic water line had to be abandoned due to significant settling of the levy road that is used to access the Nature Center and Sweetwater Marsh National Wildlife Refuge. The road has been shored and patched, and a temporary potable water line has been installed above ground. This temporary line is providing critical service for maintaining plant and animal collections, and is providing water for restrooms, drinking fountains, and other sanitary needs. The road is federally-owned; the City utilizes an easement. This is the only access route to the National Wildlife Refuge Field Office and to the Nature Center for environmental education and conservation uses. The road was originally constructed by the Army Corps of Engineers but is now maintained by the City. Project would include underground installation of a new water line and resurfacing of the road. Cost estimate: $460,660 (includes contingencies, per General Services) 7-& Page 4 January 23,2007, Iteml Attachment A Missing Infrastructure/ School Zone Traffic and Pedestrian Safety $132,000,000 2,300,000 The City's existing and planned transportation facilities vary dramatically in condition and availability from the newly developing areas of the City to the older aging pre-smart growth neighborhoods. The City Council frequently receives competing requests from the public for local infrastructure improvements. An overwhelming proportion of citizen requests directly correlate with the City Council's desire to ensure safe routes to schools. Public infrastructure and land use patterns in neighborhoods near schools strongly influence the health and safety of our school children. They influence neighborhood walkability, pedestrian and bicyclist safety, traffic circulation patterns and speeds, public transit systems, multimodal choices, and community character and pride. These issues, combined with a limited pool of resources for infrastructure improvements, now call for a precise identification and prioritization of City pedestrian, bicycle, and traffic circulation improvements through community-based master planning efforts. Beginning with the Southwest area and eventually incorporating the entire City, the project focuses on the V.-mile "buffer zones" surrounding each of the City's 37 public elementary schools. Observations are that parents residing within these zones are more apt to allow their children to walk to school, particularly if safe and adequate facilities are available for walking and biking. Therefore, the first stakeholders to gain benefits from this project will be the City's schoolchildren, their families, and their neighbors. Ultimately, the project will have positive impacts for all residents. A unique aspect of this project is its community-directed focus. Stakeholder organizations participating in this planning project will include Healthy Eating, Active Communities (HEAC) and Walk San Diego which are working together as the South Bay Partnership. This partnership works at the community level to reduce childhood obesity by promoting walkability and reducing reliance on cars. The South Bay Partnership will be the City's key planning partner on this project. Other stakeholders will include the recently formed Southwest Chula Vista Civic Association, the Environmental Health Coalition, the Northwest Civic Association, and Crossroads II. Local schools (where the community meetings will take place) and school districts, parent faculty groups and homeowners associations will have critical involvement throughout the process. Jurisdictional stakeholders such as City Councilmembers, the City's redevelopment agency, and impacted City departments such as Public Works and Police will benefit from well-targeted planning outcomes and directives from this project. The City is close to completing the first phase of the project (inventory of the infrastructure) with existing resources. The second phase (community outreach walking audits in partnership with the Southbay Partnership) is the subject of a recently submitted Caltrans Transportation Planning Grant. The first two phases have been completed at two elementary schools (Rice and Otay) and recommended infrastructure improvements are the subject of a Safe Routes to School Grant application being submitted on January 2, 2007 through a partnership with the City of Chula Vista, the Chula Vista Elementary School District and the Southbay Partnership. Additionally, the City recently received approval for a $9.5 million BUD loan to complete work in the area of Castle Park Elementary. This federal funding request would allow us to realize an environmentally sustainable infrastructure demonstration project in our third priority area, Harborside Elementary. The positive impact to the community, should we be successful securing funding to complete infrastructure improvements around four of the city's neediest elementary school, is immeasurable. '7-7 Page 5 January 23, 2007, Iteml Attachment A National Energy Center for Sustainable Communities Facility, Research, Training & Technical Assistance Programs $6 -10 Million Funding will be used to support the construction and operation of a national research, education and training facility dedicated to advancing local community economic development through the deployment of clean, reliable and secure energy technologies. The facility will be located in Chula Vista, California and administered by the National Energy Center for Sustainable Communities. The Center is currently administered as a partnership between the City of Chula Vista and San Diego State University. The funds will be used to match contributions from state, local and private sources designated for: the building construction fund (total building cost estimated at $12-15 million) ; an employment training program for renewable and solar energy equipment installers; and a technical assistance program on energy-efficient community development for municipal officials. Funds would be used for NECSC building design and construction and for research projects relating to improving energy affordability through the integration of advanced renewable and energy-efficient technologies in community development. Further, the earmark could support an NECSC employment training program targeted at unemployed individuals in the region seeking employment as installers of renewable energy technologies, and in particular solar PV and thermal energy technologies. Finally, the earmark could support the formulation of a technical assistance program for municipal officials from economically disadvantaged communities, enabling them to pursue energy-efficient community development and related local jobs training initiatives. 7- g Page 6 January 23, 2007, Iteml Attachment A Palomar Gateway $3,125,000 This project is located in southwest Chula Vista between the Interstate 5 Palomar Street entrance and Industrial Boulevard. The project area is at the heart of the larger surrounding Palomar Gateway District which is within one of the city's primary redevelopment zones. The district contains existing and planned mixed use development, and the Palomar Transit Station-a major terminus for local and regional modes of transportation. The city has identified this project area as an opportunity to strengthen the connection between local land uses and the regional transportation network by applying the principles of smart growth to best serve our residents and visitors. . The project is designed to provide a true gateway to the city, encourage the use of public transit, promote foot traffic and bicycle use throughout the community, attract a superior quality of high- density housing development to the area, and enhance connectivity between all modes of transportation serving the Palomar District. The City has secured $2,000,000 in grant funding through SANDAG and has identified $375,000 in matching funds. Total project cost is estimated at $5,500,000, resulting in a federal funding request of$3,125,000. Without federal assistance, the City will not be able to proceed with this innovative, attractive and functional project. r; a I"'" i Page 7 January 23, 2007, Item-1- Attachment A Renewable Energy Park Partnership- to Complement Sustainable Zero Energy Community (Allied, CEC, CPUC) Diesel Manufacturers, CARB/AQMD $5 - 6 million! This project focuses funding on public private partnerships to develop infrastructure and working models for state of the art alternative fossil free electricity generation systems, complemented by biofuels derived from local waste products and renewable crop resources to demonstrate zero energy center(s), (Corp Yard, University EUC, Civic Center). The project would build on the City's renewable energy and transportation fuel projects to demonstrate their sustainability at the community level and their integration into traditional systems; using local resources, solar, wind, water and sustainable crops and waste to push toward zero fossil fuel consumption. Chula Vista can take advantage of resources such as a local landfill, strong recycling and reuse programs, contracts and existing experience with solar, fuel cell, methane recovery, bio-diesel programs and an emerging research, education and commercial environment to demonstrate a roadmap for urban America to reduce its dependency on fossil fuels. The 500-acre Otay Landfill and adjacent 26-acre Public Works facility are contiguous to a redevelopment area (a 'recycling park that consists mostly of auto dismantling, vehicle operations yards, warehouse space and metal fabricating firms) that also includes fuel cell, solar, natural gas, solar and the proposed hydrogen/natural gas (hythane) fueling facilities as well as the City's Emergency Operations Center. The landfill operator manages flared methane and methane to energy infrastructure, one of the first and largest bio-diesel fleets in the nation and the City's recycling, green waste and trash collection programs. The City also owns the option for 53 free acres of land adjacent the landfill and the local school district owns ten acres adjacent to both parcels for a future public works yard. Those assets and redevelopment designation create the opportunity to establish an energy park with efficiencies and public benefit applications not easily replicable in other parts of the region. The project would involve public private partnerships to expand the City's bio-diesel programs to include the franchise collection and distilling of offal (fats and oils) generated within the City. Those feed stocks can be combined with "cellulose" feedstock grown and harvested from landfill and right of way spaces to generate a consistent, local and environmentally sustainable feedstock for bio-fuels for City vehicles, recycling and trash trucks, school buses, back up generators and other fossil fueled equipment. The locally generated fuels will stabilize fuel costs for local agencies, reduce local emissions, turn waste products into value added resources, create local jobs and demonstrate how locally derived alternative fuels can play an important part in fuel markets and sustainable local practices. The project would also expand the City's solar, fuel cell, back up generation facilities, and add a wind component to demonstrate their closed loop environmental and fossil free potential. 12 1 The Transit-Fleet proposal for hydrogen-Natural Gas (hythane) duplicates $1 million dollars in the range stated here. 1-10 Page 8 January 23, 2007, Item~ Attachment A Sustainable Wastewater Treatment Partnership $10 Million Demonstration project: a Constructed Wetland Treatment System scaled to serve a Chula Vista neighborhood adjacent to an existing water body. These systems utilize the natural process involving wetland vegetation, soils and their associated microbial processes to assist in treating wastewater. They take advantage of many of the same processes that occur in natural wetlands, but do so within a more controlled environment. Operational experience and research shows: a growing interest in the use of constructed wetlands as a part of water treatment, tremendous opportunity for realizing sizable future savings in wastewater treatment costs, and opportunities for upgrading existing large treatment facilities. Funding provided by the National Science Foundation, Department of the Interior, NASA, EPA, Army Corp of Engineers, Department of Agriculture and others have played an important role in stimulating the development of the available information and guidance on more than 15 constructed wetland treatment systems in ten states, including California. The existing systems and their associated case studies provide valuable information regarding the development of cost effective wastewater and storm water run-off projects that also create wetland habitat for waterfowl and other wildlife, along with areas for public education and recreation. Some of these 15 projects have been recognized by the Ford Foundation for Innovation in a Local Government Project and excellence in Engineering by the American Society for Civil Engineers. A scalable, community project for a portion ofChula Vista's wastewater capacity would put Chula Vista and the South Bay at the forefront of a solution for this critical regional challenge-- demonstrating a solution that "solves many problems while creating no new ones." Other potential benefits: . Establishes an alternative waste treatment strategy that secures additional wastewater and reclaimed water capacity, . Demonstrates a locally sustainable model and complements the local watershed and wildlife habitat, . Establishes intellectual capacity for a technology not broadly used in Southern California, . Complements the state Climate Change recommendations, the National Energy Center and local sustainability goals, . Provides an alternative to traditional wastewater treatment and the exposure from a financially and environmentally challenged "business as usual" regional program, . Has the potential to attract complementary funding to complete or expand projects and build on a public education and research component . Works with other local state and federal agencies to provide these benefits. Ii ! i / ..,. / ! Page 9 January 23, 2007, Iteml Attaclunent A Wildland-Urban Interface $1,200,000 The City of Chula Vista is moving toward the adoption of its own Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) Code. This code will be specific to our city's climatic, geological, and topographical needs. As published by DUDEK, the purpose of this WUI Code Implementation Project is to minimize the risk of wildfire while providing for the preservation and management of sensitive biological resources. This pre-disaster strategic plan provides analysis and risk assessment of the City's WUI areas and, based on that risk; lays out a baseline ofWUI related code revision recommendations. The WUI Code Implementation Project indicates that a significant wildfire threat exists within Chula Vista because of several hazardous wildland areas and canyons within the city, including the perimeter of the city adjacent to the Otay Reservoir, the intermix surrounding Rice Canyon and neighboring canyons, and the lower Otay River bottom. This threat is substantiated through a series of fire modeling assessments as performed within the scope of the WUI Code Implementation Project. In addition, the City's Hazard Mitigation Plan identifies wildland fires to be the greatest hazard to the city. This known hazard was further validated during the Wildfire Storm in 2003 where the Mine Fire burned right up to the city's boundary and threatened homes throughout the community. Initial and on-going vegetation maintenance throughout the city is critical to reduce the potential loss of residences, structures, and lives during a wildfire conflagration. Some of these areas in need of fuel reduction currently support sensitive biological resources that are protected under the City of Chula Vista's adopted Multiple Species Conservation Program (MSCP) Subarea Plan. In consultation with the Wildlife Agencies, the City has developed Area Specific Management Directives (ASMDs) for approximately 1,350 acres of designated Preserve land within Rice Canyon. The ASMDs provide specific guidelines for long-term maintenance and management of the Preserve, including techniques for implementing brush management. The WUI Code has been uniquely modified to incorporate fuel reduction techniques that are consistent with the City's MSCP Subarea Plan and the ASMDs, and complementary to the brush management recommendations of the WUI Code. With this modification, implementation of the WUI Code will provide adequate protection for sensitive biological resources, while ensuring the protection of public health and safety by reducing the potential wildland fire risks. Upon implementation, approximately four hundred sixty (460) acres need vegetation management at an estimated cost of $1 ,200,000 for the initial clearance to reduce the significant risk and exposure to disasters. All on-going costs will be assumed by the City of Chula Vista and are addressed within the plan. This project is the first of its kind in the South County; by awarding federal grant funding, it will also be the first to provide visible results. '7-/;;'- Page 10 RESOLUTION NO. RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CHULA VISTA APPROVING FEDERAL FUNDING REQUESTS FOR SUBMISSION WHEREAS, the City of Chula Vista has, for many years, worked cooperatively avd effectively with its Congressional representative on issues concerning this community; and WHEREAS, among the ways we have benefited from this effort is through Federal funds to support projects and programs that the City Council has endorsed; and WHEREAS, Department heads and other key city staff members have developed a package of proposed City projects for which Federal funding assistance may be available in the 2007 legislative session; and WHEREAS, there have been two informal meetings about these proposals with Chula Vista's Congressional representative, Bob Filner, as well as follow-up conversations with members of his staff here in Chula Vista and in Washington D.C.; and WHEREAS, while three are no guarantees that funding will be received for any of these projects, we have been encouraged to submit formal requests to the Congressman's office and to work with him to determine what opportunities may be available to the City; and WHEREAS, with Council approval, staff will begin that effort and provide updated information to the Council as it becomes available; and WHEREAS, a list of proposed City projects was submitted to the City Council for review and comment in an Information Item on December 14, 2006 (Attachment A); and WHEREAS, as of January 10, 2007, no comments have been received, so the list is projects is brought now for formal approval; and WHEREAS, should the City succeed in obtaining funds for one or more of the projects submitted, City staff will return to Council with a more detailed proposal and scope of work. 7-/3 Resolution No. 2007- Page 2 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED the City Council of the City of Chula Vista does hereby approve federal funding requests for submission. Presented by: Approved as to form by: An~()'" /fveI City Attorney Jim Thomson City Manager J:\Attorney\RESO\FINANCE\Approving federal funding request for submission_01-23-07.doc 7-/Lj Attachment A Alternative Fuels Pilot Project $750,000 The City proposes taking the next important step in becoming a national showcase for finding and demonstrating practical sustainable energy alternatives by moving two alternative fuels beyond the "experimental" to the practical and accessible. Chula Vista would convert two of its CNG fuel buses to HCNG fuel use. A successful pilot could lead the City to convert it's entire fleet of CNG buses to cleaner burning HCNG(80% CNG enriched with 20% hydrogen). The resulting mix is cleaner than CNG, with 50% fewer nitrous oxide emissions at little or no additional cost. HCNG is the next generation of low-emission fuels and one alternative that has significant promise. The project would also offer the only public dispenser of CNG in the South Bay Region to keep pace with growing demand by truck fleets and private passenger vehicle owners. The next nearby source is in the City Heights area of San Diego (15 miles away). CNG itself provides a significant reduction in polluting emissions when compared to diesel fuel or gasoline. As a result ofChula Vista's participation in prior demonstration projects, the City already owns almost all of the equipment required to produce and deliver HCNG and CNG fuels. Our existing hydrogen electrolyzer, which is the largest in California, was purchased as part of a recent Federal demonstration program funded by the Department of Transportation, the Department of Energy, the California Energy Commission and the City ofChula Vista. This is a very high production electrolyzer, generating as much hydrogen in one hour as many stations generate in a day. To fully utilize the $1 million investment in this equipment, the City plans to produce hydrogen for the HCNG bus demonstration and eventually for the fleet. Chula Vista also owns a CNG compressor station, currently used to dispense CNG to City buses. To combine the hydrogen and CNG into HCNG for the bus demonstration, and to dispense CNG to the public, the project site only requires fuel lines, storage capacity, and a new mixer/dispenser that is weights-and-measures certified for use in private vehicles. $750,000 would purchase the station equipment necessary to transfer, mix, store and dispense the two fuels for this region wide alternative fuels demonstration. There will be a cost to the public for purchase of CNG fuel at the site, as with any other fueling station. The cost would vary with CNG market fluctuations, but in general would be roughly equal to the prevailing cost in Southern California. Cost components would include the City's fuel purchase price plus a small increment to cover City costs for maintenance, delivery, and program administration including bank costs. The City is in the process of completing a bank agreement to accept credit cards. Bank charges will be recouped from the fuel charge. There is already a demand for CNG fuel by the public, but to heighten public awareness about the Chula Vista station, $15,000 in public outreach costs has been factored into the appropriation request. The station would also be listed on Internet natural gas fueling maps for travelers including Clean Car Maps, the California Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition map, and possibly the SDG&E map. 7-/5 Page I Attachment A Bi-National University Park & Research Center Master Plan $3 - 5 Million The Master Plan project will develop an organizational and funding structure for the creation and operation of the campus for the region's first bi-national university; prepare the detailed planning, infrastructure and environmental documents for the campus; and provide an initial capital fund to seed philanthropic support for the construction of campus buildings. A U.S. - Mexico consortium of colleges and universities has developed a prospectus for a bi- national University Park and Research Center on a 450 acre site centered between downtown San Diego and downtown Tijuana - an international metropolitan area of more than 6 million people that includes the busiest land border crossing in the world. With a focus on international issues related to trade, transportation, economic development, energy, security and the environment - the University Park and Research Center campus will become a center for the analyzing and addressing shared challenges in the countries' border regIOns. The campus will provide higher education opportunities in a traditionally underserved area of the region, help to address a significant jobs/housing imbalance, and provide a major forum for the exchange of ideas and solutions for students, faculty, and local, state and federal officials from the U.S. and Mexico. The City ofChula Vista has provided more than $1.2 million in initial funding and will donate the site for the campus. l-Ib Page 2 Attachment A Community Safety and Communication System $5 - 6 Million A comprehensive wired and wireless safety communications system that could serve as the backbone of an improved regional interagency communication system. It could also stabilize future public agency communication costs and provide free WiFi- WiMax services for the public. The project would build on the City's hard wired system that has begun to connect major public facilities and compliment that system with a compatible wireless system that uses free public airwaves to interconnect mobile safety vehicles, personnel and critical infrastructure such as traffic lights and emergency operation centers. Having control of the system infrastructure, intellectual property and airwaves required to run the system would allow Chula Vista to stabilize future costs, establish and maintain emergency priorities and establish a model that will enhance interagency communication. The WiFi-WiMax backbone for safety communications can also stabilize costs for other public service field personnel, replace City broadband capacity and be expanded to provide a free public wireless business model that also enhances local government public education capacity. The proposed project would: . Fund fiber infrastructure to connect the Police Department, Emergency Operations Center, Fire Administration, Fire Stations, Dispatch, traffic signals and other key emergency servIces, . Simultaneously create fiber backbone to reduce costs for connecting the rest of the City facilities, and provide a back up to emergency communications, . Have the capacity to provide some access to agencies with overlapping jurisdiction and further demonstrate the system's interagency communication and financial effectiveness, . Have the potential to replace the current broadband support losses in 2009 from state cable franchises and, stabilize or eliminate the City's future lahdline, internetlintranet and related communication operating costs, . Fund Wireless-WiFi - WiMax backbone to provide stable, reduced cost mobile safety service, . Provide Chula Vista/South Bay with a competitive edge in the WiFi/WiMax development market in San Diego and catch up with North County San Diego and others that have established or are exploring free and low cost WiFi business models, . Fund video production capacity to initially target safety communication messages and ultimately expand Chula Vista and South Bay's public communication outreach and marketing capacity (public and cable franchise video production has often been shared regionally, Chula Vista has never had the benefit of being the host). . Attract complimentary funding to enhance public services and free communication access, . Compliment Chula Vista's developing education, research and commercial infrastructure with broadly available state of the are communications, . Develop a model to invest in all of the above in a manner that reduces existing general fund costs to participating local agencies, stabilizes future costs and expands the City's open, transparent and inclusive public participation and emergency service programs. 7-/1 Page 3 Attachment A Installation of Permanent Domestic Water Line & Resurfacing of Access Road Serving the Chula Vista Nature Center $460,660 The former underground domestic water line had to be abandoned due to significant settling of the levy road that is used to access the Nature Center and Sweetwater Marsh National Wildlife Refuge. The road has been shored and patched, and a temporary potable water line has been installed above ground. This temporary line is providing critical service for maintaining plant and animal collections, and is providing water for restrooms, drinking fountains, and other sanitary needs. The road is federally-owned; the City utilizes an easement. This is the only access route to the National Wildlife Refuge Field Office and to the Nature Center for environmental education and conservation uses. The road was originally constructed by the Army Corps of Engineers but is now maintained by the City. Project would include underground installation ofa new water line and resurfacing of the road. Cost estimate: $460,660 (includes contingencies, per General Services) 7-IF Page 4 Attachment A Missing Infrastructure/ School Zone Traffic and Pedestrian Safety $132,000,000 2,300,000 The City's existing and planned transportation facilities vary dramatically in condition and availability from the newly developing areas of the City to the older aging pre-smart growth neighborhoods. The City Council frequently receives competing requests from the public for local infrastructure improvements. An overwhelming proportion of citizen requests directly correlate with the City Council's desire to ensure safe routes to schools. Public infrastructure and land use patterns in neighborhoods near schools strongly influence the health and safety of our school children. They influence neighborhood walkability, pedestrian and bicyclist safety, traffic circulation patterns and speeds, public transit systems, multimodal choices, and community character and pride. These issues, combined with a limited pool of resources for infrastructure improvements, now call for a precise identification and prioritization of City pedestrian, bicycle, and traffic circulation improvements through community-based master planning efforts. Beginning with the Southwest area and eventually incorporating the entire City, the project focuses on the Y.-mile "buffer zones" surrounding each of the City's 37 public elementary schools. Observations are that parents residing within these zones are more apt to allow their children to walk to school, particularly if safe and adequate facilities are available for walking and biking. Therefore, the first stakeholders to gain benefits from this project will be the City's schoolchildren, their families, and their neighbors. Ultimately, the project will have positive impacts for all residents. A unique aspect of this project is its community-directed focus. Stakeholder organizations participating in this planning project will include Healthy Eating, Active Communities (HEAC) and Walk San Diego which are working together as the South Bay Partnership. This partnership works at the community level to reduce childhood obesity by promoting walkability and reducing reliance on cars. The South Bay Partnership will be the City's key planning partner on this project. Other stakeholders will include the recently formed Southwest Chula Vista Civic Association, the Environmental Health Coalition, the Northwest Civic Association, and Crossroads II. Local schools (where the community meetings will take place) and school districts, parent faculty groups and homeowners associations will have critical involvement throughout the process. Jurisdictional stakeholders such as City Councilmembers, the City's redevelopment agency, and impacted City departments such as Public Works and Police will benefit from well-targeted planning outcomes and directives from this project. The City is close to completing the first phase of the project (inventory of the infrastructure) with existing resources. The second phase (community outreach walking audits in partnership with the Southbay Partnership) is the subject of a recently submitted Caltrans Transportation Planning Grant. The first two phases have been completed at two elementary schools (Rice and Otay) and recommended infrastructure improvements are the subject of a Safe Routes to School Grant application being submitted on January 2, 2007 through a partnership with the City of Chula Vista, the Chula Vista Elementary School District and the Southbay Partnership. Additionally, the City recently received approval for a $9.5 million HUD loan to complete work in the area of Castle Park Elementary. This federal funding request would allow us to realize an environmentally sustainable infrastructure demonstration project in our third priority area, Harborside Elementary. The positive impact to the community, should we be successful securing funding to complete infrastructure improvements around four of the city's neediest elementary school, is immeasurable. Page 5 --; /;-n / -- !"-~1 Attachment A National Energy Center for Sustainable Communities Facility, Research, Training & Technical Assistance Programs $6 -10 Million Funding will be used to support the construction and operation of a national research, education and training facility dedicated to advancing local community economic development through the deployment of clean, reliable and secure energy technologies. The facility will be located in Chula Vista, California and administered by the National Energy Center for Sustainable Communities. The Center is currently administered as a partnership between the City ofChula Vista and San Diego State University. The funds will be used to match contributions from state, local and private sources designated for: the building construction fund (total building cost estimated at $12-15 million); an employment training program for renewable and solar energy equipment installers; and a technical assistance program on energy-efficient community development for municipal officials. Funds would be used for NECSC building design and construction and for research projects relating to improving energy affordability through the integration of advanced renewable and energy-efficient technologies in community development. Further, the earmark could support an NECSC employment training program targeted at unemployed individuals in the region seeking employment as installers of renewable energy technologies, and in particular solar PV and thermal energy technologies. Finally, the earmark could support the formulation of a technical assistance program for municipal officials from economically disadvantaged communities, enabling them to pursue energy-efficient community development and related local jobs training initiatives. 7-20 Page 6 Attachment A Palomar Gateway $3,125,000 This project is located in southwest Chula Vista between the Interstate 5 Palomar Street entrance and Industrial Boulevard. The project area is at the heart of the larger surrounding Palomar Gateway District which is within one of the city's primary redevelopment zones. The district contains existing and planned mixed use development, and the Palomar Transit Station-a major terminus for local and regional modes of transportation. The city has identified this project area as an opportunity to strengthen the connection between local land uses and the regional transportation network by applying the principles of smart growth to best serve our residents and visitors. The project is designed to provide a true gateway to the city, encourage the use of public transit, promote foot traffic and bicycle use throughout the community, attract a superior quality of high- density housing development to the area, and enhance connectivity between all modes of transportation serving the Palomar District. The City has secured $2,000,000 in grant funding through SANDAG and has identified $375,000 in matching funds. Total project cost is estimated at $5,500,000, resulting in a federal funding request of$3,125,000. Without federal assistance, the City will not be able to proceed with this innovative, attractive and functional project. -7 "J j l - ;;::.,..,,{ Page 7 Attachment A Renewable Energy Park Partnership- to Compliment Sustainable Zero Energy Community (Allied, CEC, CPUC) Diesel Manufacturers, CARB/AQMD $5 - 6 million I This project focuses funding on public private partnerships to develop infrastructure and working models for state of the art alternative fossil free electricity generation systems, complimented by biofuels derived from local waste products and renewable crop resources to demonstrate zero energy center(s), (Corp Yard, University EUC, Civic Center). The project would build on the City's renewable energy and transportation fuel projects to demonstrate their sustainability at the community level and their integration into traditional systems; using local resources, solar, wind, water and sustainable crops and waste to push toward zero fossil fuel consumption. Chula Vista can take advantage of resources such as a local landfill, strong recycling and reuse programs, contracts and existing experience with solar, fuel cell, methane recovery, bio-diesel programs and an emerging research, education and commercial environment to demonstrate a roadmap for urban America to reduce its dependency on fossil fuels. The 500-acre Otay Landfill and adjacent 26-acre Public Works facility are contiguous to a redevelopment area (a 'recycling park that consists mostly of auto dismantling, vehicle operations yards, warehouse space and metal fabricating firms) that also includes fuel cell, solar, natural gas, solar and the proposed hydrogen/natural gas (hythane) fueling facilities as well as the City's Emergency Operations Center. The landfill operator manages flared methane and methane to energy infrastructure, one of the first and largest bio-diesel fleets in the nation and the City's recycling, green waste and trash collection programs. The City also owns the option for 53 free acres of land adjacent the landfill and the local school district owns ten acres adjacent to both parcels for a future public works yard. Those assets and redevelopment designation create the opportunity to establish an energy park with efficiencies and public benefit applications not easily replicable in other parts of the region. The project would involve public private partnerships to expand the City's bio-diesel programs to include the franchise collection and distilling of offal (fats and oils) generated within the City. Those feed stocks can be combined with "cellulose" feedstock grown and harvested from landfill and right of way spaces to generate a consistent, local and environmentally sustainable feedstock for bio-fuels for City vehicles, recycling and trash trucks, school buses, back up generators and other fossil fueled equipment. The locally generated fuels will stabilize fuel costs for local agencies, reduce local emissions, turn waste products into value added resources, create local jobs and demonstrate how locally derived alternative fuels can play an important part in fuel markets and sustainable local practices. The project would also expand the City's solar, fuel cell, back up generation facilities, and add a wind component to demonstrate their closed loop environmental and fossil free potential. 12 I The Transit-Fleet proposal for hydrogen-Natural Gas (hythane) duplicates $1 million dollars in the range stated here. -7 _. "7"7 j ;:......~ Page 8 Attachment A Sustainable Wastewater Treatment Partnership $10 Million Demonstration project: a Constructed Wetland Treatment System scaled to serve a Chula Vista neighborhood adjacent to an existing water body. These systems utilize the natural process involving wetland vegetation, soils and their associated microbial processes to assist in treating wastewater. They take advantage of many of the same processes that occur in natural wetlands, but do so within a more controlled environment. Operational experience and research shows: a growing interest in the use of constructed wetlands as a part of water treatment, tremendous opportunity for realizing sizable future savings in wastewater treatment costs, and opportunities for upgrading existing large treatment facilities. Funding provided by the National Science Foundation, Department of the Interior, NASA, EPA, Army Corp of Engineers, Department of Agriculture and others have played an important role in stimulating the development of the available information and guidance on more than 15 constructed wetland treatment systems in ten states, including California. The existing systems and their associated case studies provide valuable information regarding the development of cost effective wastewater and storm water run-off proj ects that also create wetland habitat for waterfowl and other wildlife, along with areas for public education and recreation. Some of these 15 projects have been recognized by the Ford Foundation for Innovation in a Local Government Project and excellence in Engineering by the American Society for Civil Engineers. A scalable, community project for a portion ofChula Vista's wastewater capacity would put Chula Vista and the South Bay at the forefront of a solution for this critical regional challenge-- demonstrating a solution that "solves many problems while creating no new ones." Other potential benefits: . Establishes an alternative waste treatment strategy that secures additional wastewater and reclaimed water capacity, . Demonstrates a locally sustainable model and compliments the local watershed and wildlife habitat, . Establishes intellectual capacity for a technology not broadly used in Southern California, . Compliments the state Climate Change recommendations, the National Energy Center and local sustainability goals, . Provides an alternative to traditional wastewater treatment and the exposure from a financially and environmentally challenged "business as usual" regional program, . Has the potential to attract complimentary funding to complete or expand projects and build on a public education and research component . Works with other local state and federal agencies to provide these benefits. Page 9 7-23 Attachment A Wildland-Urban Interface $1,200,000 The City ofChula Vista is moving toward the adoption of its own Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) Code. This code will be specific to our city's climatic, geological, and topographical needs. As published by DUDEK, the purpose of this WUI Code Implementation Project is to minimize the risk of wildfire while providing for the preservation and management of sensitive biological resources. This pre-disaster strategic plan provides analysis and risk assessment of the City's WUI areas and, based on that risk; lays out a baseline of WUI related code revision recommendations. The WUI Code Implementation Project indicates that a significant wildfire threat exists within Chula Vista because of several hazardous wildland areas and canyons within the city, including the perimeter of the city adjacent to the Otay Reservoir, the intermix surrounding Rice Canyon and neighboring canyons, and the lower Otay River bottom. This threat is substantiated through a series of fire modeling assessments as performed within the scope of the WUI Code Implementation Project. In addition, the City's Hazard Mitigation Plan identifies wildland fires to be the greatest hazard to the city. This known hazard was further validated during the Wildfire Storm in 2003 where the Mine Fire burned right up to the city's boundary and threatened homes throughout the community. Initial and on-going vegetation maintenance throughout the city is critical to reduce the potential loss of residences, structures, and lives during a wildfire conflagration. Some of these areas in need of fuel reduction currently support sensitive biological resources that are protected under the City ofChula Vista's adopted Multiple Species Conservation Program (MSCP) Subarea Plan. In consultation with the Wildlife Agencies, the City has developed Area Specific Management Directives (ASMDs) for approximately 1,350 acres of designated Preserve land within Rice Canyon. The ASMDs provide specific guidelines for long-term maintenance and management of the Preserve, including techniques for implementing brush management. The WUI Code has been uniquely modified to incorporate fuel reduction techniques that are consistent with the City's MSCP Subarea Plan and the ASMDs, and complimentary to the brush management recommendations of the WUI Code. With this modification, implementation of the WUI Code will provide adequate protection for sensitive biological resources, while ensuring the protection of public health and safety by reducing the potential wildland fire risks. Upon implementation, approximately four hundred sixty (460) acres need vegetation management at an estimated cost of $1 ,200,000 for the initial clearance to reduce the significant risk and exposure to disasters. All on-going costs will be assumed by the City of Chula Vista and are addressed within the plan. This project is the first of its kind in the South County; by awarding federal grant funding, it will also be the first to provide visible results. 7-24 Page 10