Agenda - 04-15-2014 - 5c - Laserfiche WebLink

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3 Orange County Schools and the Town of Hillsborough. On February 18 the public hearing was continued by the BOCC to April 15, 2014 to allow additional time to receive comments. Staff met with North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) staff on November 25, 2013 to review projects and related costs identified in the SRTS Plan. At that meeting NCDOT staff explained that more precise project cost development is very involved, including exacting right-of-way delineation, the siting of public and private utilities, evaluation of ditch profiles and potential curb-and-gutter development issues, ADA compliance, soils analysis, identification of any easement conflicts, and environmental constraints. However, NCDOT staff did offer assistance with identifying project issues that could be used in the development of feasibility comments for the County's sidewalk projects related to Grady Brown Elementary School. These comments are provided in Attachment 3. These sidewalk projects would provide the connections to a future Orange Grove Road/1-40 pedestrian bridge which would help this project score more favorably during the State's scoring process. More in-depth reviews of the projects related to Cameron Park Elementary School and the Charles W. Stanford Middle School will be developed in the course of Plan implementation. More precise cost development for SRTS projects related to all three school sites will follow and require pre-engineering input. The related issue of sidewalk maintenance was discussed at the February 27, 2014 Joint Orange County/Town of Hillsborough meeting. Staff received favorable comments and was directed to develop further research on the topic based on the precedent of a 2004 Orange County sidewalk maintenance agreement for a portion of Homestead Road adjacent to the Towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro. That agreement was multi-party including NCDOT which allowed an encroachment agreement in its right-of-way. The Towns maintain the sidewalk through this agreement. Orange County (as well as most, if not all, counties in North Carolina) does not maintain local streets or sidewalks, with public roadways being a part of the State maintained system. The NC Department of Transportation (NCDOT) does not build nor maintain sidewalks. Project Funding The SRTS Program was established in the 2005 Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) legislation as a federally-funded grant reimbursement program providing an opportunity for communities to improve conditions for bicycling and walking to school. The SRTS program is a reimbursement program that does not require a local match (100% federally funded). Section 1404 of SAFETEA-LU mandated that the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) administer this program within the state, providing financial assistance to state, local, and regional agencies, including non- profit organizations that demonstrate an ability to meet the requirements of the program. There were some revisions to federal and state funding sources in October 2012 that impacts future funding sources for the Safe Routes to School program. Specifically, the federal Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Bill (MAP-21) SRTS program direct allocation funds were removed. MAP-21 authorized the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) to provide funding for programs and projects defined as transportation alternatives, including safe routes to school projects. The TAP replaced the funding from pre-MAP-21 programs, including the SRTS program. However, NCDOT staff has advised the Planning staff that there will continue to be SAFETEA- LU funds available for the program under its rolling grant cycle. It is anticipated that these funds