HomeMy WebLinkAbout1998-08-10 City Council (19)City of Palo Alto
C ty Manager’s Repor
TO:HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT: PLANNING
DATE:
SUBJECT:
AUGUST 10, 1998 CMR:340:98
DOWNTOWN NORTH NEIGHBORHOOD TRAFFIC CALMING
STUDY--STATUS REPORT
This is an informational report. No Council action is required.
BACKGROUND
The 1998-99 Transportation Division budget includes $75,000 to conduct a traffic calming
study of the Downtown North neighborhood. This neighborhood lies north of and
immediately adjacent to the Downtown University Avenue commercial area, between Alma
Street, Lytton Avenue, Middlefield Road and San Francisquito Creek. The purpose of the
study is to minimize motor vehicle through traffic and reduce speeds in the neighborhood,
without substantially shifting traffic onto other residential streets.
As far back as 1979, a traffic study of this neighborhood had been identified as a Council-
approved project, among several other neighborhood traffic studies with higher priorities.
Until about the early 1990s, there had been little organized neighborhood interest in this
study. Due to other City priorities, the study was not initiated. In the past several years,
development has increased downtown, bringing increased traffic and parking pressures to the
area, and neighborhood interest in the study has increased accordingly. In mid-1990, when
the 390 Lytton project was proposed for the comer of Lytton and Waverley, the
neighborhood association worked with the project applicants to include as a public benefit
for the new PC zone a commitment from the applicants of $75,000 to fund a traffic study
and/or improvements in the Downtown North neighborhood. This money became available
last year when the project was approved.
DISCUSSION
Staff expects to finalize a scope of work at the end of this .month in order to retain a
transportation consultant to conduct the study. Staff has formed a Project Advisory
Committee to assist in consultant selection and to work with the consultant during the study.
CMR:340:98 Page 1 of 2
The committee consists of the following members:
Dan Lorimer
Irv Brenner
Mark Nanevicz
Jim Baer
Darrell Benatar
Downtown North neighborhood resident
Downtown North neighborhood resident
Downtown North neighborhood resident
Downtown Palo Alto business representative
Lytton neighborhood resident
Participating staff members include Karen Bengard, Public Works Engineering; Nick
Marinaro, Fire Department; and Carl Stoffel and Ashok Aggarwal, Transportation Division.
During the review of the 1997-98 list of proposed consultant services over $25,000, neither
the Policy and Services Committee nor the Finance Committee requested the opporttmity to
review the scope of services prior to staff beginning the consultant selection process. The
final agreement with the selected consultant should come before Council in December 1998
or January 1999, with the consultant beginning work shortly thereafter.
PREPARED BY: Carl Stoffel, Transportation Engineer
DEPARTMENT HEAD:
ANNE CRONIN MOORE
Interim Director of Planning and
Community Environment
CITY MANAGER APPROVAL:
Assistant City Manager
cc:Project Advisory Co~ttee
CMR:340:98 Page 2 of 2