IMPERIAL COUNTY TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION

MINUTES FOR September 25, 2024

6:00 p.m.

__________________________________________________________________­­­­___________________

VOTING MEMBERS PRESENT:

                                                                City of Brawley                                       George A. Nava

                                                                City of Calipatria                                    Maria Nava-Froelich

                                                                City of Calexico                                      Camilo Garcia

                                                                City of El Centro                                    Martha Cardenas-Singh

                                                                City of Imperial                                      Robert Amparano

                                                                City of Holtville                                       Mike Goodsell             

                                                                City of Westmorland                           Absent                                            

                                                                County of Imperial                                Absent            

                                                                County of Imperial                                John Hawk

                                                                Imperial Irrigation District                 Absent                                                                                                                                            

STAFF PRESENT:               David Aguirre, Cristi Lerma, Michelle Bastidas (Zoom), Esperanza Avila

OTHERS PRESENT:            Eric Havens: Counsel; Roy Abboud, John Garcia: Caltrans, David Salgado: SCAG,

PUBLIC:                                None

The following action minutes are listed as they were acted upon by the Imperial County Transportation Commission and as listed on the agenda for the meeting held Wednesday, August 28, 2024, together with staff reports and related documents attached thereto and incorporated therein by reference.

I.                    CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL 

Vice Chair Amparano called the Commission meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Roll call was taken, and a quorum was present.

II.                   EMERGENCY ITEMS

                There were none.

III.                PUBLIC COMMENTS

There were none.

IV.                CONSENT CALENDAR

A.            ICTC Commission Minutes:                                           August 28, 2024

                B.            Received and filed:

1.                   ICTC Management Committee Minutes: August 14, 2024

2.                   ICTC TAC Minutes:                                           August 22, 2024

3.           ICTC SSTAC Minutes:                                   September 4, 2024

A motion was made by Goodsell and seconded by Nava-Froelich to approve the consent      calendar as presented, roll call:         

                                Motion Carried.

V.                  REPORTS

A.                  ICTC Executive Director

-          ICTC received correspondence indicating five (5) applications for the Imperial County Region were submitted for the Active Transportation Program. Applications were submitted by the City of El Centro, Imperial County Office of Education, Heber Public Utility District, City of Calipatria and City of Holtville. ATP applications that were due on June 17, 2024, are still under review by the state.

-          The CTC adopted the 2024 LPP Program Cycle 5 Guidelines on August 15-16, 2024. As a result of the adoption of the Cycle 5 Guidelines the Call for Projects has opened. The LPP Grant funds require a one-to-one match. The Imperial County Region’s estimated allocation amount for FY 2025/26 is $524million and $520 million for FY2026/27 for a total of $1,044 million. On August 22, 2024, the TAC committee members reviewed and ultimately recommend Option 2 to be forwarded to the Commission for approval and authorized ICTC to open the Call for Projects for the Local Partnership Formulaic Program Cycle 5. On August 28, 2024, the Commission approved TACs recommendation. The Competitive Call for Projects for the CTC opened on August 16, 2024, with a deadline of November 20, 2024.

-          Imperial County EV Charging Infrastructure Feasibility Study in underway. Staff is currently working on the development of the Scope of Work for the project to proceed to the issuance of a Request for Proposals. Staff are anticipating reviewing the proposed SOW with the ICTC TAC to obtain additional feedback.

-          ICTC/IVT Operations and Maintenance Facility: We are continuing coordination with the City of El Centro and beginning conducting the required environmental studies like a Phase 1 Site Assessment. ICTC will also continue to work on grant opportunities to fund the acquisition of the property. The preliminary site plan has been prepared and was shared with the commission. ICTC was recently informed that it had received a funding commitment for the completion of the design/environmental phases of the project.

-          Calexico East Port of Entry Bridge Widening Project- The final project improvements which consisted of the reinstallation of new bolts under the existing bridge section was completed in early August 2024. The project construction efforts are now complete, and the project is now in closeout phase.  Mr. Aguirre will provide the Commission with a presentation at the October meeting.

-          Calexico Intermodal Transportation Center (ITC): It is anticipated that the project will start construction in November/December 2024. The final set of contract documents are being prepared in anticipation of the construction bidding phase.

-          Transit Comprehensive Operational Analysis: Staff recently released the Request for Proposals to the public and are anticipated to work towards a contract award in September/October 2024. The analysis is anticipated to take a year to complete.

-          Calexico Microtransit Service- The service has averaged 180 passengers per day since the removal of the free fares and has been well received. ICTC has been working with CMO to obtain additional funding for the project. ICTC was awarded an additional $500,000 to be utilized for operations of the service and additional service hours. The contract amendment with the operator was approved at the June 23, 2024, meeting. ICTC is anticipating securing two additional grants to help support the project. ICTC also received additional funding to further continue the service beyond year two of operations.

-          State Route 86 (Northbound) Border Patrol Checkpoint: As discussed, and confirmed with Border Patrol, ICTC will only provide the remaining funds we had available (February 2021) of approximately $1.3 million to complete the traffic study, 100% design plans, and construction of the canopy, lighting related to the canopy, and traffic related improvements required by Caltrans. Border Patrol is committed to paying for all other construction-related costs and Border Patrol will lead the construction contract. Border Patrol, Caltrans, and ICTC are having weekly meetings toward completing design plans. CBP will be working with Caltrans to obtain environmental clearance once funding for construction is obtained. The improvement plans have been prepared in final draft form and have been submitted to Caltrans for review. Caltrans has provided review comments on the improvement plans. ICTC will work with the design engineer to complete the required updates. Environmental studies and Caltrans submittal are pending submittal by CBP.

-          All other updates are on the Executive Director report on page 23 of the agenda.

B.                  Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG)

Mr. Salgado had the following updates:

-          A big thank you to those who attended the 2024 Southern California Demographic Workshop either in person or online. The 35th annual event was presented by SCAG and the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy. The workshop consisted of morning and afternoon panel experts. 

-          The deadline to apply for the sustainable communities' program is September 27, 2024. For more information or to begin an application please visit the SCAG website at https://scag.ca.gov/sustainable-communities-program

-          SCAG has developed and published a report for Broadband Permit Streamlining. More information can be found on the SCAG website at: REPORT: https://scag.ca.gov/sites/main/files/main-images/24-3190-permitstreamlining-broadbandreport_final202409.pdf  and

ORDINANCE: https://scag.ca.gov/sites/main/files/main-images/24-3190-permitstreamlining-broadband_ordinance_final-2024-09.pdf

-          All other updates are on the SCAG report on page 32 of the agenda.

C.                  California Department of Transportation (Caltrans)- District 11

               Mr. Abboud had the following updates:                

-          Bridge rehab at various locations along I-8 and SR-78 will be completed by November. Specific locations include Brock Research Center Rd., All American Canal, Winterhaven Dr./4th St., and Palo Verde locations.

-          SR-111 Roadside Improvements: To be completed in October 2024.

-          Completed Projects- SR-98 Widening Project. I-8 Roadside Safety Improvements. All Imperial County Clean California Projects. IMP-8-PM R3.7/48: HM-1 Pave Preservation Ramp Project.

-          SR- 186 All American Canal Bridge: Project Milestone: Project Approval/Environmental Clearance is 12/24.

-          Imperial Ave Bridge: Coordinate with the City of El Centro to install additional signage on Imperial Ave Bridge. Signs are still in production with an estimated timeline of four weeks.

-          Imperial County Lithium Valley Specific Plan: Engage with County of Imperial, identify areas of priority and establish collaborative efforts between agencies.

-          Maintenance and Traffic Operations: El Centro Traveled Way Crew – Fence repair: I-8/SR-111, Sealing intersections: SR-86, Storm Damage Repair: SR-98/Mount Signal Road.

-          SR-86/ Customs & Border Protection (CBP) Checkpoint- The environmental studies are being prepared by ICTC/CBP and will be sent to Caltrans District 11 Staff for review. Caltrans will assist ICTC in coordinating upcoming meetings.

-          Feasibility Studies: District 11 Truck Parking and Medium/Heavy Duty ZEV Charging Station Site Assessment – Lost funding-delay. Timeline: The Project Initiation Document (PID) is pending.

-          Calexico Travel Corridor Improvements: The Project Initiation Document (PID) is pending.

-          All other updates are on the Caltrans report on page 36 of the agenda.

D.                  Commission Member Reports

-          Updates were provided by various commissioners.

VI.                ACTION CALENDAR

A.                  2024 Quality Assurance Program (QAP)

The ICTC Management Committee met on September 11, 2024, and forwarded this item to the Commission for their review and approval after public comment, if any:

1.                   Approved the proposed 2024 Quality Assurance Program (QAP).

A motion was made by Nava-Froelich and seconded by Cardenas-Singh to approve Action A as presented, roll call:

                                Motion Carried.

B.            Adjustments to IVT RIDE Paratransit System – Acquisition/Development of Rider Application

                The ICTC Management Committee met on September 11, 2024, and forwarded this item to the Commission for their review and approval after public comment, if any:

1.                   Authorized the Executive Director to proceed with the acquisition and development of the IVT Ride Rider Application and Scheduling Software. 

A motion was made by Goodsell and seconded by Nava-Froelich to approve the Action B as presented, roll call:

                                Motion Carried.

C.            Coordinated Border Infrastructure (CBI) Funding – Project Identification and Recommendation

ICTC Staff forwarded the following recommendations to the Commission for their review and approval after public comment, if any:

1.       Approved the recommendation of CBI funding in the amount of $2,000,000 for the selected agency and selected project: City of Calexico for their 2nd Street/All American Canal Bridge Replacement project      

2.       Authorized the Executive Director to coordinate the necessary agreements between Caltrans, the Imperial County Transportation Commission, and the recommended agency.

A motion was made by Nava and seconded by Nava-Frolich to approve the Action C as presented, roll call:

                                Motion Carried.

VII.              INFORMATION ITEMS

A.               Forrester Road Proposed Improvements – Project Study Report

Mr. Aguirre presented the Forrester Road Proposed Improvements that were a part of the Project Study Report.

B.                 LTA Bond Presentation

Ms. Carmen Vargas from Barclays provided the Commission with an LTA Bond Presentation regarding a market update and financing opportunities.

C.                   ICTC Facility Acquisition

Mr. Aguirre presented the Commission with very preliminary diagrams of the future ICTC/IVT operations and maintenance facility.

VIII.            The next meeting will be on October 23, 2024, at 6:00 p.m. at the ICTC Offices, 1503 N. Imperial Ave., Suite 104, El Centro, CA 92243, and via Zoom Meeting for the public.

IX.                ADJOURNMENT

A.                  Meeting Adjourned at 8:47 p.m.