Recommendation
Approve staff recommended projects for submittal to the Congressional Delegation for the FY10 Federal Appropriations and 2009 Transportation Equity Act Reauthorization.

Discussion

Background:

Each year, Rockville works with its lobbyists to secure federal funding for upcoming capital improvement projects. Rockville is making preparations in coordination with its lobbyist, Holland and Knight, to request funds through the federal FY10 Appropriations process and the Transportation Equity Act Reauthorization (TEA). The Mayor and Council will take action on these funding requests at their January 26, 2009 meeting.

An interdepartmental team of staff from the Public Works, Community Planning and Development Services, Recreation and Parks, Police, and the City Manager’s Office held meetings in the fall of 2008 with Holland and Knight to discuss projects suitable for federal funding. Staff developed its list of priorities and is composing white papers for the FY10 Appropriations requests and TEA proposal of projects. These materials will be finalized and transmitted to the Congressional Delegation after Mayor and Council approval at the January 26, 2009 meeting. The materials are used when the Mayor, City Manager, and the Assistant to the City Manager meet with our Federal Delegation in February, as well as by legislators and Congressional staff that will review the requests.

The requests are considered through the Congressional appropriations process. The federal fiscal year is from October 1 through September 30. The City is usually informed by the end of the summer if it will receive funding. If funds are earmarked, Rockville must then apply for the money and meet all federal requirements. Holland and Knight indicated if the City receives funding in the FY10 appropriations and the TEA processes, the funding would be available by spring of 2010.

Staff is seeking approval for its list of recommended FY10 Appropriations and Transportation Equity Act reauthorization requests. As staff continues to work with Holland and Knight in the development of the requests, it is possible that some of the funding amounts could be adjusted when the final submittals are sent to the Congressional Delegation in the last week of January. The Mayor and Council will receive copies of the final requests and transmittal letters. More detail about the two funding categories and the specific projects the City is seeking federal resources for begins on page two.

Economic Recovery Act:

In a typical year, the City develops one set of requests for the annual federal appropriations process. The City’s 2009 federal funding efforts are different because Rockville is pursuing two additional types of funding requests. These additional requests are the 2009 TEA reauthorization and the Economic Recovery package that the new Congress and President are negotiating. Rockville’s transmittal letter and Economic Recovery list of projects sent to the Governor in early January 2009 can be found at Attachment A.

The Economic Recovery Act funding levels and the method in which the monies will be distributed to states and localities are still under negotiation. It is expected that the bill will be forwarded to the new President for his signature in mid-February 2009. The latest reports indicate funding levels could go as high as $800 billion. Staff is coordinating with Holland and Knight to monitor this process, and will keep the Mayor and Council updated as to whether or not any City projects receive Economic Recovery funding. Additional information will be provided via the City Manager’s Office correspondence packet as it becomes available.

Transportation Equity Act Reauthorization Requests

The Transportation Equity Act (TEA) is the federal government’s umbrella funding bill for transportation projects. It is renewed every five years, with a reauthorization to take place in 2009. The funding is 80% federal with a 20% local match. The reauthorized funds will pass through the state to local governments. According to Holland and Knight, if we are successful with our requests, TEA funding will be available in the spring of 2010.

The following projects are recommended for submittal to the Congressional Delegation:

1. Avery Road Improvements $2,080,000.

The total cost of the project is $2,600,000. The 20% local match requirement would have Rockville providing $520,000 if the request was approved. The project would entail the reconstruction of 1,400 feet of the road from the entrance of the Redgate Golf Course north to the Rockville City limit. Avery Road is not built to City standards, and has safety issues. The improvements include widening the road to 24-foot-wide pavement with improved shoulders, open drainage, and enhancing public safety by adding sidewalks, and matching the cross-section of Avery Road south of the golf course entrance. This project will improve pedestrian and traffic safety on Avery Road.

2. Rockville Pike Intermodal Boulevard Project $7,520,000.

The total cost of the project is $9.4 million. The 20% local match requirement would have Rockville providing $1,880,000 if this request was approved. This project would involve the planning, engineering, design, construction, right of way acquisition, and coordination with the State Highway Administration and Montgomery County to convert a section of Rockville Pike into a boulevard. The draft Rockville Pike Corridor Plan recommends a multi-way boulevard that would simultaneously move a large volume of traffic, while safely accommodating multi-modal traffic. A key element in the plan includes improvements to the streetscape and sidewalk areas such that the transit, pedestrian and bicycle experience will be greatly enhanced, thus encouraging the use of these other transportation modes.

The concept for the project is for the City to be the demonstration pilot for the Rockville Pike corridor. Montgomery County is discussing the same concept as part of the development of the White Flint sector plan. This would be a long-term project with duration of approximately twenty years. The requested funding is for the first phase of the project, which would focus on pedestrian safety enhancements, and would be completed within five years.

The design of the boulevard maintains the same 84-foot curb-to-curb section that accommodates MD 355’s existing six travel lanes but expands beyond them to include wider sidewalks, a two-lane access road (one lane of which is devoted to buses and bicycles), one lane of parallel on-street parking, and a tree-lined island to protect local traffic and pedestrians from through traffic. This would also include the acquisition of right-of-way from the State as well as easements from private property owners to achieve the desired effects.

Traffic and Transportation staff have identified two segments of the south portion of MD 355 to construct the first access roads to begin the implementation of the boulevard concept. The access roads would be constructed on the east side of MD 355. The sections that would be converted are a 1,200 foot section from Halpine Road to Congressional Lane and a 1,200 foot section from Templeton Place to the Woodmont Country Club driveway.

FY10 Appropriations Requests:

Rockville is making several requests for funding through the annual federal appropriations process. The funding is allocated via earmarks and distributed to localities through the state.

The following projects are recommended for submittal to the Congressional Delegation:

1. Police Department Annex Construction $2,500,000.

The project will be conducted in two principal phases and generate a Police Headquarters facility of approximately 22,000 square feet. Construction of the first phase, focused on renovating the former Rockville Post Office building, is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2009. The exterior facades on W. Montgomery Avenue and South Washington Street, and the historic lobby will be preserved as approved by the City's Historic District Commission and the Maryland Historic Trust. This phase includes the addition of a second floor within the building and expansion of the basement to maximize the yield of usable space.

The requested funding is for the second phase, a stand-alone annex building to be be built on the southwest corner of the site, behind the Post Office building. A pedestrian tunnel will connect the two buildings. This new configuration will accommodate the existing Police Department’s space needs and allow a modest amount of space for future growth. The Annex building will house key Police activities, including the dispatcher’s office, sally port, holding cells, and meeting rooms as well as locker rooms, an exercise facility and storage.

2. Police Technology Upgrade $500,000.

The funding would allow for the purchase of the following equipment: mobile data terminals (computers, including mounts and hardware), e-citation systems and hardware, an automated finger printing machine, and a community emergency notification system.

This project would greatly enhance the City's community policing efforts. It would allow for officers to work smarter, and further promote efficiency and effectiveness in many facets of day-to-day police operations. Additionally, the technology equipment and software would enable the City Police to ensure that the highest levels of public safety will be obtained in providing a safe home and work environment for residents and businesses within the City of Rockville.

3. Sanitary Sewer Rehabilitation Improvements $3 million.

This request would fund the construction of sewer system replacements or rehabilitation identified through a comprehensive Preventative Maintenance Program. System rehabilitation improves the condition of the sewer system, which increases the life cycle of the infrastructure and reduces infiltration inflow (I/I), which decreases flow in the sewers. Poor pipe condition is causing leaks, breaks, stoppages, and overflows from the sewer systems to the streams.

The Operations Maintenance Division in the Public Works Department is performing closed circuit television (CCTV) inspections of all the sanitary sewer lines and manholes over a ten-year period. CCTV inspections include a condition assessment using the industry standard Pipeline/Manhole Assessment Certification Program (P/MACP) coding system. From this assessment, pipes and manholes are ranked to determine the type of rehabilitation needed. Typical rehabilitation consists of heavy cleaning and subsequent lining of the sewers with a cured-in-place liner, point repairs to lateral connections, and various manhole rehabilitation methods.

4. Planning, Engineering, and Design for the Rockville Pike TEA project $1 million.

This funding would support the TEA Rockville Pike Intermodal Boulevard project discussed in the TEA request section above, which is a multi-way boulevard that would simultaneously move a large volume of traffic, while safely accommodating multi-modal traffic (see TEA section above). The funding would be used for planning, engineering, and design activities necessary to support the construction of the Rockville Pike Intermodal Boulevard project.

Mayor and Council History
Federal funding priorities have been coming before the Mayor and Council for approval on a yearly basis since 2003. In FY05 Rockville received $970,000 in funding for the Town Square shuttle. In FY06 the City received $4 million in Transportation Equity Act funding for the Baltimore Road improvements project. In the pending FY09 Appropriations process, there is a $500,000 earmark in the House Interior Appropriations bill for sanitary sewer system rehabilitation improvements and there is a $325,000 earmark in the House Commerce, Justice, and Science Bill for a police technology upgrade project. Congress will take action on these bills shortly after the new President takes office.

Fiscal Impact
For the TEA funds there is a 20% local match. If Rockville were successful with both of its TEA requests, it would need to provide $2,400,000 in matching funds. Rockville will also provide any required matches for approved FY10 federal appropriations. Congress has not established the cost share requirements for FY10. Holland and Knight indicated the requirements should be set when the bills get enacted in late fall 2009.

If the City receives the requested funding, the federal dollars will greatly enhance the City’s capacity to complete critical CIP projects.

Next Steps
Upon Mayor and Council approval of the recommended funding requests, the FY10 appropriations white papers and the TEA proposals will be transmitted to the Congressional Delegation in late January. Subsequently, the meetings with the Congressional Delegation and the Mayor, City Manager, and Assistant to the City Manager will take place in February 2009. Holland and Knight are working on scheduling the meetings on February 24, 2009.

Holland and Knight will track the City’s requests as they move through the federal appropriations and the TEA reauthorization process, and will keep staff informed of developments. Staff will provide future memorandum updates through the City Manager’s Office correspondence packet as information becomes available.

Attachments

Department Head:


Catherine Tuck Parrish
Approved on: 01/21/2009

Assistant City Manager:


Jenny Kimball, Assistant City Manager
Approved on: 01/21/2009

City Manager:

Scott Ullery, City Manager
Approved on: 01/21/2009