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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-07-11 memo to Impact Fee Committee regarding Traffic Control Devices for CIP eligible projects it t- Advisory Board Memorandum MEMO TO: Impact Fee Advisory Committee (IFAC) FROM: Brit Fonteno Director of norm evelopment SUBJECT: Traffic Control Devices for Capital Improvement Plan(CIP) Eligible Projects for the Promotion of Economic Development MEMO DATE: November 7, 2011 In April, 2011 the City of Bozeman was approached by private developers about the potential of relocating a manufacturing facility from Frontage Road in Gallatin County onto an undeveloped parcel within the city limits. One of the undeveloped properties identified as a potential site for the relocation was a parcel located at 11 East Griffin Drive at the intersection of East Griffin Drive and Manley Road known as the Manley property. The City's Economic Development Team (EDT) met with the developers and discussed the proposal and offered advice and general support for the project. One of the discussion points was the likely need for intersection improvements at the intersection of Manley Road and East Griffin Drive. Staff suggested that the consulting engineer request to place the capacity expanding improvement project on the Transportation CIP. The estimated cost of the improvements was $925,000. Since the request to add the Manley Road/East Griffin Drive intersection improvements to the CIP, the development project for which these improvements were identified has not materialized on the Manley property. At the time, the request for the addition of the Manley Road/East Griffin Drive intersection improvements to the Transportation CIP was based entirely on the premise that a 300+ employee, 24 hours a day seven days a week manufacturing operation would be sited on the Manley property necessitating intersection upgrades. While the Manley property was ultimately not the site chosen by the manufacturer, it remains a viable location for development and expansion of Bozeman's manufacturing base and eventually the intersection will likely require at least some of the improvements suggested in the May 23, 2011 letter from TD&H Engineering (TD&H). Additionally, City staff and the IFAC are refining updated selection criteria for identifying impact fee eligible improvements that will promote appropriate growth; especially the type that supports the City's economic development strategy of strengthening cluster development in the areas of manufacturing, photonics and bio-sciences to encourage job creation and industry diversification. IFAC Transportation CIP recommendations have always considered economic development in project rankings, albeit sometimes indirectly. It was, however, through the EDT process and suggestions from the Economic Development Council (EDC) that recommendations were made to establish a more direct link between the ranking criteria and economic development. While the Manley property project mentioned above will not come to fruition, the site remains viable for a variety of development possibilities. I recommend the intersection improvements at the intersection of East Griffin Drive and Manley Road remain unscheduled on the CIP unless or until a project requiring said intersection improvements is forthcoming. If a viable project surfaces for the Manley property, the Commission may re-assign the project ranking accordingly. Following the rational outlined above, I submit that the IFAC consider scheduling the following intersection improvements on the Transportation CIP. The intersection at North 7t" Avenue and Griffin Drive services the two largest areas of industrially planned land in Bozeman. Development of the area, such as the State owned property adjacent to Mandeville Farm, is dependent on adequate function of the intersection. Widening of the east and west legs of the intersection to add tam lanes is needed in order to support additional industrial development in the area. Currently, the City of Bozeman and the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) have a signed Memorandum of Understanding and were recently awarded a $50,000 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) for planning the approximately 85 acres of City-owned Mandeville farm land in conjunction with the approximately 200 acres of DNRC, or State Trust Land, for the purpose of planned cluster development. The intersection is also within the North 7t" Avenue urban renewal district and both North 7t" Avenue and Griffin Drive are urban routes. These two potential funding sources could partner with impact fees to provide funding for non-capacity expansion elements of the work to complete the expansion. The expansion of the intersection is therefore a good candidate for inclusion on the Transportation CIP as an eligible scheduled improvement. In summary, I recommend intersection improvements suggested at East Griffin Drive and Manley Road be included on the CIP as unscheduled, unless or until a viable project surfaces, and the intersection improvements suggested at North 7t" Avenue and Griffin Drive be added to the CIP and scheduled as appropriate. Attachments: NONE 2