SUBJECT/RECOMMENDATION:
Title
Support the submission of a grant application for the Forward Pinellas Complete Streets Grant Program to develop a complete streets design and concept for the Ft. Harrison Avenue corridor from South Ft. Harrison Avenue at Belleair Road to North Ft. Harrison Avenue at the Pleasant Street merge with Myrtle Avenue, and pass Resolution 18-22.
Body
In October 2018, Forward Pinellas issued a call for Complete Streets projects, asking local governments to submit applications requesting funding for concept designs or construction of local complete streets projects, funded through a competitive grant program. Complete Streets are designed, operated, and maintained for all users, regardless of age or ability, based on the context of the street and the surrounding area, and can serve as catalysts for transformative redevelopment and economic development.
Staff has prepared a grant application for the Ft. Harrison Avenue corridor from South Ft. Harrison Avenue at Belleair Road to North Ft. Harrison Avenue where it merges with Myrtle Avenue at Pleasant Street. The scope of this Project connects three major destinations, Morton Plant Hospital Campus, Downtown and the future Imagine Clearwater waterfront redevelopment, and the North Marina Area. A significant portion of the project corridor is within the Downtown Clearwater Redevelopment Area. Both Downtown and the Morton Plant area are designated Activity Centers in the city’s Comprehensive Plan. Ft. Harrison Avenue also serves as a significant north-south collector road serving a daily average of 14,862 vehicles on the south segment and 9,800 vehicles on the north segment, according to the Forward Pinellas 2017 Average Annual Daily Traffic (A.A.D.T.) counts. Safe, efficient access to destinations by all travel modes is a key objective of this grant application.
This application would continue the momentum of the recent Complete Drew Street project, which was funded by this same complete street grant. In conjunction with the current development of the Citywide Complete Streets Implementation Plan for Clearwater, the grant would provide the additional benefit of utilizing the Implementation Plan’s toolkit of complete streets concept solutions to the various Ft. Harrison Avenue contexts.
The City is requesting $50,000.00 of funding, and in consideration of the competitive selection process for determining allocation of available funds, the City is committing to matching $50,000.00 with $25,000 in-kind and $25,000 direct funding. Resolution 18-22 formalizes City Council’s support for the grant application.
APPROPRIATION CODE AND AMOUNT:
Funds are available in the Planning Department cost code 0101420-530100, professional services, to fund this agreement.