Okaloosa County BOCC — May 17, 2016 — Ratification of 2016 FDOT TAP Candidate Sidewalk Projects — agenda request

BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS AGENDA REQUEST DATE: May 17, 2016 TO: Honorable Chairman and Members of the Board FROM: Jason Autrey SUBJECT: Ratification of 2016 FDOT TAP Candidate Sidewalk Projects DEPARTMENT: Public Works BCC DISTRICT: 2, 3 & 5 STATEMENT OF ISSUE: Staff received Board approval on April 19th for five sidewalk TAP applications for the annual resubmittal to the Walton Transportation Planning Organization (TPO). Contracts & Grants submitted the applications on behalf of the County on April 29th, the published deadline. However, the applications had to be amended to included previous letters of support from 2015 in addition to the newly required evaluation and scoring criteria developed by the TPO. At this time staff is asking the Board to formally approve the amended applications that have been submitted via ratification. BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS: The purpose of the TAP Program is to focus on improvements that create alternatives to transportation for the non-motorized user and enhancements to the overall transportation system for all users. These projects are federally- funded, community-based projects that expand travel choices by improving the cultural, historic, and environmental aspects of the Nation's transportation infrastructure. These projects are typically administered through the Local Agency Program (LAP) process. The program requires that unfunded projects be resubmitted on an annual basis as long as the project is still supported by the community and funding is being requested. The following sidewalk projects were resubmitted on April 29th for the 2016 TAP funding cycle: District 2: Addition of pedestrian sidewalk along the north side of Pocahontas/South Avenue from James Lee Road to SR 85 (Eglin Parkway). Approx. 0.95 miles. District 2: Addition of pedestrian sidewalk along the south side of Eglin Drive from 12th Street to Country Club Road. Approx. 0.15 miles. District 2: Addition of pedestrian sidewalk along the south side of Santa Rosa Blvd. From 460’ west of Park Drive to US 98 (Miracle Strip Parkway). Approx. 1.70 miles. District 3: Addition of pedestrian sidewalk along the south side of Whitehurst Lane from Addison Place Apartments to Antioch Elementary School. Approx. 0.42 miles. District 5: Addition of pedestrian sidewalk along the west side of Redwood Avenue from Valparaiso Blvd. To SR 20 (John Sims Parkway). Approx. 0.97 miles. During the week of submittal, staff was made aware of new documentation requirements that needed to be completed to support the project applications. The TPO has developed its own evaluation and scoring criteria that must be documented by the submitting entity/municipality. Staff completed the additional documentation requirements and was able to submit the application on time. The final, amended applications are available for review and have gone through the proper internal coordination process. All documents were reviewed by the appropriate departments for sufficiency prior to application submittal. If/when any of the projects are awarded, the grant agreements will be presented to the Board of County Commissioners for acceptance. These applications do not bind the County to any obligations. OPTIONS: Approve/Disapprove via ratification of the five amended sidewalk projects that were previously submitted on behalf of Okaloosa County. RECOMMENDATION: Approve via ratification of the five amended sidewalk projects that were previously submitted on behalf of Okaloosa County. RECOMMENDED BY: APPROVED BY: John Hofstad, County Administrator