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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/03/2020AT OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER January 3, 2020 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council FROM: Alan Tandy, City Manager SUBJECT: General Information Good news! The Bakersfield Fire Department on Friday, January 3rd, announced it received notice that the department has retained its important Class 2 Insurance Services Office (ISO) rating. The department actually improved its score by two percent, up to a score of 82.24% during this evaluation. Every fire department in the country is evaluated by the ISO on the department’s services, including responsiveness to emergencies, staffing levels and training, the availability of water supply to the department and the quality of the department’s communication and dispatch systems. Fire departments across the country are rated by the ISO on a scale of 1 to 10, where Class 1 is the top ranking. The Bakersfield Fire Department’s Class 2 rating puts it in the top 1.5% of all departments in the nation. The ISO rating is used by insurance companies to determine homeowner and commercial insurance rates. The better equipped a fire department is, the higher the rating. A higher rating means more favorable the insurance rates for customers. Deputy Chief William Ballard, who led the evaluation process for the department this year, said the addition of two Type-3 engines and assigned personnel – added through the Public Safety & Vital Services Measure – helped the departmentimprove its score. Congratulations to Chief Anthony Galagaza, Deputy Chief Ballard and the entire fire department on a job well done! General Information January 3, 2020 Page 2 Notable Items The City will host a third community outreach meeting about the proposed homeless shelter locations on January 7th at 6 p.m. in the Potato Room at the Mechanics Bank (formerly Rabobank) Convention Center. The public is invited to attend the meeting and offer comments and ask questions of Staff about the project. If someone cannot attend the meeting, they may also send their comments on the project to CommunityOutreach@bakersfieldcity.us. Those messages will be relayed to the City Council for consideration. If the community wishes to learn more about the project and the site search, they can find that information here: http:// bit.ly/34fmhPs. This meeting comes after two previous community meetings were held in December. As the calendar flipped to a new year this week, staff put together and released a video look back at Bakersfield’s successful 2019! You can check out our Year in Review video here: http://bit.ly/2MX5b3h. The Recreation & Parks Department held 13th Annual Polar Bear Plunge on New Year’s Day at McMurtrey Aquatic Center! Folks dived straight into 2020, braving 54- degree temperatures (both in and out of the pool). There were 264 participants in this year’s Polar Bear Plunge, besting last year’s total of 156. Some were as young as 7-years-old! Thank you to co-sponsor Arctic Glacier, who donated 1,900 pounds of ice to place around the perimeter of the pool. Some families even told staff that taking part is their annual tradition. Thanks to Mayor Karen Goh for the great pictures from the event! General Information January 3, 2020 Page 3 Traffic Advisories Weekend closure on 24th Street at Eye Street An around-the-clock closure on 24th Street at Eye Street is scheduled for this weekend, January 4th and 5th. The closure is needed for drainage work across the roadway. The closure is expected to be set in place on Saturday starting at 6 a.m. and be lifted by 5 p.m. Sunday. Westbound motorists will be detoured north onto Chester Avenue to 28th Street and will return to 24th Street via H Street. This work is not expected to impact eastbound traffic on 23rd Street. Construction work may be postponed and rescheduled without notice due to weather or other unforeseen circumstances. Please slow down and watch for construction workers and equipment while driving through the work zone. The Thomas Roads Improvement Program apologizes for any inconvenience this work may cause the traveling public. Highway 99 ramps re-opening and new ramp closures The Department of Transportation (Caltrans), in cooperation with Brosamer & Wall Inc., announces ramps re-opening and new ramp closures on Northbound State Route (SR) 99 starting the night of Friday, January 3rd, in the City of Bakersfield as part of the Bakersfield 99 Rehab Project. The following changes will occur, weather permitting: •The following Northbound SR 99 ramps will re-open the night ofFriday,January 3, 2020: o Off-ramp to California Avenue o On-ramp at Buck Owens Boulevard •The following Northbound SR 99 ramps will close for 55 days the night ofFriday, January 3, 2020: o Off-ramp to Olive Drive •The following Northbound SR 99 ramps will close for 80 days the night ofFriday, January 3, 2020: o On-ramp from SR 204 (Golden State Avenue) This will include Airport Dr. on-ramps to Northbound SR 204(Golden State Avenue) Reports Monthly TRIP status report. Event Notifications Event Calendar for the Mechanics Bank (formerly Rabobank) Arena, Theater &Convention Center. City Manager’s Office 1600 Truxtun Avenue, Bakersfield, CA 93301 661-326-3751 FAX: 661-324-1850 MEDIA ANNOUNCEMENT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Joe Conroy Thursday, Jan. 2, 2020 Public Information Officer (661) 326-3074 JConroy@bakersfieldcity.us CITY TO HOLD ADDITIONAL COMMUNITY MEETING REGARDING POSSIBLE NEW HOMELESS SHELTER LOCATIONS OPPORTUNITY TO COMMENT: The City of Bakersfield will hold an additional community meeting for the public to provide comments and learn more about the development of a new Homeless Shelter to serve the needs of the local homeless population in Bakersfield. This will be the third meeting where the public was offered an opportunity to talk to Staff about the project. The public is encouraged to comment by attending the meeting, or by sending an email to CommunityOutreach@bakersfieldcity.us. Spanish language translation will be available upon request. MEETING TIME AND LOCATION: The meeting will be held at 6 p.m., Tuesday, January 7, 2020 in the Potato Room at the Mechanics Bank Convention Center, 1001 Truxtun Ave., Bakersfield, CA. BACKGROUND: According to the 2019 Point-in-Time count, there are more than 1,150 homeless individuals in Bakersfield. 643 are unsheltered, which is an increase of 108% from 2018. There are currently fewer than 400 emergency beds in Bakersfield. This lack of available beds has led in part to increased calls for service to public agencies and impacts to quality of life for residents. The City is working to address concerns raised by local citizens through a number of new programs, including the construction of a new “Low-Barrier Homeless Shelter” which allows residents to have partners, pets and possessions. Earlier this year, the City Council directed Staff to evaluate potential locations that would be suitable for a shelter. Therefore, Staff visited and studied existing facilities in Bakersfield and other Cities to learn more about “Best Practices” for operating and locating a shelter. After searching available properties, Staff has identified two potential locations for the shelter: Site 1 – 1900 E. Brundage Lane (Calcot Ltd.): a 7.24-acre office complex with 34,832 sq-ft of office space and 34,975 sq-ft of warehouse space; able to accommodate 150 beds for the first 3 years with potential for additional beds in the future; includes existing office space to allow service providers to be co-located on-site; includes space for a future Bakersfield Police Department substation; includes adjacent 10-acres of vacant land which can be redeveloped in the future for economic growth. Site 2 – 601 Brown Street: a 1.89-acre property with 9,500 sq-ft of office space and 22,800 sq-ft of warehouse space; able to accommodate 150 beds for the first 3 years with potential to add beds in the future; office trailers or warehouse renovation would be needed to allow service providers to be on-site; a dining tent and other portable amenities would need to be installed. The Facility would be professionally run in accordance with a Good Neighbor Policy to ensure the Facility is safe, clean and has minimal impacts on surrounding neighborhoods. The Facility would host service-providers on-site to ensure that homeless residents are connected with resources to help transition to permanent housing. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Additional information can be obtained at the community meetings or at the project website: https://bakersfieldcity.us/shelter. Page 1 TRIP projects are moving rapidly through the various stages of project development. This report is to provide a periodic up-to-date snapshot of each project’s recent major activities and progress. If you have questions, or need additional information, please contact Janet Wheeler at the TRIP office, (661) 326-3491. Regular project updates are also available on the TRIP website at BakersfieldFreeways.us MILESTONES  The New Year begins with construction underway on TRIP’s final projects. As the year moves forward we will see the completion of the Kern River Bridge Improvements (Centennial Corridor Phase 1), the State Route 43/Stockdale Highway roundabout, the 24th Street Improvement Project, and the Belle Terrace Operational Improvements (Centennial Corridor Phase 2). We will see significant progress on the remaining phases of Centennial Corridor as construction moves forward in 2020.  We will also bid a fond farewell to Alan Tandy when he retires this month as Bakersfield’s longest- serving city manager. Mr. Tandy’s accomplishments are numerous, but the TRIP team would like to express our utmost appreciation for his leadership of this unique transportation program. Many improvements have been made to metropolitan Bakersfield’s transportation system during the past 14 years, including the construction of a new 8-mile freeway, several new interchanges, and various improvements on highly travelled corridors. These projects created hundreds of jobs and other economic benefits, and ultimately provide Bakersfield residents with improved circulation and shorter commute times. Mr. Tandy’s leadership proved invaluable through every phase of project development (environmental, engineering design, right-of-way acquisition, and construction), but the community can be most grateful for his financial stewardship. When the program first launched in 2006, it was projected that the City would have to borrow $270 million to complete the TRIP projects. Following years of prudent financial oversight, which included a constant search for potential savings and funding sources, the City’s borrow amount dropped to zero in 2018. We will miss Mr. Tandy’s leadership, but wish him the best as he explores new horizons. January 2020 TRIP Status Report TRIP Status Report January 2020 Page 2 PROJECT STATUS 24th Street Improvement Project Contractor: Griffith Company 58% complete; anticipated completion: spring 2020 Access to and from the north side of 24th Street remains closed at Spruce Street, Pine Street, Cedar Street, and Alder Street. Drainage work continues along 24th Street, between D Street and State Route 178. Two westbound lanes are open to traffic. On 23rd Street, crews are working on road improvements that will smooth out the “S” curve between B Street and D Street. Crews are also working to complete the cul-de-sac on the south side of B Street at 24th Street—final paving for the cul-de-sac is planned for January. The contractor completed various sidewalk and driveway improvements along 23rd Street last month. This work is nearly complete. A traffic switch is anticipated in late January for 24th Street between Oak Street and Bay Street. Westbound traffic will be moved onto the new pavement on the north side of the road to allow work on the median to commence. Electrical and irrigation work continues at various locations within the project area. Centennial Corridor All phases of the Centennial Corridor project are under construction. Final completion is anticipated in summer 2022. Phase 1 - Kern River Bridge Improvements Contractor: Security Paving Company 96% complete; anticipated completion: early 2020 This phase constructed new bridges across Truxtun Avenue and the Kern River for the future Centennial Corridor (State Route 58) westbound exit to Mohawk Street and widened the existing eastbound bridges at the Kern River and Truxtun Avenue to accommodate the future mainline lanes. Work continues on the eastbound Westside Parkway on-ramp from Mohawk Street. This work is expected to be completed in January. Crews continue to form and place concrete for bridge barrier rails on the new bridges. Bridge profiling and grinding was done in December and the contractor plans to complete the final grinding of the bridge decks in January. Daytime lane closures should be anticipated for the inside eastbound and westbound lanes on the Westside Parkway, between Coffee Road and Truxtun Avenue, in January. Paving continues at various locations within the project area. Final striping and sign placement are also expected to be underway in January. Electrical and fiber optic work also continues. TRIP Status Report January 2020 Page 3 Phase 2 – Belle Terrace Operational Improvements Contractor: Granite Construction 60% complete; anticipated completion: fall 2020 This phase includes the replacement of the Belle Terrace Bridge and a new connector structure for northbound State Route 99 to eastbound State Route 58 traffic. In December, nearly 30,000 cubic yards of soil was removed from the east side of northbound State Route 99 and transported to a site north of California Avenue for new embankment. The dirt was removed to allow for retaining wall construction along the outside shoulder of the freeway. Work on the cast-in-place concrete textured facing is expected to be underway along the full length of the retaining wall by spring. Construction of the retaining wall is expected to continue into the summer months. Belle Terrace Bridge construction continued in December. The bridge is constructed in two stages and crews placed 655 cubic yards of concrete for the bridge girders and bottom deck for the first stage last month. The concrete pour cast the bottom deck and girders for about 70% of the bridge. Crews will strip the forms from the bottom deck and girders in January and continue with utility relocations through the bridge shortly thereafter. Construction of the east bridge abutment is underway and a concrete pour is planned for the end of the month. The current traffic handling configuration along Wible Road and State Route 99 is expected to remain in place through spring 2020. Phase 3 – Bakersfield Freeway Connector Contractor: Security Paving Company 26% complete; anticipated completion: summer 2021 This phase of Centennial Corridor reconstructs the westbound to southbound loop ramp at the State Route 58/State Route 99 interchange. The project also moves the southbound State Route 99 entrance to the Ming Avenue off-ramp and constructs a barrier-separated connector ramp to Ming Avenue. Construction continues on the westbound State Route 58 bridge widening and the new structure for the southbound State Route 99 to Ming Avenue off-ramp. Crews are placing forms, rebar and concrete for the abutments and columns on both structures. This work will continue through January. Work is also underway on various drainage systems, the Elcia retention basin, and the new Belle Terrace Pump Plant. Phase 4 – Mainline Contractor: Security Paving Company 13% complete; anticipated completion: summer 2022 This phase constructs the freeway between State Route 99 and the Westside Parkway. Construction is underway for the La Mirada Drive bridge abutments and columns. La Mirada Drive is closed at the alignment, but motorists can use Marella Way to cross the corridor. Roadway excavation continues between La Mirada Drive and Marella Way. Earthwork was ongoing last month for the new embankment at Commerce Drive. The contractor has completed embankments for new bridge structures at Ford Avenue and California Avenue. Pile driving for these bridge abutments continues. Construction is also underway on the bridge abutments at Real Road. Work will continue in all of these areas through the next month. TRIP Status Report January 2020 Page 4 State Route 43/Stockdale Highway Roundabout Contractor: Griffith Company 70% complete; anticipated completion: spring 2020 This project replaces an existing 4-way stop with a roundabout at the State Route 43 (Enos Lane) and Stockdale Highway intersection. The contractor completed the majority of asphalt paving and stamped concreted for the splitter islands in December. This work is expected to be completed in the next few weeks. Sign installation is underway and will be completed in advance of opening the roundabout and Enos Lane on the north side of Stockdale Highway in January. Work will then switch to the south side of the project where the contractor will complete the roundabout’s remaining splitter islands and pavement. Final work for the project includes the construction of a retention basin and retaining wall. Please note: winter rain and other inclement weather conditions can impact construction activities and project schedules. Many activities cannot be performed in the rain, when the ground is wet, or when temperatures are too low. Caltrans does not allow lane and ramp closures during rain or foggy conditions. Construction activities may be canceled and rescheduled without prior notice. TRIP staff appreciates the public’s patience as our contractors make the necessary scheduling adjustments to work around changing weather conditions. TRIP Status Report January 2020 Page 5 PROJECT PHOTOS Top left: The contractor completed the embankment for the bridge abutment on the south side of Ford Ave. Top right: Excavation for the mainline is underway between La Mirada Drive and Marella Way. The future freeway will be below grade in this area. Middle left: Concrete was placed for new bridge columns at Real Road in December. Bridge abutment construction continues on both sides of the road. Bottom left: New column construction is underway (in the median and on the east side of the northbound SR 99 lanes) to widen the westbound SR 58 bridge. Bottom right: Work continues on the Ming Avenue off- ramp bridge abutment. Additional work in the general area includes construction of the Belle Terrace Pumping Plant and storage box. TRIP Status Report January 2020 Page 6 Top left: The widened Kern River Bridge will carry both eastbound and westbound Centennial Corridor traffic. (Existing bridge, carrying eastbound traffic to the Truxtun Avenue off-ramp, is on the left.) Top right: Median paving on the Westside Parkway Middle: Iron workers finish placing reinforcing steel for girders at the Belle Terrace Bridge. Bottom left: 655 cubic yards of concrete were placed for the Belle Terrace Bridge girders and bottom deck last month. The concrete pour cast the bottom deck and girders for about 70% of the bridge’s length. Bottom right: Construction of the Belle Terrace Bridge’s east abutment is underway and a concrete pour is planned for late January. TRIP Status Report January 2020 Page 7 Top left: Drainage work continues on 24th Street Top right: Crews complete new sidewalk and ADA ramps along 23rd Street Middle left: Grading for street improvements on 23rd Street at the “S” curve Middle right: Electrical crews install new signals at the Oak Street/24th Street intersection Bottom left: Paving at SR 43 and Stockdale Highway for the new roundabout Bottom right: North side of the new roundabout at SR 43 and Stockdale Highway BOX OFFICE HOURS Mon-Fri 10 AM - 5 PM (Excluding Event Days) CHARGE-BY-PHONE 1-888-929-7849 GROUP SALES INFORMATION 661-852-7309 SEASON TICKET INFORMATION Bakersfield Condors 661-324-PUCK (7825) www.bakersfieldcondors.com Bakersfield Symphony 661-323-7928 www.BSOnow.org Broadway In Bakersfield 661-852-7308 Week of December 30th UPCOMING EVENTS December 31 – Condors vs Ontario5 PM $38, $28.50, $23, $19, $16, $12 On Sale Now January 10 – CSUB Hockey vs UCSB7:00 PM $10 On Sale Now January 25 – Monster Trucks 1:30/7:30 PM $43, $24, $21, $19, $14 On Sale Now February 17 – Harlem Globetrotters2:00 PM $90, $70, $54, $42, $33, $25, $18 On Sale Now February 20 – Blake Shelton 7:00 PM $109, $89, $69, $49 On Sale Now February 27-29 – CIF Wrestling Champs All-Session Passes On Sale - $92, $80 (Reserved), $56 (GA) March 2 – KISS 7:30 PM $39.50 to $1000 On Sale Now March 12&13 – AXEL By Cirque Du Soleil7:30 PM $130 to $35 On Sale Now March 14 – AXEL By Cirque Du Soleil4 & 7:30 PM $130 to $35 On Sale Now March 15 – AXEL By Cirque Du Soleil1:30 PM $130 to $35 On Sale Now March 17 – JoJo Siwa w/The Belles7:00 PM $66.50, $46.50, $36.50 On Sale Now April 4 – PBR Velocity Tour 7:00 PM $150, $100, $68, $49, $37, $25, $15On Sale Now June 22 – Hillsong Worship 7:30 PM 49.50, 44.50, 39.50, 27.50, 20.00 On Sale Now January 4 – Wilie Nelson & Family 8:00 PM $150, $132, $92, $72, $52 On Sale Now January 7 – Sesame Street Live 6:00 PM $63, $38, $33, $28, $23, $18 On Sale Now January 8 – Sesame Street Live 10:30A/6 PM $63, $38, $33, $28, $23, $18 On Sale Now January 10 – Pancho Barraza 8 PM $149, $109, $80, $70, $65, $50 On Sale Now January 24 – George Lopez 8:00 PM $56.50, $36.50 On Sale Now February 1 – Bak Symphony Orchestra7:30 PM $45, $35, $30, $20 On Sale Now February 14 – Los Yonics y Los Caminantes8:00 PM $99, $70, $60, $50, $40, $30 On Sale Now February 17 – The Bachelor Live 7:00 PM $153, $75, $55, $48, $38 On Sale Now March 14 – Dustin Lynch 8:00 PM $54, $34 On Sale Now March 31 – Dancing With The Stars Live!8:00 PM $79.50, $59.50, $35.50 On Sale Now April 8 – Baby Shark Live!6:00 PM $55, $45, $35 On Sale Now April 26 – Brett Young 8:00 PM $52, $32 On Sale Now May 6 – Celtic Woman 7:00 PM $150, $69, $39 On Sale Now www.mechanicsbankarena.com - www.spectrumamphitheatre.com THEATER