Title
Department of Transportation recommending the Board:
1) Receive a presentation on the Mount Murphy Road at South Fork American River - Bridge Replacement Project, CIP 77129/36105029; and
2) Approve the process for a new Underground Utility District in the area of Coloma as part of the project and direct Transportation staff to begin the preliminary work and public outreach necessary for its establishment. (Est. Time: 30 Min.)
FUNDING: Highway Bridge Program (100%). (Federal Funds)
Body
DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND
The Mount Murphy Road at South Fork American River - Bridge Replacement Project (Project) environmental studies and draft environmental document are nearing completion, and the Project design has continued to progress. A brief Project update presentation will be provided to share the status and overview of the Project features. The intent of this update is to assist in understanding the overall Project design features, constraints, and how the undergrounding of the utilities will benefit the final Project.
Overhead utility poles and guy wires can be considered roadside hazards; an Underground Utility District (UUD) can help eliminate these risks. Due to the considerable community input and the benefit to this rural community area, Department of Transportation (Transportation) staff recommend the Board consider the formation of a new UUD along Mount Murphy Road as part of the Project, to further improve the aesthetics and safety of the Coloma community by eliminating the existing highly visible utility poles and overhead lines along primary transportation routes.
Transportation staff has attended site visit meetings with Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) to propose feasible and logical boundaries of this proposed UUD. The proposed UUD would extend slightly beyond the limits of the proposed Project as described in its current draft environmental documents, as shown in Attachment B. The proposed boundaries of the UUD are laid out to encomp...
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