Title
Supervisor Parlin and the Department of Transportation recommending the Board:
1) Receive an update on the Coloma Retaining Wall Art Work on HWY 49; and
2) Provide conceptual approval to move forward with an application to CalTrans.
Body
The South Fork Arts and Recreation (SoFAR) group is proposing to put an art sculpture in the Caltrans right-of-way on the retaining wall of the new Highway 49 bridge in Coloma. The sculpture is metal and plastic, roughly 21' tall by 100' long and proposed to be attached to the new retaining wall at the intersection of Lotus Road and Hwy 49, adjacent to the American River. SoFAR has been working on the design with small groups in the area for several years, and are now at the point they want to make an application to Caltrans.
The County must make the formal application on SoFAR’s behalf and will propose mutual agreements transferring any cost, liability and maintenance required by the state on to SoFAR.
The original plan was for SoFAR to present the sculpture to the Coloma Lotus Advisory Committee (CLAC) in March for their approval and recommendation to the Board of Supervisors. The Board would then agendize the project for consideration and a resolution supporting the project, followed by the application to Caltrans. After the Caltrans review, a Board Item would be agendized for a final approval, along with the maintenance and funding agreements.
Given the current Stay In Place orders there isn't an opportunity to take the item to CLAC, however SoFAR would like to continue with the project and make an application to Caltrans. The application requires a signature by an authorized representative of the Local Agency.
Today’s update is to ensure that the Board conceptually approves the project and supports that the Transportation Director signs the application to begin the Caltrans process. The Caltrans process will likely take upwards of a year, and there will likely be changes required to meet their requirements. At the end of that process the item will be brought back to the Board for final approval and execution of the maintenance agreements. This approach allows for the review process to start and Caltrans to make changes so that a more developed item is brought to the board for approval and resolution. In the meantime the project can proceed while we wait for opportunities for public meetings hopefully later in the season.
If the project loses support or gets scrapped or changed significantly to the point it has to go back through the Caltrans process, the risk would be on SoFAR.
DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND
The Coloma Retaining Wall Artwork project is a proposed metal artwork sculpture installed on the retaining wall at the intersection of Highway 49 and Lotus Road in the Coloma and Lotus river valley. This metal sculpture will include colored polyethylene and will be bolted to the existing 291' long and 14 ' high cement
retaining wall with a 6' high clearance above the roadway. Projected lifespan is 30 years and installation will be done in segments to simplify installation and long-term maintenance. (see attached Coloma Art Exhibit Illustrations)
The project site is a retaining wall along the Hwy 49 roadway with an 8 foot shoulder. The wall art will extend 7' above the top height of the wall and extend horizontally along the retaining wall for 100'.
The process to develop this artwork started two years ago with outreach to community volunteers and stakeholders. A volunteer design committee of a dozen plus community members helped initiate the creative process of developing artwork ideas. Over the last couple of years there have been 5 opportunities for community members and local stakeholder groups to weigh in on the design proposal (see attached SoFAR Letter). Multiple revisions and additions have been made from that feedback.
ALTERNATIVES
The alternative would be to wait until the Stay In Place orders are lifted and the public can participate at a CLAC meeting.
PRIOR BOARD ACTION
N/A
CONTACT
Shelley Wiley x6513