Rainier connector achievable, will provide traffic relief

We write to clarify issues raised in Mayor David Glass’ op-ed last week explaining his recent vote against certifying the final environmental impact report for the Rainier crosstown connector.

First, some background. When Petaluma is ready to build it, the Rainier interchange will require a Caltrans “design exception” because Rainier is only 0.9 miles from the East Washington interchange, which is less than Caltrans’ modern design standard of 1-mile separation between interchanges. The Rainier crosstown connector does not need a design exception.

City Hall has known for years that the process for obtaining a design exception is a Caltrans “Project Study Report.” The centerpiece of such a report is a “weaving study” showing whether cars merging onto the freeway or exiting off the freeway can do so without hindering traffic on the freeway.

City Hall has also known for years that Caltrans will only initiate a PSR or a weaving study once the city has demonstrated that it has the funds to pay for the interchange being studied. The city does not have those funds, which is why we have never asked for a PSR.

In contrast, the crosstown connector, which will pass under Highway 101 but not connect with it, does not need a design exception, a PSR or a weaving study.

With that background, we are disappointed that Glass is now essentially twisting a chicken or egg issue (nice Petaluma flourish) into an unsolvable Catch-22. It isn’t an unsolvable Catch-22, and Glass knows better.

Moreover, Glass is now shocked (shocked!) to discover that the final EIR for the Rainier crosstown connector, which the City Council approved on Aug. 3 by a 5-2 vote, doesn’t answer the question of whether Caltrans will provide a design exception for a Rainier interchange.

But the crosstown connector EIR was never going to answer that question, and Glass knew it all along. When the draft EIR came before the Council on Sept. 8, 2014 - in the run-up to last year’s elections - Glass voted along with the rest of the Council to direct preparation of the final EIR, even though the draft EIR also did not answer the Caltrans design exception question. Now that the election is safely in the rear view mirror, Glass has used an off-ramp (pun intended) he knew would be there to vote against the final EIR.

This crosstown connector EIR is particularly important because it provides environmental clearance for Caltrans to construct the Rainier undercrossing structure when that segment of Highway 101 is widened. Without environmental clearance, Caltrans would put a dirt embankment there instead, meaning that neither the crosstown connector nor the interchange could ever be built. Some of Glass’ supporters would be quite happy with that result.

Glass also paints an unduly pessimistic picture of Rainier’s finances. The full costs of the Rainier connector and interchange, as well as the extension of Caulfield Road across the river to Petaluma Boulevard South, and other improvements, are all included in the city’s development impact fee program. That means new development will provide the funding over time. The key part of that is “over time.”

Right now, there are development proposals either with approvals or in the review pipeline that are expected to pay at least $18 million in traffic impact fees towards the $38 million estimated net cost of the crosstown connector.

We anticipate that the City Council will consider placing a special sales tax measure on the November 2016 ballot, probably at the three-quarters cent level and expiring after 20 years, with a locked-in spending plan that would provide the $20 million needed to accelerate completion of the crosstown connector, plus about $80 million for street repairs, and much smaller amounts for a few other priorities. Polling indicates public support for such a measure is well above the two-thirds needed to pass.

Yes, this leaves the interchange for another day. But the crosstown connector alone provides very substantial traffic relief, particularly along East Washington. Given Caltrans’ protocols and the financial realities, the crosstown connector is what can be achieved now. And the interchange possibility is preserved.

One final point, Rainier’s opponents frequently complain about enabling development in the flood plain. At the Aug. 3 Council meeting, Mark Johnson, whose family owns the property on both sides of the Petaluma River that the crosstown connector will traverse, pledged that future development on their property (it’s zoned for apartments) will not include any buildings in the flood plain. Thus, concerns about flooding are unwarranted.

Mike Healy, Gabe Kearney and Kathy Miller are members of the Petaluma City Council.