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L S A FAIRVIEW BRIDGE REPLACEMENT AND STREET IMPROVEMENTS <br />(9TH STREET TO 16TH STREET( PROJECT INITIAL STUDY/MITIGATED NEGATIVE DECLARATION <br />SANTA ANAL CALIFORNIA MAY 2020 <br />vistas include views of mountains and hills, large, uninterrupted open spaces, and waterbodies. <br />Although the Fairview Street bridge crosses the Santa Ana River, this portion of the river is <br />engineered and concrete -lined and does not contain vegetation. The Project area is not designated <br />as a scenic vista by the City. <br />As identified above, Fairview Street is designed in the City's General Plan as a secondary City entries <br />corridor. Although construction and operation of the proposed Project would result in a change in <br />the visual environment, this change would be minimal because the proposed improvements would <br />connect with the existing circulation system and would be similar to existing conditions. In addition, <br />the proposed Project would replace the existing bridge structure with a new bridge of similar size <br />and scale that would not block any of the existing views in the vicinity of the Project area. Therefore, <br />the proposed Project would not substantially block or disrupt any views to scenic vistas compared to <br />existing conditions. Therefore, there would be no impact to scenic vistas, and no mitigation is <br />required. <br />b. Would the project substantially damage scenic resources, including, but not limited to, trees, <br />rock outcroppings, and historic buildings within a state scenic highway? <br />No Impact. Scenic resources are isolated occurrences of aesthetically pleasing natural or human - <br />made forms. Although the Fairview Street bridge crosses the Santa Ana River, this portion of the <br />river is engineered and concrete -lined and does not contain vegetation. Views of the Santa Ana <br />River are accessible from the existing Fairview Street bridge and from the Santa Ana River Trail <br />(SART). The replacement of the existing Fairview Street bridge over the Santa Ana River would not <br />create a change in the existing nature and magnitude of the SART, and would not block any of the <br />existing views of the Santa Ana River. <br />The nearest scenic highways to the Project area include SR-1, located approximately 8 miles (mi) <br />west of the Project, designated as a State Highway Eligible for State Scenic Highway, and SR-91, <br />located approximately 8 mi northeast of the Project, designated as an Officially Designated State <br />Scenic Highway. The Project area is not visible from either scenic highway as classified by the <br />Caltrans Scenic Highway Program in Orange County. Therefore, the proposed Project does not have <br />the potential to damage scenic resources from designated scenic highways. There would be no <br />impact to scenic resources or historic buildings within a designated State Scenic Highway. No <br />mitigation is required. <br />c. In non -urbanized areas, would the project substantially degrade the existing visual character or <br />quality of public views of the site and its surroundings? (Public views are those that are <br />experienced from a publicly accessible vantage point.) If the project is in an urbanized area, <br />would the project conflict with applicable zoning and other regulations governing scenic quality? <br />No Impact. The Project area is located in an urban area and is surrounded by residential, <br />commercial, and recreational uses. The visual character immediately surrounding the Project area is <br />representative of a built -out urban area containing a mix of residential, commercial, and open space <br />uses. Implementation of the proposed Project would result in a minimal change in the existing visual <br />environment because the proposed improvements would connect with the existing circulation <br />system and would be similar to existing conditions. In addition, the proposed Project would replace <br />3-2 758366ND\Final ISMND\Fairview Street Bridge Final ISMND.d.C.(05/26/20) <br />