2002-096 - Certifying the Environmental Impact Report for the Grand Avenue Street Widening Project

Home Browse Search

· Contribution to a cumulative loss of residential units in the City. · Substandard level of service (LOS) at the Santa Ana Boulevard/Interstate 5 (I-5) high occupancy vehicle (HOV) ramps intersection during the PM peak hour in 2020. · During construction of the proposed Grand Avenue widening project, short term noise levels would exceed the applicable City standards. Acquisition and removal of residences at 702 and 714 North Grand Avenue which appear to be eligible for listing on the Santa Ana Register of Historic Property. BENEFITS OF THE PROPOSED GRAND AVENUE WIDENING PROJECT Although there are mitigation measures which reduce these significant unavoidable adverse impacts, as described in the Findin(]s and Facts and in the EIR for the proposed widening project, these impacts cannot be mitigated to below a level of significance. Alternatives 1 and 2 would result in similar unavoidable adverse impacts. Alternative street widening projects, under which other streets in the City of Santa Ana would be widened instead of Grand Avenue, would also be expected to result in similar unavoidable adverse impacts. As required by Sections 21081(a)(3) of CEQA and Section 15093 of the CEQA Guidelines, the City of Santa Ana must document those specific considerations and benefits of the proposed project to support findings that either additional mitigation or alternatives are infeasible and that the significant unavoidable adverse impacts of the proposed project are acceptable in light of these benefits. These benefits will be taken into consideration by the City of Santa Ana prior to the approval of the proposed project by the City Council. CONSISTENCY WITH THE MASTER PLAN OF ARTERIAL HIGHWAYS The proposed project will improve Grand Avenue between Seventeenth Street on the north and First Street on the south as specified in the City of Santa Ana General Plan Circulation Element and the Orange County Master Plan of Artedal Highways (MPAH) designations of Major Artedal for this road segment. The Circulation Element and the MPAH were developed and adopted by the City and the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), respectively, based on coordinated planning of transportation infrastructure and land development in the City and the County. Incomplete development of the General Plan Circulation Element and the MPAH, if Grand Avenue is not improved, would result in transportation infrastructure insufficient to support existing and planned development in the City and this part of the County. Implementation of the proposed Grand Avenue widening project will ensure that the City's Circulation and Land Use Elements are implemented consistent with each other and other Elements of the General Plan. Resolution No. 2002-096 Page 18 of 19