75F - GP AMEND NO. 2004-06 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Public Hearing for General 2004-06 July 5, 2004 Page 2 Plan Amendment repealed the existing procedures and directed staff to develop revised rules and regulations The California Vehicle Code permits cities to prohibit entry to and from streets by means of curbs, barriers and other roadway design features for various purposes, provided they are implemented pursuant to the City's General Plan goals and in conformance with rules and regulations that have been adopted by the City Council. The proposed general plan amendment provides technical modifications to the provisions describing the Neighborhood Traffic Management Program in order to better conform to the vehicle code. Further, the proposed amendment will eliminate the requirement for a vote of the residents in the affected area prior to the implementation of a traffic plan. Additionally, the subject resolution will implement the revised rules and regulations for these Neighborhood Traffic Plans. These revised regulations will replace those previously used by staff and the Environmental and Transportation Advisory Committee (ETAC) when considering petitions for traffic plans. The most significant modifications are those that assign the final decision-making responsibility for plan implementation to the City Council, clarify that any polling of the residents of the area is only advisory, and eliminate the reference to a threshold for voter approval. Additionally, th modifications specify that public safety issues must be addressed in the traffic plans; establish the standards for conducting community polls; and incorporate the role environmental review, in conformance with the California Environmental Quality Act, in the project analysis. The revised rules and regulations reflect the policy of the City Council that these neighborhood traffic management plans must reflect a strong community consensus before they are permanently implemented. Within these revisions, ETAC maintains a pivotal advisory role. Consistent with the City's previous practice, neighborhood traffic plans will be developed in partnership with neighborhood representatives; this process is designed to maximize community participation and feedback. The plan will then be submitted to ETAC for review and recommendation to the City Council. During its review, ETAC will have the discretion of requesting a poll of the residents in the area of impact. Also, consistent with past practice, the procedures provide for the elements of a proposed plan to be temporarily installed in order to permit a study of traffic and other environmental impacts and to allow the community to understand the effects of the plan prior to a final decision. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT In accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act, a Declaration Environmental Review No. 2004-153 has been prepared project Negative for this. 75F-2