Memorandum

City of Lawrence

Public Transit

TO:	Dave Corliss, City Manager
FROM:	Cliff Galante, Public Transit Administrator
CC:	Debbie Van Saun, Assistant City Manager
Date:	October 30, 2006
RE:	Determining Use of Available KDOT Transit Funding

Staff Recommendation

Staff recommends that available Kansas Department of Transportation, Federal Transit Administration Section 5309 Capital Discretionary Funding that the City of Lawrence has received in the amount of $491,839 be used in it’s entirety towards addressing fixed-route vehicle replacement needs. 

Background

The City of Lawrence received an FTA Section 5309 earmark in FY03 in the amount of $491,839.  This earmark was originally designated to be used for a “Bus Transfer Center” but was subsequently changed to “Bus and Bus Facilities” last year when the City decided a transfer center was no longer a priority.   Since the earmark was not spent under TEA-21, it was carried over into the new Transportation Bill called, SAFETEA-LU, and it’s lapse date was extended until September 30, 2006. 

In order to access funds, an earmark must be obligated.  An earmark is obligated through the submission of a grant application.  Grant approval requires that all projects listed in the application are first environmentally cleared.  When a grant is submitted upon environmental clearance, it normally takes up to three months to be approved and for the available funds to be released from the Federal Government.  The FTA was concerned that any environmental clearance and grant submission activities by the City may not be completed prior to the September 30, 2006 lapsing date since no decision had been formally reached by the City Commission on pursuing a Bus Maintenance Facility which was a suggested use of those funds.  As such, the City potentially risked having these funds lapse, meaning they would no longer be available, unless the funds could be used for a different purpose such as bus acquisition where the environmental clearance process is minimal.

Earlier this year, the City received a Section 5309 grant from KDOT in the amount of $1,000,000 as an incentive to address capital needs towards coordinating City and University transit systems.  Since the City is the designated recipient of all Federal and State transit funds, the City used this funding to acquire five transit vehicles to operate the University of Kansas West Campus Park and Ride Facility. 

In an effort to assist the City to avoid having any available funding lapse, representatives from the FTA and KDOT both recommended that the FY03 transit earmark the City received in the amount of $491,839 be used to help acquire the transit vehicles to be used for the KU park and ride facility.  The City would then receive $491,839 under another grant received by KDOT that could be used at a later point for another purpose.

As recommended, the FY03 transit earmark the City received was used to help acquire transit vehicles since it was evident the City would have likely lost funding since no environmental work had been completed for a bus maintenance facility.  $508,161 of the $1,000,000 available in KDOT funds was also used towards acquiring vehicles for the KU Park and Ride.  Presently there is a balance of $491,839 that the City needs to obligate through KDOT. 

KDOT is currently in the process of developing a grant application for this available earmark that will include $491,839 for any transit capital project that the City designates, as well as other KDOT projects.  KDOT representatives have asked City Staff provide them with project information as soon as possible so that they can move forward with submitting a grant application to FTA.

City Commission Action:

Staff respectfully requests to utilize $491,839 to address the City’s fixed-route vehicle replacement needs.