The purpose of the Federal Lands Access Program is to provide funds for roadways, bridges, trails and transit systems that are located on, are adjacent to, or provide access to federal lands. The emphasis of the program is on projects that provide access to high-use recreation sites or are economic generators. In January 2017, the U.S. Department of Transportation's Central Federal Lands Highway Division issued a call for projects for $60-$70 million anticipated to be available in California from the program through 2022. Applications are due May 12.
Given the Fort Ord Regional Trail and Greenway's links to the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary and the Fort Ord National Monument, this project is an excellent candidate for this federal funding. In addition, the Federal Lands Access Program funding is not available until 2020/21, which is an appropriate time frame for this project, and future grant cycles are not likely to occur for two to three years.
TAMC staff is coordinating with the Federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to request approximately $5.95 million in grant funding to support project development and construction of this 4.35-mile segment (Attachment 1). This project, once built, will enhance access to the Fort Ord National Monument and is part of a larger effort to connect communities on the former Fort Ord military base to each other. The Monument currently has 400,000 visitors, and is a major contributor to the outdoor recreation and ecotourism in Monterey County. However, access from the communities along the Monterey Bay is limited because the two official entrances to the Monument are on the eastern side. This project will provide the public with new access points to the Monument from the west.
The project is consistent with the goals and policies in the Regional Transportation Plan and Bicycle & Pedestrian Master Plan to promote safer bicycling and walking facilities and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Since its inception in 2012, the project has achieved several key milestones. In August 2015, the TAMC Board directed staff to assist in identifying funding for the project. In March 2016, the Fort Ord Reuse Authority Board of Directors adopted a draft trails concept of the FORTAG alignment. In April 2016 the City of Marina included $50,000 for integrating the trail into its city planning documents. In November 2016, Monterey County voters approved Measure X with a $20 million allocation for FORTAG.
Staff recommends adopting Resolution 2017-13 authorizing the Executive Director to submit the application by the May 12, 2017 deadline (Attachment 2). Applications will reviewed and ranked by representatives from Caltrans, the County Engineers Association of California and Federal Lands Highway Division. TAMC will be notified in July if the project has made the short list. If the project is short-listed, TAMC will enter into a reimbursement agreement with the Central Federal Lands Highway Division for a not-to-exceed amount of $10,000 to complete project scoping efforts to refine the project scope, schedule and budget.