Primary Department: County Engineer
Primary Department Head/Elected Official: Milton Rahman, PhD, P.E., PMP, CFM, ENV SP, County Engineer
Secondary Department: N/A
Secondary Department Head/Elected Official:
Regular or Supplemental RCA: Regular RCA
Type of Request: Grant - Award
Project ID (if applicable): N/A
Vendor/Entity Legal Name (if applicable): N/A
MWBE Contracted Goal (if applicable): N/A
MWBE Current Participation (if applicable): N/A
Justification for 0% MWBE Participation Goal: N/A - Goal not applicable to request
Grant Indirect Costs Rate (if applicable): N/A
Justification for 0% Grant Indirect Costs Rate (if applicable): Infrastructure (Design, Construction, Maintenance)
Request Summary (Agenda Caption):
title
Request by the Office of the County Engineer for approval to accept from the U.S. Department of Transportation grant funds in the amount of $1,200,000, with a required match of $300,000 from Precinct 4, for the Reconnect Alief Planning project.
end
Background and Discussion:
Harris County’s proposed “Reconnect Alief Planning Project,” includes planning from a community centered effort, focused on reconnecting communities along the Westpark Tollway in Harris County’s Alief community. Reconnect Alief is an opportunity to build on this transformative infrastructure investment by leveraging the strengths of RCN in one of the most socioeconomically vulnerable communities along the Tollway and to:
• Conduct deep engagement around the legacy of the Tollway on communities in Alief
• Examine the land use orientation of the surrounding communities and prepare recommendations for Walkable Places™ designation by the City of Houston
• Identify catalyst redevelopment and connectivity projects to align new development and public infrastructure with a multimodal Westpark Tollway
This project is in DOT’s disadvantaged census tracts, which is an important application scoring criteria by USDOT. In addition, the proposed project focuses on DOT required criteria such as equity in transportation, community connectivity, bicycle network, and safety. The grant agreement with the USDOT is in the attachment for execution.
Expected Impact:
The proposed improvement will provide the safe mobility and connectivity projects to align new development and public infrastructure with a multimodal Westpark Tollway.
Alternative Options:
To not accept the award for the FY-2023 Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods (RCN) grant, and fund project at 100% cost.
County Strategic Plan Goal: 2. Connect our community with safe, reliable, equitably distributed, and well-maintained infrastructure.
County Strategic Plan Objective: F: Ensure safety and security for all using the county’s transportation network in alignment with the County’s Vision Zero plan.
Justice/Safety Initiative (Goal 1): N/A
Infrastructure Initiative (Goal 2): F1: Strengthen the County’s commitment to Vision Zero principles and goals.
Economy Initiative (Goal 3): N/A
Health Initiative (Goal 4): N/A
Climate/Resilience Initiative (Goal 5): N/A
Housing Initiative (Goal 6): N/A
Additional notes related to the Strategic Plan: N/A
Prior Court Action (if any):
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Date |
Agenda Item # |
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Action Taken |
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9/19/23 |
242 |
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Approval to submit the FY-23 RCN Application to USDOT |
Location:
Address (if applicable): Project limits Highway 6 on the west; Beltway 8 on the east; Richmond Ave on the north; Bellaire Blvd on the south
Precinct(s): Precinct 4
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Fiscal and Personnel Summary |
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Service Name |
FY-23 Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods Grant (RCN) |
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Additional Budget Request (Requires Fiscal Review Request Form) |
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Grants - Proposed Budget (To be filled out by Grants staff only) |
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$300,000 |
2 |
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Local Match Source - Additional Budget Request: Choose an item. |
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Grant Funds Applied for/Awarded (Total) |
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$1,200,000 |
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Personnel (Fill out section only if requesting new PCNs) |
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Current Position Count for Service |
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Additional Positions Request |
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Total Personnel |
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Anticipated Court Date: 2/6/2025
Anticipated Implementation Date (if different from Court date): 10/1/2024
Emergency/Disaster Recovery Note: Not an emergency, disaster, or COVID-19 related item
Contact(s) name, title, department: Patrick Mandapaka, PhD, AICP, Director of Community Planning and Transportation, Harris County Engineering
Attachments (if applicable): Approved 9/19/24 Court Action #242, Grant Funding Agreement from USDOT, Email signature block from CAO,