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CC Resolution 2019-039 Dune Plams Bridge Reso of Necessity - DWCG1 RESOLUTION NO. 2019 – 039 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF LA QUINTA, CALIFORNIA, DECLARING THE PUBLIC INTEREST AND NECESSITY TO ACQUIRE PORTIONS OF PROPERTY LOCATED ON DUNE PALMS ROAD, ASSESSOR PARCEL NO. 600-030-018, AND APPROVING AND ADOPTING A RESOLUTION OF NECESSITY PROJECT: DUNE PALMS BRIDGE NO. 2011-05 / 111205 APN: 600-030-018 WHEREAS, the City of La Quinta, has been investigating the acquisition of portions of property located at 46400 Dune Palms Road for the purposes of making public roadway improvements pursuant to the circulation element of the General Plan of the City of La Quinta; and WHEREAS, on September 17, 2019, after no less than fifteen (15) days written notice to the owners of the Property referenced above, and more specifically described in the legal descriptions and plat maps attached hereto as Exhibits 1-6, which legal descriptions and plat maps are incorporated herein by reference (“Property”), the City Council of the City of La Quinta held a hearing for the purposes of allowing the record owners and occupants of such property reasonable opportunity to appear and be heard regarding the City's identification of the “Project” as the Dune Palms Bridge Project (“Project”), and on the following matters: A. Whether the public interest and necessity require the project; B. Whether the Project is planned or located in a manner which is most compatible with the greatest public good and the least private injury; C. Whether the Property proposed to be acquired is necessary for the Project; D. Whether the offer required by Government Code § 7267.2 had been given to the owners of record; and E. Whether the City had properly exercised all of its statutory responsibilities and duties antecedent to the exercise of eminent domain against the Property including environmental review under NEPA and CEQA; and Resolution No. 2019-039 Dune Palms Bridge Project – Resolution of Necessity; APN: 600-030-018 Adopted: September 17, 2019 Page 2 of 7 WHEREAS, the City Council, as a result of such hearing, has determined that the public health, safety and welfare require that the City acquire the Property more particularly described herein for the purposes of the Project; and WHEREAS, the Project for which the Property to be acquired is sought has previously been reviewed under applicable environmental review procedures, including the Mitigated Negative Declaration (“MND”), EA 2017- 0013, approved on February 14, 2018, in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) and a National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) Categorical Exclusion, approved by the Federal Highway Administration (“FHWA”) on January 17, 2018; and WHEREAS, the City of La Quinta is authorized to acquire the Property under authority of its own charter, and Government Code §§ 37350.5 and 40404. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of La Quinta, California, that the City Council does hereby find, determine and declare upon evidence presented to the City Council as follows: SECTION 1. The project for which the property is being acquired is the Dune Palms Bridge Project, a project to replace the existing low water crossing with an all-weather access bridge on Dune Palms Road at the Coachella Valley Storm Water Channel, and to improve Dune Palms Road to its General Plan designated roadway width. The Project will widen Dune Palms Road to its ultimate right-of-way. The final configuration of the roadway will consist of 72 feet of street section curb-to-curb, with two 11-foot travel lanes in both directions, a 12-foot wide raised median, an 8-foot bicycle/golf cart lane along each side of the road (adjacent to the curb), and a 6-foot sidewalk to allow for two lanes of travel along Dune Palms Road in either direction and provide other streetscape improvements. SECTION 2. The Property to be acquired is located within the City at Dune Palms Road and bears Assessor Parcel No. 600-030-018. The Property interest the City seeks to acquire consists of: (1) a permanent roadway and public utilities easement over approximately 9,926 square feet, as more specifically described in Exhibit 1 hereto, and depicted in Exhibit 2 hereto, as follows: A perpetual exclusive easement for public right-of-way, street, drainage, pedestrian and utility purposes, including all use of the Resolution No. 2019-039 Dune Palms Bridge Project – Resolution of Necessity; APN: 600-030-018 Adopted: September 17, 2019 Page 3 of 7 permanent roadway and public utilities easement area for purposes incident to public right-of-way use, including but not limited to the construction, maintenance, and operation of a roadway, or other transportation facilities, underground and above ground utilities and appurtenances, cable communication or telecommunication facilities; directional, street identification, or roadway informational signage; traffic control devices; curbs; gutters; sidewalks; drainage and sewage facilities; and transportation facilities such as bus bays, benches, bus or train stops, bicycle pathways, or facilities for railway or other public transportation vehicles or manners of conveyance. (2) a non-exclusive permanent slope easement over approximately 2,848 square feet of the property, more specifically described in Exhibit 3, and depicted in Exhibit 4 hereto, as follows: The slope easement is a permanent, nonexclusive easement allowing the holder thereof to place, maintain, landscape, irrigate, grade, protect, and utilize slopes on and over the property more specifically described and depicted in Exhibit 3 and 4 hereto (“slope easement area”), for the purposes of providing and maintaining lateral and subjacent support of bridge, roadway, and related improvements to be constructed consistent with the approved construction plans for the Dune Palms Bridge Project (“Project’). The holder of the slope easement shall access the slope easement area only from adjacent public rights of way, shall limit all construction, maintenance, or grading activity to the slope easement area, and except in cases of emergency posing an immediate threat to public health and safety, shall provide not less than seventy two (72) hours’ notice to the owner of the underlying property of any entry for any construction, maintenance, or grading activity on the slope easement area. (3) a temporary construction easement over approximately 1,536 square feet of the property, more specifically described in Exhibit 5, and depicted in Exhibit 6 hereto (“Property”), as follows: The temporary construction easement is a nonexclusive easement which permits City of La Quinta, its officers, agents, employees, and contractors, to enter upon, occupy, and pass over the temporary construction easement area more specifically described in the legal description, attached as Exhibit 5 and Exhibit 6, from adjacent public rights of way, as reasonably necessary for Resolution No. 2019-039 Dune Palms Bridge Project – Resolution of Necessity; APN: 600-030-018 Adopted: September 17, 2019 Page 4 of 7 purposes incidental to the construction of the Project in the manner proposed. The temporary construction easement shall include the right to perform within the temporary construction easement area, all such necessary activities which are reasonably incidental to the construction work being performed on said property in connection with the Project in the manner proposed, including any necessary excavation; grading; earth fill; compaction; slough or perimeter wall construction; installation of concrete forms; landscaping; irrigation, utility, and sign relocation; accommodation of private drainage facilities; and deposit of tools, equipment, and material. Such incidental activities shall include, but not be limited to, utilizing the temporary construction easement area for adjusting grade differentials between the street and the adjoining real property, and/or matching existing concrete and/or asphalt paved areas, and/or natural grade areas, or such work as may pertain to on-site improvements by the City of La Quinta to render the temporary construction easement area in the same functional condition as reasonably practicable to the condition before the Project in terms of access, irrigation, and relation of public right- of-way improvements to the larger parcel. The temporary construction easement shall not include the right to store any materials or park any vehicles which are not incidental to the work to be performed on site in connection with the Project, nor to block all vehicular access to the larger parcel of property of which the temporary construction easement area is a part, nor exercise the uses of the easement outside of the temporary construction easement area, nor to exclude the owner or occupant of the larger parcel from the temporary construction easement area, except as reasonably necessary under standard public works construction safety practices, to ensure public safety. In connection with the exercise of the temporary construction easement rights hereunder, and except as otherwise shown in the approved plans for the Project, City shall protect all structures on the temporary construction easement area in place, and shall protect or restore all improvements thereon. The rights granted hereunder shall commence on the date the Project right-of-way is certified and shall continue in full force and effect until written notice to the owner of record that the temporary construction easement is no longer needed by the City, Resolution No. 2019-039 Dune Palms Bridge Project – Resolution of Necessity; APN: 600-030-018 Adopted: September 17, 2019 Page 5 of 7 or forty eight (48) months after notice of the initiation of the temporary construction easement, whichever is earlier. In no event shall the temporary construction easement remain in effect after December 31, 2025. Upon termination of the temporary construction easement, the temporary construction easement area shall be restored to a condition that is as functionally equivalent as is practicable to its condition prior to the commencement of the work, consistent with the Project as designed and as to be construed in the manner proposed. City shall in the exercise of its non-exclusive rights under this Temporary Construction Easement not unreasonably interfere with pedestrian or vehicular access to the larger parcel of which the Property is a part. The permanent roadway easement, slope easement, and temporary construction easement are referred to collectively as the “Property.” SECTION 3. The public interest and necessity require the Project, in that the City's General Plan, and specifically the Circulation Element, calls for the improvement of Dune Palms Road in the manner contemplated by the Project. The Project is designed to relieve regional traffic congestion and improve the ability of traffic to navigate over areas prone to flooding, which will enhance the traffic handling capacity of the streets. SECTION 4. The Project is located in a manner most compatible with the greatest public good and least private injury, in that the design of the roadway widening must of necessity occupy land which is immediately adjacent to the existing roadway, in order to maintain the continuity of the alignment of the road for all users. The Project is designed in a manner compatible with the greatest public good, in that the Project will involve improvements to allow for two lanes of travel along Dune Palms Road in either direction, and provide other streetscape improvements, in addition to constructing a bridge crossing over the Whitewater River at Dune Palms Road. In addition to enhanced circulation along Dune Palms Road, the Project will provide bicycle/golf cart lanes along each side of the road, encouraging these alternate modes of energy-efficient transportation, and will also provide a 6-foot sidewalk. This will enhance the utility of the area and help improve traffic circulation. The Project is designed in a manner compatible with the least private injury in that the acquisition has been limited to the Project boundaries, so as to minimize disruption to private property. The scope of the temporary construction easements has been restricted to define reserved uses for the owners to Resolution No. 2019-039 Dune Palms Bridge Project – Resolution of Necessity; APN: 600-030-018 Adopted: September 17, 2019 Page 6 of 7 minimize disruptions, and to limit the City’s uses to activities necessary or beneficial to Project construction. SECTION 5. The Property is necessary for the proposed Project, in that the bridge must of necessity be constructed on property immediately adjacent to the existing flood channel, and the roadway improvements must occur adjacent to the existing roadway, to maintain continuity. SECTION 6. The offer required by Government Code § 7267.2 has been made to the record owners, by way of letter dated June 10, 2019. Staff has attempted to negotiate with the record owners subsequent to this offer, but such negotiations have not proved successful in securing all the necessary property interests required for the Project, outside of more formal proceedings. SECTION 7. To the extent any of the property to be taken herein is devoted to a public use, the City finds that the proposed use for the Project is compatible with, or more necessary to, such public use, and that the City is authorized to acquire the Property pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure §§ 1240.510 and 1240.610. SECTION 8. The Project has been reviewed and approved under the Mitigated Negative Declaration, EA 2017-0013, approved on February 14, 2018. The Project was the subject of a Categorical Exclusion approved by the FHWA on January 17, 2018. The City Council finds and determines that since the time of the adoption of that MND, there have been no subsequent changes with respect to the circumstances under which the Project is to be undertaken, no new information of substantial importance regarding significant effects or mitigation measures or alternative which has become available, and no subsequent changes have been proposed in the Project which would require important revisions to the MND such that no further environmental review attending this proposed acquisition is necessary. SECTION 9. The law firm of Rutan & Tucker, LLP, which serves as the Office of the City Attorney for the City of La Quinta, is hereby authorized to prepare and prosecute in the name of the City, such special proceedings in the proper court having jurisdiction thereof, as are necessary for acquisition of the Property described herein, to prepare and file such pleadings, documents, and otherwise prosecute such actions as may be necessary in the opinion of such attorneys to acquire for the City the Property. Such attorneys are specifically authorized to take whatever steps and/or procedures are available to them under the Eminent Domain Law of the State of California, including, but not limited to, seeking orders for prejudgment possession of the property. The RESOLUTION NO. 2019-039 EXHIBIT 1 ADOPTED: SEPTEMBER 17, 2019 RESOLUTION NO. 2019-039 EXHIBIT 1 ADOPTED: SEPTEMBER 17, 2019 RESOLUTION NO. 2019-039 EXHIBIT 2 ADOPTED: SEPTEMBER 17, 2019 RESOLUTION NO. 2019-039 EXHIBIT 3 ADOPTED: SEPTEMBER 17, 2019 RESOLUTION NO. 2019-039 EXHIBIT 3 ADOPTED: SEPTEMBER 17, 2019 RESOLUTION NO. 2019-039 EXHIBIT 4 ADOPTED: SEPTEMBER 17, 2019 RESOLUTION NO. 2019-039 EXHIBIT 5 ADOPTED: SEPTEMBER 17, 2019 RESOLUTION NO. 2019-039 EXHIBIT 5 ADOPTED: SEPTEMBER 17, 2019 RESOLUTION NO. 2019-039 EXHIBIT 6 ADOPTED: SEPTEMBER 17, 2019