Planning

Riverside Reconnects Steering Committee

The PowerPoint presentation from the August 26, 2015 Steering Committee meeting is available for download here:

Steering Committee Meeting #5 Presentation

The 5th Steering Committee meeting focused on potential funding strategies and funding sources. As a result of the meeting, the Committee discussed several possibilities related to phasing, conceptual costs, implementation challenges, and funding sources. Further refinement of project feasibility is pending the draft feasibility study, expected to be complete by mid-2016.

Please contact Principal Planner Jay Eastman or Senior Planner David Murray if you have any questions. Jay can be reached at jeastman@riversideca.gov, or 951-826-5264. David can be reached at dmurray@riversideca.gov, or 951-826-5773.

Riverside Reconnects Steering Committee

The PowerPoint presentation from the August 5, 2015 Steering Committee meeting is available for download here:

Steering Committee Meeting #4 Presentation

The next meeting of the Riverside Reconnects Steering Committee is scheduled for Wednesday, August 26, 2015 at 6:00 pm in the Mayor’s Ceremonial Room, City Hall. The focus of this meeting will be a discussion of funding strategies and sources.

Also, please remember to share your input on the Preliminary Preferred Alignment via the online survey. Your input is extremely important.

Preliminary Preferred Alignment Survey

Please contact Interim City Planner Jay Eastman or Senior Planner David Murray if you have any questions. Jay can be reached at jeastman@riversideca.gov, or 951-826-5264. David can be reached at dmurray@riversideca.gov, or 951-826-5773.

Preliminary Preferred Alignment – We Want Your Feedback!

We are soliciting your feedback on a Preliminary Preferred Alignment. The map below shows the 14-mile Primary Alignment, Potential Phase 1 of the Preferred Alignment, and Future Potential Alignment Extensions. Please note that this alignment is based on feedback received at two community meeting and three Steering Committee meetings, along with preliminary economic, ridership, and physical barrier data. These alignments are solely for study purposes. Should City Council direct staff to move forward with a streetcar or other transit system, alignments will need to be evaluated in much more detail and in a public forum.

Click the map image to view enlarged version
Map of Entire Alignment

Map of Potential Phase 1

The Preliminary Preferred Alignment analyzed under this feasibility study runs from UC Riverside (UCR) to Riverside Community College (RCC), connecting to destinations in the Downtown, and then south along Market Street and Magnolia Avenue, ending at the La Sierra Metrolink Station and La Sierra University. The eastern terminus is generally located at the gateway to UCR near intersection of Blaine Street and Canyon Crest Boulevard, and extends south along Canyon Crest to Linden Street. From there it extends west to Iowa Avenue and then south to University Avenue. It then proceeds west along University Avenue with a loop to the Downtown Metrolink Station, and then continues to Market Street. At Market Street, the route runs south along Magnolia Avenue to La Sierra Avenue. At La Sierra Avenue, it heads south to connect to the La Sierra Metrolink Station. The last leg returns north along La Sierra Avenue, turning west onto Pierce Street and then south on Riverwalk Parkway, to connect to La Sierra University. If this Preferred Alignment is chosen by the City Council for further study, the terminus location at UCR will be evaluated and finalized based on traffic considerations and coordination with the University.

Potential Phase 1 of the Preferred Alignment is identified as a 4.6-mile starter line connecting UCR to RCC. A spur line, which branches off the main service alignment at the Downtown Metrolink Station, is being considered on Commerce Street and Third Street, This maintenance spur (no passenger service) would provide access to a potential maintenance yard in the industrial zones north of Third Street. The actual maintenance yard would be considered at a later date as part of a more detailed analysis, should Council choose to further evaluate a streetcar system.

Future phases would consider alternative alignments and or/spur lines from the Preferred Alignment. As shown on the map, these include: an extension from Chicago Avenue to Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard; a Downtown couplet along Orange Street and Lemon Street; and a loop from Arlington Avenue to Van Buren Boulevard, to Indiana Avenue, to Madison Street and back to Arlington Avenue.

We would appreciate your comments on the preliminary preferred alignment, and the Potential Phase 1 of the streetcar system. Please click on the link below to access a brief survey.

Survey

Background Reports Available

Two documents are now available for public review: the Summary Existing Conditions Report, and the Initial Assessment Report. Links for both are located below. The Summary Existing Conditions Report analyzes existing demographics, the local economy, growth projections, and the existing transportation system. It provides the baseline for evaluating alternative streetcar alignments. The Initial Assessment Report evaluates six potential streetcar alignments that were developed through discussions with the community, the project Steering Committee, and the City. Based on the analysis and further input from the project Steering Committee, four alternative alignments were identified for further study.

Existing Conditions Report
Initial Assessment

Riverside Reconnects Steering Committee

The next meeting of the Riverside Reconnects Steering Committee is scheduled for Wednesday, August 5, 2015 at 6:00 pm in the Mayor’s Ceremonial Room, City Hall.

The remaining two Steering Committee meetings are tentatively scheduled for August 26th and September 23rd, 2015 at 6:00 pm. Location to be confirmed.

Please contact Interim City Planner Jay Eastman or Senior Planner David Murray if you have any questions. Jay can be reached at jeastman@riversideca.gov, or 951-826-5264. David can be reached at dmurray@riversideca.gov, or 951-826-5773.

Riverside Reconnects Steering Committee

The next meeting of the Riverside Reconnects Steering Committee has been rescheduled for Wednesday, February 25, 2015 at 6:00p in the Mayor’s Ceremonial Room, City Hall..

Please contact Principal Planner Jay Eastman if you have questions. Jay can be reached at jeastman@riversideca.gov, or 951-826-5264.

January 28, 2015 Steering Committee Postponed

The third Riverside Reconnects Steering Committee meeting, scheduled for January 28, 2015, has been cancelled.

Additional time is necessary to evaluate the potential alignments and prepare the Preliminary Alignments Report.

The third meeting of the Steering Committee is tentatively scheduled for late February. Please contact Principal Planner Jay Eastman if you have questions. Jay can be reached at jeastman@riversideca.gov, or 951-826-5264.

Thank you to all of the individuals that attended and participated in the Community Charrette held on September 24, 2014 at the Cesar Chavez Community Center.

Approximately 40 participants attended this meeting and provided valuable information that will guide the direction of the Streetcar Feasibility Study. Following a brief presentation by the consultant team, the participants were asked to break into small groups to discuss a variety of topics, including: proposed alignment (route) opportunities; key destinations and connection opportunities; system technology options; opportunities for land use changes; and key evaluation criteria to consider throughout the feasibility study.

The results of the Community Charrette, as well as the feedback from an Eastside Leadership Academy mini-charrette held on October 8, 2014, are available for download on the right column of this page. The Streetcar Feasibility Study Steering Committee will consider this information in the selection of the preferred alignment alternatives and technology opportunities. The next Steering Committee meeting will be held in January, 2015.