Report to the Commission: May 22, 2024
Personnel
New Appointments
- Pierce Gould – Pierce started with MTC in March 1997 as an Assistant Planner/Analyst. His last day with MTC was May 2, 2024, as a Principal Planner/Analyst in the Field Operations and Asset Management section.
Updates
MTC/ABAG Annual Advocacy Trip to Washington, D.C.
Last week I was joined by Commissioners Canepa and Dutra-Vernaci as well as ABAG President Belia Ramos and Vice President Jesse Arreguin along with MTC staff Georgia Gann Dohrmann, Rebecca Long and Theresa Romell on our annual trip to Washington. Meetings were held with members and staff of the Bay Area Congressional delegation, and officials with the U.S. Department of Transportation and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. We were honored to have California Senator Alex Padilla, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi and FHWA Administrator Shailen Bhatt join us along with several other members of Congress at the California Transportation reception which we co-host each year with the Southern California Association of Governments and other partner agencies.
SCAG 59th annual Regional Conference & General Assembly
At this year’s annual event, conference attendees gathered with other local and regional leaders to collaborate on fundamental issues, such as mobility, housing and communities, the environment and the economy. Similar to our ABAG General Sessions, the audience was made up of elected policy makers from Southern California and the state. As one of five panelist on the session “Thriving Regions: How Planning Together Enables Local Successes” I noted that we all have similar challenges in combating housing, transit operations, and climate.
FHWA/FTA Certification Commends Public Engagement
The FHWA and FTA this month jointly certified MTC's planning process as "a continuing, cooperative, and comprehensive process [that] reflects a significant professional commitment to deliver quality in transportation planning." The federal review, which occurs every four years, specifically commended us on our innovative outreach and engagement practices utilized during the development of Plan Bay Area 2050.
Bay Wheels Bikeshare Debuts in San Mateo County
MTC and Lyft kicked off National Bike Month by joining with partners from BART, SFMTA and Daly City to cut the ribbon on a new Bay Wheels bikeshare station at the Daly City BART station. The new docking station marks the first Bay Wheels location in San Mateo County. I was delighted to be joined at the event in Daly City by Commissioners Canepa and Papan, and by San Francisco Supervisor Myrna Melgar, Daly City Mayor Juslyn C. Manalo, SFMTA Transportation Director Jeffrey Tumlin and representatives from BART, Lyft, San Francisco Bicycle Coalition and Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition.
MTC, CARB, TransForm Unveil New Mobility Hub at San Jose Apartment Complex
Residents of the Betty Ann Gardens Apartments in San Jose’s Berryessa district celebrated the opening of a new mobility hub, developed through a partnership between the MTC and the Oakland-based nonprofit TransForm to expand mobility options and lower transportation costs for lower-income renters. The hub includes electric vehicles and chargers that can be shared by community residents; e-bikes, folding bicycles and secure bike parking; and a monitor with realtime arrival information for nearby transit services. I’d like to thank Commissioners Mahan, Chavez and Abe-Koga for their participation, and also our staff member Krute Singa for her leadership in establishing the mobility hub.
Caltrain Electric Train Tour and 160th Anniversary
Commissioner Abe-Koga, former Commissioner and now Senator Cortese, and other state and local elected officials were in San Carlos on May 11 for a celebratory event and tour of Caltrain's new, modern electric trains. Guests including MTC staff Alix Bockelman and Melanie Choy enjoyed exploring the spacious interiors, learning about the new features and getting a glimpse of what Caltrain will be like in 2024 and beyond.
MTC Staff Ascend to Leadership Positions at COMTO
The Northern California Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO) this month held its Board of Directors election for the 2024-26 term. MTC staff members were elected to two of the five open positions. DeNise Blake will serve as the COMTO Chapter President for the next two years, and Luz Campos will serve as Treasurer. DeNise and Luz both work in the agency’s Facilities and Contract Services section. They will be sworn into their new COMTO positions next month.
College Mentorship Program to Honor Late Deputy Executive Director
To honor former Deputy Executive Director Ann Flemer, who died earlier this year, MTC’s internship program for college students will be renamed the Ann Fitzgerald Flemer College Mentorship Program. Ann began her 32-year career at MTC as a college intern herself in 1982, and over the following decades she became a cherished mentor to an entire generation of leaders at MTC and at many of our partner agencies. Throughout her career, Ann was a champion for young people’s access to transportation and an advocate for their participation in the planning process. I will make this same announcement tomorrow afternoon at a celebration of Ann’s life to be held here at the Bay Area Metro Center. Staff will implement the name change after this news has been shared with Ann’s family and the other guests.
Bike Month and 2024 Bike Champion of the Year Winners
May is National Bike Month, and the 2024 Bike Champion of the Year awards recognize individuals nominated by the public for inspiring bicycling in their communities, honoring riders in each of the nine Bay Area counties for their commitment to cycling as a primary mode of transportation.Read more about the winners in each of the nine Bay Area counties on the MTC website.
Portal Project Enters Engineering Phase
FTA notified the Transbay Joint Powers Authority that the Portal project (the extension of Caltrain service, and ultimately California High-Speed Rail, to the Salesforce Transit Center) is entering the engineering phase of the Capital Investment Grant at a federal share of $3.38 billion—a significant milestone toward a Full Funding Grant Agreement. This project aligns with the Commission’s priorities for both the FTA program and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Competitive Grants Strategy. The FTA funding represents 41% of the total Portal project budget and is a significant federal investment in downtown San Francisco. Speaker Emerita Pelosi attended a celebratory event for the Portal on May 20th.
Objective Standards for Multifamily Housing: Introducing MTC-ABAG's Objective Design Standards Handbook
MTC-ABAG’s Objective Design Standards Handbook provides a how-to manual for local governments seeking to create objective design standards. An April webinar introduced this new resource intended to help planners develop standards for multi-family residential and mixed-use projects. The webinar video and slides, as well as the Handbook and related materials,are available on the ABAG website.
Looking Ahead
State of the San Francisco Estuary Conference Re-scheduled
The State of the San Francisco Estuary Conference has been re-scheduled for May 28-29 at the Oakland Scottish Rite Center. The event was cancelled in March because the previous venue was not ready. More information: San Francisco Estuary Partnership.