Agenda Item Wording:
title
Consultant contract award - Authorize the City Manager to award three (3) consultant contracts to Love to Ride for the non-infrastructure programs for the Highland Community connectivity, Santa Fe Street bike lanes, and the Goshen-Visalia corridor connection projects in the amount of:
1.) Highland Community connectivity: $425,127
2.) Santa Fe Street bike lanes: $428,113
3.) Goshen-Visalia corridor connection: $416,077
body
Agenda Date: 06/15/2026
Prepared by:
Cody McLaughlin, Associate Engineer, Cody.Mclaughlin@visalia.gov (559) 713-4595
Dolores Verduzco, Financial Analyst, Dolores.Verduzco@visalia.gov (559) 713-4540
Rebecca Keenan, Senior Civil Engineer, Rebecca.Keenan@visalia.gov, (559) 713-4541
Chris Crawford, City Engineer, chris.crawford@visalia.gov, (559) 713-4331
Jason Huckleberry, Engineering and Building Department Director, Jason.Huckleberry@visalia.gov, (559) 713-4495
Department Recommendation:
Staff recommends that City Council authorize the City Manager to award three (3) consultant contracts to Love to Ride for the non-infrastructure programs for the following projects and amounts:
1.) Highland Community connectivity project: $425,127
2.) Santa Fe Street bike lanes project: $428,113
3.) Goshen-Visalia corridor connection project: $416,077
Summary:
The City of Visalia received an award of funding from the Active Transportation Program (ATP), Cycle 7, for infrastructure improvements to improve safety and promote active modes of transportation for the three (3) projects listed below. As part of the three projects that were awarded, the grant funding included a non-infrastructure component for each individual project. The non-infrastructure component consists of an educational campaign focused on walking and biking safety which will be implemented by disseminating information on the City’s website, implementation of an online geo-spatial encouragement platform, and through community engagement events. These required components are all part of grant scopes further detailed in the report. This staff report focuses on the non-infrastructure component of each project.
1. Highland Community connectivity project
2. Santa Fe Street bike lanes project
3. Goshen-Visalia corridor connection project
Background Discussion:
The ATP is a state-administered grant program created to encourage increased use of active modes of transportation. The purpose and goals of the ATP include the following:
• Increase the proportion of trips accomplished by biking and walking.
• Increase the safety and mobility of nonmotorized users.
• Advance the active transportation efforts of regional agencies to achieve greenhouse gas reduction.
• Enhance public health, including reduction of childhood obesity.
• Ensure that disadvantaged communities fully share in the benefits of the program.
• Provide a broad spectrum of projects to benefit many types of active transportation users.
Cycle 7 of the ATP is funded by various federal and state funding sources. The ATP is a highly competitive statewide program and, in the State of California, is the only state dedicated funding program for walking and biking projects. For Cycle 7, approximately $569 million was estimated to be available for award for active transportation projects. The Budget Act of 2024, signed by the Governor in June 2024, included a $400 million reduction to the ATP from General Funds appropriated to the program in the 2022 California State Budget. This reduction decreased the total funding availability for Cycle 7 of the ATP to approximately $169 million.
This reduction further increased the competitiveness of the program. A total of thirteen (13) projects were awarded funding through the Statewide and Small Urban and Rural components of the Active Transportation Program. The City of Visalia was awarded funding for three (3) projects, receiving a combined total of $51,468,000 in ATP funds to support projects that encourage the increased use of active modes of transportation.
The funding applications submitted to the ATP for each project included both an Infrastructure (IF) component, which supports construction of corridor improvements, and a Non-Infrastructure (NI) component focused on public education and outreach. A non-infrastructure component was included with each funding application to increase the probability of receiving an award of funds from the highly competitive ATP. The table below summarizes the ATP funding awarded for each project.
|
No. |
Project Title |
Infrastructure ATP Funds |
Non-Infrastructure ATP Funds |
Total ATP Funds Awarded |
|
1. |
Highland Community Connectivity (State Funded) |
$4,950,000 |
$520,000 |
$5,470,000 |
|
2. |
Santa Fe Street Bike Lanes (State Funded) |
$10,870,000 |
$520,000 |
$11,390,000 |
|
3. |
Goshen-Visalia Corridor Connection (Federally Funded) |
$34,308,000 |
$300,000 |
$34,608,000 |
|
|
Total |
$50,128,000 |
$1,340,000 |
$51,468,000 |
Infrastructure components:
The infrastructure components of these grants include the Highland Community Connectivity project, the Santa Fe Street Bike Lanes and the Goshen-Visalia Corridor Project. The designs of these projects have been or will be discussed with Council in detail as the projects progress.
Non-Infrastructure Component (NI):
The non-infrastructure component (NI) is intended to support public education and community outreach related to active transportation. The non-infrastructure program is structured as a citywide initiative focused on education, encouragement, and safety awareness related to walking and bicycling. While the program will help familiarize residents with improvements associated with each infrastructure project, the activities funded through this component are not limited to the project area and will be implemented throughout the City of Visalia.
Planned activities include community initiatives focused on bicycle and pedestrian safety, such as bicycle skills classes, guided community rides, and in-person education and encouragement aimed at increasing awareness and promoting safe walking and bicycling practices. The educational campaign will include the development of a city webpage, implementation of an online geo-spatial encouragement and education platform to promote safe cycling resources and provide education and encouragement about the health benefits of walking and biking and onsite community events.
The outreach and educational components to the non-infrastructure projects were included as part of the scope for the NI components of the ATP applications. The onsite community events scope includes events such as bike rodeos, community bike rides led by experienced cyclists, and bicycle friendly training events. The online educational and encouragement component is listed in the applications as the adoption of an online geo-spatial biking encouragement platform and the procurement of a consultant firm with expertise in biking education, community engagement and capacity building. The multilingual online hub would be free to community users and the process would collect demographic data and real-time feedback from users.
These efforts are intended to encourage safe use of active transportation facilities and support broader mobility and safety goals across the community. Consultant efforts will coordinate and lead around 400 community outreach opportunities across the three ATP projects over a project timeline of 3 years.
Consultant Procurement
In January 2026 the city issued a request for proposals (RFP) for professional consultant services for the active transportation program (ATP) non-infrastructure (NI) programs in support of the city’s three (3) state and federal ATP grant funded projects. Proposal submissions closed on February 10, 2026 and the city received three (3) proposals: Interwest, 4creeks, Love to Ride. Proposals were evaluated by 3 city project managers and scored.
Through the consultant proposal evaluation process, Love to Ride was selected as the most qualified consultant. Love to Ride illustrated a clear understanding of the project, project requirements, and project outcomes within their proposal. In addition, Love to Ride showed a history of experience with the outreach and education within the subject matter.
Fiscal Impact:
Each ATP application included the contribution of local matching funds to achieve the maximum points in the leveraging category of the funding application. The table below provides a summary of the amount of ATP funds awarded for the NI component and the local match, consisting of Measure R funds, for each project.
|
No. |
Project Title |
ATP NI Funds |
Measure R Trailways |
Measure R Local |
Total Budget |
|
1. |
Highland Community Connectivity |
$520,000 |
|
$71,000 |
$591,000 |
|
2. |
Santa Fe Street Bike Lanes |
$520,000 |
$71,000 |
|
$591,000 |
|
3. |
Goshen-Visalia Corridor Connection |
$300,000 |
$291,000 |
|
$591,000 |
|
|
Total |
$1,340,000 |
$362,000 |
$71,000 |
$1,773,000 |
|
ATP NI Project Budgets |
|
1) Highland Community Connectivity Summary: |
|
|
Consultant Services - award amount |
$425,127 |
|
City Staff Time |
$153,000 |
|
Project Contingencies |
$12,873 |
|
Highland Community NI Project Total: |
$591,000 |
|
|
|
2) Santa Fe Street Bike Lanes Summary: |
|
|
Consultant Services - award amount |
$428,113 |
|
City Staff Time |
$153,000 |
|
Project Contingencies |
$9,889 |
|
Santa Fe Bike Lane NI Project Total: |
$591,000 |
|
|
|
3) Goshen-Visalia Corridor Connection Summary: |
|
|
Consultant Services - award amount |
$416,077 |
|
City Staff Time |
$153,000 |
|
Project Contingencies |
$21,923 |
|
Goshen-Visalia Corridor Connection NI Project Total: |
$591,000 |
|
|
|
|
Total ATP NI Project Budget: |
$1,773,000 |
Prior Council Action:
November 3, 2025: The City Council accepted and authorized the appropriation of funds awarded from the ATP of $51,468,000 and the appropriation of local matching funds from the Measure R Local Fund and the Measure R Trailways Fund.
May 20, 2024: The City Council authorized the submission of funding application for the ATP funding (Cycle 7) for four (4) capital improvement projects.
Other: None
Alternatives: None Recommended.
Recommended Motion (and Alternative Motions if expected):
recommendation
I move to authorize the City Manager to award three (3) consultant contracts to Love to Ride for the non-infrastructure programs for the following projects and amounts:
1.) Highland Community Connectivity: $425,127
2.) Santa Fe Street Bike Lanes Project: $428,113
3.) Goshen-Visalia Corridor Connection Project: $416,077
Environmental Review:
CEQA Exemption
Deadline for Action:
06/15/2026
Attachments:
1. Love to Ride Proposal
2. Love to Ride Fee Proposal - Goshen
3. Love to Ride Fee Proposal - Highland
4. Love to Ride Fee Proposal - Santa Fe
5. Consultant Ownership Disclosure Form
6. Draft Contract
Strategic Goal:
|
☐ Economic Vitality |
☐  Organizational Excellence |
☐ Fiscal Strength |
☒  Infrastructure & Growth |
☒  Quality of Life |