BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: acr 126
SENATOR ALAN LOWENTHAL, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: davis
VERSION: 4/19/10
Analysis by: Jennifer Gress FISCAL: yes
Hearing date: June 15, 2010
SUBJECT:
El Salvador Community Corridor
DESCRIPTION:
This resolution recognizes a portion of Vermont Avenue in the
City of Los Angeles as El Salvador Community Corridor and
requests the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans)
to erect appropriate signs on State Highway Route 10.
ANALYSIS:
Caltrans is the agency responsible for the state highway system,
including the regulation and erection of signs within the
highway right-of-way.
Existing law, enacted by AB 2823 (Benoit), Chapter 238, Statutes
of 2004, allows Caltrans to place and maintain signs on state
highways directing motorists to communities within the
geographical boundaries of a city, county, or city and county if
all of the following conditions are satisfied:
The name of the community is culturally unique and
historically significant.
The name of the community has resulted from the influence of a
culture over a significant period of time.
The general public and media commonly recognize the name of
the community.
The community is located within a city, county, or city and
county.
ACR 126 (DAVIS) Page 2
Signs are consistent with the signing requirements for the
state highway system.
The geographical boundary of the community is within three
miles of the state highway exit.
Trailblazing signs are installed on the appropriate streets or
roads prior to installation of signs on the state highway.
The city, county, or city and county provides funds from
nonstate sources that cover all costs for the placement and
maintenance of signs.
The governing body of the city, county, or city and county in
which the community is located adopts a resolution that does
the following:
o Designates the name of the community that is to be used
on directional signs.
o Defines the geographical boundaries of the community.
o Requests Caltrans to post signs on state highways.
In addition, Caltrans administers two other programs that allow
for signage that directs motorists off the highway toward
certain destinations.
The first is the Tourist-Oriented Directional Signs (TODS)
Program, which is a program designed to guide travelers to
California's tourist attractions. The signs, which have generic
symbols indicating the type of attraction (e.g. a bunch of
grapes and the word "wineries"), must conform to federal
standards and may only be placed in rural areas on uncongested
freeways where a sign would not pose any traffic danger or
disrupt the free-flowing movement of vehicles.
Businesses such as wineries, gift shops, restaurants, and arts
and crafts shops may qualify, if certain eligibility
requirements are met. Caltrans does not permit signs that are
located on freeways or expressways, on congested highways,
within any city limits, or within areas of population exceeding
50,000. It does not permit signs if the business is adjacent to
and visible from the highway or if it has on-premise or
off-premise signing.
The second sign program that Caltrans administers is the
ACR 126 (DAVIS) Page 3
Business Logo Signing Program, which is designed to direct
motorist unfamiliar with the area to "FUEL", "FOOD", "LODGING",
and "CAMPING" services at or near rural freeway interchanges.
Under the program, Caltrans furnishes, installs, and maintains
service signs within the highway right-of-way. The businesses
represented provide the logo panels to include on the service
signs.
Caltrans also erects signs showing the official name or
designation of certain highway segments, interchanges, or other
transportation facilities as expressed through the passage of a
resolution by the Legislature requesting that designation.
Finally, Caltrans is also responsible for maintaining the Manual
on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), which defines the
standards used by road managers to install and maintain traffic
control devices on all public streets, highways, bikeways, and
private roads open to public traffic. In addition to signs like
stop signs and traffic signals, the MUTCD includes guidance and
standards for signs that identify recreational, cultural, and
historical areas of interest.
This resolution :
Recognizes the area of Vermont Avenue between Adams Boulevard
and 11th Street in the City of Los Angeles as the "El Salvador
Community Corridor."
Requests Caltrans to determine the cost of erecting
appropriate signs, consistent with the signing requirements
for the state highway system, and, upon receiving donations
from nonstate sources sufficient to cover that cost, to erect
those signs at the eastbound and westbound exits to Vermont
Avenue on SR 10.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose . According to the author, this resolution is needed
"to help the Salvadoran Community provide existing and future
property owners with an assortment of community services that
will help increase its economic livelihood, improve its social
cultural well-being, and encourage community pride."
The author notes that Los Angeles is one of only two cities in
the United States without a majority population. People from
140 countries, who speak approximately 86 languages, currently
ACR 126 (DAVIS) Page 4
call Los Angeles home. There are over 500,000 El Salvadorans
living in Los Angeles, a large majority of which live in the
Pico Union area of the city, where El Salvador Community
Corridor is at least partly situated.
2.Related legislation . This resolution is modeled after AB 516
(Cedillo), Chapter 100, Statutes of 2001, which required
Caltrans to erect signs on SR 10 recognizing the
"Byzantine-Latino Quarter," which is also located in the Pico
Union neighborhood and appears to overlap with a portion of
the El Salvador Community Corridor.
3.Need for the resolution ? As noted above, existing law, which
was established after AB 516 (Cedillo) was enacted, authorizes
Caltrans to erect signs directing motorists to specific
communities that are "culturally unique and historically
significant," provided there is local support for such an
effort. It is unclear why this resolution is needed. The
committee may wish to hold the resolution until the author
demonstrates that the statutory criteria for erecting signs
that direct motorists to specific communities has been met.
4.Bill instead of a resolution . If the author's intent is to
erect signage for a community using a process that is in
conflict with that which is prescribed in current law, it may
be more appropriate for the author to advance his objective
through a bill rather than a resolution.
5.Need for local "trailblazer" signs . The area recognized as El
Salvador Community Corridor is located on city streets.
Caltrans typically erects signs along freeways identifying
attractions or places of interest when a local entity has made
some commitment to place signs on the local streets that will
then direct motorists to the place after motorists have exited
the freeway. This policy is in place to avoid directing
motorists off the freeway without a clear destination and
provides a mechanism to demonstrate local support for the
freeway signage. It is unclear whether or not the City of Los
Angeles intends to erect signs on city streets identifying the
El Salvador Community Corridor or directing motorists to it.
The author or committee may wish to consider an amendment that
would make this resolution effective once the City of Los
Angeles passes a resolution that supports the measure and/or
commits to erect signs, consistent with the signing standards
of the state, on the local streets in order to identify the
area for motorists.
ACR 126 (DAVIS) Page 5
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 71-0
Appr: 16-0
Trans: 13-0
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the Committee before noon on
Wednesday,
June 9, 2010)
SUPPORT: None received.
OPPOSED: None received.