Common use of Draft Environmental Document Public Review Clause in Contracts

Draft Environmental Document Public Review. The Draft Project Report (DPR) for the project was approved on May 27, 2020. Caltrans filed a Notice of Completion for the Draft IS/EA with the State Clearinghouse on May 29, 2020. The filing of the Notice of Completion began a public review and comment period that extended from May 29, 2020, to June 30, 2020. The public had more than 30 days to review and comment on the document. Notice of the Draft IS/EA circulation and public meeting was provided in following ways: • Newspaper advertisements were placed in the East Bay Times print editions of May 29, June 5, June 12, and June 19, 2020, as well as in the online editions between June 2 and 17, 2020. • Notices were mailed to approximately 2,500 addresses within 0.25 mile of the project area, along with approximately 200 other agency and local stakeholders. • Meeting information was posted on ▇▇▇▇▇.▇▇▇ and the ▇▇▇▇▇.▇▇▇ local community websites for Dublin, Pleasanton, San ▇▇▇▇▇, and Fremont. • Caltrans emailed announcements to the project email list, which included attendees of the October 2018 public meetings. • Caltrans mailed announcements to elected officials and emailed announcements to staff that represent the officials. In lieu of having one or more in-person meetings, a virtual open house was held for the protection of public health, in accordance with State of California Executive Order N-25-20 (March 12, 2020) and subsequent State and local orders limiting in-person gatherings due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The virtual open house took place on Thursday, June 18, 2020, from 6 PM to 8 PM. The open house began with a presentation providing an overview of the project and the environmental process, followed by a question and answer session. Attendees were invited to submit questions via an online chat function. Eighteen members of the public attended. A phone number was provided for technical help, translation, or assistive materials before, during, or after the meeting. No requests were received. The purpose of the meeting was to encourage public involvement and comments, as well as to give the public an opportunity to view project information and ask questions of project team members. Attendees were encouraged to submit comments in writing via postal mail, email, or a comment form on Alameda CTC’s project web page (▇▇▇.▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇.▇▇▇/▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇). Comments were requested to be submitted by 5 PM on Tuesday, June 30, 2020. A total of 19 comments were submitted during the public review and comment period. Comments included recommended revisions to avoidance, minimization, and mitigation measures; requests for consideration of an express bus as a project alternative; questions about the noise study, the analysis of induced demand, the project’s consistency with state climate change goals, and the project’s potential to affect traffic in the Niles Canyon section of SR 84; and requests for information about the project and schedule. All formal comments are addressed and responses are included in the Final IS/EA.