Garden Valley Elementary School New Cafeteria and Administrative Building Project
Summary
SCH Number
2025030733
Public Agency
Twin Rivers Unified School District
Document Title
Garden Valley Elementary School New Cafeteria and Administrative Building Project
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
3/18/2025
Document Description
The District proposes to demolish the existing cafeteria building, administration building, existing hardtop/paved surfaces (totaling 57,300 sf, including the surface parking lot [with existing utility poles and overhead lines] and pedestrian walkways); landscaping and trees within the northeastern portion of the campus. The District proposes to construct one new cafeteria and administration building with new utility connections; construct a low concrete wall/bench; install seating stones; install metal benching; install and replace utility poles with light poles; install two electric vehicle (EV) chargers, construct one trash enclosure; install three fire hydrants; install replacement fencing and metal gates; install decorative rolling gates; construct a bicycle locker and a bike rack; install a flagpole, install ornamental landscaping; repave the surface parking lot and pedestrian walkways; and provide circulation improvements within the surface parking lot (proposed project) (See Figure 5, Garden Valley Elementary School Site Plan). The proposed project will serve existing students within the District and will not modify the Garden Valley ES’s existing enrollment or capacity.
The proposed project’s components, including the driveway replacement, and storm drain and water utility connections, will be reviewed and approved by the City of Sacramento, and the sewer connection will be reviewed and approved by the Sacramento Area Sewer District.
The new replacement cafeteria and administration building will generally be in the same area as the existing cafeteria and administrative buildings within the northeastern portion of the campus. The new replacement cafeteria and administration building will be all electric building and encompass 11,306 square feet. The administration component of the building will encompass the eastern portion of the building and consist of a lobby with a clerical staff area, a principal’s office, a vice principals office, a nurse office, a staff room/work room, two storage rooms, an electrical room, a unisex restroom, a staff restroom, and a fire riser area accessible from an outside entrance to the north. The cafeteria component of the building will encompass the western portion of the building and consist of a kitchen area with a freezer/cooler room, a dry storage room, an office, a staff restroom, a stage area (with a sound room, a lift area, and a storage room), a multipurpose space (for cafeteria seating, an indoor basketball court, and seating for the stage) with a striped basketball court and a hanging basketball hoop, a custodial closet, and restrooms (a boys and girls restrooms). A screen wall and landscaping will be installed to the west of the new replacement cafeteria and administration building and include an attached outdoor drinking fountain. The area surrounding the new replacement cafeteria and administration will include new paved walkways, seating stones, low concrete wall/benches, a bike rack, metal benches, and a flagpole.
The surface parking lot at the northeastern area of campus will include improvements such as repaving the surface parking lot with new concrete, new striping and circulation improvements. Circulation improvements include reconfiguring the parking lot to separate the main parking area from the pick-up/drop-off zone and eliminating the shared driveway. The proposed project would include the construction of two driveways (Driveway 1 and Driveway 2) along Larchwood Drive. Driveway 1 will be located near the southern corner of the project site and will allow egress only. Driveway 2, the existing campus driveway, is located near the northern corner and would allow ingress only. Driveway 2 would provide access to two internal drive aisles. The eastern drive aisle would provide access to the parking lot, and the western drive aisle would provide access to the pick-up and drop-off area and a bus only drop-off area. Both drive aisles would connect to Driveway 1. The proposed project would provide an additional 20 feet of queuing length compared to the existing pick-up/drop-off zone. The parking lot would include 8 electric vehicle (EV) capable parking spaces and 29 standard parking spaces. One EV charging parking space and 2 accessible parking spaces, in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) would be provided north of the proposed building. Parking on campus will decrease from a total of 63 parking spaces to a total of 39 parking spaces (a net decrease of 24 parking spaces). The project would install 13 parking and walkway light poles within the parking lot area. Of the 13 proposed light poles, five would replace the existing utility poles with lighting attached and one would replace an existing pedestrian scale parking lot light (to be removed with the demolition of the existing surface parking lot); the remaining seven light poles would be new. Additionally, the project would include the installation of two EV chargers; one near the northeast corner of the proposed building and one within the northern portion of the surface parking lot, east of the proposed pick-up/drop-off lane.
The proposed trash enclosure will be located north of the northeast corner of the proposed building and will consist of a 6-foot wall with two swing gates. The bicycle locker will be located immediately west of the proposed trash enclosure. Three fire hydrants will be installed immediately east of the proposed trash enclosure.
Contact Information
Name
Kristi Hawks
Agency Name
Twin Rivers Unified School District
Job Title
Manager- Facilities Planning
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency / Project Applicant
Email
Location
Coordinates
Cities
Sacramento
Counties
Sacramento
Regions
Citywide, Northern California
Cross Streets
Larchwood Drive and Beechwood Way
Zip
95834
Total Acres
1.55
Parcel #
250-0390-034-0000
State Highways
Interstate 80
Railways
Union Pacific Railroad
Schools
Multiple
Waterways
Steelhead Creek, Arcade Creek
Township
09N
Range
05E
Other Location Info
The Garden Valley ES campus (campus) is at 3601 Larchwood Drive (Assessor Parcel Number [APN] 250-0390-034-0000) in the City of Sacramento. The City of Sacramento is bordered by unincorporated Yolo County and the city of West Sacramento to the west; unincorporated Sacramento County to the north; unincorporated Sacramento County to the east; and unincorporated Sacramento County and the city of Elk Grove to the south (see Figure 1, Regional Location). The campus, which includes the project site, is 0.50 miles south of Interstate 80 (I-80) and 2.25 miles east of Interstate 5 (I-5). The campus is bound by residential uses to the north and west, Beechwood Way to the south with residential uses across the street, and Larchwood Drive to the east with vacant land and commercial uses across the street.
The project site includes approximately 1.55 acres of the northeastern portion of the campus. The project site is surrounded by campus to the west and south, residential uses to the north, and Larchwood Drive to the east with vacant land and commercial uses across the street.
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
15301, 15303, 15311, 15314
Reasons for Exemption
The proposed project's parking lot and circulation improvement component, walkway improvements, and ornamental fencing/gate replacement are exempt from CEQA under Class 1, Existing Facilities (Section 15301 ). These components of the proposed project are exterior alterations of existing school facilities on campus that improve the safety and access to the campus. Since the campus improvements are located in the same site and do not involve the expansion of use, the project is exempt from CEQA under Section 15301.
The proposed replacement of the parking lot, fire lane, and improvements to pedestrian walkways, fencing, and gates are exempt from CEQA under Class 2, replacement or reconstruction (Section 15302). The parking lot and fire lane will have the same purpose as the existing parking lot and improve onsite circulation. The parking lot improvements do not affect the capacity of the campus nor increase capacity of the parking lot. The proposed project will remove and replace the existing surrounding pedestrian walkways with new repaved walkways. The existing fences and gates at the project site will be replaced with new metal gates and decorative rolling gates. The metal gates and decorative rolling gates will serve the same purpose as the existing fences and gates. The proposed replacement cafeteria and administration building will not increase student capacity; the proposed replacement building will serve the existing students. The proposed project will replace existing structures on campus with similar structures within the same areas of the campus that will continue to serve the same purposes. Therefore, the project is exempt from CEQA under Section 15302.
The proposed construction of the trash enclosure with the surrounding 6-foot wall; parking lot features, including but not limited to signage, two EV parking stations, 15 parking and walkway light poles, a flag pole, three fire hydrants, bike locker and racks and fencing are exempt from CEQA under Class 3, New Construction or Conversion of Small Structures (Section 15303). The proposed parking lot features, including but not limited to signage, EV parking stations, 13 parking and walkway light poles, bike rack and bike lockers, and the proposed trash enclosure features a surrounding 6-foot wall which are small new structures that will be located within the boundaries of the campus. The parking lot improvements are minor modifications to the existing parking lot. Further, the proposed fencing and gates, and three fire hydrants that will be located within the school campus are considered small structures. Therefore, the proposed project is exempt from CEQA under Section 15303.
The proposed parking lot improvements, including the updated pick-up/drop-off area with a designated bus drop-off area, crosswalk signs, parking lot reconfiguration, EV parking stations, 15 parking and walkway lights, a flag pole, bike locker and racks, trash enclosure, and three fire hydrants, low concrete wall/benches, seating stones, metal benches, landscaping, walkway/paving, fencing and gates are exempt from CEQA under Class 11, Accessory Structures (Section 15311 ). The proposed project will include parking lot improvements that will reconstruct the existing parking lot, and parking signage which are exempt under 1531 1(a). and (b). The installation of the EV parking stations, 13 parking and walkway lights, a flag pole, bike locker and racks, trash enclosure, and three fire hydrants, low concrete wall/benches, seating stones, metal benches, landscaping, walkway/paving, and fencing and gates are accessory structures to the campus and are related to the academic uses on-site. Therefore, the proposed project is exempt from CEQA under Section 15311.
The proposed construction of the new replacement cafeteria and administration building is exempt from CEQA under Class 14, Minor Additions to Schools (Section 15314). The new replacement cafeteria and administration building will be located within the boundaries of the campus. No new classroom buildings are being constructed and the proposed replacement of the cafeteria and administration building will not increase the campus's enrollment capacity or increase the number of classrooms on-site. Thus, the project will not increase student capacity by more than 25 percent or ten classrooms. Based on the foregoing, the proposed project is exempt from CEQA under Section 15314.
The proposed project was also reviewed for possible exceptions under Section 15300.2, Exceptions, of the CEQA Guidelines and found that the exceptions do not apply.
County Clerk
Sacramento
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
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