Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors, Acting as the Governing Board of County Service Area No. 7
From: Ann M. Stillman, Director of Public Works
Subject: Measure K County Service Area No. 7 Water System Distribution Pipeline Improvement Project (County Project No. PC021; Project File No. E5032000)
RECOMMENDATION:
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Measure K: Acting as the Governing Board of County Service (CSA) Area No. 7, adopt a resolution:
A) Adopting plans and specifications, including conformance with prevailing wage scale requirements, for the County Service Area No. 7 Water System Distribution Pipeline Improvement Project; and
B) Authorizing the Director of Public Works to call for sealed proposals to be received by Wednesday, March 25, 2026 at 2:00 p.m., in the office of the County Executive Officer/Clerk of the Board of Supervisors; and
C) Authorizing the Director of Public Works to extend the call for bids and bid opening up to sixty (60) calendar days beyond the time and date originally set forth by the Board of Supervisors.
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BACKGROUND:
The County Service Area No. 7 (CSA 7) Water System is located in the unincorporated area south of La Honda and provides potable water to 69 residential connections within the La Honda Creek and Alpine Creek watersheds. The system relies on water from Alpine Creek. The system also supplies water to two County facilities: Camp Glenwood and Sam McDonald Park. CSA 7 is managed and operated by the Department of Public Works (Department). The County is currently leasing Camp Glenwood to CalFire for the Glenwood Fire Center (Center). The Center houses CalFire staff in a strategic location of the unincorporated County that is generally rural and mountainous thereby enhancing and improving response when needed.
The existing water distribution system was originally constructed by private developers beginning in the 1920s and was continually expanded over time. In 1965, the system was formally incorporated into CSA 7 when the land surrounding and including the water distribution system was acquired by the County, including Sam McDonald Park, at which point the water system became publicly operated and maintained. Many of the pipelines are beyond their useful life and consist of non-standard materials that do not meet current best practices. Large portions of the system are located outside the public right-of-way, running through private roads, private properties, and Sam McDonald Park which limit access for maintenance and repairs. The extent, location, and age of the CSA 7 water system make it costly to operate and the residential customer base is very small making funding capital improvement projects by the customer base generally infeasible to support.
The distribution system services two distinct areas: the southern distribution area and the northern distribution area. The southern area is in relatively good condition and experiences infrequent water line breaks. Most of the water line breaks, leaks and low-pressure issues occur in the northern area of the system, which affect customers of Memory Lane, Pope Road and the La Honda Trailer Park. These conditions can be attributed to aging and deteriorating infrastructure and the challenging terrain in which the facilities are located, which limit access for routine maintenance, repairs, and emergency response.
In 2014, the County provided $200,000 in General Fund dollars to support a feasibility study to evaluate seismic retrofit and water system needs and explore a secondary water source. Water Works Engineers (WWE) was retained by the Department to prepare the CSA No. 7 Water System Feasibility Study and Seismic Retrofit Report (Report), which was completed in October 2015. The Report identified and prioritized a series of capital improvement projects to address deficiencies in the CSA 7 water system. Based on the system needs identified in the Report, a total of over $8 Million in Measure K (formerly Measure A) funds were approved to support completion of the capital improvements. The priority one projects identified in the Report have been completed. These projects included seismic and treatment upgrades, which focused on meeting regulatory requirements and improving overall system reliability. The Report also identified other priority projects to enhance operational reliability and provide redundancy for the aging infrastructure, many of which have also been completed. The County Service Area No. 7 Water System Distribution Pipeline Improvement Project (Project) addresses additional priority projects identified in the Report in the northern area of the water system. The Project focuses on the water distribution system and areas that have experienced the greatest operational challenges, including water line breaks.
DISCUSSION:
Due to limited funding, the Project has been structured with a base bid and bid alternatives to allow for flexibility in implementing additional improvements depending on bid results and available funds.
Under the base bid, the proposed Project would install approximately 11,000 linear feet of new 4-inch treated water pipeline extending from the existing treatment plant near the Sam McDonald Park entrance along Pescadero Creek Road and Highway 84 north to the entrance of Memory Lane. The new treated water line will help alleviate known pressure issues and service interruptions, generally affecting customers on Memory Lane, the La Honda Trailer Park, and Pope Road, which have been caused by breaks or leaks in the main distribution line. This work will improve overall system reliability for the northern distribution area by eliminating the use of the existing aging infrastructure, which is generally located in Sam McDonald Park on steep and heavily wooded terrain.
The State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Drinking Water (DDW), has raised ongoing concerns about the frequent water main breaks in the CSA 7 system, which routinely trigger Boil Water Notices and create significant hardships for residents. The County has coordinated with DDW for several years on Project timing and funding; however, no grant funding has been identified, in part, because CSA 7 is not classified as a disadvantaged water system.
Advancing this Project will reduce future breaks, improve operational reliability, and strengthen long-term system resilience. The DDW continues to stress the need to minimize service interruptions and has advised the County that failure to complete the required improvements will result in issuance of a formal regulatory violation. Given the lack of available grant funding and the increasing regulatory attention, delaying the Project would extend existing risks and could result in heightened oversight and additional costs to CSA 7.
The Department has prepared the Project bid documents to include bid alternatives, which include installation of additional treated water pipelines along more accessible private roads and public utility easements on Memory Lane, Pope Road, and Highway 84. These improvements are recommended and were included as priority pipeline replacement work in the Report to further address known problem areas and relocate pipelines out of difficult terrain, thereby improving long-term maintenance access and system performance. Additionally, a bid alternative includes the installation of a raw water line along Pescadero Creek Road that could be used in the future should water be drawn from an alternate water source (creek or well). The raw water line would enable delivery of water from the northern distribution area to the CSA 7 treatment plant for treatment and delivery to customers. Specifying bid alternatives allows the Department and County to evaluate Project costs for prioritized work identified in the Report and make recommendations for construction work to be included in the Project.
The County Attorney has reviewed and approved the resolution as to form.
COMMUNITY IMPACT:
The Project will improve the reliability of potable water service for CSA 7 customers in the La Honda area by replacing aging pipelines that have caused recurring breaks, leaks, and low-pressure conditions, particularly in the northern portion of the system. These improvements will support public health, reduce costs to CSA 7 associated with water line breaks and leaks, fire protection, and long-term system sustainability.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Funding for this Project is provided by Measure K, which was previously appropriated for capital improvements in the FY 2021-22 budget. The total available Project budget is $4,149,212, to support construction, construction management, engineering support, inspection services, County staff time and miscellaneous cost associated with Project delivery.
The estimated construction costs for the Base Bid and Bid Alternatives are shown below. Award of bid alternates will be dependent on bid results and available funding within the approved Project budget.
There is no impact to the General Fund.