CA Review TL
Meeting Date: May 19, 2026
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Geoff Patnoe, City Manager
Staff Contact: Amanda L. Flesse, Utilities Director
[email protected], 442-339-5485
Keri Martinez, Utilities Principal Planner
[email protected], 442-200-7376
Subject: Continuing the Declaration of a Local Emergency Condition in the North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer in the Ponto Area and Authorizing the Continued Repair Using Emergency Construction Procurement Procedures
District: 3
Recommended Action
Adopt a resolution continuing the declaration of a local emergency co ndition resulting from a partial pipe collapse on the North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer in the Ponto Area and a
uthorizing the continued repair work using emergency construction procurement procedures.
Executive Summary
During a routine closed-circuit television inspection of the city’s main sewer pipelines in April 2026, the city’s asset management consultant identified damage t o a segment of the North Batiquitos
Interceptor Sewer in the Ponto area, at the location i dentified in Exhibit 2. The damage on the 27-inch diameter pipe presents an imminent danger of leaking sewage into the surrounding soil and/or of a complete pipe failure that could result in a sewage spill into the surrounding environment.
On April 30, 2026, the City Manager declared the existence of a local emergency condition resulting from the partially co llapsed sewer pipe, authorizing staff to immediately proceed with the necessary steps to repair the pipe as swiftly as possible using emergency construction procurement procedures rather than the formal bidding process.
On May 12, 2026, the Cit y Council confirmed the emergency declaration and authorized the City Manager to have the repairs performed using emergency construction procurement procedures, as allowed under California Public Contract Code Sections 22035 and 22050 and Carlsbad Municipal Code Sections 3.28.110(A) and 3.28.120.
May 19, 2026
Item #2 Page 1 of 12
Docusign Envelope ID: 7BFA37CA-C29E-8C15-82EA-627F135F8F3E Staff anticipate the contractor will start onsite repair work under supervision by the city’s construction management and inspection staff and with onsite monitoring by a qualified biologist and as-needed cultural and archeological monitors on May 18, 2026.
Staff are requesting that the City Council continue the declaration of the existence of an emergency condition in the North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer in the Ponto Area and continue to authorize the City Manager to have the emergency repairs performed using emergency construction procurement procedures, in accordance with Carlsbad Municipal Code Section
3.28.110(A).
A four-fifths vote is required under Carlsbad Municipal Code Section 3.28.120 and California Public Contract Code Section 22050.
Explanation & Analysis
Background
The North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer is a 5.2-mile long, 27-inch diameter sewer pipeline that transports sewage from the city’s southernmost sewer basin to the Encina Water Pollution Control Facility, the treatment plant. The pipeline repair site is located approximately 3/4-mile south of the Encina treatment plant. The damage to the sewer pipe is in the upper part of the pipeline and classified as a partial pipe collapse. The damage created an opening in the pipe that is exposed to the surrounding soil, posing an imminent danger of leaking sewage under high sewer flow conditions, and/or soil entering the opening in a heavy storm, causing a risk of blockage. This condition could result in sewage spilling into the surrounding environment.
The section of sewer pipe to be repaired is located within the North County Transit District, or NCTD, right-of-way and within the city’s 15-foot wide city sewer easement, which is located between the Waters End pedestrian trail to the east and the NCTD train tracks to the west, just north of Poinsettia Lane and west of Sand Shell Avenue. Staff have coordinated right-of-entry with NCTD and provided notification to the Waters End residential community for construction access through the utility access easement in the southernmost area in their community.
Temporary pedestrian trail
closure has also been
communicated to the community
and trail users to facilitate access,
expediate work and provide
safety.
Additionally, staff are
coordinating work with the city’s
Habitat Management Plan
manager for communication with
regional resource agencies and
other utilities located near the
damaged area.
May 19, 2026
Item #2 Page 2 of 12
Docusign Envelope ID: 7BFA37CA-C29E-8C15-82EA-627F135F8F3E Emergency declaration
Public projects that cost more than $220,000 require formal bidding procedures under the California Uniform Public Construction Cost Accounting Act. However, those procedures can take up to six months and the failure in the channel required more immediate action to prevent or mitigate the loss or impairment of life, health, property or essential public services.
Carlsbad Municipal Code Section 3.28.110(A) implements California Public Contract Code Section 22035, which provides for an exemption from formal bidding procedures for emergency construction procurements. To use the emergency exemption, Carlsbad Municipal Code Section
3.28.120 and California Public Contract Code Section 22050 allow the City Manager to declare a local emergency so that staff may then immediately proceed with the repair work without following the formal bidding procedures. The declaration is subject to confirmation by a four- fifths vote of the City Council at its next regularly scheduled meeting.
On April 30, 2026, the City Manager declared the existence of a local emergency condition.
On May 12, 2026, City Council adopted the declaration and authorized the City Manager to proceed with the emergency repair work without the formal bidding procedures. The staff report that recommended the determination is provided as Exhibit 3.
Staff anticipate the contractor will start onsite repair work under supervision by the city’s construction management and inspection staff and with onsite monitoring by a qualified biologist and as-needed cultural and archeological monitors on May 18, 2026. The contractor expects to complete the emergency repair work by May 29, 2026.
Staff are requesting that the City Council continue the declaration of the existence of an emergency condition in the North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer in the Ponto Area and continue the authorization for the City Manager to direct the repair work to be performed using emergency construction procurement procedures.
Fiscal Analysis
Sufficient funding is available for the work in the Sewer System Rehabilitation and Replacement, Capital Improvement Program Project No. 5503, funded by the Sewer Replacement Fund as shown in the table below. Staff are not requesting additional appropriation at this time.
Funding available in Sewer System Rehabilitation and Replacement Program, Capital Improvement Program Project No. 5503
Total appropriation to date $14,426,475
Total expenditures and encumbrances to date -$8,150,403 Total available funding $6,276,072
May 19, 2026
Item #2 Page 3 of 12
Docusign Envelope ID: 7BFA37CA-C29E-8C15-82EA-627F135F8F3E Costs and funding for North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer Emergency Repair Capital Improvement Program Project No. 5503-27
Construction contract (estimated) -$500,000
Construction contingency (estimated) -$100,000
Environmental/Cultural monitoring (estimated) -$121,000 Construction management, inspection, material testing and support services (estimated) -$120,000
Total estimated construction costs -$841,000
Remaining balance after total estimated construction costs $5,435,072 Additional appropriation needed $0
C
arlsbad Municipal Code Section 3.28.040(C)(5) authorizes the City Manager or designee to approve change orders in an amount equal to the contingency set at the time of the project is awarded, which, for this project, is estimated at $100,000.
Next Steps
Staff will continue to monitor the contractor’s progress on the emergency repair work, which has an estimated completion of May 29, 2026.
Staff will return to the City Council on June 9, 2026, to review the emergency action and ask the City Council to determine by a four-fifths vote whether there is a need to continue it.
Environmental Evaluation
The proposed action is statutorily exempt from environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA, pursuant to California Public Resources Code Section 21080(b)(2) and (4) and CEQA Guidelines Section 15269(b)-(c), which apply to emergency repairs to publicly owned facilities necessary to maintain services essential to the public health, safety or welfare and other specific actions necessary to prevent or mitigate an emergency. The statutory exemption covers both the declaration of local emergency and the emergency coastal development permit.
E
xhibits
1. City Council resolution
2. Location map
3. Staff report from May 12, 2026 (on file in the Office of the City Clerk)
4. Declaration of Local Emergency
May 19, 2026
Item #2 Page 4 of 12
Docusign Envelope ID: 7BFA37CA-C29E-8C15-82EA-627F135F8F3E Exhibit 1
RESOLUTION NO. 2026-094
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CARLSBAD,
CALIFORNIA, CONTINUING THE DECLARATION OF A LOCAL EMERGENCY
CONDITION RESULTING FROM A PARTIAL PIPE COLLAPSE ON THE NORTH
BATIQUITOS INTERCEPTOR SEWER IN THE PONTO AREA AND AUTHORIZING
THE CONTINUED REPAIR WORK USING EMERGENCY CONSTRUCTION
PROCUREMENT PROCEDURES
WHER
EAS, during a routine closed -circuit television, or CCTV, inspection of the city’s main sewer pipelines or interceptors in April 2026, the city’s asset management consultant identified a partial pipe collapse along the North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer in the Ponto area; and WHEREAS, under existing normal pipe flow conditions sewage is being conveyed through the existing damaged pipe; and
WHEREAS, the partial pipe collapse on a 27-inch diameter vitrified clay pipe presents an imminent danger of leakage of sewage into the surrounding soil under high sewer flow, and/or soil entering the pipe break under heavy storm infiltration with a risk of blockage, and/or full pipe failure that could result in a sewage spill into the surrounding environment; and
WHEREAS the city has contracted with a contractor and consultants to perform emergency repair work and onsite monitoring; and
WHEREAS, the North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer in the Ponto area is located within a 15 -foot- wide city sewer easement within the North County Transit District right -of-way, and city and contractors obtained the required a right-of-entry permit, safety training and protocols for working near railways; and WHEREAS, the North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer is located within a protected habitat management plan preserve, the Poinsettia Station Vernal Pool Preserve, which includes highly sensitive and protected habitat and federally listed endangered species requiring minimization of construction impacts on the preserve; and
WHEREAS, the city contr acted a qualified biologist for all onsite biological monitoring during all repair activities and for cultural monitoring during all excavation activities; and WHEREAS, the North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer is located within the city’s Local Coastal Zone and requires a coastal development permit; and
WHEREAS, a 12-inch diameter high-pressure gas pipeline crosses the North Batiquitos Interceptor near the repair location and requires field location, protection and onsite monitoring; and May 19, 2026
Item #2 Page 5 of 12
Docusign Envelope ID: 7BFA37CA-C29E-8C15-82EA-627F135F8F3E WHEREAS, the partial pipe collapse poses a clear and imminent danger and requires immediate repair work, including temporarily bypassing the sewer flow; excavating, removing, and replacing the pipe segment; reconnecting and testing the repair; and restoring the site; and WHEREAS, the estimated cost of the repair work exceeds the formal bidding threshold established by the Public Contract Code and Carlsbad Municipal Code and the formal bidding process would take approximately four to six months; and
WHEREAS, the repair work requires prompter action than formal bidding allows to permit the continued conduct of the operation of essential public services and prevent or mitigate the potential impairment of life, health, property or the environment; and WHEREAS, the City of Carlsbad follows the procurement processes in the California Public Contract Code and the Carlsbad Municipal Code; and
WHEREAS, in the case of an emergency, California Public Contract Code Sections 22035 and 22050 and Carlsbad Municipal Code Sections 3.28.110(A) and 3.28.120 allow the City Council by a four-fifths vote to authorize the repair and replacement of a public facility, take any directly related and immediate action required by the emergency, and procure the necessary equipment, services and supplies for these purposes without following formal bidding procedures; and WHEREAS, as permitted by California Public Contract Code Section 22050, the City Council has delegated the authority to declare a public emergency and authorize emergency repairs to the City Manager, subject to review by the City Council by a four-fifths vote at its next regularly scheduled meeting not later than 14 days afterwards; and
WHEREAS, on April 30, 2026, the City Manager declared a local emergency for an emergency condition resulting from a partial sewer pipe collapse on the North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer in the Ponto Area; and
WHEREAS, on May 12, 2026, the City C ouncil confirmed the declaration of a local emergency for an emergency condition resulting from a partial sewer pipe collapse on the North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer in the Ponto Area; and
WHEREAS, continuing the emergency declaration must be confirmed by a four -fifths vote of the City Council at its next regularly scheduled meeting; and WHEREAS, staff request that the City Council continue the declaration of a local emergency condition and continue to authorize the City Manager to direct the necessary repair work to be performed using emergency construction procurement procedures; and May 19, 2026
Item #2 Page 6 of 12
Docusign Envelope ID: 7BFA37CA-C29E-8C15-82EA-627F135F8F3E WHEREAS, the emergency repair is estimated to cost approximately $500,000, not including contingency and other construction support costs; and
WHEREAS, sufficient funding is available in the Sewer Rehabilitation and Replacement Program, Capital Improvement Program Project No. 5503; and
WHEREAS, on May 1, 2026, the Assistant Director of Community Development issued an emergency coastal development permit CDP 2026- 0021 (PUB2026-0009), subject to the authority and requirements under Carlsbad Municipal Code Section 21.201.190 and is reported through the staff report for City Council information; and
WHEREAS on May 5, 2026, the city filed a Notice of E xemption with the County of San Diego in compliance with Section 21152b of the Public Resources Code (CEQA) on May 5, 2026; and WHEREAS, on May 18, 2026, the contractor started onsite emergency repair work with an expected completion by May 29, 2026.
N
OW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Carlsbad, California, as follows:
1. That the above recitations are true and correct.
2. That the City Council has determined that the proposed action is statutorily exempt from environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA, pursuant to California Public Resources Code Section 21080(b)(2) and (4) and CEQA Guidelines Section 15269( b)-(c), which apply to emergency repairs to publicly owned facilities necessary to maintain service s essential to the public health, safety or welfare and other specific actions necessary to prevent or mitigate an emergency. The statutory exemption covers both the declaration of local emergency and the emergency coastal development permit.
3. That the City Manager’s April 30, 2026, declaration of a local emergency for an emergency condition resulting from a partial sewer pipe collapse on the North Batiquitos Interceptor Sewer in the Ponto Area is continued.
4. That there is a need to continue the emergency repairs and the City Manager is authorized to continue to direct the emergency repairs to be performed, take any directly related and immediate action required by the emergency, and procure the necessary equipment, May 19, 2026
Item #2 Page 7 of 12
Docusign Envelope ID: 7BFA37CA-C29E-8C15-82EA-627F135F8F3E services, and supplies for these purposes, using emergency construction procurement procedures.
5. That the City Manager or designee is authorized to sign all other documents necessary for regulatory compliance, to extend funding opportunities, or to otherwise implement and finalize the emergency repair work, all of which are subject to review and approval as to form by the City Attorney’s Office.
6. That the City Manager is directed to return to the City Council at the next regularly scheduled City Council meeting for a determination by a four -fifths vote whether the emergency condition continues to exist.
7. That the City Council acknowledges receipt of the emergency coastal development permit for the emergency repair work that was issued by the Assistant Director of Community Development on May 1, 2026.
PASSED, APPROVED AN D ADOPTED at a Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of Carlsbad on the 19th day of May, 2026, by the following vote, to wit:
AYES: Blackburn, Bhat-Patel, Acosta, Burkholder, Shin.
NAYS: None.
ABSTAIN: None.
ABSENT: None.
_______
__________________________________
KEITH BLACKBURN, Mayor
_______
__________________________________
SHERRY FREISINGER, City Clerk
(SEAL)
May 19, 2026
Item #2 Page 8 of 12
Docusign Envelope ID: 7BFA37CA-C29E-8C15-82EA-627F135F8F3E
LOCATION MAP
VICINITY MAP
AVECOSTA
LA
BLVD
CARLSBAD
RD
ALGA
PALOMAR
AIRPORT
RD
EL
CAMINO
REAL
RANCHO
SANTA FE
RD
POINSETTIA
LANE
ALICANTE
RD
EL
FUERTE
OLIVENHAIN RD.
MELROSE
DR.
FARADAY
COLLEGE
BLVD
PASEO
DEL
NORTE
AVE
AVENIDA
ENCI
NAS
CANNON RD
MONROE
ST
CARLSBAD
VILLAGE DR
MARRON
TAMARACK
AVE
RD
LAKE
CALAVERA
LAGOON
AGUA
HEDIONDA
LAGOON
BATIQUITOS LAGOON
AVIARA
PKWY
POINSETTIA
LANE
PROJECT NAME PROJECT EXHIBIT
NUMBER
PROJECT SITE
5503-27 2
PROJECT SITE
NORTH BATIQUITOS INTERCEPTOR
PONTO SEWER PIPE REPAIR
\\files01v\Departments\Public Works\PW Common\Capital Improvement Program Projects\5503 & 3927 Sewer Line Replacement\5503-27 NBI Ponto Sewer Pipe Repair\Design\CAD\Ponto Sewer Pipe Repair Location Map Exh.dwg Exhibit 2
May 19, 2026
Item #2 Page 9 of 12
Docusign Envelope ID: 7BFA37CA-C29E-8C15-82EA-627F135F8F3E Exhibit 3
S
taff report from May 12, 2026
(on file in the Office of the City Clerk)
May 19, 2026
Item #2 Page 10 of 12
Docusign Envelope ID: 7BFA37CA-C29E-8C15-82EA-627F135F8F3E Exhibit 4
May 19, 2026
Item #2 Page 11 of 12
Docusign Envelope ID: 7BFA37CA-C29E-8C15-82EA-627F135F8F3E May 19, 2026
Item #2 Page 12 of 12
Docusign Envelope ID: 7BFA37CA-C29E-8C15-82EA-627F135F8F3E