EAST PALO ALTO
CITY COUNCIL
STAFF REPORT
DATE: April 5, 2022
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
VIA: Jaime M. Fontes, City Manager
BY: Humza Javed, City Engineer
SUBJECT: Update on San Francisquito Creek Joint Powers Authority (SFCJPA) Projects Recommendation
Receive presentation by Margaret Bruce, Executive Director of the SFCJPA on the San Francisquito Creek Reach 2 widening and bridge replacement project and the SAFER Bay Project.
Alignment with City Council Strategic Plan
This recommendation is primarily aligned with:
Priority No. 1: Enhance Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Priority No. 4: Improve Public Facilities and Infrastructure Priority No. 6: Create a Healthy and Safe Community
Background
Two SFCJPA projects are discussed below, the Reach 2 Project and the SAFER Bay Project.
More information about these projects can be found under the “Projects” tab at https://www.sfcjpa.org/
Analysis
1) San Francisquito Creek Reach 2 Project
The San Francisquito Creek Reach 2 project will increase flow capacity of the creek and improve the riparian corridor from West Bayshore Road to upstream of the Pope Chaucer Bridge. This project will reduce the risk of flooding from a storm of approximately 7,500 cubic feet per second (cfs), approximately equal to the El Niño storm of record in 1998. The SFCJPA implemented the initial part of its plan to protect homes and businesses from Highway 101 to the Bay in 2019 by increasing the capacity of the creek in this area from about 4,500 cfs to greater than 9,000 cfs. The Reach 2 project will reduce flood risks to the many residents along Woodland Avenue from creek flows up to 7,500 cfs.
The Reach 2 project will widen the creek in several places where there the channel is narrow and will replace the Pope-Chaucer and Newell Bridges. In addition, the temporary wooden floodwall the City installed in 2012 near University Avenue will be replaced with a permanent concrete floodwall that can be certified by FEMA. The Newell Bridge project is being led by the City of Palo Alto via a Caltrans grant but is being combined for permitting purposes by the SFCJPA as part of an integrated watershed program.
The SFCJPA will submit draft regulatory permit applications in early April. Tree removal, encroachment, and grading permits will also be required. The SFCJPA will continue to work with our member agency staff on these items. The SFCJPA has partnered with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) for the design and construction of four channel widening sites.
Key economic and design analyses are anticipated from the USACE in May. Santa Clara Valley Water District (Valley Water) engineering staff are planning to survey and evaluate the existing aging top-of-bank structures downstream of the Newell Bridge on both sides of the creek this spring. If it is determined that these structures are no longer adequate, a supplementary EIR will be initiated in preparation for adding retrofit or replacement of these structures to the project.
The project components are in varying stage of design, ranging from about 60% to 80% to preliminary plans. The location of each of the project components is provided below:
Estimated Costs for Construction, CM, Mitigation
and Real Estate
Project Feature Feature Cost Est
Newell Road Bridge Modification $10,536,600
Pope/Chaucer Bridge Modification $9,762,150
Channel Improvements– Newell Ave. to Euclid Ave. $16,232,000 Top of Bank Treatments $5,000,000
W. Bayshore Transition Floodwall $8,169,600
Total Cost Estimate $49,700,350
2) Safer bay Project
The Strategy to Advance Flood protection, Ecosystems and Recreation along San Francisco Bay (SAFER Bay) Project extends from the southern border of East Palo Alto by the O’Connor Pump Station along the bay shoreline to the north across the Dumbarton west approach and ends at the border of Redwood City by Menlo Park’s Bedwell Bayfront Park.
Residents, businesses, and critical infrastructure in East Palo Alto are vulnerable to tidal flooding, sea level rise, and emergent groundwater due to sea level rise. There are opportunities to restore, protect or improve local habitat for critically endangered species, and enhance recreational assets in the area. The SAFER Bay project integrates these activities, and the City reinforced its commitment to addressing this issue on September 18, 2018, when the City set aside $5.5M for construction and long-term operation and maintenance of proposed new coastal levees.
Project Work to Date
Preliminary designs- Base mapping has been completed for East Palo Alto and concepts for levee designs have been presented to the community.
Planning- a draft Community Engagement Plan is available for review and comment.
Preliminary geotechnical- FEMA has completed their Environmental and Historical Preservation review and the City should be receiving a notification of award letter from CalOES in the near future for Phase 1 funding. Property access/easement coordination- a list of properties has been prepared and contact with landowners has been initiated.
Stakeholder Engagement- the SFCJPA has partnered with Climate Resilient Communities and Nuestra Casa. The SFCJPA will continue to meet with members of the community throughout design and construction. Regulatory Agency communications and coordination- the project is being permitted through the Bay Area Restoration Regulatory Integration Team (BRRIT). The SFCJPA has held two preapplication meetings with the BRRIT and will continue routine meetings prior to submitting permit applications.
Project Work in the Near Future
Notice of Preparation (NOP) for Program-level CEQA for the entire project and Project-level CEQA for the first East Palo Alto reaches is planned for Spring 2022.
Along with the release of the NOP, the SFCJPA and its community partners will be engaged in wide-ranging community outreach to seek community input on the project.
Cost Estimate
SAFER Bay is a megaproject and existing funding, although significant is not enough. A preliminary cost estimate to construct the entire project, not including the Dumbarton Corridor, is approximately $130M. Current and pending funding is anticipated to contribute a total of $93M. Of this, the cost for portions in East Palo Alto are estimated to total about $46,450,000.
The following funding sources have been awarded, or are pending:
• Department of Water Resources Grant Agreement No.4600009954 for $ 1,045,625.
Match funding $448,125 was provided by the cities of East Palo Alto and Menlo Park. • CalOES/FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP)- The City is anticipated to be awarded a $17.2M and has provided $5.5M in local match funding. FEMA completed EHP review, and a letter notification for Phase 1 funding is anticipated from CalOES in the coming months.
• The City of Menlo Park is eligible for award of $50M under the CalOES/FEMA Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant. In Menlo Park, additional grant partners include PG&E and Facebook, who have jointly provided $17.8M local match funding.
• San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority (SFBRA) Measure AA. On behalf of the City, the SFCJPA applied for funding, and were notified of a preliminary award of $1M.
Formal approval of the grant funding will be determined by the SFBRA governing board at their meeting on June 24, 2022.
• In February, East Palo Alto and the SFCJPA were contacted by CalOES regarding a new State funding program, PrepareCA, which provides some or all the local match funding required for federal grants, for disadvantaged communities. We will know if East Palo Alto’s request will be awarded, probably within 6 months.
The SFCJPA is continuing to seek and evaluate additional potential funding partners and sources for this project.
Public Notice
The public was provided notice of this agenda item by posting the City Council agenda on the City’s official bulletin board outside City Hall and making the agenda and report available at the City’s website and at the San Mateo Co. Library located at 2415 University Avenue, East Palo Alto.
Environmental
The action being considered does not constitute a “Project” within the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), pursuant to CEQA Guideline section 15378 (b)(5), in that it is a government administrative activity that will not result in direct or indirect changes in the environment.