Report Prepared by: Joseph D. Angulo, Environmental Project Manager, Engineering
Title
SUBJECT: Agreement with the Merced Irrigation District for Well Site 20 Storm Water Discharge to Hartley Canal, Project No. 107033
REPORT IN BRIEF
Authorizes an agreement with the Merced Irrigation District (MID) to discharge storm water from the new Well 20 pump station site to the adjacent Hartley Canal.
RECOMMENDATION
City Council - Adopt a motion:
A. Approving a water drainage agreement with the Merced Irrigation District and payment of the associated fees; and,
B. Approving an amendment to an Agreement for Professional Services with Luhdorff and Scalmanini Consulting Engineers Inc., in the amount of $32,440 for engineering design services; and,
C. Authorizing the City Manager or Assistant City Manager to execute the necessary documents.
Body
ALTERNATIVES
1. Approve, as recommended by staff; or,
2. Approve, subject to modifications as conditioned by City Council; or,
3. Refer to staff for reconsideration of specific items; or,
4. Deny.
AUTHORITY
Charter of the City of Merced, Section 200 et seq.
CITY COUNCIL PRIORITIES
As provided for in the 2018-19 Adopted Budget.
DISCUSSION
The City Engineer and Public Works Director previously recommended that a new water well, Well 20, be located at the proposed Community Park 42 (CP-42) site. The CP-42 site is located on the southeast boundary of the City at the intersection of Tyler Road and Mission Avenue. The new well was installed and staff proceeded to develop plans and specifications for the new pump station to connect to the existing water system. The plans include surface asphalt paving and associated valley gutters to collect and drain precipitation at the site.
Merced Irrigation District Drainage Agreement
There are no City storm water service mains (piping) in the location of the new pump station. Therefore, staff applied to the Merced Irrigation District (MID) for a water discharge permit to dispose of collected storm water into their Hartley Slough facility (canal) located immediately adjacent to the subject site. It was also intended to occasionally dispose of well “pump to waste water” (also termed well “start-up water”). After evaluation of the canal’s ability to accept a new water source, MID informed the City that its capacity was limited and discharge of water would need to be restricted to 350 gallons per minute. They forwarded an acceptable draft agreement that requires the City to first pump the site’s water into a holding basin, and then limit the pumping of discharge water from the basin to the canal at the above referenced 350 gallons per minute.
The MID agreement under consideration includes the following fees:
|
Administration and Engineering Evaluation Fees for Agreement Preparation |
$2,000 |
|
Storm Drainage Hookup Fee |
$8,452 |
|
Total Up-Front Fees |
$10,452 |
|
|
|
|
Annual Assessment Fee |
$507 |
Luhdorff and Scalmanini Consulting Engineers Contract Amendment
The City awarded an agreement for professional services with Luhdorff and Scalmanini Consulting Engineers to design the pump station. Their original contract included provisions for designing either a storm water collection basin at the site, or discharge to MID’s Hartley Slough canal.
The City requested modifications to the pump station design that included:
• Evaluating and responding to the changes in design necessitated by the proposed MID drainage agreement outlined above;
• Changes to the size of the proposed storm water basin to accommodate the additional use as a full-size adult soccer field for the proposed park at the request of the Recreation Department;
• Changes to the proposed basin construction to account for clayey soils at the site and associated poor water percolation.
The Luhdorff and Scalmanini Consulting Engineers contract amendment under consideration includes costs associated with the above design changes. Staff will direct Luhdorff and Scalmanini Consulting Engineers to incorporate the design changes upon adoption by the City Council. The final project plans and specifications will be routed to MID for approval, and then staff will proceed to bidding the pump station construction.
History and Past Actions
On January 3, 2012, the City Council adopted the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan. Chapter 5, Section 5.2.3 of the Merced Vision 2030 General Plan includes the following provision- “Through the Capital Improvement Program, the City plans to increase water wells to match the requirements of development, generally one well per square mile.”
On August 5, 2013, the City Council authorized the acquisition of 0.43 acres of land from City Park CP-42 for Well Site 20. The 0.43 acre well site comprises approximately 1% of the 38.9 acre park property and will not result in any loss of park recreational space.
On April 20, 2015, the City Council awarded a professional services agreement with Luhdorff & Scalmanini Consulting Engineers for engineering design services at the Well 20 site.
On December 21, 2015, the City Council awarded a contract to Nor-Cal Pump and Well Drilling to install the new Well 20.
On December 18, 2017, the City Council approved a modification to the CP-42 property agricultural lease (reduction in size) to accommodate the proposed storm water basin.
IMPACT ON CITY RESOURCES
This project was established as a Capital Improvement Project and account 556-1118-637.65-00-107033 contains sufficient funding to complete the project.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Area Map
2. Site Map
3. MID Drainage Agreement
4. Luhdorff Scalmanini Consulting Engineers Contract Amendment
5. Detail Map