TITLE
Recommendation to find that excavations are immediately required for the general health, safety, and welfare of the City and cannot be delayed; that alternatives to excavating, such as alternative routing, boring or excavation of the parkway, are not possible; and approve a discretionary permit to excavate on 61st Street, between Linden Avenue and Atlantic Avenue, a street that has been resurfaced within the previous 60 months, in accordance with Section 14.08.060 of the Long Beach Municipal Code. (District 9)
DISCUSSION
Plains All American Pipeline L. P. (Plains), has filed for a discretionary permit to excavate their 14-inch crude oil transmission pipeline in 61st Street between Linden Avenue and Atlantic Avenue (map attached). A recent electronic inspection of the pipeline under 61st Street revealed anomalies in the pipeline’s walls that may jeopardize its safety and integrity. Plains has an obligation to excavate the pipeline, inspect it, and make the necessary repairs, if needed. This portion of 61st Street was resurfaced on October 1, 2013, and is under an excavation moratorium until October 1, 2018.
Long Beach Municipal Code (LBMC) Section 14.08.060, Public Works permit-issuance, requires that a permit for an excavation in a City street that has undergone slurry sealing within the previous 24 months, or reconstruction within the previous 60 months, and is not for an emergency repair or for a new utility service connection, be deemed discretionary and subject to the approval of the City Council.
Plains states that the proposed excavation is necessary for the general health, safety, and welfare of the City and cannot be delayed until after the moratorium has expired because the integrity of the pipeline needs to be evaluated to determine if it meets the current standards administered by the California State Fire Marshal, and to determine if it meets federal Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations.
Alternatives to excavating the stre...
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