TITLE
Recommendation to authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute all documents necessary to issue a Right-of-Entry Permit to the Water Replenishment District, a local government agency, for the installation of a monitoring well at El Dorado Park West, for a period of two years from January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2024; and
Authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute all documents necessary for a License Agreement with the Water Replenishment District for the operation and maintenance of the monitoring well, for a period of twenty years from January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2042, with the option to renew for four additional five-year terms. (District 4)
DISCUSSION
The Water Replenishment District (WRD) was established in 1959 by a vote of the people for the purpose of protecting groundwater resources in the Central and West Coast Groundwater basins. WRD accomplishes this through water well management which includes monitoring and replenishment, as well as recycled water and stormwater capture. WRD serves a 43-city area of Los Angeles, including the City of Long Beach (City). The agency currently has three wells on City property, including one on park property located within the 51st Street Greenbelt. There are additional wells in Long Beach that are located on non-City property.
On November 18, 2021, the Parks and Recreation Commission recommended approval of a Right-of-Entry Permit (ROE) for WRD for a period of two years, to install a monitoring well at El Dorado Park West, located at 2800 North Studebaker Road, in the location shown in Attachment A. This site was selected since the monitoring well must be located between the proposed injection well at the WRD Leo J. Vander Lans Advanced Water Treatment Facility (LVL AWTF) located at 7380 East Willow Street, and a Long Beach Water Department (LBWD) production well (Wise 1A [WIS1A]) located within El Dorado Park on Spring Street, east of Studebaker Road and west of the San Gabriel River. The monitoring well will be installed in one parking stall in a parking lot shown in Attachment A, within a small parking lot adjacent to the golf course maintenance yard. A 2’ by 3’ well vault will be visible once the project is completed but will not inhibit vehicles from parking in the stall except when monitoring activities are conducted.
Construction is anticipated to commence in 2022 and last for approximately four months. The ROE Permit is recommended for a period of two years so that WRD can work with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to ensure all federal funding requirements have been met prior to construction. A two-year permit provides ample time for WRD to perform pre-construction funding activities and complete the construction.
WRD will coordinate closely with the Parks, Recreation and Marine Department during that time to minimize the impacts of construction. Once construction is completed, WRD will need quarterly access to the well for maintenance and monitoring activities, which include retrieving water samples. On December 16, 2021, the Parks and Recreation Commission recommended approval of a License Agreement for a period of twenty (20) years with the option to renew for four (4) additional five (5) year terms for long-term operations and maintenance of the monitoring well.
The monitoring well installation at El Dorado Park West is part of a larger effort to install an injection well to replenish the subsurface groundwater aquifers, primarily the Silverado Aquifer, which is the most utilized in the Central Groundwater Basin. Once completed, the project will provide a public benefit by replenishing the groundwater supply and providing additional local water to Long Beach residents through the LBWD and its groundwater production activities. In addition, this will assist LBWD as it works towards drought resiliency and reduces its dependence on expensive and unreliable imported water supplies. The ROE Permit and License Agreement are set to run concurrently as the exact date of completion of the monitoring well is unknown.
The matter was reviewed by Deputy City Attorney Anita Lakhani on December 10, 2021 and by Budget Analysis Officer Greg Sorensen on December 6, 2021.
TIMING CONSIDERATIONS
City Council action is requested on January 4, 2022, so WRD can issue a Notice to Proceed during the first quarter of 2022.
FISCAL IMPACT
There are no direct costs to the City associated with this recommendation. The WRD will be responsible for all costs to install, operate, manage, and maintain the monitoring well. There is no fiscal or job impact associated with this recommendation. This recommendation has no staffing impact beyond the normal budgeted scope of duties and is consistent with existing City Council priorities.
SUGGESTED ACTION
Approve recommendation.
Respectfully Submitted,
BRENT DENNIS
DIRECTOR
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS, RECREATION AND MARINE
APPROVED:
THOMAS B. MODICA
CITY MANAGER