Title
Recommendation to Authorize the City Manager to Execute a Water Line Easement to East Bay Municipal Utility District Across City-Owned Property and Any and All Ancillary Documents and Direct the Recording of the Grant of Easement for Installation of the Oakland Inner Harbor Pipeline Crossing. (Public Works 31041520)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) seeks a grant of easement from the City of Alameda (City) for the installation of a new water pipeline across the Oakland-Alameda Inner Harbor. The new water line crosses two sections of City-owned parcels. The new crossing will ensure long-term reliability and redundancy of the water distribution system, meet existing and future water needs, and facilitate replacement of aging infrastructure. Staff requests that the City Council authorize the City Manager to execute any and all ancillary documents and direct the recording of the grant of easement.
BACKGROUND
EBMUD provides water service to the city through four existing underwater pipeline crossings. Failure of any one of the crossings could reduce the level of service for existing customers and potentially reduce the water supply to Alameda. No EBMUD water reservoir facility exists within the city. EBMUD completed the Alameda-North Bay Farm Island Pipeline Crossing Environmental Impact Report (EIR) which included three new pipeline crossings with additional pipelines required to connect the crossing to the existing transmission system. On December 13, 2016, EBMUD’s Board of Directors certified the EIR and approved the project. The Oakland Inner Harbor pipeline crossing is the first crossing identified in the EIR to be designed and constructed.
EBMUD’s Oakland Inner Harbor Pipeline project will install approximately 13,000 feet of pipeline in Alameda and Oakland, with approximately 3,000 feet installed under the Oakland-Alameda Inner Harbor using horizontal directional drilling (HDD) and 6,400 feet installed in Alameda streets using a conventional open-cut method. EBMUD will install approximately 3,000 feet of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe across the Oakland-Alameda Inner Harbor.
DISCUSSION
EBMUD‘s new water main infrastructure will traverse through the City-owned parcel at 1080 Marina Village Parkway, APN 74-1334-47. This parcel is land owned in fee by the City and is currently used as an open space park facility. An easement is also required for the section of water main which crosses the City’s submerged lands portion of the Inner Harbor. The legal description and plat maps for the water line easement are attached to the Grant of Easement in Exhibit 1.
In order to construct the project, EBMUD will drill and install pipe casings from both the Alameda and Oakland sides of the estuary. Both ends of the HDD operations will meet in the middle, underneath the estuary. Construction crews will utilize a temporary pipe laydown area along Marina Village Parkway/Mitchell Avenue from Tynan Avenue to Fifth Street. The laydown area will be used to stage and construct a 3,000 foot continuous section of fused HDPE pipe. The pipe will be pressure tested above ground and subsequently pulled through as a single pipe section underneath the Oakland-Alameda Inner Harbor. City staff is coordinating with EBMUD to issue an Encroachment Permit that requires EBMUD to prepare adequate traffic control and detour plans. The inner harbor pipeline section will connect to 6,400 feet of new water pipelines to be constructed in City streets along Marina Village Parkway, Challenger Drive, Atlantic Avenue and Sherman Street.
EBMUD is requesting that the City dedicate water line easements where the new water main will be located on City-owned property. The first segment of the easement is located within APN 74-1334-47 and is 2,580 square feet, and the second segment of the easement is located within the Inner Harbor parcel and is 14,800 square feet. The Grant of Easement (Exhibit 1) is written to include language to accommodate future improvements related to sea level rise and future structures. The alignment across the two parcels is attached to the Grant of Easement in Exhibit 1.
ALTERNATIVES
• Authorize the City Manager to grant the easement to EBMUD.
• Do not authorize the City Manager to grant the easement. The impacts of this alternative will mean that EBMUD will not be able to complete the pipeline replacement project in the proposed alignment.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The easement will be granted to EBMUD at the cost of $5,000. The easement fee will be deposited to an easement revenue account in the General Fund (10037700). EBMUD is responsible for the installation costs of the new water main infrastructure.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
This action is consistent with the Alameda Municipal Code.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This action is not subject to California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review. In accordance to Section 15090 and 15092 of the CEQA Guidelines, EBMUD’s Board of Directors certified the EIR and approved the project on December 13, 2016.
CLIMATE IMPACT
There are no identifiable climate impacts or climate action opportunities associated with the subject of this report.
RECOMMENDATION
Authorize the City Manager to grant a water line easement to East Bay Municipal Utility District across City-owned property, execute any and all ancillary documents and direct the recording of the grant of easement for installation of the Oakland inner harbor pipeline crossing.
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
The City Manager requests authorization for the City Manager to grant a water line easement to East Bay Municipal Utility District across City-owned property, execute any and all ancillary documents and direct the recording of the grant of easement for installation of the Oakland inner harbor pipeline crossing.
Respectfully submitted,
Erin Smith, Public Works Director
By,
Russ Thompson, Interim City Engineer
Sarah Lee, Supervising Civil Engineer
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Annie To, Finance Director
Exhibit:
1. Grant of Easement
cc: Eric Levitt, City Manager