REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
July 13, 2021
FROM
BRENDON BIGGS, Director, Department of Public Works - Special Districts
BEAHTA DAVIS, Director, Regional Parks Department
SUBJECT
Title
California Environmental Quality Act Finding, Plans, and Specifications for Calico Ghost Town Phase Two Advanced Wastewater Treatment Project in Yermo
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
1. Find that the Calico Ghost Town Phase Two Advanced Wastewater Treatment Project in Yermo is exempt under the California Environmental Quality Act, Section 15302 Class 2 for replacement or reconstruction.
2. Approve plans and specifications for the Calico Ghost Town Phase Two Advanced Wastewater Treatment Project in Yermo.
3. Authorize the Director of the Department of Public Works to advertise the Calico Ghost Town Phase Two Advanced Wastewater Treatment Project in Yermo for competitive bids.
4. Direct the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors to file and post the Notice of Exemption for the Calico Ghost Town Phase Two Advanced Wastewater Treatment Project in Yermo.
(Presenter: Brendon Biggs, Director, 387-7906)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Operate in a Fiscally-Responsible and Business-Like Manner.
Ensure Development of a Well-Planned, Balanced, and Sustainable County.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of additional Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The Calico Ghost Town Phase Two Advance Wastewater Treatment Project in Yermo (Project) will be funded by a savings achieved from completion of the Calico Water Treatment Improvements Project (No. 30.30.0074).
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The Department of Public Works - Special Districts (Department) provides water treatment and sewer system design, construction, operations, and maintenance support services to the Regional Parks Department (Regional Parks), which includes Calico Ghost Town Regional Park (Calico). Calico is an abandoned mining town that has been converted to a tourist attraction consisting of restaurants, shops, and campgrounds. During the winter season, Calico treats a peak flow of about 30,000 gallons of wastewater per day using a septic tank system. The wastewater discharge from the septic tank system is conveyed into a percolation basin for final disposal.
The operation and treatment of wastewater at Calico is regulated by the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board (LRWQCB). LRWQCB informed Regional Parks that it must commit to providing an advanced wastewater treatment system for Calico to protect the groundwater. The new advanced wastewater treatment system must be able to decrease the nitrogen concentration level to less than 10 milligrams per liter prior to discharging flow into the percolation basin. In response, Regional Parks issued a letter to LRWQCB on February 6, 2019 agreeing to the proposed Project.
The Project will divert the existing wastewater flow from the septic tank system into the new wastewater treatment system and will use the existing septic tanks as an emergency backup system. The Project’s scope of work will involve site grading and paving, installation of an advanced wastewater treatment system, new sewer lines, electrical and instrumentation work. The new wastewater facility will be an unmanned facility that will be remotely monitored and controlled. As part of the agreement with LRWQCB, the deadline for the new system to become operational is August 2022. The Department intends to complete construction in March 2022 to meet the LRWQCB deadline.
The Department has conducted a full review of the Project requirements and scope of work. As evidenced by the Notice of Exemption (NOE), Section 15302 of the California Environment Quality Act (CEQA) provides categorical exemption for projects involving Class 2, replacement or reconstruction. All work involved in the Project is consistent with Class 2 exemptions, which allows for “replacement structures of substantially the same size, purpose and capacity”. On April 7, 2021, the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors filed and posted the NOE for the Project.
At this time, in conjunction with the recommended actions for the Board of Supervisors (Board) to approve the plans and specifications and authorize bidding of the Project, the Department also recommends that the Board find the Project to be exempt under CEQA Guidelines, Section 15302 Class 2, replacement or reconstruction, and direct the Clerk of the Board to file and post the NOE as required under CEQA. The NOE needs to be refiled as CEQA guidelines provide that the NOE shall not be filed until the project has been approved.
PROCUREMENT
Upon Board approval of this item, the bid process will begin with issuance of an advertisement for bids in the County’s Electronic Procurement (ePro) Network in accordance with Section 22037 of the California Public Contract Code, as well as advertisement in required plan rooms. A mandatory pre-bid meeting will be scheduled to allow potential contractors the opportunity to see the jobsite and evaluate the Project. Bids can be submitted up to the Project’s bid opening on August 18, 2021 at 2:00 p.m.
The Department anticipates returning to the Board in September 2021 with recommendations for award of the construction contract and approval of the necessary budget adjustments.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Katherine Hardy, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on June 11, 2021; Finance (Tom Forster, Administrative Analyst, 387-4635) on June 23, 2021; and County Finance and Administration (Matthew Erickson, County Chief Financial Officer, 387-5423) on June 28, 2021.