BOARD AGENDA MEMORANDUM
SUBJECT:
Title
Proposed Cost Share Distribution Between the Santa Clara Valley Water District and the City of Palo Alto for the Northwest County Recycled Water Strategic Plan, Not to Exceed $1.8 Million, for the Cities of Palo Alto and Mountain View, Project No. 91101004, (District 7) (Continued from July 26, 2016).
End
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
A. Review information regarding proposed contributions from the City of Palo Alto for the Northwest County Recycled and Purified Water expansion efforts; and
B. Approve the District’s contribution of up to 90 percent of the cost, (not-to-exceed $1.8 million) of a consultant contract the City of Palo Alto will enter into for the development of the Northwest County Recycled Water Strategic Plan.
Body
SUMMARY:
This memorandum presents detailed information requested by the District’s Recycled Water Committee at its meeting held on May 12, 2016. Staff is recommending Board approval of a cost share arrangement between the District and the City of Palo Alto whereby the District funds (90) percent (not-to-exceed $1.8 million) and the City of Palo Alto funds ten (10) percent of the cost, to retain a consultant to develop the Northwest County Recycled Water Strategic Plan. This plan supports Board Governance policy and objective E-2.1.4 to protect, maintain and develop recycled water and corresponding proposed CEO outcome measure OM 2.1.4a to use at least 10 percent of annual recycled water as a percentage of total Santa Clara County water demands by 2025.
Background
Northwest County, as defined by the entities collaborating on the efforts further described below, entails the jurisdictions of the Palo Alto Regional Water Quality Control Plant (PARWQCP) member agencies including East Palo Alto Sanitary District, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Mountain View, Palo Alto, and Stanford University. The initial entities collaborating on the efforts described below are the Cities of Palo Alto and Mountain View. The City of East Palo Alto is also an interested party that may derive benefits from some of these efforts; however, the City of Palo Alto will dedicate its contributions, both in-kind and in consultant payments, to cover any apportioned costs for benefits received by East Palo Alto and other areas outside of Santa Clara County. This approach is consistent with the District’s powers under the District Act, Section 5.5 which describes the District’s authorities for providing water within the District.
The District, in partnership with the Cities of Palo Alto and Mountain View, is working on the development of several recycled water planning and expansion projects in Northwest County in the following three parts:
• Part 1 - Advanced Water Purification Feasibility Study;
• Part 2 - Northwest County Recycled Water Strategic Plan; and
• Part 3 - Palo Alto/Mountain View Resource and Planning Effort Studies.
As shown in Table 1, the estimated cost of these efforts is $4.4 million, which includes cost of consultant contracts, District in-kind contributions, and in-kind contributions from the Cities of Palo Alto and Mountain View. While staff recommends contributing 90 percent of the consultant contract costs for the development of the Northwest County Recycled Water Strategic Plan, the District’s total cost for pursing Parts 1 through 3 listed above is approximately 56 percent of that $4.4 million cost (i.e. $2,498,000).
Table 1. Northwest County Recycled Water Planning Costs
Current Status of Northwest County Recycled Water Planning
At the May 12, 2016 District Recycled Water Committee meeting, staff presented an update of the above-described three-part effort, which is briefly described below.
The purpose of the Advanced Water Purification RO Study (Part 1) is to identify and evaluate different alternatives to improve recycled water quality from the PARWQCP. The cost share agreement for the Advanced Water Purification RO Study was executed on May 16, 2016 by District and City of Palo Alto. Notice to proceed was issued to the consultant on May 23, 2016 and work is currently underway.
The Northwest County Recycled Water Strategic Plan (Part 2) will evaluate recycled water system expansion, financial planning, preliminary design, funding, and a study of groundwater in Northwest County. The groundwater study includes an evaluation of the feasibility of indirect potable reuse in Northwest County. The estimated consultant cost for developing this plan is up to $2 million, with 90 percent of this cost being funded by the District and the remaining 10 percent funded by the City of Palo Alto. Consistent with the District Act, the District’s share of costs will not extend benefits to parties outside of Santa Clara County. Due to the larger scope and complexity of developing this plan, in particular the study of groundwater, the District will have a greater degree of oversight and review of all deliverables from the consultant. The District and City of Palo Alto will negotiate the terms and conditions of the cost share agreement for this effort, including identifying each party’s roles and responsibilities in overseeing the consultant’s development of the Northwest County Recycled Water Strategic Plan. Staff expects the cost share agreement for funding this effort to be negotiated and executed by early September 2016.
Much of the work for the Resource and Planning Effort Studies (Part 3) has recently been completed under a separate contract between Palo Alto and Mountain View. The information from these studies will be included into the overall Northwest County Recycled Water Strategic Plan. The developed information includes: feasibility studies to expand recycled water within the City of Mountain View, construct an intertie between the City of Sunnyvale’s and City of Palo Alto’s recycled water system; a preliminary facilities assessment; and an environmental impact report for the expansion of recycled water in south Palo Alto and Stanford Research Park.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The estimated consultant cost for development of the Northwest County Recycled Water Strategic Plan is up to $2 million. The proposed cost share allocation for this cost is 90 percent (not to exceed $1.8 million) to the District and 10 percent to the City of Palo Alto ($200K). There are adequate funds in the Board-adopted FY2016-17 Budget to support this 90 percent cost share allocation by the District.
CEQA:
The recommended action does not constitute a project under CEQA because it does not have a potential for resulting in direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: PowerPoint
Handout 5.1o-A Muirhead (continued from July 26, 2016)
Handout 5.1-B City of Sunnyvale Letter
*Handout 5.1-C City of Mountain View and City of Palo Alto Letter
UNCLASSIFIED MANAGER:
Manager
Garth Hall, 408-630-2750