DATE: December 18, 2024
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers
FROM: Public Works Department
TITLE: AUTHORIZE PAYMENT TO THE U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS FOR THE NEXT PHASE OF THE SAN LUIS REY RIVER FLOOD PROTECTION PROJECT
RECOMMENDATION
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Staff recommends that the City Council authorize the payment of $2,333,333 to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) as the City's first installment of the matching funds for the next phase of the San Luis Rey River (SLRR) Flood Protection Project; appropriate funds from the General Fund assigned SLRR account; and authorize the Financial Services Director, or designee, to execute payment upon receipt of all supporting documents.
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BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS
The SLRR Flood Protection Project was authorized by Congress in 1970 with the goal of providing a 250-year level of flood protection. The initial SLRR Flood Protection Project was completed in January 2000. The project was constructed subject to an Agreement between the City of Oceanside and the USACE executed on April 6, 1988, in which the City agreed to pay 25% of the project cost. Although the originally envisioned project was completed in January 2000, the project could not be turned over to the City for final operation and maintenance (O&M) upon completion of the construction because of environmental constraints that were identified at that time, including the listing of critical habitat and species that subsequently occupied the river bottom. Because the project was not turned over to the City, the USACE does not consider the project technically "complete."
A Post Authorization Decision Document (PADD) was prepared by the USACE in July 2007, which identified "significant changes in environmental conditions" that were not addressed prior to completion of project construction; hence, requiring additional work. As a result, the USACE started a project re-evaluation process assessing new environmental mitigation needs and also ensuring that the S...
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