TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Bruce Moe, City Manager
FROM:
Erick Lee, Public Works Director
Katherine Doherty, City Engineer
Tim Birthisel, Senior Civil Engineer
Erika King, Senior Management Analyst
SUBJECT:Title
Consideration of a Resolution Authorizing a Memorandum of Understanding for the Santa Monica Bay Stormwater Total Maximum Daily Load Trash Treatment Project Between the City of Manhattan Beach and the Los Angeles County Flood Control District for a Proposition 1 Round 2 Integrated Regional Water Management Implementation Grant (Public Works Director Lee).
ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 24-0024
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Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt Resolution No. 24-0024:
1) Authorizing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the Santa Monica Bay Stormwater Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Trash Treatment Project (Project) between the City and the Los Angeles County Flood Control District (LACFCD), Agreement No. 4600015405, for a Proposition 1 (Prop 1) Round 2 Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) Implementation Grant.
2) Authorize the City Manager and/or his or her designee to negotiate and execute the MOU.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
There are no fiscal implications associated with the recommended action. If the Memorandum of Understanding under consideration is not authorized, budgeted revenues will require an adjustment.
BACKGROUND:
The Department of Water Resources released the Prop 1 Round 2 IRWM Implementation Grant solicitation package in May 2022, making $210,000,000 available for IRWM Implementation projects statewide, of which $17,150,000 was allocated to the Greater Los Angeles County IRWM area. LACFCD, as IRWM leader of the Greater Los Angeles County Region, has retained the services of West Basin Municipal Water District to hire a consultant to prepare a Department of Water Resources Prop 1 Round 2 IRWM Implementation Grant Program application (application) on behalf of the region.
In September 2022, City Council approved Resolution No. 22-0123 adopting the 2017 Updated Greater Los Angeles County Region IRWM Plan and enabling the City to submit the Project for Prop 1 Round 2 IRWM Implementation Grant Program funding.
In November 2022, the City was notified that the joint City/The Bay Foundation application was selected for $830,000 in Prop 1 Round 2 IRWM Implementation Grant Program funding.
In December 2022, City Council approved Resolution No. 22-0172 adopting an MOU between the City and West Basin Municipal Water District for the Department of Water Resources Prop 1 Round 2 IRWM Grant Program application preparation fees for the grant preparation consultant in the amount of $5,400. The City utilized a portion of its Local Return from the Safe Clean Water Program (Measure W) Fund to pay for the grant preparation fees. The Region’s IRWM Implementation Grant Program application, including the Project, was submitted to the Department of Water Resources in January 2023.
DISCUSSION:
The City established a partnership with The Bay Foundation to meet the grant criteria of delivering multiple benefits to combat several threats to the coastline. A combination of high-flow capacity stormwater treatment and distributed trash capture devices to remove trash, debris, and sediment-borne pollutants from storm drain outfalls to the beach, addressing the City’s stormwater requirements for trash control, will be achieved through the City’s TMDL Trash Treatment Project. Additionally, in partnership with The Bay Foundation, 3.2 acres of native coastal dune habitat will be established to protect the coastline from erosion and storm surge while providing safe harbor for shorebirds and coastal wildlife, creating a vibrant living shoreline that is resilient to climate change impacts. These efforts combine to create the Manhattan Beach Coastal Restoration and Resiliency Project.
On January 22, 2024, the City was notified by the County that projects meeting the criteria below may be eligible for advanced payment of grant funds.
Eligibility Criteria (Water Code Section 10551):
1. Project is included and implemented in an applicable Integrated Regional Water Management Plan.
2. Project proponent is a non-profit organization, disadvantaged community (DAC); or the project benefits a DAC.
3. If a project is awarded less than $1,000,000 in grant funds, the project proponent may receive an advanced payment of fifty (50) percent of the project grant award. The remaining fifty (50) percent of the grant award will be reimbursed in arrears after the advanced funds of a budget category have been fully expended.
The Project meets these criteria. LACFCD requires that the City enter into the attached MOU to comply with the Grant Agreement between the Department of Water Resources and LACFCD for the Prop 1 Round 2 IRWM Implementation Grant Program (attached) to be considered for advanced payment. Staff recommends that City Council authorize the City Manager and/or his or her designee to negotiate and execute the MOU.
PUBLIC OUTREACH:
The City presented the Project to the Greater Los Angeles County IRWM Leadership Committee on November 22, 2022. The Project was presented to the Parking and Public Improvements Commission on October 26, 2023. Additionally, a public outreach meeting with stakeholders was held on January 30, 2024 in the City Council Chambers to present the project design and discuss the benefits to the community and construction impacts. Notice of this meeting was sent to all properties within 500 feet of the Project’s locations.
Area residents will continue to be updated with information posted on the City’s website. Once the construction phase begins, public outreach will include an initial project construction notice mailed to nearby residents and periodic updates at construction milestones on the City website.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
The City has previously determined that the project qualifies for a Categorical Exemption pursuant to Section 15301(c) of the State CEQA Guidelines (the operation, repair, maintenance, permitting, leasing, licensing, or minor alteration of existing public or private structures, facilities, mechanical equipment, or topographical features, involving negligible or no expansion of existing or former use; including existing highways, streets, or sidewalks). of the State California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has reviewed this report and determined that no additional legal analysis is necessary.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Resolution No. 24-0024
2. Memorandum of Understanding - LACFCD
3. Grant Agreement - Department of Water Resources and LACFCD