Item 6-I

COUNCIL MEETING: May 25, 1999 Santa Monica, California

TO: Mayor and City Council

FROM: City Staff

SUBJECT: Recommendation to Award a Contract of $137,800.00 to Chambers Group Consultants, Inc. for Preparation of an Environmental Impact Report on the Santa Monica Breakwater Replacement, Boat Moorings and Dock.

This staff report recommends that Chambers Group Consultants, Inc. be awarded a contract in the amount not to exceed $137,800 (which includes a 30% contingency), to prepare an Environmental Impact Report for the proposed Santa Monica Breakwater Replacement, Boat Moorings and Dock project located in the Santa Monica Bay adjacent to the Santa Monica Pier.

The project consists of the reconstruction of the Santa Monica Breakwater. The new breakwater will be 900 feet long, which is about one half the length of the existing breakwater, and will be located at the southern end of the existing breakwater, directly across from the pier. The project also calls for the addition of 12 commercial boat moorings for vessels no larger than 150 feet in length, located between the reconstructed breakwater and the existing Pier. Finally, a boat dock will be constructed and attached to the existing Pier structure to provide access to the moorings. The boat dock will be engineered for the temporary docking of boats up to 150 feet in length.

As the boat moorings and dock are City projects, they are subject to the standard City approval process which includes environmental analysis. The Planning and Community Development Department has determined that an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) will be required to evaluate the proposed project, and an EIR contract must be approved by Council. The EIR will examine a number of environmental issues regarding the proposed project including air, water, plant life, animal life, construction effects, fiscal, recreation, aesthetics, neighborhood effect, noise, traffic, transportation and circulation. Once an EIR is prepared, there will be a public comment period during which interested persons can review and comment on the environmental analysis. The project will be presented to the Planning Commission and public hearings on the project will be conducted by the City Council.

The City is requesting the analysis of a broad range of alternatives for the moorings and the location of the dock based on the range of boats that may use this marine facility. The Army Corps of Engineers completed a 1995 Environmental Assessment (EA) which will be the basis for the breakwater environmental study. Typically, an EA does not include the specific level of analysis that is required for an EIR. In addition, since the original EA was prepared, the City has developed a more detailed concept of the boat uses to determine possible traffic impacts related to the addition of these uses to the Pier. The detailed analysis of the impacts of the moorings, and the dock and the related boat uses which is required for the EIR Analysis will necessitate the generation of new data. This project requires not only expertise in the environmental impacts of marine construction, and an understanding of the environmental impacts of a range of boat uses, but also requires a clear method of analysis for the neighborhood, traffic and aesthetic impacts generated by reintroducing commercial boat uses to an urban beach community in relation to the existing Pier uses.

In preparation for the breakwater reconstruction, the Army Corps of Engineers will supplement the existing EA with additional analysis. The Army Corps will use the same consultant, Chambers Group, who prepared the original environmental analysis for the project. Since much of the information required for the EIR is similar to that which is required of the Supplemental Environmental Assessment (SEA), staff recommends that the contract be awarded to Chambers Group. Staff believes this will streamline the process, and ensure consistency in the analysis. The Army Corps of Engineers originally selected Chambers Group in 1995 as the result of a Request For Proposal to select a contract consultant for a number of different projects.

The City's costs for this EIR, have been included in the CIP accounts for the construction of the Breakwater and will be available from the following account numbers:

$100,000 from account # 30-720-625-20096-89009-99932

$ 37,800 from account # 30-720-625-20099-89009-99932

It is recommended that the City Council authorize the City Manager to enter into a contract with Chambers Group, Inc. at a cost not to exceed $137,800 (which includes a 30% contingency), for preparation of an EIR for the proposed Santa Monica Breakwater Replacement, Boat Moorings and Dock.

Prepared by:
Suzanne Frick, Director of PCD
Jay M. Trevino, AICP, Planning Manager
Sarah Lejeune, Associate Planner
Planning And Community Development Department