Emergency Water Supply Wells Project

This project was formerly known as the Supplemental Emergency Water Supply Project - Seminary Oaks Park.

Current Project Status

January 2012 – Exploratory Drilling at Willow Road Site

Work at the Willow Road site is expected to begin on 1/16/12 and will last about three weeks, including a drilling phase that lasts 5 – 10 days.  This exploratory activity will not affect access to homes or businesses along Willow Road and there will be no impact to parking in the Willow Road cul-de-sac.  Work will be limited to the hours between 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m., and temporary noise barriers will be used to reduce disturbance.  Exploratory drilling will also take place at the City Corporation Yard (site #4) in February 2012.  Results will be presented to City Council in the spring for a decision about well construction at these sites. If wells are installed, the final well locations will be near but slightly different from the exploratory drilling locations.

The drawing below depicts the area of construction for the exploratory drilling.

Staff will also begin evaluating the potential for easement establishment or purchase of non-City owned Tier 2 and Tier 3 properties in the event that production at the preferred sites does not meet the City's goal of 3,000 gpm.

Frequently Asked Questions

Project Background

The City of Menlo Park Municipal Water District (District) is divided into western and eastern service areas and serves approximately 14,000 residents throughout the City.  There are approximately 3,000 service connections in the eastern service area (east of El Camino Real) and 1,000 service connections in the western service area (Sharon Heights).  The area of the City between the western and eastern service area is serviced by California Water Service (Cal Water) Bear Gulch District.

The Water District purchases 100% of its water from the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission’s (SFPUC) Hetch Hetchy system and delivers it to more than 14,000 residents and businesses located east of El Camino Real and in the Sharon Heights area.  The area east of El Camino Real is known as the District’s eastern service area.  There are no storage facilities or local water sources serving the eastern service area.  As a result, nearly 3,000 residents and businesses could be without water immediately for an undetermined period of time if earthquake damage interrupts the availability of the SFPUC supply.  Studies indicate that the City could be without Hetch Hetchy water for as long as 20-30 days while SFPUC repairs the damage.

Planned Activities