Project background

The City of Menlo Park Municipal Water District provides water to approximately 16,000 customers through 2,300 service connections within two service areas:  the lower zone located east of El Camino Real and the upper zone located in the Sharon Heights area. The district purchases all of its water from the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission's Hetch Hetchy system. There are no storage facilities or secondary water supplies for the lower zone, and as a result, nearly 3,000 residents and businesses could be without water immediately for an undetermined period 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.
 

Project goal


The goal is to provide 3,000 gallons per minute for the lower zone, which can be met by constructing 3 to 4 emergency wells.

Design and construction of an emergency well consists of three steps:
  1. Environmental review
  2. Well drilling
  3. Construction of the aboveground wellhead facilities

Well site ranking by tiers

 
 In July 2016, the City entered into an agreement with Infrastructure Engineering Corporation to identify the next two emergency well locations, prepare environmental documents, design the wells and provide construction support.

IEC is in the process of reviewing existing data and further analyzing the preliminary well site ranking that was last established in 2013 as shown below. The City will keep the public up-to-date as the project moves forward and will notify residents of upcoming community meetings.   
 
Tier 1 - Most desirable
  • City Corporation Yard
Tier 2 - Desirable
  • Menlo Park Fire Protection District Station No. 1
Tier 3 - Potentially feasible
  • Willow Oaks Park - 1 site
  • Burgess Park (Burgess/Alma)
  • Burgess Park (Ravenswood)
  • Alma site
Tier 4 - Less feasible
  • Willow Oaks Park - 2 sites
  • Seminary Oaks Park - 2 sites
  • Pope/Laurel site

Planned activities


Date Location Activity
Dec 2016 Well 1 - Corporation Yard Select well driller and approve the well drilling contract
Early 2017 Well 1 - Corporation Yard Drill the well
Early 2017 Well 1 - Corporation Yard
 Release wellhead facilities bid package
Spring 2017 Well 1 - Corporation Yard
 Select wellhead facilities construction firm and approve the wellhead facilities construction contract
Spring/Summer 2017 Well 1 - Corporation Yard
 Construct wellhead facilities
Summer 2017 Well 1 - Corporation Yard
 State Water Board to approve the Drinking Water Permit


Past activities

 
Date Location Activity
October 2016 Well 1 - Corporation Yard Release well drilling bid package.
July 2016 Well 2 and 3 City Council approves an agreement with Infrastructure Engineering Consultants for $1,607,450 to identify the next two well locations, prepare environmental documents, design the emergency wells, and provide construction support.
 staff Report & Minutes
July 2016 Well 1 - Corporation Yard  Planning Commission approves the use permit for the emergency generator.
  Staff Report & Minutes
June 2016 Well 1 - Corporation Yard  City Council approves  Mitigated Negative Declaration.
 Staff Report & Minutes
January 2016 Well 1 - Corporation Yard The State Water Board approves construction of an emergency water well at the Corporation Yard.
May 29, 2013 Well 1 - Corporation Yard Community meeting at the Corporation Yard.
April 2013 Well 1 - Corporation Yard Install two noise monitors on city-owned streetlights to determine the Corporation Yard's baseline noise levels; the monitors were removed after one week.
January 2013   City Council approves an agreement with Infrastructure Engineering Consultants for $430,691 to design an emergency well at the Corporation Yard, revising the well site ranking to include two additional sites at Alma Site and Pope/Laurel Site, and initiating public outreach for Tier 2 & 3 sites shown in the revised Well Site Ranking.    These sites include Fire Station No. 1, Willow Oaks Park, Burgess Park and Alma Site.
minutes
February 2012   Exploratory drilling completed at the City's Corporation Yard on Burgess Drive to determine viability and well productivity.
January 2012   Exploratory drilling completed at the City-owned property on Willow Road to determine viability and well production.
Novevember 2011   City Council authorized the detailed engineering and hydrogeologic evaluations (drilling exploratory borings) at the City’s Corporation Yard and City-owned property at 878 Pierce Road.
August/September 2011   Community Meetings to gather input from the community
Oct. 5, 2010   City Council approves well siting criteria
June 30, 2010   Community Meetings to develop well siting criteria to rank potential sits.
Powerpoint presentation
October 2009   City Council approves a study to identify potential well sites.
May 2009   Feasibility analysis completed for the Menlo Park Municipal Water District's eastern service area to determine if wells could provide sufficient water for domestic use and fire flow.
November 2008
   Consultant's feasibility analysis recommends further analysis of water supply demand for the Menlo Park Municipal Water District's eastern service area to determine if wells could provide sufficient water for domestic use and fire flow.
August 2008   City Council approves a preliminary feasibility assessment for wells-only emergency backup water supply system.