SLVWD Board Meeting Summary
June 29, 2022
Mark Dolson
Highlights:
Grant Award for Fall Creek Fish Ladder
Next Board meeting is at 6:30 PM on July 7th.
Preliminaries
There was no Closed Session.
There was no non-agenda-related public comment.
This was a special meeting with only a single item on the agenda.
New Business
Grant Award for Fall Creek Fish Ladder
Environmental Programs Manager Carly Blanchard introduced this agenda item. The District was recently notified that its grant application for the Fall Creek Fish Ladder Rehabilitation Project, Enhancing Survivability of Central California Coast Steelhead and Coho Salmon in the San Lorenzo River Watershed, was selected by the California Department of Fish & Wildlife (CDFW) for $1.1 million in funding through the 2022 Proposition 1 Watershed Restoration Grant & Delta Water Quality and Ecosystem Restoration Grant Program. The CDFW grant manager requires a resolution adopted before July 1, 2022 that appoints a District point of contact and signatory. The District Manager can act as the District’s signatory and point of contact with CDFW, in coordination with the District’s Environmental Programs Manager.
Director Smolley had a question about a detail in the grant award involving subcontractors. District Counsel Gina Nicholls said she didn’t expect the subcontractors to balk at amending their contracts with the specific language required.
Director Fultz asked about an initial concern that the District might not qualify for this grant because the work would begin before the grant was awarded. Carly said that breaking the work into two phases enabled the District to get started in advance of the grant (because the grant is only about half the estimated $2 million cost of the construction). In response to a follow-up question from Director Fultz, Carly said the District has now received $4.5 million in grant funding since contracting with the grant-writing consultant. Director Fultz noted that the award of $1.1 million matched the original estimated cost for the project. District Manager Rick Rogers said the $1.1 million previously allocated from the capital project fund to the Fish Ladder will now be assigned to a different project.
Director Ackemann asked about the current project schedule, expectations, and any challenges in meeting the grant timelines. Carly said de-watering should take place next week. The District is awaiting a de-watering plan from the contractor. The District is also working with the Design Engineer and CDFW on rounding the edges of steps to make it more passable for lamprey. The District expects to move forward with a design change if it does not cause delays.
Director Smolley expressed alarm that the contractor was only just now working on a de-watering plan. Rick said the contractor wasn’t allowed to start until June 15th and had been slow to submit his plans, partly due to some initial confusion about what the project entails. He said the project was now a little behind schedule, but he thought it could catch up. President Mahood expressed concern as well since there are strong schedule constraints imposed by fisheries. Rick said the contractor got off to a rocky start, but he still believes the contractor can meet the timelines, and the District is working closely to assist.
There were two public comments. Alina Layng said she was similarly surprised to hear about the de-watering plan. She asked if it was still being written. Carly said a plan had now been submitted.
Rick Moran said he had been involved with the Fish Ladder since 2016 when he first got on the Environmental Committee. He saw this as a good example of how state taxes are being used to help the District to maintain its goals.
President Mahood congratulated Carly and Staff on the grant award. She urged the District to be aggressive in continuing to pursue these kinds of funding opportunities.
Director Smolley moved to adopt the resolution accepting the grant and appointing the District Manager to be the signatory and point contact for the grant. Director Fultz seconded. The motion passed 5-0.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:50 PM.