Title
Approve Amendment No. 1 to the Professional Services Agreement with West Yost for a time extension to June 30, 2024 to continue services related to the hydrologic and flood control benefit analyses necessary to develop an updated Salinas Valley Historical Benefits Analysis report; and authorize the General Manager to execute Amendment No. 1. (Staff: Amy Woodrow)
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Board of Directors of the Monterey County Water Resources Agency:
a) Approve Amendment No. 1 to the Professional Services Agreement with West Yost for a time extension to June 30, 2024 to continue services related to the hydrologic and flood control benefit analyses necessary to develop an updated Salinas Valley Historical Benefits Analysis report; and
b) Authorize the General Manager to execute Amendment No. 1.
SUMMARY/DISCUSSION:
In April 1998, the Salinas Valley Historical Benefits Analysis (“HBA”) was prepared by Montgomery Watson for the Monterey County Water Resources Agency (“MCWRA”) to identify and quantify the hydrologic, flood control, and economic benefits of construction and operation of Nacimiento and San Antonio reservoirs, as well as the geographic distribution of those benefits. The findings of the HBA informed the 2003 Salinas Valley Water Project (“SVWP”) Engineer’s Report, which documented an assessment methodology developed for a special assessment to fund the SVWP.
During 2020 and 2021, MCWRA prepared a draft Engineer’s Report for the High Priority Capital Asset Management Program (“CAMP”) to describe the technical basis for a new assessment that would, if approved and passed, fund the priority tasks in the CAMP for Nacimiento and San Antonio Reservoir and Dam facilities and operations. This draft Engineer’s Report utilized some components of the 1998 HBA to determine distribution of special benefit costs.
During the process of discussing the draft Engineer’s Report for the CAMP with the MCWRA Board of Directors, members of the public expressed concern that the draft Engineer’s Report relied on the 1998 HBA because it pre-dated the Castroville Seawater Intrusion Project (“CSIP”) and the SVWP and, therefore, did not include an evaluation of benefits of those projects.
Since 2014, and concurrent with the effort on the draft Engineer’s Report for the CAMP, MCWRA has been developing the Interlake Tunnel and San Antonio Spillway Modification Project (“Interlake Tunnel”). A wide range of planning, conceptual engineering design, and hydrologic modeling work has been accomplished for the Interlake Tunnel project including, most recently, a publication of a draft Environmental Impact Report.
Per the terms of MCWRA’s grant agreement with the California Department of Water Resources (“DWR”) that is primarily funding the Interlake Tunnel work at present, MCWRA must complete a draft Engineer’s Report for the Interlake Tunnel by December 31, 2023. Based on the feedback received during on the draft Engineer’s Report for the CAMP, staff recommends that an updated HBA be prepared prior to completion of the draft Engineer’s Report for the Interlake Tunnel. The updated HBA would include an evaluation of the hydrologic, flood control, and economic benefits of Nacimiento and San Antonio Reservoirs, CSIP, and the SVWP; it could be used to support the draft Engineer’s Report for the Interlake Tunnel in addition to other projects, such as the CAMP.
On April 4, 2023, the Monterey County Water Resources Board of Directors (“BOD”) approved a Professional Services Agreement with West Yost in the amount of $383,064 to complete a hydrologic and flood control benefit analysis report (Attachment 1). This report presents a quantified approach to quantifying the hydrologic and flood control benefits of Nacimiento and San Antonio Reservoirs, CSIP, and the SVWP. An economic consultant, One Water Econ, LLC, was retained separately to quantify the economic benefits of the reservoirs and existing projects.
The initial Professional Services Agreement with West Yost had a termination date of May 1, 2024. Due to some minor delays in the hydrologic modeling process, an amendment is being pursued to extend the term of the agreement to June 30, 2024 and allow for completion of the report (Attachment 2).
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
None
FINANCING:
MCWRA’s adopted budget for Fiscal Year 2023-2024 has sufficient appropriations in Fund 426 to support the Agreement’s not-to-exceed amount of $383,064 and this work is eligible for reimbursement under the DWR grant.
Prepared by: Amy Woodrow, Senior Hydrologist, 831-755-4860
Approved by: Ara Azhderian, General Manager, 831-755-4860
Attachments:
1. Professional Services Agreement with West Yost
2. Amendment 1 to Professional Services Agreement with West Yost
3. Board Order