Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-05-09; City Council; Resolution 2023-126RESOLUTION NO. 2023-126 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, APPROVING A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE SAN DIEGO ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS AND THE CITY OF CARLSBAD REGARDING PRELIMINARY PLANNING ACTIVITIES FOR A REGIONAL BEACH SAND PROJECT, AND APPROVING THE ALLOCATION AND APPROPRIATION OF $64,677 OF GRANT FUNDS FROM THE AGRICULTURAL MITIGATION FEE FUND WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Carlsbad, California has determined that wide beaches can help protect coastal communities and coastal transportation facilities by acting as a buffer to alleviate some of the impacts from sea-level rise, strong storm events, and high tides; and WHEREAS, multiple benefits of beach nourishment have been cited, including recreational, economic, and public safety enhancements, protection of infrastructure, and increases in habitat; and WHEREAS, beach nourishment is also considered a sea-level rise adaptation strategy by several cities in the San Diego region which have updated their Local Coastal Programs to align with the California Coastal Commission's Guidance on sea-level rise; and WHEREAS, a Regional Beach Sand Project (RBSP) involves dredging beach quality sand from offshore borrow sites and placing that sand on highly eroded beaches in the San Diego region; and WHEREAS, the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) has a regional forum -the Shoreline Preservation Working Group -for which elected officials are engaged in regional adaptation projects, such as beach nourishment; and WHEREAS, representatives of several coastal cities on the Shoreline Preservation Working Group have expressed an interest in initiating a RBSP; and WHEREAS, in 1993, SANDAG adopted the "Shoreline Preservation Strategy for the San Diego Region" as a long-term strategy for restoring the regional beaches. It sets out objectives, policies, and recommendations for executing a coordinated list of solutions to the region's areas of concern; and WHEREAS, in 2001, SANDAG implemented and completed the RBSP I, which placed 2.1 million cubic yards of clean, beach-quality sand at 12 eroded beaches -from Imperial Beach to Oceanside. Carlsbad beaches received an estimated 382,625 cubic yards of sand from the RBSP I; and WHEREAS, SAN DAG will be responsible for project management and administration of RBSP Ill, will play a role in coordinating with local jurisdictions and in drafting/editing the feasibility study; and WHEREAS, the consultant hired by SANDAG will be responsible for most of the other tasks, including reviewing the existing monitoring data, completing the offshore borrow site survey plan, completing the economic analysis, and finalizing the feasibility study; and WHEREAS, there will be three phases for the RBSP Ill: Phase I -Preliminary Planning, Phase II - Engineering and Environmental, and Phase Ill -Construction and Monitoring; and WHEREAS, while SANDAG has applied for several grants to cover the cost for Phase I, the proposals have been unsuccessful. SANDAG is therefore recommending that local jurisdictions collectively fund the work for Phase I of the RBSP Ill; and WHEREAS, on March 27, 2023, staff received a draft Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the City of Carlsbad and SANDAG regarding Preliminary Planning Activities for a Regional Beach Sand Project. Similar MOUs were executed prior to implementation of RBSP I and RBSP II; and WHEREAS, on April 4, 2023, the Beach Preservation Commission recommended the City Council approve a MOU between San Diego Association of Governments and the City of Carlsbad Regarding Preliminary Planning Activities for a Regional Beach Sand Project and WHEREAS, SANDAG's total $200,000 funding request for Phase I of the RBSP Ill has been divided amongst the region's participating coastal cities (i.e., cities of Oceanside, Carlsbad, Encinitas, Solana Beach and Imperial Beach), proportionate to the miles of coastline within each of those cities; and WHEREAS, the City of Carlsbad contains 6.5 miles of coastline, which is 32.3 percent of the coastline of the region's participating coastal cities in Phase I of RBSP Ill. Carlsbad's proportional share of SAN DAG'S total $200,000 funding request equates to $64,677; and WHEREAS, on Feb. 13, 2007, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2007-029, approving the allocation of grant funds from the Agricultural Conversion Mitigation Fee Fund based upon the recommendations of the Agricultural Conversion Mitigation Fee Committee; and WHEREAS, that allocation included grant funds to the City of Carlsbad Beach Preservation Committee for Carlsbad Beach Nourishment; and WHEREAS, the city subsequently provided SANDAG $884,060 in grant funds over the total phases of the RBSP II; and WHEREAS, on Feb. 20, 2020, after all monitoring requirements for the RBSP II had been met, SANDAG refunded to the city a balance of $227,552, from the $884,060 the city had provided to SANDAG; and WHEREAS, staff deposited the $227,552 balance to the Agricultural Mitigation Fee Fund; and WHEREAS, staff is recommending that the City Council approve the allocation and appropriation of $64,677 of grant funds from the Agricultural Mitigation Fee Fund to address SANDAG's funding request for Phase I of the RBSB Ill; and WHEREAS, the remaining $162,875 would be held in the Agricultural Mitigation Fee Fund and could potentially be allocated at a later date in support of additional phases of the RBSP Ill; and WHEREAS, the City Planner has determined that approving a MOU between SANDAG and the City of Carlsbad Regarding Preliminary Planning Activities for a RBSP is RBSP is statutorily exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act under CEQA Guidelines Section 15262 -Feasibility and Planning Studies. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Carlsbad, California, as follows: 1.That the above recitations are true and correct. 2.That the Mayor is hereby authorized and directed to approve a Memorandum of Understanding between SAN DAG and the City of Carlsbad for a RBSP, attached hereto as Attachment A. 3.That the Deputy City Manager for Administrative Services is hereby authorized to allocate and appropriate $64,677 from the Agricultural Mitigation Fee Fund for SANDAG's funding request for Phase I of the RBSB Ill. PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED at a Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of Carlsbad on the 9th day of May, 2023, by the following vote, to wit: AYES: NAYS: ABSTAIN: ABSENT: Blackburn, Bhat-Patel, Acosta, Burkholder, Luna. None. None. None. KEITH BLACKBURN, Mayor t SHERRY FREISINGER, City ClerkU (SEAL) Attachment A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN SAN DIEGO ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS AND THE CITY OF CARLSBAD REGARDING PRELIMINARY PLANNING ACTIVITIES FOR A REGIONAL BEACH SAND PROJECT SANDAG CONTRACT NO. S1156850 This Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is made and entered into effective as of the last signature date below, by and between the San Diego Association of Governments (“SANDAG”) and the City of Carlsbad. RECITALS WHEREAS, in 1996, SANDAG adopted the Shoreline Preservation Strategy (Strategy) that outlines an extensive beach building and maintenance program for the critical shoreline erosion areas in the region, containing a comprehensive set of recommendations on the beach building program and on financing and implementation; and WHEREAS, in 2001, SANDAG successfully implemented a Regional Beach Sand Project (RBSP) that placed 2.1 million cubic yards of sand on 12 beaches in the San Diego region; and WHEREAS, in 2012, SANDAG successfully implemented a second Regional Beach Sand Project (RBSP II) that placed 1.5 million cubic yards of sand on 8 beaches in the San Diego region; and WHEREAS, in 2021, SANDAG adopted the 2021 Regional Plan, which includes a Sustainable Communities Strategy that promotes nature-based climate solutions as a climate adaption strategy; and WHEREAS, the State of California has identified beach nourishment as a type of nature-based climate solutions; and WHEREAS, the San Diego region is committed to implementing the Strategy; and WHEREAS, the region’s coastal cities representatives on the SANDAG Shoreline Preservation Working Group have expressed an interest and desire to initiate a Regional Beach Sand Project III (RBSP III); and WHEREAS, a number of benefits, including recreational, economic, and public safety enhancements, protection of infrastructure, and increases in habitat, would occur as a result of beach nourishment; and WHEREAS, the first Phase of a RBSP III would be preliminary planning activities that include updating the Feasibility and Economic Analysis done in 2007 at an estimated cost of $200,000 in preliminary planning activities for the RBSP III, which is requested to be paid by the region; and WHEREAS, the preliminary planning activities as identified in attachments to this MOU include updating the feasibility study and economic analysis done in 2007, determining lessons learned, identifying streamlining and cost saving options, and estimating the total cost for engineering, environmental and construction for a RBSP III (Preliminary Planning Activities); and WHEREAS, the allocation of funds among the coastal cities (City of San Diego, City of Carlsbad, City of Encinitas, City of Imperial Beach, City of Oceanside, City of Del Mar and City of Solana Beach, together the “Coastal Cities”) should be based upon the number of miles of coastline within each city, which is a method used for the Regional Shoreline Monitoring Program that is currently funded by the Coastal Cities; and WHEREAS, SANDAG requires a written funding commitment for each participating Coastal City prior to work beginning on the Preliminary Planning Activities; and WHEREAS, this MOU does not and is not intended to commit any of the parties to working on any portion of the RBSP III beyond the stage of Preliminary Planning Activities; and WHEREAS, the City of Carlsbad has 6.50 miles of shoreline within San Diego County which is 32.34 percent of the region’s coastline equaling a total contribution of $64,677 (Proportional Share) for Preliminary Planning Activities necessary for the development of RBSP III; and WHEREAS, the parties wish to memorialize their agreement in this MOU to carry out the purposes set forth above; AGREEMENT NOW THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises set forth herein, the parties agree as follows: SANDAG AGREES: 1.To use the City of Carlsbad’s Proportional Share solely to pay for Preliminary Planning Activities to evaluate the potential for RBSP III, which includes an investigation of offshore sand sources and preliminary project design for the preparation of a regional beach sand project. Funds will be kept by SANDAG in an interest-bearing account with interest credited to City of Carlsbad prorated to reflect its contribution to the Preliminary Planning Activities as compared to each Coastal City’s contributions, until the completion of the Preliminary Planning Activities. Unused funds will be returned to each Coastal City on a similarly pro-rated basis. 2.To retain the original records for at least 5 years from the date of the Preliminary Planning Activities completion and make them available to the City of Carlsbad upon request. 3.To not proceed beyond the first phase of Preliminary Planning Activities without assurances that each participating Coastal City has entered into a subsequent memorandum of understanding reflecting the jurisdiction’s desire and commitment to participate in the RBSP III, reflecting approvals of appropriations for the phases of the RBSP III after Preliminary Planning Activities, the aggregate of which will fund the RBSP III. 4.Neither City of Carlsbad, nor any officer thereof is responsible for any damage or liability occurring by reason of anything done or omitted to be done by SANDAG under or in connection with any work, authority, or jurisdiction delegated to SANDAG under this MOU. It is understood and agreed that, pursuant to Government Code Section 895.4, SANDAG shall fully defend, indemnify, and save harmless City of Carlsbad, all officers, and employees from all claims, suits, or actions of every name, kind, and description brought for or on account of injury (as defined in Government Code Section 810.8) occurring by reason of anything done or omitted to be done by SANDAG under or in connection with any work, authority, or jurisdiction delegated to SANDAG under this MOU. CITY OF CARLSBAD AGREES: 5. The City of Carlsbad will approve an appropriation of $64,677, such amount being its Proportional Share to SANDAG for the Preliminary Planning Activities, which funds will be paid to SANDAG prior to the start date of the Preliminary Planning Activities. 6. The City of Carlsbad understands and agrees that the proportionate amount may decrease, or increase based upon the participation of other Coastal Cities in the Preliminary Planning Activities, but any increase beyond $64,677, will require and is subject to subsequent approval by the City Council or designee. 7.Neither SANDAG nor any officer thereof is responsible for any damage or liability occurring by reason of anything done or omitted to be done by City of Carlsbad under or in connection with any work, authority, or jurisdiction delegated to City of Carlsbad under this MOU. It is understood and agreed that, pursuant to Government Code Section 895.4 as well as the terms of this MOU, City of Carlsbad shall fully defend, indemnify, and save harmless SANDAG, its Board of Directors, all its officers, and all its employees from all claims, suits, or actions of every name, kind, and description brought for or on account of injury (as defined in Government Code Section 810.8) occurring by reason of anything done or omitted to be done by the City of Carlsbad under or in connection with any work, authority, or jurisdiction delegated to City of Carlsbad under this MOU. THE PARTIES MUTUALLY AGREE: 1.That all obligations of SANDAG under the terms of this MOU are subject to the appropriation of the required resources by SANDAG and the approval of the SANDAG Board of Directors. 2.Any notice required or permitted under this MOU may be personally served on the other party, by the party giving notice, or may be served by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the following addresses: For SANDAG For City of Carlsbad 401 B Street, Suite 800 799 Pine Avenue San Diego, CA 92101 Carlsbad, CA 92008 Attn: Courtney Pesce Attn: Parks & Recreation Director 3.This MOU shall continue in effect unless and until a party to the MOU gives 60 (sixty) days written notice of its desire to withdraw from the MOU. 4.In accordance with Public Utilities Code section 132354.1(b)(4), all parties shall maintain and make available for inspection all books, documents, papers, accounting records, emails and other evidence pertaining to the performance of the Agreement, including but not limited to, the costs of administering the MOU to the SANDAG Independent Performance Auditor. All parties shall make such materials available at their respective offices at all reasonable times during the MOU period and for three years from the date of final payment under the MOU. 5.The indemnification and defense provisions of this MOU shall survive termination of the MOU. 6.This MOU shall be interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of California. If any action is brought to interpret or enforce any term of this MOU, the action shall be brought in a state or federal court situated in the County of San Diego, State of California. 7.All terms, conditions, and provisions hereof shall inure to and shall bind each of the parties hereto, and each of their respective heirs, executors, administrators, successors, and assigns. 8.For purposes of this MOU, the relationship of the parties is that of independent entities and not as agents of each other or as joint ventures or partners. The parties shall maintain sole and exclusive control over their personnel, agents, consultants, and operations. 9.No alteration or variation of the terms of this MOU shall be valid unless made in writing and signed by the parties hereto, and no oral understanding or agreement not incorporated herein shall be binding on any of the parties hereto. 10.Nothing in the provisions of this MOU is intended to create duties or obligations to or rights in third parties to this MOU or affect the legal liability of the parties to this MOU. 11.Nothing in the provisions of this MOU commits either of the parties to working on and/or providing additional funding for any portion of the beach sand replenishment project beyond the stage of preliminary planning activities. 12.This MOU may be executed in any number of identical counterparts, each of which shall be deemed to be an original, and all of which together shall be deemed to be one and the same instrument when each party has signed one such counterpart. 13.This MOU may be executed and delivered by electronic signature. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Parties hereto have executed this MOU effective as of the last date a party provides an electronic signature below. SAN DIEGO ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS COLEEN CLEMENTSON Chief Deputy Executive Director APPROVED AS TO FORM: Office of General Counsel Exhibits: A Project Scope of Work B.Project BudgetC.Project Schedule CITY OF CARLSBAD � KEITH BLACKBURN Mayor APPROVED AS TO FORM: Legal Cotlnsel Regional Beach Sand Project III (RBSPIII) Feasibility Study & Economic Analysis Exhibit A – Project Scope of Work INTRODUCTION: SANDAG is the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the San Diego region and plays a key role in the regional coordination of a variety of projects. The San Diego region has 19 jurisdictions, 10 of which are located in the coastal zone and collectively manage approximately 70 miles of coastline which can be accessed via transit, highways, roadways, and bicycle and pedestrian facilities. A number of these facilities are at risk from the impacts of rising seas, high tides, and strong storms. As such, access to beaches, residences, and public facilities may be impacted. This would be particularly impactful to disadvantaged populations living in the cities of Oceanside, Carlsbad, City of San Diego, National City, Chula Vista, and Imperial Beach which have populations that fall in the 70-100 percentile of the demographic index (source: EJSCREEN). SANDAG proposes to conduct a feasibility study for a regional beach sand nourishment project which would use information from SANDAG’s Round 1 SB 1 Caltrans Adaptation Planning Grant effort to identify transportation facilities that will be impacted by sea-level rise and may benefit from beach nourishment. Implementation of a regional beach sand project would involve dredging beach quality sand from offshore borrow sites and placing it on highly eroded beaches in the San Diego region. Beach nourishment is being considered as a sea-level rise adaptation strategy by a number of cities in the San Diego region who have updated their Local Coastal Programs to align with the California Coastal Commission’s Guidance on sea-level rise. Wide beaches can help protect coastal communities and coastal transportation facilities by acting as a buffer to alleviate some of the impacts from sea-level rise, strong storm events, and high tides. SANDAG has previously completed two regional beach sand nourishment projects in 2001 and 2012 (RBSP I and RBSP II, respectively), adding approximately 3.5 million cubic yards of sand to the region's local beaches. In addition, SANDAG has an established regional forum (the Shoreline Preservation Working Group) where elected officials are engaged in regional adaptation projects, such as beach nourishment. SANDAG will coordinate closely with city staff, city council members who serve on SANDAG’s Shoreline Preservation Working Group (SPWG), and other technical advisors on this project. Work efforts from this project will be summarized in two final deliverables: the feasibility study and the off-shore borrow site survey plan. RESPONSIBLE PARTIES SANDAG will require the assistance of a consulting team to complete this work. SANDAG has not yet selected which firm will provide this assistance, but will utilize the agency’s list of on-call consultants, selected through the established procurement procedures, to find the appropriate firm(s) to perform this work. Generally, SANDAG will be responsible for overall project management and administration and will play a role in coordinating with local jurisdictions as well as drafting and editing the feasibility study. The consultant will be responsible for the majority of other tasks including the review of existing monitoring data, completing the offshore borrow site survey plan, completing the economic analysis, and finalizing the feasibility study. OVERALL PROJECT OBJECTIVES: •Identify beach erosion areas in the San Diego region that may impact coastaltransportation infrastructure through review of existing data and coordination with coastaljurisdiction staff. •Evaluate the economic costs and benefits of implementing a regional beach nourishmentproject and several alternatives to that project that may include one pilot sand retentionstrategy. •Complete a feasibility study for a future regional beach nourishment project andalternatives. •Create a plan for surveying offshore sand borrow sites to ensure adequate quantities ofsand are available to nourish the San Diego region’s beaches. 1.Project Management and Administration •SANDAG will hold a kick-off meeting to discuss procedures and project expectations,including invoicing, quarterly reporting, and other relevant project information. Meeting summary will be documented. •Utilize an existing on-call agreement to select consultants using the proper procurement procedures. •SANDAG will hold a kick-off meeting with the consultants to review the scope of work, timeline, communication protocols, and other relevant project information. Meeting summarywill be documented. •Coordinate with the consultants through regular communication (including in-person meetingsand/or conference calls) to ensure project remains on time and within budget. Meeting noteswill be documented. •Consultant will invoice SANDAG and provide a brief summary of work efforts on a monthlybasis. Task 1 Deliverables •Meeting Notes and Summaries •Subcontractor Agreements •Invoice Packages and Quarterly Reports 2.Economic Analysis •Using actual costs from RBSP II, the consultant will prepare an economic analysis that willinclude the following components: preliminary cost estimates of a range of project alternativesthat may include one pilot sand retention strategy, a benefit/cost analysis of the projectalternatives, and a discussion of economic impacts. This economic analysis will besummarized in the feasibility study and included as an appendix to the final document. •The contractor will evaluate the Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA) prepared by the U.S. Army Corpsof Engineers for the Encinitas-Solana Beach Coastal Storm Damage Reduction Project andthe economic analysis conducted for the 2007 feasibility study (for RBSP II) provide amethodology for the analysis for approval by SANDAG. •The BCA should be developed to allow federal agencies to evaluate the benefit to cost ratio ofthe project and various subsegments of the project (by littoral cell or jurisdiction). •The contractor should assume 3 rounds of comments in the preparation of the Draft EconomicAnalysis as follows, comments by SANDAG on the draft, comments from the members of theShoreline Preservation Working Group on the draft, and comments from the public. Task 2 Deliverables •Methodology Approach for the Economic Analysis •Draft Economic Analysis Technical Appendix •Final Economic Analysis Technical Appendix 3.Regional Beach Sand Replenishment Project (RBSP III) Feasibility Study •Using information obtained from Tasks 2, consultant will draft a feasibility study for a futureregional beach sand project (RBSPIII). The 2007 feasibility study that was prepared for RBSPII will be used as a template and the updated feasibility study will address the same majortopics including, but not limited to: a statement of the problem, a description of existing site conditions, consideration of project alternatives, methods to reduce costs and leverage otherefforts in southern California, and economic considerations. •The feasibility study will also include an explanation of how beach nourishment can be used toprotect coastal critical infrastructure in the region from sea level rise. Example from otherregions should be provided. •The feasibility study will identify the various permits and approvals that would be needed forthe implementation of this project. •As part of the Feasibility Study, or a separate report, the consultant will address the lessons learn from prior RBSP I and II, opportunities that arise from other relevant nourishment effortsand address: 1.ways to streamline environmental clearance under CEQA/NEPA, and regulatory permits, 2.ways to leverage opportunities arising from the San Diego Coastal Storm DamageReduction Project any other southern California beach nourishment or sand bypassprojects, or use of the the Army Corps west coast hopper dredge, •The feasibility will also address the needs of the sand nourishment needs, if any, ofjurisdictions fronting the San Diego Bay. •A meeting will be scheduled with interested stakeholders (city staff, members of the SPWG,members of the public) to review the draft feasibility study and solicit feedback. SANDAG will likely use a scheduled SPWG meeting as the forum for this discussion. Comments fromstakeholders may also be submitted in writing and revisions to the feasibility study will bemade as needed. •Consultant will incorporate comments from SANDAG staff and interested stakeholders into afinal version of the feasibility study. Task 3 Deliverables •Draft Feasibility Study •Host meetings to discuss draft Feasibility Study •Finalize Feasibility Study 4.Off-Shore Borrow Site •Conduct a literature review of offshore investigations completed for Regional Beach SandProjects I and II (RBSP I and RBSP II) to identify any additional candidate borrow sites in thenorthern portion of San Diego County that could be utilized to implement a future beachnourishment project. •Prepare a plan and scope of work to conduct an investigation of a minimum of three offshoreborrow sites to determine the outer boundaries of the two offshore borrow sites used forRBSP II (MB-1 and SO-5) and at least one new borrow site in the northern portion of SanDiego County. Once completed, these surveys will help to estimate the quantity of sand available for beach nourishment on the San Diego coastline. Task 4 Deliverable •Perform Off-Shore Borrow Site existing data review •Prepare Off-Shore Borrow Site Plan and Scope of Work for Three Sites Exhibit B – Project Budget Regional Beach Sand Project III (RBSPIII) Feasibility Study & Economic Analysis Task Name Description Budget State Date End Date 1 Project Management and Administration SANDAG to monitor Project Management and Administration $10,000.00 2 Economic Analysis Subconsultant to prepare an updated Economic Analysis $50,000.00 3 Regional Beach Sand Replenishment Project (RBSP III) Feasibility Study Draft RBSP III Feasibility Study, Review, and Finalize $100,000.00 4 Off-shore Borrow Site Subconsultant will prepare an Offshore Borrow Site Plan and Scope of Work for Three Sites $40,000.00 Total $200,000 NTP Exhibit C – Project Schedule Regional Beach Sand Project III (RBSPIII) Feasibility Study & Economic Analysis Task Name Description State Date End Date 1 Project Management and Administration SANDAG to monitor Project Management and Administration NTP 2 Economic Analysis Subconsultant to prepare an updated Economic Analysis NTP 3 Regional Beach Sand Replenishment Project (RBSP III) Feasibility Study Draft RBSP III Feasibility Study, Review, and Finalize NTP 4 Off-shore Borrow Site Subconsultant will prepare an Offshore Borrow Site Plan and Scope of Work for Three Sites NTP