City of Los Angeles CALIFORNIA ERIC GARCETTI MAYOR NOTICE OF PREPARATION OF AN ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT AND PUBLIC SCOPING MEETING

Transcription

1 BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS MEMBERS KEVIN JAMES PRESIDENT HEATHER MARIE REPENNING VICE PRESIDENT MICHAEL R. DAVIS PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE JOEL F. JACINTO COMMISSIONER LUZ M. RIVAS COMMISSIONER TO: City of Los Angeles CALIFORNIA ERIC GARCETTI MAYOR ZERO WASTE ONE WATER BUREAU OF SANITATION ENRIQUE C. ZALDIVAR DIRECTOR TRACI J. MINAMIDE CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER LISA B. MOWERY CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER ADEL H. HAGEKHALIL ALEXANDER E. HELOU LEO N. MARTINEZ MAS DOJIRI ASSISTANT DIRECTORS 1149 SOUTH BROADWAY, 10 TH FLOOR LOS ANGELES, CA TEL: (213) FAX: (213) NOTICE OF PREPARATION OF AN ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT AND PUBLIC SCOPING MEETING SUBJECT: California State Clearinghouse; California Responsible and Trustee Agencies; Other Interested Public Agencies; and, Interested Parties and Organizations Notice of Preparation of a Draft Environmental Impact Report and Notice of Scoping Meeting for the Hollenbeck Park Lake Rehabilitation and Stormwater Management Project DATE: December 14, 2017 The City of Los Angeles Department of LA Sanitation Watershed Protection Division (LA Sanitation), as the Lead Agency under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), will prepare an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the proposed Hollenbeck Park Lake Rehabilitation and Stormwater Management Project (proposed project), described below. LA Sanitation is requesting identification of environmental issues and information that you or your organization believes should be considered in the EIR. PUBLIC REVIEW PERIOD: December 14, 2017 through January 18, NOTICE OF SCOPING MEETING: Pursuant to California Public Resources Code Sections , , and , the Lead Agency will conduct a scoping meeting for the purposes of soliciting oral and written comments from interested parties requesting notice, responsible agencies, agencies with jurisdiction by law, trustee agencies, and involved federal agencies, as to the appropriate scope and content of the EIR. SCOPING MEETING: LA Sanitation will hold a scoping meeting for the proposed project to receive comments on the scope and content of the proposed EIR. You are welcome to attend the meeting and present environmental information that you believe should be considered in the EIR. The scoping meeting will be held at the following date, time and place: Date: Thursday, January 11, 2018 Time: 6:00 p.m. 7:00 p.m. Place: Hollenbeck Recreation Center 415 S. Saint Louis Street Los Angeles, CA AN EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY - AFFIRMATIVE ACTION EMPLOYER Recyclable and made from recycled waste

2 As a covered entity under Title II of the American with Disabilities Act, the City of Los Angeles does not discriminate. The meeting facility and its parking are wheelchair accessible. Sign language interpreters, assistive listening devices, or other auxiliary aides and/or services may be provided upon request. Other services, such as translation between English and other languages, may also be provided upon request. To ensure availability of services, please make your request no later than three working days (72 hours) prior to the meeting by calling Hamid Tadayon at (213) AGENCIES: LA Sanitation requests your agency s views on the scope and content of the environmental information relevant to your agency s statutory responsibilities in connection with the Proposed Project, in accordance with the California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Section 15082(b). Your agency will need to use the EIR prepared by the City when considering any permits that your agency must issue or other project approvals. PROJECT LOCATION: The proposed project is located at 415 South Saint Louis Street in the Boyle Heights community, in Council District 14 of the City of Los Angeles. Hollenbeck Park is bound by East 4th Street on the north, South Saint Louis Street on the east, Hollenbeck Drive on the south, and I-5 on the west, with a small area on the southwest portion of the park where the lake extends below I-5 bound by Boyle Avenue on the west. The proposed project is also located within the Los Angeles River Watershed. In addition to Interstate (I) 5, which is directly adjacent to the proposed project, U.S. Highway 101 travels in a north-south direction in this area of Los Angeles, and is located approximately 0.11 mile (580 feet) west of the proposed project. Figure 1 and Figure 2 (attached) show the regional location and the project location, respectively. PROJECT BACKGROUND Hollenbeck Park Lake (HPL) has a history of water quality concerns attributable to nutrient and sediment loading, including California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) discharge of untreated runoff from I-5. There is also extensive erosion around the perimeter of HPL, which is most notable along the vegetated areas between the lake edge and existing pedestrian walkway. This erosion has begun to undermine the existing pavement, compromising visitor safety. As a result, LA Sanitation proposes to implement water quality improvements at HPL, divert and treat Caltrans runoff from I-5, replace the potable water deliveries at HPL for irrigation and lake replenishment with dry/wet weather flow diversion and recycled water, restore Hollenbeck Park s appearance, and provide a long-term solution to erosion around HPL s edge. Hollenbeck Park is an urban park that provides aesthetic and recreational public uses for the community. The park is centered on HPL, a 4.3-acre manmade urban water body that serves as an attractive water feature for public enjoyment. Hollenbeck Park is highly valued by the community as a recreational asset where green space is rare. THE PROPOSED PROJECT Pursuant to CEQA, Public Resources Code, Sections et seq., LA Sanitation is initiating preparation of an EIR for the proposed project. Figure 3 (attached) provides an overview of the proposed project site plan. The proposed project would include the following improvements at HPL: Replacement of Potable Water. Recycled water is recommended to replace potable water use for irrigation and lake replenishment. The use of recycled water for irrigation already meets irrigation standards and would not require additional treatment. However, the use of recycled water for lake replenishment would require additional treatment, which can be integrated into park shoreline and public use features. The recycled water would be routed to tie into the 2

3 irrigation system directly, as well as to the shoreline wetlands before being used for lake replenishment and potential future downstream uses. Dry/Wet Weather Flow Diversion. Dry weather flows and a portion of storm flows would be diverted and treated by the proposed shoreline wetlands at the lake. At the north side of the lake, a diversion structure with a wet weather well and pump would be constructed to connect to the existing storm drain. Diverted flows would be pretreated and pumped to the wetland system, or directly to the lake prior to the construction of the wetlands. Pretreatment by a hydrodynamic separator would screen, separate and remove trash, debris, sediment, and hydrocarbons from stormwater runoff. Caltrans Diversion. Additional treatment area from Caltrans right-of-way would be diverted and discharged to the lake. A total of 4.0 acres of runoff from the I-5 bridge would be piped to the lake and treated by the in-lake treatment system of floating wetland islands, aeration, chemical feed system, and recirculation. The existing Caltrans flow connects to a drainage system underneath the lake. Processing. A new submersible pump would be placed in the existing wet well that recirculates water from the lake. The recirculated water would be filtered and disinfected before distribution to the irrigation system. All processing equipment would be pre-assembled onto a high-density polyethylene processing skid located aboveground. The equipment skid is housed in a highdensity polyethylene enclosure sized to contain the filtration and disinfection equipment, system controls, and irrigation controller. The processing skid would contain the treatment system and the control system. Shoreline Wetlands. Shoreline wetlands are included as a two-stage process to create an ecological habitat that would provide passive improvement of water quality through phosphorus uptake and assimilation, nitrogen transformation through denitrification, solids reduction through sedimentation and burial, algal control through shading and competition, and sequestration of metals as immobile and ecologically unavailable forms in wetland sediments. The new water supply (i.e., recycled water and dry/wet weather flow diversion) would be routed to the shoreline wetlands. In addition, stormwater and irrigation runoff from the park would be collected by a vegetated swale and routed to the shoreline wetlands. Water would be distributed through a gravel filter situated under a new pedestrian-friendly sidewalk, and discharged into a constructed shoreline wetland for final polishing before inflow to the lake. Dewatering/Dredging. Dredging of existing lake sediments would significantly improve water quality. Dredging can be performed using mechanical methods after the lake has been drained. Lining. A geosynthetic liner is recommended to eliminate seepage and significantly reduce the water demands at HPL. The geosynthetic liner has lower capital and installation costs compared with other materials. Irrigation and Landscaping. Water conservation methods can be applied to increase irrigation system water use efficiency. A key opportunity for HPL is the use of water-wise landscape vegetation consisting of native, drought tolerant trees, shrubs, and mulch and smart irrigation controllers (with weather and soil moisture sensors). Sewer Replacement. An existing sewer line that extends beneath the lake would be abandoned and a new 18 inch reinforced concrete pipe (RCP) sewer line would be installed along Saint Louis Street, Hollenbeck Drive, and Boyle Avenue, around the outside of the park. ISSUES TO BE ADDRESSED IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT An analysis of potential environmental effects is provided in the Initial Study Checklist prepared for the proposed project. Potential impacts associated with the proposed project may include: 3

4 Aesthetics Air Quality Biological Resources Cultural Resources Greenhouse Gas Emissions Hazards and Hazardous Materials Hydrology and Water Quality Noise Recreation Transportation and Traffic Alternatives to be analyzed in the EIR are to be defined and analyzed consistent with the requirements of CEQA Guidelines, Section The specific project alternatives to be evaluated in the EIR may include, but are not limited to, the No Project alternative, as required by CEQA. DOCUMENT AVAILABILITY: The Initial Study Checklist is available for review at the following locations: Benjamin Franklin Library, 2200 E. 1st Street, Tel: (323) Malabar Library, 2801 Wabash Avenue, Tel: (323) Robert L. Stevenson Library, 803 Spence St, Los Angeles, Tel: (323) Office of Council Member José Huizar, Council District 14, Boyle Heights Field Office, 2130 E. 1st Street, Suite 241 Office of Council Member José Huizar, Council District 14, El Sereno Field Office, 4927 E. Huntington Drive North, Suite 100 A copy of the Initial Study Checklist may also be obtained by contacting Wing Tam, LA Sanitation at (213) and can also be viewed online at: SUBMITTAL OF WRITTEN COMMENTS: LA Sanitation solicits comments regarding, the scope, content and specificity of the EIR from all responsible agencies, agencies with jurisdiction by law, trustee agencies, and involved agencies and interested parties requesting notice. Please send your written/typed comments to LA Sanitation by one of the following delivery methods. In your comments, please include your name, address, telephone number, address, and Hollenbeck Park Lake Rehabilitation and Stormwater Management Project Comments at the top of your comment or in the subject line if sent via . LAStormwater@lacity.org Fax: (213) Mail: Wing Tam City of Los Angeles, LA Sanitation 1149 South Broadway, 10th Floor Los Angeles, CA In accordance with CEQA Section 15082, this Notice of Preparation is being circulated for a 30-day comment period; LA Sanitation requests that written comments be provided at the earliest possible date, but no later than 5:00 p.m. on January 18,

5 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA Pacific Ocean Los Angeles!( Miles San Diego!(!( Tijuana Basemap Source: ESRI World Street Map!( Project Location $ Miles Figure 1. Regional Map Hollenbeck Park Lake Rehabilitation and Stormwater Management Project \\galt\proj\la_san_district\672925\mapfiles\regional_map_ mxd

6 S Santa Fe Ave S Mission Rd E 1St St Basemap Source: Google Earth Los Angeles River E 4Th St 101 S Boyle Ave 5 10 S St Louis St Hollenbeck Park E 6Th St S Chicago St Hollenbeck Dr E 7Th St Whittier Blvd S Soto St $ Feet Figure 2. Vicinity Map Hollenbeck Park Lake Rehabilitation and Stormwater Management Project \\galt\proj\la_san_district\672925\mapfiles\vicinity_map_ mxd

7 New pump within the existing wet well, processing equipment, and chemical feed system retrofit (approximate location) Liner Proposed Storm Drain LEGEND Proposed Project Elements Water-wise Plantings Pathway Improvements Terrace Walls Shoreline Wetlands Water Supply Distribution Line Sewer Replacement (Approximate Location) Pretreatment Storm Drain Existing and Planned Improvements Existing Storm Drain Existing Floating Wetland Island New Floating Wetland Island Existing Fountain Aerator 80' North Existing Storm Drain Outlet Structure Modify Existing Storm Drain Figure 3 Proposed Project Site Plan Hollenbeck Park Lake Rehabilita on and Stormwater Management Project \\galt\proj\la_san_district\672925\mapfiles\proposed_project_ mxd SCO hollenbeck_proposed_project_rev5.ai 6/17