Refining the 95% Road Design to Seek Bids
Road design has reached 95% completion Finalizing Design and Agency Coordination the project engineer, Albert A. Webb and Associates (Webb). After receiving input from other County Departments, the Rancho Cucamonga Fire Protection District, and an independent engineer, the plans and specifications have reached a viable standard to seek bids for construction of the road. As a result, the Department will be requesting approval from the Board of Supervisors to advertise for competitive bids on Tuesday, May 21, 2019. Once approved, the process will include a prospective release of the bid documents on Monday, May 27; a pre-bid meeting on site Tuesday, June 11; and the bid opening in the main office on June 26. There will then be a review period for bid qualifications during the protest period, with an intended contract award in late-July if bids are within a reasonable range. All changes to the project schedule have been reflected in the project timeline.
With the delivery of the 95% plans, the District also received an update to the impacted easements. There are a few remaining easements that will be needed from residents who will be contacted directly by district staff regarding that process.
Environmental Compliance under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)
On March 19, 2019, the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors formally adopted a Mitigated Negative Declaration and Mitigation Monitoring Program for the Snowdrop Road Project, triggering a filing of a Notice of Determination (SCH #2019011045).
District staff are now working closely with the environmental consultants to prepare the applications required for coordination with jurisdictional agencies related to the impacts of the project. The District will be consulting with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, and the Regional Water Quality Control Board to obtain permits for streambed and habitat alteration identified during the design process. These impacts occur in areas where the placement of new road surface and flood structures fall within drainage courses or will result in a widening of the narrow, currently established roadway. The permits required for this project will require compliance with CA Fish and Game Code §1602 and the Clean Water Act’s Sections 401 and 404 regulations. It is during this process, the agencies may identify a requirement for compensatory mitigation to offset unavoidable adverse impacts to habitat and stream areas, which has the potential to generate significant expenses against the project budget, depending on the amount of mitigation required and the cost to comply. While the length of time for this process is unknown at this time, district staff will be looking to solidify requirements in conjunction with the competitive bid award period.