AGENDA STAFF REPORT

Agenda Item AGENDA STAFF REPORT ASR Control 21-000688
MEETING DATE:	08/24/21
legal entity taking action:	Board of Supervisors
board of supervisors district(s):	2
SUBMITTING Agency/Department:	County Executive Office (Approved)
Department contact person(s):	Thomas A. Miller (714) 834-6019
	Dylan Wright (714) 480-2788

Subject: Conveyance of Drainage Easement to the City of Newport Beach for Bayview Heights

ceo CONCUR

County Counsel Review

Clerk of the Board

Concur

Approved Agreement to Form

Consent Calendar

3 Votes Board Majority

Budgeted: N/A

Current Year Cost: N/A

Annual Cost: N/A

Staffing Impact:

# of Positions:

Sole Source: No

Current Fiscal Year Revenue: N/A

Funding Source: N/A	County Audit in last 3 years: No

Prior Board Action: 4/21/2015 #14

RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):

Find that the project is categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Class 5 (Minor Alterations in Land Use Limitations) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines, Section 15305.

Approve and execute the Grant of Drainage Easement and Agreement to the City of Newport Beach, for the purpose of storm drain restoration, and return the executed copy to OC Community Resources/OC Parks for further processing.

Authorize the Chief Real Estate Officer, or designee, to execute any collateral instruments or minor changes that do not materially alter the easement and agreement nor result in any additional liability for the County, if approved by County Counsel.

SUMMARY:

Approval of the Grant of Drainage Easement and Agreement with the City of Newport Beach will facilitate the restoration, operation and maintenance of City of Newport Beach storm drain facilities located within OC Community Resources/OC Parks property, and will assist in compliance with the Total Maximum Daily Load requirement established by the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board for the Newport Bay Watershed.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

The Newport Bay Watershed (Watershed) is located in central Orange County and has a total area of approximately 154 square miles or 98,500 acres. The Watershed includes the following sub-watersheds areas: Peters Canyon Wash, Upper San Diego Creek, Lower San Diego Creek and Newport Bay.

In 1998, the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board (Water Quality Board) adopted a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) that restricted nutrients (e.g., phosphorus and nitrogen) in the Watershed. The objective, consistent with the United States Clean Water Act, was to ensure that the ecological health of the Watershed was not impaired by sediment and nutrient loads. In 2000, a Regional Nutrient Monitoring Program (RNMP) for the Watershed was initiated by the County of Orange on behalf of the contributing cities (Costa Mesa, Irvine, Laguna Hills, Laguna Woods, Lake Forest, Newport Beach, Orange, Santa Ana and Tustin) to assess TMDL compliance with nutrient reductions in collaboration with the Water Quality Board, the University of California, the Irvine Ranch Water District, the California Department of Transportation and large commercial nurseries within the Watershed. As a result, the RNMP identified numerous areas for improving stormwater capture, dissipation, treatment and release throughout the Watershed, with associated capital infrastructure projects planned and implemented by County and cities based on source responsibility for stormwater flows and related nutrients.

One of the sites identified for improvement was a City of Newport Beach (City) storm drain (Drain), located under Mesa Drive within the Bayview Heights residential community located west of the County’s Muth Interpretive Center, facing the San Diego Creek outlet to the Upper Newport Bay Nature Preserve (Preserve) and Upper Newport Bay State Marine Conservation Area. This general area is depicted on the Location Map (Attachment A). Over many years, the Drain created a large, eroded gully and discharged water across both County and state property and ultimately into the Preserve. The RNMP identified the Drain as a contributing facility for excessive nutrient and sediment levels set by the Watershed’s TMDL and required improvements to comply with the standards set by the Water Quality Board.

On April 21, 2015, the Board of Supervisors approved a Cooperative Agreement between the County, the City and local property owners for the Mesa Drive Drainage Improvements Project (Agreement), with the City functioning as the lead in development and execution of the project. The Agreement proposed construction of a new storm drain and catch basins on Mesa Drive to safely convey drainage across the properties of 2600 and 2612 Mesa Drive, as well as implementation of a vegetated buffer on both County and state properties to mitigate urban runoff sediment from entering the waters of Upper Newport Bay. The Agreement also required a $50,000 contribution from each of the private property owners and the County, to supplement $305,000 in OCTA Measure M2 grant funding proposed by the City to be used for the project.

In 2018, the City began construction of the Bayview Heights Drainage and Runoff Treatment Project (Project), which included grading to create a detention basin and installation of a storm drainpipe, riprap to the existing outlet structure, new energy dissipator and energy dissipator structures. After the Project was completed, the City added temporary irrigation lines to support vegetation growth around the detention basin. The City agreed to secure a permanent easement from the County for the drainage footprint on the property for ongoing maintenance, operation and regulatory permit condition compliance for the aforementioned facilities.

The Grant of Drainage Easement Deed and Agreement (Attachment B) has been prepared by County Executive Office/Real Estate and OC Community Resources/OC Parks to grant the City an permanent, irrevocable easement over Parcel PR47D-351 related to the construction, additional drainage and temporary irrigation improvements. The Grant of Drainage and Easement Deed and Agreement also make the City responsible for the mitigation, monitoring and future maintenance, repair and replacement of the Project.

FINANCIAL IMPACT:

N/A

STAFFING IMPACT:

N/A

REVIEWING AGENCIES:

OC Community Resources/OC Parks

ATTACHMENT(S):

Attachment A - Location Map
Attachment B - Grant of Easement Deed and Agreement
Attachment C - Real Property Conveyance Questionnaire