McNerney helps find funds keeping Llagas project alive
Published on Page 1 of the August 7, 2013 issue of Morgan Hill Life:
By Dennis Kennedy
Dennis Kennedy
As a newcomer to the Santa Clara Valley Water District Board of Directors, I’m amazed at the magnitude, scope and general level of activities completed, underway and planned at the district.
I was appointed in January to the Board of Directors of the Santa Clara Valley Water District representing District 1, which includes all of South Santa Clara County and extends to the east side of the valley up to the Alameda County line. It borders San Benito, Santa Cruz, Merced, Stanislaus, as well as Alameda counties and is the largest district geographically in the county, encompassing some 258,000 residents.
As a mechanical engineer with experience in water treatment, pumping and water systems, as well as working for years to push for flood control in Morgan Hill and South County, this is a good fit for me and I am enjoying it.
And here’s some good news. In July we were successful in getting the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to reprogram $49,999 of funds to the Llagas Creek Flood Protection Project.
This is thanks to the help of Congressional representatives Zoe Lofgren and Jerry McNerney. The total project costs are estimated to be more than $130 million, and although the funding is a small amount, it was critical to have some Corps funding to keep the project moving forward. Without this reprogramming, the entire Llagas Flood Protection project would have been deauthorized.
Here’s even more good news. Using local funding, thanks to voter approval of Measure B, prior SCVWD funding and the city of Morgan Hill, design drawings for the project are now more than 60 percent complete and property owner meetings for the acquisition of the necessary rights of way are underway. Barring the unforeseen, we expect to award Phase 1 construction contracts in 2014, which includes segments 4 and 5 near San Martin and segment 7a, the bypass channel that will extend from Watsonville Road south to Lake Silveira and Llagas Creek.
Another project of concern, especially to Morgan Hill residents, is the seismic retrofit of Anderson Dam. A seismic safety study concluded that the dam might not withstand a major earthquake (7.2 Richter or greater magnitude). Work is progressing rapidly to retrofit and strengthen the dam. Planning and design are underway with construction scheduled to start in 2016. In the meantime, the dam water level is restricted to less than 68 percent of capacity. Please check www.valleywater.org for more info.
There is so much more I would like to say. This is just a “taste” of what the SCVWD does. Let me end by saying: from what I’ve seen so far, the SCVWD is doing an incredible job. And I’m still learning.
Dennis Kennedy is a Morgan Hill resident and a former mayor.
