City of Encinitas, CA 6.0 INFRASTRUCTURE

6.1 EXISTING CONDITIONS.

Infrastructure refers to physical improvements in the community that are a commonly-shared part of the built environment Roadways, water/sewer systems, and storm drains are typically provided by public agencies; gas, electric, telephone, and cable are typically provided by quasi-public or private vendors. Land value usually increases with upgrades to infrastructure.

A survey of road rights-of-way, water and sewer systems, and storm drain systems was conducted to gauge the current capacity of those facilities and the need for improvement. Within the Specific Plan area, the City of Encinitas maintains streets, storm drains, and sanitary sewers. San Dieguito Water District maintains and operates the water system. See Figure 27, Infrastructure/Utilities.

Fig. 27 Infrastructure/Utilities

6.1.1 Water

The water system is owned, installed, maintained and operated by the San Dieguito Water District (SDWD). Maps obtained from District staff indicate water mains are 15 to 40 years old and vary from 2" to 12" in size.

The main supply for the Specific Plan area is a 12" asbestos cement (AC) pipe installed in 1982. It runs west on Birmingham Drive from Manchester Avenue to Newcastle Avenue, turning south on Newcastle Avenue to Orinda Drive, and then west to San Elijo Avenue.

Fire hydrant coverage is provided at every corner in and around the Specific Plan area except at two intersections: Chesterfield Drive and San Elijo Avenue, and Orinda Drive and San Elijo Avenue.

There are no maintenance or capacity issues in the area. SDWD has an active program for valve exercise and replacement.

In the future, there may be a need to replace older and smaller diameter portions of water mains. As uses change over time between residential and nonresidential, SDWD will require that proper fire flow be maintained. As well, development will be subject to newer and more strict crossflow or backflow requirements.

The City should consider conducting a study of the potential to tap into groundwater or use of reclaimed water to meet future water demand for landscaping and other needs.

6.1.2 Sewer

The Specific Plan area is served by a gravity sanitary sewer system operated and maintained by the Cardiff Sanitation Division within the Public Works Department of the City of Encinitas. The sewer systems were found adequate. The sewers follow topography and drain east to west. Sewage is collected in mains that are 10" to 14" in San Elijo Avenue. The area accepts flow from the north in San Elijo Avenue 10" main, and from the east in a 10" main in Aberdeen Drive.

Within the area are 8" mains in Newcastle Avenue, which run north and south to Aberdeen Drive's 10" main. The rest of the area is collected in short 8" mains to the collection main in San Elijo Avenue. Flows then gather into the 14" main and run southerly to Glen Park.

Sewer mains are vitrified clay pipe (VCP) and approximately 40 years old. There is one 8" PVC sewer in Birmingham Drive that is approximately 20 years old. There are no capacity or maintenance issues with the area's sewer facilities. In the past five years, the maintenance log shows only minor issues in the area related to grease related clogs from restaurants.

Concern with the limited capacity of the system was solved several years ago when a capital improvement project cut off a majority of sewerage flow in the 10" main in Liverpool Drive. Flow was rerouted from the 10" main in Liverpool Drive and rerouted to a new bypass sewer in Montgomery Drive.

There are no plans for any other sewer capital improvements in or near the project area that would affect the capacity or performance of the sewer mains.

6.1.3 Storm Drain

The study area sheet flows in typical coastal fashion. The Specific Plan area is rather steep in the east-west direction and somewhat flat in the north-south direction. The site was historically bisected by what is locally referred to as Mozart Creek. The storm water from the Creek is now picked up by a 4' x 4' and 5' x 4' concrete box just north of Birmingham Drive, and exits through a pipe at the intersection of Liverpool Drive and San Elijo Avenue. In 2006, the City performed repairs to the storm drain after storm-related damage caused a partial collapse of San Elijo Avenue. The old corrugated metal pipe was replaced with a new box culvert, RCP, headwall and drain inlets.

Improvement plans for the storm drain are dated 1964.

The only other storm drain in the area is an inlet and pipe to the Creek channel one block south at Aberdeen Drive. The rest of the study area sheet flows and collects along curbs or berms. The area accepts storm water upstream of Mozart Creek and from the east-west streets, which then channel flow west to San Elijo Avenue and eventually to the remaining portion of the creek channel. At that point, it turns and flows south along San Elijo Avenue.

There are no regional planned water quality improvement projects for storm drains in the area. For water quality purposes, the City is installing storm water treatment facilities and filter inserts in new storm drain inlets. However, the City is not currently retrofitting existing storm drain inlets.

If any significant redevelopment of the landscaping or planting areas within the parkway occurs, the landscaped planter areas shall be designed as biofiltration or bioretention facilities to accept the street runoff and meet stormwater quality needs.

6.1.4 Street Surface Improvements

While the condition of the asphalt pavement on public streets within the Specific Plan area ranges from good to poor, there is an eclectic mix of rural, urban and decaying edge conditions. Many street improvements are approximately 40 years old. Also, there appears to be no uniform cross-section among Specific Plan area streets. Where curb exists, it jogs in and out in a hopscotch manner. The Town Center shopping center, new library and more recent residential condos have all added to the mix of improvements. Along with the library came traffic-calming pop-outs at the intersection of Liverpool Drive and Newcastle Avenue. No other intersection in the surrounding areas has traffic calming measures.

Taken as a whole, Cardiff streets show significant variation from the adopted Encinitas Public Road Standards. This variation is understandable inasmuch as most Cardiff streets were originally built under County of San Diego engineering design standards. Deferred maintenance on existing streets should be improved to current City standards. As new streets are redeveloped in Cardiff – such as Newcastle Avenue between Birmingham Drive and Liverpool Drive – the street standards contained in Chapter 5 of this Specific Plan will be employed.

The City's Capital Improvement Program includes a project to provide new curbs and cross-gutters on Birmingham Drive from the freeway to San Elijo Avenue.

6.2 ASSESSMENT AND RECOMMENDATIONS.

6.2.1 Existing Conditions Evaluation

Of infrastructure within the Specific Plan area, upgrades are most needed in two areas: drainage and surface improvements.

A. Drainage

Development has occurred over the existing flood conveyance known as Mozart Creek. Future development that would impact runoff requires study to determine the extent of storm drainage impact. In addition, the majority of the area sheet flows across the surface and collects in the streets. Storm water quality compliance will be a challenge although any major redevelopment effort must incorporate a storm drain solution and storm water management measures as required in Municipal Code Chapter 20.08.

Overall, current storm drain provisions in the Specific Plan area are inadequate. It is recommended that more detailed study of the storm drain and its tributary areas must be undertaken so that an adequate drainage system can be designed and installed to replace the current, virtually non-existent system. This type of study should focus on identifying the need and capacity for additional storm drains within the area in order to resolve the flooding which occurs during wet weather.

B. Surface Improvements

Regarding surface improvements, there are several places in the Specific Plan area where the curb and pathway abruptly jog to one side a distance of two-to-five feet. The jog in the curb affects parking, drainage, and sight distance. Implementation is recommended primarily for the ROW improvements shown for Specific Plan area streets shown on Figures 17-21 in Chapter 5, Circulation and Parking. Major street improvements will also be subject to storm water management measures required in Municipal Code Chapter 20.08. Road improvement projects creating or significantly redeveloping more than 5,000 square feet of new pavement are considered "priority projects" for purposes of storm water pollution control. Such priority projects are required to meet numerically-sized treatment criteria for the treatment of storm water runoff. While it is unknown at this time which street improvement projects might trigger the priority project requirements, if any, any such project will incorporate appropriate storm water best management practices, or BMP's, such as natural and/or mechanical filtration systems.

C. Alleyway Improvements

The alleys in the Specific Plan area are public, but privately-maintained. Prior to the City's incorporation, the County of San Diego allowed the alleyways to be built below public standards and did not accept them for maintenance. City policy prohibits the alleys from being accepted for public maintenance until they are reconstructed to City standards. Construction of the alleys can be undertaken by the private property owners, the City, or a combination thereof when reconstruction takes place in accordance with City standards. Any construction or reconstruction by the City will need City Council approval.

As a result of this arrangement by the County, the alleys have deteriorated in some areas over the years due to inadequate maintenance. The poor condition of the alleys is exacerbated by the presence of subsurface water. Any permanent improvements to the alleys must include a solution to the subsurface drainage problem. The improvements themselves and engineering solution to the drainage problem will be expensive, and unlikely to be assumed by private property owners. In the past, the City Council offered a matching program to property owners to split the cost of the necessary improvements.

To become eligible for the matching program, a property owner must finance and agree to construct to City-adopted alleyscape plan specifications, a fair share portion of the alleyscape improvements associated with their property. Once the alley improvements are completed, the incentives granted may be applied to any future change is use, expansion of an existing use, or future redevelopment of the property. The City will encourage the improvements to the alleys in their entirety, rather than through incremental, project-by-project development.