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SFPUC presents AWSS upgrades; proposes West Side potable AWSS with pump stations at Sunset and Lake Merced
Summary
SFPUC staff outlined past AWSS work funded by EASER bonds and described a conceptual West Side potable AWSS using pump stations at Sunset Reservoir (North Basin, 90,000,000 gallons) and Lake Merced; they said the West Side project would meet fire department performance standards and provide seismic drinking‑water redundancy.
John Scarpulla, representing SFPUC engineering, updated the commission on the Auxiliary Water Supply System (AWSS), describing both completed reliability projects and planned work to extend high‑pressure, seismically resilient water service to the West Side.
Scarpulla said the AWSS — a high‑pressure fire suppression water system built after the 1906 earthquake — was transferred from the Fire Department to SFPUC in 2010. Since then staff completed a system condition assessment and began projects to improve water sources and infrastructure using earthquake safety and emergency response (EASER) bond funds. "In 2010, we received about $100,000,000 for AWSS capital projects," he said, and in 2014 the program received about $54,000,000 for additional projects.
He listed primary drinking‑water sources that feed AWSS tanks (Twin Peaks Reservoir, Jones Street tank and Ashbury Heights tank) and secondary seawater pump stations and said the first phase of improvements focused on securing reliable source capacity. Current construction includes seawater pump station No. 2 seismic upgrades and multiple pipeline projects (Nineteenth Avenue and Irving, Ashbury and Clarendon, Terry Francois/ Dogpatch), plus installation or replacement of hydrants sized for the AWSS.
On the West Side potable AWSS, Scarpulla described a conceptual design with pump stations at Sunset Reservoir and Lake Merced, each tied to two independent water sources (Sunset Reservoir North Basin at ~90,000,000 gallons and a 54‑inch seismically reinforced transmission main, and Lake Merced with a 60‑inch reinforced transmission main and large storage). The system would use earthquake‑resistant piping, seismically reliable valves and high‑pressure hydrants spaced roughly every 500 feet to meet Fire Department performance requirements.
Scarpulla said the Board of Supervisors may put another EASER bond on the March 2020 ballot and that the SFPUC’s 10‑year capital plan includes a West Side potable AWSS line item (staff noted the dollar figure in the presentation and said they will explain project details in incoming slides). Commissioners asked about hydrant siting and whether development projects would also install AWSS components; Scarpulla replied developers often install elements within development boundaries and the agencies negotiate on connections outside those boundaries.
The commission took no formal vote on the AWSS presentation; commissioners thanked staff for the update and asked for further details in upcoming capital plan materials.
