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SFPUC approves March 2018 WSIP revision, adds $42 million to regional projects and delays completion to 2021
Summary
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission approved March 2018 revisions to the Water System Improvement Program, including a $42 million increase to regional project forecasts, a two‑year schedule extension to Dec. 2021 and a scope change to the regional groundwater storage and recovery project; BOSCA proposed seven recommendations, one of which the commission amended to a June 1 compliance date.
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission on April 10 endorsed a revised March 2018 Water System Improvement Program (WSIP), approving a $42,000,000 increase in forecast costs for regional projects and extending the program completion date from December 2019 to December 2021.
Dan Wade, presenting the staff recommendation, said the schedule change is driven primarily by delays to the regional groundwater storage and recovery project and the Alameda Creek recapture project. Wade described the groundwater project’s purpose as providing “up to 7,200,000 gallons per day of dry‑year water supply” and said Phase 1 has nearly 12 of 13 planned wells complete; he said institutional and real‑estate obstacles — including proposed sites within Golden Gate National Cemetery and property owners declining to sell — prevented installation of the remaining wells in San Bruno, prompting staff to propose three test wells on the margins of the basin in Millbrae and South San Francisco and refinements to monitoring and storage work.
Nicole Sankula, representing BOSCA, submitted a letter with seven recommendations and told the commission she and her organization have two major concerns: that the proposed groundwater scope change “may reduce the commission's ability to meet its contractual water supply obligations to BOSCA's water users,” and that a reported $100,000,000 reduction in the WSIP forecast is not project cost savings but “an early release of the PUC's debt service reserve funds” that could be misleading to the public.
Commissioners moved to approve the staff proposal while incorporating BOSCA's recommendations with one amendment: recommendation number 5’s compliance date was changed from May 1 to June 1. Commissioner Moran moved the motion and it was seconded and approved by the commission.
The commission also authorized staff to send a notice of change report to the state as required by California law governing capital program reporting. Staff said they received a letter from BOSCA dated April 3 and will provide the additional clarifications BOSCA requested.
The commission’s action directs staff to proceed with the revised WSIP project‑level scopes, schedule and budget and initiates the state notice of change procedure; the record includes BOSCA’s letter and staff presentations documenting the revised cost and schedule forecasts.
