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Cambria district awards engineering contract to Canon for Santa Rosa Creek stabilizaton
Summary
The Cambria Community Services District board approved an agreement with Canon Engineering to design and permit streambank stabilization along Santa Rosa Creek and adopted a budget amendment; staff said permitting and environmental work drive most project cost and construction is expected in 2027.
The Cambria Community Services District on April 9 approved an agreement with Canon Engineering to perform design, biological surveys and permitting for the Santa Rosa Creek Streambank Stabilization Project and adopted Resolution 14‑2026 to amend the FY25‑26 budget to fund the work.
General Manager McElhaney told the board the procurement was a qualifications‑based selection rather than a low‑bid public works contract, and utilities manager Green said the project is primarily a permitting effort that could span multiple fiscal years. “We referred to this as a permitting project, not really a construction project,” Green said, noting that permitting and environmental studies could take “the better part of a year” and that construction work itself is likely to be brief.
Consultant Bill Henry, who assisted staff in evaluating proposals, said Canon’s team included local and specialized subconsultants and strong experience with permitting agencies, which justified a higher proposal price in staff’s view. “From that experience, you can get a good feel as to the logic behind why they’re costing projects the way they cost them,” Henry said. Directors pressed staff on the roughly $86,000 gap between Canon’s proposal and a lower proposal; staff said Canon offered faster mobilization, fewer required contract changes, and an emergency mitigation plan that some other bidders did not include.
Vice President Dean, who chairs the R&I committee that reviewed the proposals, recommended approval on that basis. The board approved the agreement on a roll call (Director Scott: aye; Vice President Dean: aye; Director Thomas: aye; President Farmer: aye). Staff said the design/permitting phase is funded under the adopted amendment and anticipated construction would be bid separately; construction — if funded and permitted on schedule — was discussed as likely to start in 2027.
What’s next: staff will execute the agreement, begin the season‑sensitive surveys and environmental permitting required by agencies such as the Army Corps of Engineers and the Regional Water Quality Control Board, and return to the board with updates as permitting milestones are reached.
