Gilman Project: Part of the City's Effort to Upgrade Infrastructure

by Councilman Scott Peters
for the La Jolla Village News
February 2002

I'm sure that many of you, like me, have noticed the signs on La Jolla Village Drive indicating that Gilman Drive will be partially closed for 5 months to complete a sewer project. I wanted you to know some background on the project and also some good news we are able to bring about traffic circulation on Gilman Drive during construction over the next six months.

Throughout last year Mayor Murphy and I co-chaired the Clean Water Task Force, made up of business, academic, environmental and regulatory leaders, to find a solutions four our City's beach and bay water quality challenges. Over a third of our 3,000-mile sewer system had aged beyond its life expectancy and is in need of significant rehabilitation and repair. The Task Force, along with the City's own Metropolitan Waste Water Department, recommended a major effort to replace and rehabilitate the 1,000 miles of sewers that were in danger of leaking and spilling. The City Council responded and has embarked on a $900 million capital program to upgrade our sewer system.

Part of the Task Force recommendation was to focus first on the 400 miles of sewers in remote canyon areas, where spills often go undetected. Almost immediately after our first briefing on the state of the system, we were hit with yet another million plus gallon sewer spill into Tecolote Creek, which went undetected for nine days and closed most of Mission Bay. The City has adopted a program to work to remove sewers from these canyons when it is economically feasible, to be more sensitive to the unique environment of urban canyons, and to put sewers in places where spills can be more readily detected.

The project on Gilman Drive is part of this effort. The City is replacing 5,870 feet of the UCSD trunk sewer, which serves the UCSD campus and all businesses and residences west of Interstate 5 and south of La Jolla Village Drive. The sewer was installed in 1958 and has experienced regular and significant maintenance problems. The significant growth in the area has depleted the available capacity in the pipe. For both reasons, the pipe needs to be replaced.

The existing clay trunk sewer will be replaced with a much larger 24-inch diameter pipe that will accommodate current flows and meet future population demands. We are also building the new sewer line in the road rather than in nearby Gilman Canyon, where a portion of it is currently located. The new sewer will be more easily accessed and monitored and will be less likely to result in a major sewer spill to public waters. These efforts will help us reach our goals of reducing beach closures by 50% by 2004 and repairing our much neglected infrastructure.

While it's clear that my constituents favor the timely replacement of decaying infrastructure like the UCSD Trunk Sewer, it's equally clear that my constituents are so beleaguered by traffic congestion that any disruption can be devastating. This project will inevitably affect traffic on Gilman Drive south of Via Alicante. City staff's first plan for this project was to close all access to Gilman Drive for southbound traffic. Since then, we have worked with the City crews to try to minimize the inconvenience to those of you in the area. I have asked, and the staff has agreed, that on Monday thru Friday, between 7:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., two-way traffic will continue on Gilman using the northbound lanes. During the weekend and after 6:00 p.m. on weekdays no south-bound traffic will be permitted south of Via Alicante. Bike access along Gilman will be retained 24 hours a day and 7 days a week, and the UCSD Campus/Medical Center Hillcrest Shuttle and SD Transit Route 150 will be rerouted.

The trunk sewer replacement is necessary and environmentally friendly. I appreciate everyone's patience in dealing with the inconvenience. If you have any questions about the project, please contact the City of San Diego Field Engineering Division's Group Job Hotline at (858) 573- 5081.