Black Mountain Road Pipeline Project

by Scott Peters
for the Corridor News
February 2002

PROJECT UPDATE:

As you may be aware, the Black Mountain Pipeline Project is now underway. This $32.5 million project will install drinking water as well as a potable water pipelines and will create redundancy in the case of emergencies.

Unfortunately, as with any project, construction delays can occur. Residents who live on and those that commute on Twin Trails Drive are now experiencing traffic delays. Our office started receiving calls on September 11th regarding long delays at the intersection of Twin Trails and Black Mountain Road that has backed up traffic for several blocks. We´ contacted the project manager who will begin working immediately with the on-site crew and city engineers to help alleviate the traffic congestion and to create a safer environment for motorists and pedestrians.

This is an important water project for the community and we appreciate your patience during this time. It is anticipated that the portion of the project on Twin Trails will be completed by the end of September before moving on to Black Mountain Road. In the meantime, we are doing everything we can to ensure the situation is improved.

If you have additional questions or concerns, please contact our office, or contact the project hotline at 858-646-9890. You may also contact the project manager, George Freiha, directly at 619-533-7449.

Black Mountain Road Pipeline Information Meeting for PQ Residents (PDF: 107K)

Black Mountain Road Pipeline Newsletter (PDF: 1.0mb)

More Information on the Water Department Web Site (PDF: 1.02mb)

Water is a scarce resource in San Diego. We import 90% of our water supply, and that water travels hundreds of miles from the Colorado River and Northern California before it reaches our region. Once it reaches the County line the water moves through a maze of aqueducts to our treatment plants and then back out through a web of City pipelines until it reaches your home. There are thousands of miles of pipelines running beneath the City, and maintaining the system and planning for new growth is a major endeavor. Our City Water Department is working on a billion dollar capital improvement program that will help increase capacity and reliability in our water system and make sure that we meet all health department standards. One project in this program is the Black Mountain Road Pipelines Project

The $32.5 million project consists of two separate pipelines–a drinking water pipeline and a reclaimed water pipeline. The drinking water pipeline will run along Scripps Ranch Boulevard, Mira Mesa Boulevard, Westview Parkway and Black Mountain Road. At Twin Trails Drive, the pipeline will turn west. The ultimate terminus of the potable pipeline will be an existing pump station located in the Rancho Peñasquitos area. This pipeline will create a redundant pipeline to serve as a backup to an existing pipeline and increase reliability of service to the communities in the northern portion of the City. Redundancy is very important in water management because in the event of a water main break the redundant pipe allows the water department to reactivate service more quickly so that residents can enjoy water usage and the fire department can have access to water in case of fire in the area.

The reclaimed water pipeline will be installed primarily on Black Mountain Road, between Carroll Canyon Road and Twin Trails Drive. The pipeline will be a part of the City's overall recycled water system being constructed to convey recycled water to growing areas to the north.

As with any project, the positive effects of this infrastructure improvement may be temporarily off-set by construction activities. Construction of this project began in the summer of 2001and it is anticipated that it will be completed late in 2003. In order to minimize construction impacts, the City is installing both of these lines simultaneously throughout the alignment.

In addition, the City is considering the possibility of nighttime construction along selected portions of the alignment to alleviate possible traffic delays that could occur from daytime construction. If necessary, nighttime construction would generally occur between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m.

My office has received some calls from residents on Twin Trails Drive who are concerned that the City will be constructing the pipeline in an easement the City has behind and through the backyards of several homes. It has been explained to my office that both the Water Department and their contractor fully evaluated the possibility of constructing the pipeline in the street, as opposed to the easement. After completing their assessments, both the City and the contractor determined that construction of the pipeline in the road was not possible because many other utilities are already located in the street. There simply isn't enough room in this area of the street for the pipelines.

The Water Department will continue to work closely with the community. They have already held over 20 meetings in the communities along the alignment and they are working hard to ensure that all questions are answered promptly.

Our Mayor and City Council are committed to making the investments necessary for basic infrastructure for our city. I appreciate your patience in dealing with the inconvenience this sometimes causes, and I will do whatever I can to minimize any disruption in our quality of life during construction. If you have additional questions or concerns, please contact the project hotline at 858-646-9890.