The City Council gave staff direction on a possible franchise agreement with Long Beach over the Haynes Pipeline project at the Monday, July 27, council meeting.
Such an agreement would allow part of the pipeline project to go through Seal Beach.
The council voted 4-1 to adopt the recommend deal terms for a potential franchise agreement. District Two Councilman Ben Wong requested an amendment to include getting confirmation about a vacuum gas oil pipeline that is part of the project. There were also concerns about the condition of the College Park Bridge.
No actual franchise agreement has been negotiated at this time. Such an agreement would have to return to the council for final approval.
Comments
Several College Park West residents spoke to the council expressing their concerns about the project, which could impact the only entrance to and exit from College Park West. The following is not a transcript, but highlights from the discussion.
According to James Lingle, the 60-year-old pipeline attached to the 64-year-old bridge carried vacuum gas oil.
“A large VGO spill at the College Park Bridge poses an extreme and immediate risk of severe shoreline contamination and multi-month environmental closures for the beaches in Seal Beach. I don’t see that mentioned anywhere in the CEQA documents,” he said, apparently referring to California Environmental Quality Act documents.
“The substructure of the bridge is rated in poor condition and is just one mile from a major earthquake fault,” Lingle said.
He also said the bridge has never had a seismic retrofit. He argued that there were serious CEQA omissions and called for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power documents to be revised. “All members of the City Council should see in writing the potential negative consequences not just to CPW but especially to the city at large,” Lingle said.
Mary Cobb said: “My reason for being concerned about the CPW bridge is that it’s the only access we have in and out of our neighborhood.” She asked that all bridge repairs be made before any pipeline construction begins.
She said more than 300 individuals had signed a petition expressing concern about the pipelines. (It’s one pipeline project, but it involves two pipelines.) “I still feel that there are other avenues for the city of Long Beach to pursue the construction of their new pipelines, other than our CPW bridge,” Cobb said.
District Five Councilman Nathan Steele was opposed to the project. “They’re not going to build a new bridge, otherwise they would have offered that to us,” Steele said.
Referring to a possible recycled water connection to Leisure World, Steele said it was a meaningless offer to him. “We would have to build an entirely different distribution system for the recycled water and it’s just not an impressive offer to me,” Steele said.
“I’m in the ‘no’ category right now,” Steele said.
Background
The Long Beach Utilities Department, representing the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, is building a recycled water pipeline and sewer main along Studebaker Road, according to the staff report by City Attorney Nicholas R. Ghirelli and Public Works Director Iris Lee.
“The pipeline project is currently proposed to cross the San Gabriel River along College Park Drive, then under State Route 22 to the LADWP Haynes Generating Station (‘Project’),” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
Part of the project would have to pass through Seal Beach. “It includes College Park Drive. This portion does not include the College Park Drive Bridge, which is located within the City of Long Beach and is maintained by Long Beach,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
“The Project includes two components: (1) construct a continuous recycled water pipeline intended to supply recycled water to the LADWP facility located in Long Beach; and (2) install a 12-inch diameter sewer force main that will run from the LADWP Haynes Generating Station to an existing 42-inch sewer main at the Los Angeles County Services District Long Beach Water Reclamation Facility. These pipelines are designed to supply and remove recycled water to and from the wet cooling system at the Haynes Generating Station, located in Long Beach,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
“The project proposes to add the recycled water pipeline and the sewer force main, respectively, to each side of the College Park Drive Bridge,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
Long Beach Utilities District prepared an environmental document called an initial study/mitigated negative declaration. That basically means that the impact of the project can be minimized. According to Ghirelli and Lee, Seal Beach notified LBUD that they would need a franchise agreement or easement to build any part of the project through Seal Beach’s right of way.
“The portion of the Recycled Water Project along Studebaker Road is currently underway and is expected to be completed soon. LBUD has communicated that this portion of the project is expected to be completed in August 2027. The Sewer Pipeline Project is in the permitting process. In addition, a new potable water system upgrade is proposed by LBUD with design procurement to begin in August 2026,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
“Relevant here, staff is also informed that LADWP plans to apply for a franchise from Seal Beach for the water pipeline and sewer pipeline, and that LBUD, which is constructing the Project, will not commence construction on the pipeline segments within Seal Beach until LADWP has obtained the franchise,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
“In addition, LBUD has recently announced plans for a potable water line that is scheduled for design procurement in August 2026,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
According to Ghirelli and Lee’s report, Seal Beach has to approve the franchise agreement for the pipeline to be placed within College Park Drive.
“Only if the agencies cannot reach an agreement within a three-month period may LBUD and/or LADWP seek a court order to have a judge establish the location and terms and conditions of use of College Park Drive for the Project’s two pipelines,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
“This three-month period is not a hard deadline, and the parties may continue to negotiate beyond this period in an effort to reach an agreement without the need for litigation. At this time, neither LBUD nor LADWP has formally applied for a franchise, and the agencies have not begun any formal negotiation that would start the clock on this three-month period,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
“Staff has been informed that LADWP will formally request a franchise from Seal Beach at a later date. Based on the Council’s direction, staff will attempt to negotiate the inclusion of the Council’s requested terms in a proposed franchise for consideration by the City Council at a later date. Under the City Charter, a franchise is adopted by ordinance of the City Council,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
College Park West concerns
The Ghirelli and Lee report acknowledged the concerns of CPW residents. According to their report, a franchise agreement could include improvements to the bridge. “An underwater inspection of the Bridge should be conducted to determine the scope of these repairs. Staff is informed that the last Caltrans underwater inspection of the Bridge occurred in March 2021, which identified a ‘poor’ Bridge substructure. Similar inspections are expected to occur every five years. Staff is informed that the City of Long Beach is already scheduled to perform Bridge repairs in 2029,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
An agreement could require LBUD or the LADWP to pay a fee to Seal Beach, require Long Beach Utilities and their contractors to get permits from Seal Beach, as well as to build a water pipeline to Seal Beach so Seal Beach could buy recycled water, and provide funding to the College Park West Preserve,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
“The agreement could also include a requirement to update the structural analysis of the College Park Drive Bridge dated May 6, 2025,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.
“Because Seal Beach is a responsible agency under CEQA in connection with the Project, prior to the City Council making a decision on a proposed franchise, the City Council would have to make environmental findings under CEQA prior to the City Council making a decision on the proposed franchise,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote
“Staff would evaluate the required level of environmental review based upon the final terms of any franchise,” Ghirelli and Lee wrote.