Thank you to Council Member Ben Wong for arranging the meeting with College Park West residents and LADWP with the city of Seal Beach’s assistance. Although the College Park Drive Bridge is owned by Long Beach, it is the only daily access point for the residents of College Park West in Seal Beach. Any risk to that bridge is a risk to our neighborhood’s safety and emergency access.
According to the federal National Bridge Inventory, this bridge is officially Structurally Deficient, with a Poor substructure rating of 4, and a federal recommendation for bridge replacement due to substandard load capacity and outdated geometry. The January 2025 Caltrans inspection confirms decades of worsening deterioration in the piers, including spalling and exposed rebar.
Despite that, the proposal is to add two additional water pipelines – permanent loads – onto a bridge that federal data says needs replacement. This raises a clear safety concern for Seal Beach residents, and for Long Beach liability.
Importantly, this project cannot proceed without Seal Beach granting an easement. That means Seal Beach does not have to accept increased risk in order for Long Beach or LADWP to meet their operational needs.
I respectfully ask that both cities commit to a simple principle:
No new pipelines on a structurally deficient bridge until it is rehabilitated or retrofitted, or the pipelines are routed by an alternative path.
This is not opposition—this is ensuring public safety and regional reliability before adding new infrastructure.
Thank you.
Thomas Moore
Former Mayor 2019, 2023
Council Member 2016-2024
