The purpose of the proposed action is prevent utility and community service interruptions during emergencies. The Applicant will install stationary emergency generators at seven critical facilities, listed above, which provide municipal services to the community. Four of the seven facilities are located within the floodplain: (PS-02512 Police Station/City Hall: 36.428235, -121.326982) (PS-02523 Water Reclamation Facility: 36.418861, -121.338930) (PS-02529 Well 7: 36.423462, -121.321722) and (PS-02530 Well 9: 36.417584, -121.312411). Existing generators at the Water Reclamation Facility and Wells 7 and 9 will be replaced. Automatic transfer switches will be installed at all sites but Well 9. Each generator will be placed on a 10’ x 14’ foot concrete pad, to sit above the 500-year flood elevation. Electrical conduits will be installed and connected to existing utility lines. Excavation will occur at a depth of approximately thirty-six inches, with work occurring in previously disturbed soils and facility rights-of-way.
The project areas are depicted on the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) Panels #06053C0616H (the panel on which PS-02530 Well 9 is located) and #06053C0612H (the panel on which PS-02512 Police Station/City Hall, PS-02523 Water Reclamation Facility, and PS-02529 Well 7 are located), effective November 30, 2023. The proposed action lies within the Shaded X zone, an area that has a 0.2-percent probability of flooding every year. The proposed work will not take place in wetlands per the United States Fish and Wildlife Service National Wetlands Inventory and will have little potential to impact or affect wetland values.
A map of the project area and its location within the floodplain is available for public inspection. Parties interested in receiving a copy of the map should contact the FEMA Region IX Environmental Officer using contact information provided in this notice.
Two alternatives to the proposed action were considered: Alternative 1: No Action, and Alternative 2: Relocation of the Project Facility. Alternative 1 would not install the stationary generators at the critical facilities. This Alternative is not recommended because it would not reduce the risk of utility and community service interruption during emergencies and therefore would not reduce the potential for loss of life and property. Alternative 2 included installing a backup-backup portable generator at the Water Reclamation Facility, and new portable generators at each site rather than fixed generators. Portable generators were determined to be infeasible for emergency backup power due to the human intervention required for the manual transfer switches portable generators utilize, which could delay critical power provision during an emergency.
FEMA has determined that the proposed project is the only practicable alternative available; therefore, the proposed action must be located in the floodplain. The proposed action would have no significant adverse impact on the floodplain and would benefit the area by reducing the risk of utility and community service interruptions during emergencies. The City of Soledad has declared that the proposed action conforms to local floodplain standards, and would be responsible for the management, construction, and maintenance of the proposed action.
Additional information about FEMA’s proposed action may be requested by writing the FEMA Region IX Environmental Officer at FEMA, 1111 Broadway, Suite 1200, Oakland, California 94607, or fema-rix-ehp-documents@fema.dhs.gov. All requests should be received no later than 15 days after publication of this notice. No action will be taken before this date.
POSTED: OCTOBER 15, 2026
Construction has officially started on the City’s Recycled Water Conveyance Pipeline System, a major sustainability initiative aimed at providing reclaimed water for irrigating City parks, landscaping, and turf areas for Soledad Unified School District. Once finished, the system will replace around 54 million gallons of potable well water each year with recycled water produced at the City’s Water Reclamation Facility. This innovative project includes: Over five miles of new conveyance pipeline, a state-of-the-art 1.5 million-gallon-per-day pump station, upgraded irrigation systems, a sophisticated hydraulic analysis using modeling software to simulate the conveyance system under a wide range of conditions, more than 180 engineering drawings, nearly 1,000 pages of specifications, and countless hours of collaboration between our engineering team and the City. Together, these efforts will allow the City and SUSD to keep irrigating sports fields even during future droughts—ensuring green, safe, and usable spaces for the community all year round. While recycled water use is common in other parts of California, Soledad will be the first agency in our region to water parks and school fields with renewable, recycled water, marking a significant step forward in local water conservation and sustainability.
SOLEDAD’S RECYCLED WATER CONVEYANCE PROJECT:
The City of Soledad has been working for 20 years on utilizing recycled water to preserve its groundwater resource. From the water we drink, shower, clean, and irrigate, one of the highest uses of water a City experiences is turf irrigation. Soledad parks and schools use up to 231 acre-feet (approximately 75 million gallons) for turf irrigation alone. Therefore, this project aims to install approximately 5 miles of pipeline in the City to establish a citywide distribution system to bring recycled water to the Soledad Parks and Schools. This enables the City to replace up to 165 acre-feet (approximately 54 million gallons) per year!
20 YEARS IN THE MAKING…
- 2005 – City Council approved the Urban Water Management Plan (UWMP), establishing a strategy to preserve groundwater and pursue recycled water as a long-term resource.
- 2006 – Adopted the Long-Term Wastewater Management Plan (LTWMP), outlining improvements to meet General Plan buildout, including wastewater treatment upgrades to Title 22 standards for recycled water use. Approved engineering contract with Black & Veatch, leading to the creation of Recycled Water Ordinance No. 645 (approved in 2007).
- 2008-2010 – Constructed a $60M Title 22 Water Reclamation Facility. While plans included a citywide recycled water pipeline, budget constraints limited installation to the railroad tracks.
- 2011 – Awarded $1.16M Prop 84 Grant from the Water Resources Board to design and construct the remaining pipeline connection from the WRF to Veterans Park.
- 2017 – Pipeline construction completed. Additional tasks were required to begin irrigation at Veteran’s Park: permitting, irrigation system conversions, signage, and purple pipe installation. All but permitting were completed by summer 2024.
- 2022 – City Council authorized staff to apply for the Urban Community Drought Relief (UCDR) Grant to fund the Soledad Recycled Water Conveyance Project, expanding recycled water use to City parks and schools.
- 2023 – City awarded $16.66M UCDR Grant from the California Department of Water Resources to implement citywide recycled water distribution.