Redwood City is happy to report that levee improvements around Redwood Shores have been fully completed. The levee pathways have been restored and construction staging areas have been cleared.

Concurrent with this work, the City has been seeking FEMA certification of the levee improvements, which in turn will result in the removal of the flood zone designation for Redwood Shores. The certification plans were submitted to FEMA in May. In mid-July FEMA notified the City that the package was under review, and that the final determination would be made by FEMA’s Risk Analysis Division in Washington DC. The City is very confident that levee certification is imminent.

In addition to the levee improvements, residents have noticed some additional signage and fencing along certain levee access points. These are being installed at the direction of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) as part of that agency’s requirement for the City to protect the habitat of special status species such as the California Clapper Rail and the Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse. As a reminder, the segment of levee facing Bird Island, from the sewage treatment plant to the new Preserve at Redwood Shores development, is closed to the public, as mandated by the USFWS. We’re told by the USFWS that public access to other parts of the levee may be jeopardized if trespassing onto the restricted sections of levee continues.

The City would like to thank Redwood Shores residents for their patience during the levee improvements, and for complying with the levee access restrictions implemented by the USFWS.

Resurfacing of the levee path is still planned for September, unless we hear otherwise from US Fish & Wildlife. At that time, the dirt path will be smoothed out, and base rock added.

Smoothing out ruts and clean up of areas not on the levee is still ongoing, but the on and off rain has made it slow and challenging.

In the March issue of the Pilot, it was reported that the Redwood Shores Levees had been certified. We would like to clarify that although FEMA has expressed to the City that levee certification is imminent and that Redwood Shores will not be reclassified as a Special Flood Hazard Area, at this point the levees are not yet certified.

However, the levees are on target for certification, with the final draft paperwork anticipated to be submitted to FEMA for review by the end of the month. Depending on FEMA’s review time and any feedback from that agency, actual certification is anticipated for Fall of 2010.

We would also like to remind residents that although the structural elements necessary for levee certification has been achieved, the levee path restoration work will resume in September, due to seasonal restrictions by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Throughout the levee improvement and certification effort, we truly appreciate the support, patience, and cooperation from Redwood Shores residents. Together, we have succeeded in protecting homes and the community. We look forward to reporting the completion of the levee certification this Fall.

In September, 2009, Redwood City shared its plan for the Redwood Shores levee improvement project. Those improvements were needed to meet levee certification requirements of the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA), in order to prevent the imposition of mandatory flood insurance for Redwood Shores residents.

We’re happy to report that the key structural elements and necessary levee elevation have been completed, and we’re now moving forward with certification to meet FEMA’s flood zone map deadline, as well as cleanup and restoration of the paths atop the levees.

This work was accomplished despite an extremely short construction window, permit obstacles, and a series of intense! storms that threatened to cause insurmountable delays.

We had originally anticipated getting the necessary permits by November and then beginning construction in December. This would have provided a full two months of work before January 31st the start of the Clapper Rail nesting season, during which construction on the levee is prohibited by the US Fish & Wildlife Service.

However, due to the complexity of the permitting process, permits were not obtained until December 30th and only after considerable effort and assistance from Congresswoman Jackie Speier’s office, the Bay Planning Coalition, and our City Council. This left only about one month to build levee improvements that typically require two months to complete in the dry season.

We made good progress during early January, with a rapid pace of construction on the levees around Redwood Shores, by the South Bayside System Authority treatment plant, and adjacent to the San Carlos Airport. As you know, this included weekend and night work in order to complete construction before January 31st, and we truly appreciate the understanding of nearby residents who endured noise, construction activity, and unusual work hours.

Then, during the week of January 18th a series of intense storms forced a complete halt to construction.
Faced with the critical deadline, and despite the weather’s significant impact to the already condensed
construction schedule, crews managed to complete construction of the structural elements required for
levee certification. With the elevation achieved, we can proceed with FEMA certification.

Please be assured that the levee surface will not be left in its current state. We will restore the levee to a condition suitable for its prior recreational use. Timing of the cleanup and restoration, though, is problematic since federal regulations prohibit the use of machinery atop the levee until September 1st, the end of the Clapper Rail nesting season. However, as a temporary measure we plan to utilize hand tools and manually restore the levee surface. Ironically, after the near-feverish pace of work to get to this point, the cleanup and restoration will be a slower operation and we thank you for your continued patience. After September 1st we’ll proceed with finalizing the surface restoration work.

Finally, you’ll recall that there is a 500-foot section of the levee near the San Carlos Airport which FAA regulations prohibit from being raised to the FEMA-required elevation, due to aircraft safety issues. Both agencies have expressed that they are open to the possibility of a device which would be deployed during storm/high tide events to temporarily create a higher barrier. We’re confident that our continued work with the FAA and FEMA will result in a solution that meets all our needs.

Again, thank you for your patience and understanding during the process of levee improvements for Redwood Shores. If you have questions about this project, please feel free to contact Peter Vorametsanti, City Engineer, at 780-7380, or via email at .