The Signal Hill City Council on Tuesday agreed to pay up to $250,000 to contractors that had to fix multiple unexpected leaks in the city’s water system last month.
The council listened to proposed actions the Water Department will take to try to ensure the issue isn’t repeated.
On July 20 and21, multiple significant water leaks began throughout the city. It was later concluded that the leaks were caused by maintenance work on a valve at Temple Reservoir, which increased the water pressure throughout the city.
Residents and small businesses reported several leaks around the city, the most significant of which required contractors to excavate the area and replace underground pipes. One leak near Pacific Coast Highway and Molina Avenue required traffic control measures.
The three contractors that dealt with the majority of the repairs are RP Vititow Construction, WA Rasic Construction and Doly Bros. The contractors have not submitted their invoices to the City yet, but City staff has estimated the total cost will be less than $250,000. City staff estimate that the final cost for the repairs will be known by the end of the month.
The $250,000 for the emergency repairs will be taken from the Water Department Repair and Maintenance Services Account.
Under the Signal Hill Municipal Code, the City Manager is authorized to pay up to $100,000 to deal with emergency situations, but anything over that must be authorized by the City Council.
In order to avoid similar leaks and emergency repairs in the future, the Water Department will make the following updates:
- Install high and low pressure pump cut-off switches at all reservoirs
- Increase the amount of pressure-reducing valves in Signal Hill
- Implement technology to create a leak detection system
- Create a mutual aid agreement with the City of Long Beach through the California Water/Wastewater Agency Response Network for emergency pipeline repairs
Signal Hill City Council meetings are held biweekly on Tuesdays at 7 p.m, and can be watched online live or as a recording on Granicus.
