Galt Utilities Master Plan Initial Study – City of Galt
Raney, under contract with the City of Galt, prepared an Initial Study for the City’s Utilities Master Plan, comprised of a Wastewater Collection System Master Plan, Water Distribution System Master Plan, and Storm Drainage System Master Plan. The City prepared and adopted the Utilities Master Plan in order to meet the anticipated new demand associated with the 2030 General Plan update. According to the General Plan, the service area will increase from approximately 3,763 acres to approximately 8,817 acres at full build-out of the General Plan boundaries. The Initial Study was prepared to provide program-level mitigation addressing what each future project would need to comply with in order to minimize the need for future environmental documents. The Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration was approved along with the Utilities Master Plan.
Curtis Park Village Combined Sewer and Regional Storage Project Initial Study / Mitigated Negative Declaration – CEQA Plus – Domus Development
The Curtis Park Village Combined Sewer project consists of the construction of various sewer segments and a pumping station, as well as the construction of a large underground storage facility within a proposed residential community known as Curtis Park Village. The project stores approximately 300,000 cubic feet of storm water during heavy rainfall periods in an effort to lower the hydraulic grade line and thus reducing the potential for flooding in the Curtis Park neighborhood and other surrounding areas. Because of the potential to utilize the Sacramento Revolving Loan Fund, Raney prepared an Initial Study and CEQA Plus document for the City. The Initial Study, prepared by Raney, analyzed three options for the proposed project to determine the best available option for the City with the least amount of environmental impacts. The Initial Study was prepared concurrently with the preparation the Curtis Park Valley EIRs, necessitating thorough coordination between Raney and the City to ensure that the Initial Study adequately complimented the EIR. Additionally, Raney coordinated with the Department of Toxic Substances to prepare a CEQA analysis of the updated remedial action plan for the project site while concurrently preparing the EIR for the associated Curtis Park Village project.
El Dorado County Public Safety Facility Environmental Impact Report and Environmental Assessment – County of El Dorado
The Public Safety Facility Project in El Dorado County involves the development of a new facility to consolidate the operations of the El Dorado Sheriff’s Department. The County Facilities Department served as the CEQA lead agency and NEPA responsible agency for the project on behalf of the Sheriff’s Department. The 30.34-acre project site is within the Diamond Springs area of unincorporated El Dorado County, with access from Missouri Flat Road. The proposed development area for the public safety facility is limited to approximately 18 acres of the total site area. The major project components include approximately 106,000 square feet of building space, allocated amongst four buildings, including buildings for the following major divisions: administration, training, morgue, and search and rescue/maintenance. In addition, the County is proposing to develop a 7-acre solar farm on the western portion of the project site, which will provide power to other County facilities.
Raney prepared a Draft EIR for the project, working closely with the County Facilities Department. Generally, the Draft EIR evaluates the following CEQA topics: aesthetics, air quality and greenhouse gas emissions, biological resources, cultural resources, geology and soils, hazards and hazardous materials, hydrology and water quality, land use and planning, noise, public services, traffic and circulation, utilities, and alternatives. One area of key concern during the environmental review was the sites previous use as a lumber storage area. The project EIR was certified by the Board of Supervisors.
South of Highway 50 Backbone Infrastructure Project Initial Study – City of Folsom
The South of Highway 50 Backbone Infrastructure project consists of the construction of the backbone infrastructure to support the Folsom Plan Area, south of Highway 50 (US 50) in the City of Folsom, CA. The backbone infrastructure is located within the Folsom Plan Area Specific Plan (FPASP) boundaries with some infrastructure improvements and connections north of and crossing US 50. The project consists of two main components: 1) updates to the Storm Drainage Master Plan, Water Infrastructure Master Plan, and Sewer Master Plan prepared for the implementation of the FPASP; and 2) South of US 50 backbone infrastructure buildout. The project infrastructure also included Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) substations as well as at-grade rail crossings.
Raney, under contract with the City of Folsom, prepared an Initial Study to address the key environmental issues of aesthetics, air quality and greenhouse gas emissions, biological resources, cultural resources, geology and soils, hazards and hazardous materials, hydrology and water quality, noise, and transportation and circulation. The Initial Study included a project-level analysis of the proposed infrastructure improvements, relying on information from the existing FPASP EIR where feasible. In order to provide an adequate CEQA review, Raney coordinated with the development community to determine the likely phases of development that would impact the need for infrastructure improvements as well as coordinating closely with City staff, particularly Public Works as a key stakeholder, to ensure adequacy in addressing City infrastructure needs and consistency with pertinent City planning documents.