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CC - (1) Consideration of a Request from the County of Los Angeles for the City of Culver City to Adopt a Resolution: (A) Acknowledging that the Baldwin Hills Regional Conservation Authority’s (BHRCA) Park to Playa (P2P) Trail will not be Considered in Defining the 400-Foot Setback Requirement for, or in Determining the Applicable Developed Area or Sensitive Developed Area in Relationship to, Oil Drilling Operations, as Proposed in the Discussion Draft Oil Drilling Regulations for the City’s Portion of the Inglewood Oil Field (IOF); (B) Acknowledging BHRCA’s Continued Commitment to Locating the P2P Trail as Far as Feasibly Possible from City Residences and Provide Other Mitigations to Reduce Related Impacts; and (C) Acknowledging BHRCA’s Additional Commitment to Discuss the City’s Request to Place Environmental Quality Testing and Monitoring Devices Along the P2P Trail with the Objective of Developing a Mutually Agreeable Plan; and (2) If Desired, Adoption of a Related Resolution.
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Meeting Date: November 14, 2016
Contact Person/Dept: Heather Baker, Assistant City Attorney; Melanie Doran Traxler,
Inglewood Oil Field Specific Plan Project Manager
Phone Number: (310) 253-5660; (818) 248-7158
Fiscal Impact: Yes [] No [X] General Fund: Yes [] No [X]
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [X] Attachments: []
Commission Action Required: Yes [] No [X]
Public Notification: (E-Mail) Meetings and Agendas - City Council (10/27/16 and 11/09/16); Timely Topics - Inglewood Oil Field (10/27/16 and 11/09/16); Timely Topics - Sustainability and Environmental Issues (10/27/16 and 11/09/16); Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas (10/27/16 and 11/09/16); USPS: Inglewood Oil Field Property Owners (10/31/16).
Department Approval: Carol Schwab (11/08/16)
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RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council:
1. Consider a request (Attachment 1) from the County of Los Angeles (the “County”) that the City Council adopt a resolution:
a. Acknowledging that a certain portion of the Park to Playa (P2P) Trail Project (the “Trail Project”) that lies within the City of Culver City will not be considered in defining the 400-foot setback requirements for oil drilling operations or independently considered in determining the applicable “developed area” or “sensitive developed area”, as proposed in the Discussion Draft Oil Drilling Regulations (the “Draft Regulations”) for the City’s portion of the Inglewood Oil Field (IOF). The trail segment in question will stretch between La Cienega Boulevard (on the east) and the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook (on the west), and will be located on property owned/managed by the Baldwin Hills Regional Conservation Authority (BHRCA), comprising a section of the Trail Project commonly referenced as “Segment C” (the “Trail Segment”), as depicted on the map attached to the proposed Resolution,; and
b. Acknowledging BHRCA’s commitment to locate the Trail Segment as far as feasibly possible from City residences, without creating interference or health and safety issues due to encroachment into the IOF, and provide other mitigations to reduce related impacts to the City’s residents; and
c. Acknowledging BHRCA’s additional commitment to discuss the City’s request to place environmental quality testing and monitoring devices (i.e., as may be needed to monitor air quality, soils or other physical conditions related to operation of oil field activities within the IOF) within or along Segment C of the P2P Trail Project, with the objective of developing a mutually agreeable plan.
2. If desired, adopt the proposed Resolution (Attachment 2).
BACKGROUND
The Baldwin Hills Regional Conservation Authority (BHRCA), a joint powers authority between the County of Los Angeles (the “County”) and the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, is in the process of constructing the Trail Project, which is envisioned as a regional trail that will seamlessly connect the greater Baldwin Hills Parklands to the Pacific Ocean, also known as the Park to Playa (P2P) connection. The County’s request of the City Council focuses on the Trail Segment (i.e., Segment C), described above, that is representative of the Blair Hills segment of the proposed P2P Trail Project. All other segments of the Trail Project are either under construction or have been completed and do not run through property that is subject to third party mineral rights.
As originally proposed under a 2011 feasibility study, the eastern portion of Segment C would have connected to Kenneth Hahn State Park via an existing roadway bridge crossing over La Cienega Boulevard near the City-County border, then would have traveled north toward residential development located along Stoneview Drive, and then turned westerly, following a circuitous route along the Inglewood Oil Field (IOF) edge, and ultimately connecting to a completed portion of the P2P Trail Project at the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook and trail head.
In April 2014, plan refinements for the P2P Trail Project shifted the proposed La Cienega Boulevard pedestrian crossing further north and contemplated it to be a dedicated pedestrian aerial bridge and elevated trail extending approximately 300 feet into the IOF area, at which point it transitioned to a ground trail and entered the adjacent Stoneview Nature Center site (currently under development with an anticipated completion date of December 2016). Under that early alignment, the location of the Trail Segment was approximately 10 to 15 feet from the Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas (FMOG) fence located south of Culver City residences located at 3920 Lenawee Avenue and 5908, 5912, 5916, 5920 and 5924 Stoneview Drive (the “City Residences”). In an effort to mitigate potential impacts created by the users of the P2P Trail Project on Culver City residents and in response to concerns expressed by those residents, the City requested the Trail Segment be located as far south from the City Residences as feasibly possible.
In addition, FMOG, the operator of the adjacent IOF, had expressed concern to BHRCA that the Segment C trail location be placed and designed such that it would not restrict or impede FMOG’s ability to drill on the Culver City portion of the IOF pending the anticipated requirements outlined in the Draft Regulations.
Prior 2014 City Council Resolution Concerning P2P Trail Project
In response to the various concerns expressed by Culver City residents and FMOG, the County Supervisor for the Second District, Mark Ridley-Thomas, in a letter to then Mayor Sahli-Wells dated September 22, 2014, requested that the City Council “adopt a resolution…to confirm that the Park to Playa Trail segment immediately adjacent to residential housing within Blair Hills will not be considered a sensitive use as part of future City regulations.” In consideration for the City granting the County’s request, BHRCA proposed moving the Trail Segment to a location approximately 50 to 75 feet from the FMOG fence located south of the City Residences. On October 27, 2014, the City Council took action on this request and adopted Resolution No. 2014-R084. (See attachments associated with Attachment 1 for copies of the September 22, 2014 letter and Resolution No. 2014-R084). The 2014 action was limited to an approximate 500-foot long portion of Segment C, specifically that portion located between the future Stoneview Nature Center site and La Cienega Boulevard. At that time, it was intended that the remainder of the Segment C Trail Project would be located entirely on property that was outside, and would be unaffected by regulation, of the IOF.
Current Request by the County
In the intervening time, as detailed engineering and design for the entirety of Segment C proceeded, additional needs and technical information were identified such that further adjustments to the trail alignment resulted. Three notable points include:
1. Design and construction plans for the Stoneview Nature Center were finalized, thus formalizing the linkage locations between trail entrances at the property edge of the nature center;
2. Through ongoing coordination with Culver City residents within the Blair Hills community (including City residences along Wrightcrest Drive, Wright Terrance and Stoneview Drive) in proximity to the westerly portion of Segment C, it was requested that the P2P Trail Project be as far south as reasonably possible in order to prevent noise or visual impacts to their properties; and
3. As the P2P Trail Project plans were being finalized, it was determined that, due to geological constraints and/or trail safety and accessibility issues, there was a need to push limited sections of the trail into or immediately adjacent to the IOF area.
These current issues affecting the specific alignment for the western portion of Segment C were identified during Summer, 2016 as the Mitigated Negative Declaration for Segment C was completed and P2P Trail Project plans finalized. Upon review, the County team identified a potential conflict or concern with the re-aligned portions of Segment C relative to Culver City’s proposed Draft Regulations, specifically with the proposed 400-foot setback requirement for drilling activities and relative relationship to “developed areas” and “sensitive developed areas”, similar to the conflict identified with that portion of the Trail Project addressed in 2014.
In response to the detailed design information and the latest round of various concerns expressed by Culver City residents and FMOG, Supervisor Ridley-Thomas, in a letter to Mayor Clarke dated October 26, 2016 (see Attachment 1), once again requested the City Council adopt a resolution to expand the City’s October 2014 resolution, such that the entirety of the P2P Trail Segment C, between La Cienega Boulevard and the Blair Hills Scenic Overlook, will not be considered a sensitive use or developed use as part of future City regulations and that it will not be considered in defining the proposed 400-foot setback to buffer from the drilling area.
In consideration for the City granting the County’s request, BHRCA has proposed moving the Trail Segment to a location as far (south) as feasibly possible from City Residences and will provide other mitigations to reduce related impacts. In addition, and at the City’s request, BHRCA has committed to discuss the possible placement of environmental quality testing and monitoring devices (i.e., as may be needed to monitor air quality, soils or other physical conditions related to operation of oil field activities within the IOF) within or along Segment C of the P2P Trail Project, with the objective of developing a mutually agreeable plan.
DISCUSSION
Proposed Resolution
In determining whether to grant the County’s request, the City Council may want to consider the following factors that may be supportive of a finding that the Trail Segment not be considered in defining the 400-foot setback requirements for oil drilling operations applicable to a “developed area” or “sensitive developed area”, as proposed in the Draft Regulations:
• The combined length (approximately 1,000 feet) of the three sections of the Segment C Trail Segment that could be within the 400-foot setback from oil drilling operations is limited and de minimis when compared to the 1.75 mile estimated length of Segment C and the entirety of the P2P Trail Project (approximately 13 miles);
• The Segment C Trail Segment is unique in nature, as it is the only portion of the P2P Trail Project that borders in such close proximity to residential properties while simultaneously being constrained by oil field operations;
• The goal of providing an exception for the Trail Segment from proposed setback requirements is to strike a balance between potential impacts on City residences from the immediately adjacent Trail Segment and the interests of the Park to Playa Trail users in having a contiguous, safe and efficient pedestrian connector between the greater Baldwin Hills Parklands and the Pacific Ocean;
• On balance, given the City’s experience of impacts to other Culver City residents from park users (i.e. Hetzler Road), the balance weighs in favor of creating the largest feasible buffer between the Culver City residences and the Trail Segment;
• The Park to Playa Trail would be allowed to be located within the proposed 400-foot setback requirement for drilling operations for only those sections of the Trail Segment shown in Exhibit A of the proposed Resolution, and such setback requirement (or any setback provided for in any ordinance adopted by Culver City) would remain applicable for all other portions of the Oil Field; and,
• The impacts of locating the Trail Segment within the proposed setback requirement would be mitigated by the measures described previously in Supervisor Ridley-Thomas’ September 22, 2014 letter (see Attachment 1), along with any additional measures identified in the Mitigated Negative Declaration for Segment C. In addition, BHRCA has committed to discuss the possible placement of environmental quality testing and monitoring devices (i.e., as may be needed to monitor air quality, soils or other physical conditions related to operation of oil field activities within the IOF) along or adjacent to the Trail Segment, which affords the City an opportunity to monitor the effects of oil field activities in proximity to the P2P trail location, with the objective of developing a mutually agreeable plan.
Effect of Proposed Resolution on City’s Future Oil Drilling Regulations
If the proposed Resolution is adopted, the City Council may consider that there is an existing resolution in place that acknowledges that the Trail Segment will not be considered in defining the 400-foot setback requirements for oil drilling operations near developed or sensitive developed areas. However, as stated in the proposed Resolution, nothing in the Resolution abrogates or waives the City Council’s authority to conduct the required public process, including consideration of any environmental analysis, when deliberating on and adopting future oil drilling regulations for the Culver City portion of the Oil Field (i.e. the IOF Specific Plan and related Environmental Impact Report).
FISCAL ANALYSIS
There is no fiscal impact associated with the consideration and discussion of County’s request or the adoption of the proposed resolution.
ATTACHMENTS
1. October 26, 2016 letter from County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, including copy of previous September 22, 2014 letter and Resolution No. 2014-R084.
2. Proposed Resolution.
MOTION
That the City Council:
1. Consider the County’s request; and,
2. (If desired) Adopt the proposed Resolution.