The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power plans to move forward early next year with the environmental review process for the proposed new Distributing Station 104 in Pacific Palisades.
“There has been no final decision on which site or sites to carry forward in the environmental review process, although LADWP anticipates that more than one location will be considered and be evaluated through further engineering and environmental analysis,” LADWP Senior Public Relations Specialist Carol Tucker said.
In early 2014, the agency will release a Notice of Preparation of an Environmental Impact Report which will reveal the site or sites being considered and begin the formal review under the California Environmental Quality Act. Sources have said the announcement will likely come in January.
The placement of the new electrical distributing station has been hotly debated. Former Councilmember Bill Rosendahl and the Los Angeles Unified School District appointed a Task Force last year to evaluate potential sites. Sixteen potential locations were identified and ranked in tiers by the Task Force, but LADWP will make the final decision.
At the start of the environmental process, a public scoping meeting will be held to solicit feedback from the community. There will be additional opportunities for public review and comment when a Draft Environmental Impact Report is released later in 2014, according to LADWP.
The environmental review process is expected to take 12 to 18 months. The final report will be presented to the Board of Water and Power Commissioners in early 2015.
“Please be assured LADWP is committed to working with the community on finding a feasible and compatible location for DS 104 as we move forward with the CEQA process,” Tucker said.
Norman Kulla, senior counsel for Councilmember Mike Bonin, said he expects many Palisadians will be upset with whatever decision the agency makes. Based on briefings by the agency, Kulla said he expects there will be changes from the Tier 1 sites to the final sites selected by LADWP.
Larry Larson, owner of Pacific Gardens at 111 Marquez Place, has opposed building a station near his apartment complex.
“DWP says they’re 100 percent safe, but nobody wants to live next to it,” he said.
Ira Tenenbaum, who lives near one of the Tier 1 sites, has been frustrated by a lack of communication from LADWP.
“It doesn’t seem like anything’s been done to ease our concerns,” he said.
Several residents also complained that most of the people on the Task Force are Marquez Knolls residents.
“It’s not been a thorough review by any stretch of the imagination because the sites they have looked at have not reflected any community involvement other than having an organizational meeting at the high school that was not chock-full of meaningful information,” said Alan Morelli, who opposes a site on Mantua Road.
Jim Rea, who served on the Task Force, said he believes their group represented a broad range of interests. He has heard nothing about the process since the last meeting earlier this year.
“We’ve been disconnected from the process for so long,” he said. “It’s completely up to LADWP now.”
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