American River debris removal nears fruition

The removal of metal and concrete debris from the American River is closer to fruition after the Placer County Board of Supervisors authorized for the contract to be finalized Tuesday. The State Route 49 Bridge broke into three pieces and was washed away in December 1964, when the partially constructed Hell Hole Dam failed during an atmospheric river event. The debris was never removed, as construction of the Auburn Dam three miles downstream was authorized, and still lies in a stretch of the river within the Confluence of the Auburn Recreation Area 60 years later. The board approved a fund transfer agreement in February 2023 to receive $8 million from the California 2022-23 budget for the American River Debris Removal Project, following coordination with Protect American River Canyons (PARC). In August 2024, the board approved two service agreements to utilize a Construction Manager/General Contractor (CMGC) delivery method for the debris removal due to environmental, locality and design constraints. Cheyenne Toney, a senior civil engineer for Placer, advised the approach allows the CMGC contractor to provide innovative solutions and have an open-book cost estimating procedure, the independent cost estimator to verify the contractor's costs to ensure fair pricing and the environmental consultant to secure all environmental permits, approvals and compliance with CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) and NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act). Toney confirmed county staff are now working with the independent cost estimator and the CMGC contractor to come to an agreement price and negotiating owning risk of potential items of work now that the design and permitting stage is complete. According to the county, the board's approval authorizes the Department of Public Works to finalize a contract with Myers & Sons Construction for the debris removal. "The final step is for the county and CMGC contractor to negotiate markup for their total bid price," Toney told the board. "The county is currently undergoing final markup negotiations and if an agreed total bid price is reached, then the debris will be removed this year beginning next month. If an agreed price is not reached, then the board actions brought forward today also allow the county to put plans and specifications out to bid, which will push the debris removal into next year." Toney advised the county is also awaiting the approval of a temporary construction permit through the Bureau of Reclamation and an encroachment permit through Caltrans, both of which are anticipated to be received in the next couple of weeks. "All of the regulatory agencies have been wonderful to work with," Toney said. "They all do truly value this as a restoration project for its overall positive impact to the environment." More information on the project can be found on the PARC website, parc-auburn.org.