Venice Dual Force Main Project: City must consider Marina del Rey residents

As the Los Angeles County Supervisor of the 4th Supervisorial District, which is home to over two million residents and includes Marina del Rey, I continue to have grave concerns about the City of Los Angeles’ chosen alignment for the Venice Dual-Force Main.  The City’s preferred alignment, which will go through Marina del Rey, will have a significant impact on the Marina’s 9,000 residents, and on the more than one million tourists that visit the Marina every year.

While I understand the need for redundancy in the sewer line, the sheer volume of traffic on Via Marina (16,000 daily traffic trips) versus Pacific Avenue (5,500 daily traffic trips) means that the City’s preferred alignment will negatively impact many more people.

I will continue to oppose the Venice Dual Force Main Project unless there are satisfactory mitigation measures along with a concerted public outreach effort to address and minimize project impacts on County residents and Marina visitors and to keep all affected residents informed.  Possible project impacts include, but are not limited to, noise, traffic and vibrations, all of which can be amplified based on chosen working hours.

I am aware that County staff from the Departments of Beaches and Harbors, Regional Planning, County Counsel and Public Works, have expended considerable resources to address the impacts that the City’s project will have on the Marina, and I urge the City to cooperate with County staff in those efforts.

While I recognize the City’s right to choose any necessary or convenient location for the project (as determined by the Court of Appeals in 2013), it is my sincere hope that, as a good neighbor, the City will seriously consider and sincerely address the significant project concerns raised by the County, its Marina del Rey residents and other stakeholders.