The Government Audit and Oversight Committee of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted to forward to the full Board a resolution authorizing the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to execute a five-year memorandum of agreement (MOA) with Daly City to fund, construct and operate the Vista Grande drainage basin improvement project. The committee moved the item with a positive recommendation and a unanimous 3-0 roll call vote.
PUC groundwater program manager Obin Nzewi told the committee the project will replace and enlarge the Vista Grande Canal and tunnel system, add debris screening and a diversion structure, and construct two treatment wetlands to improve water quality before diverting approved stormwater to Lake Merced. “This project is going to be doing a couple of things,” Nzewi said, describing the goals as reducing flooding in Daly City and Lake Merced, restoring historic watershed connections to help raise lake levels, and recharging the underlying groundwater basin.
The project schedule presented anticipates Coastal Commission-required pre-construction mitigation under way, bidding in fall 2025 and notice to proceed in spring 2026, with final completion anticipated in August 2030. Nzewi said Daly City will manage construction; PUC will provide oversight and a maximum reimbursement of $35,000,000 for agreed construction invoices.
Nick Menard of the Budget and Legislative Analyst’s office told supervisors the total project cost is currently estimated at about $173.8 million and that PUC’s $35 million contribution would come from the Water Enterprise capital revenue budget, funded by water bonds and customer revenues. “We recommend approval of item 1,” Menard said.
Committee members asked about timeline, real estate easements and approvals required from the Board of Supervisors and the PUC commission. Nzewi said additional real estate agreements and easements will be brought forward to relevant boards for approval. The committee recorded no public comment on the item before forwarding it to the full Board with a positive recommendation.
The MOA as described would reimburse Daly City for approved construction invoices up to the $35 million cap; Daly City would bear cost escalation beyond that amount and would replace overflow structures and increase tunnel capacity on its side of the system. The project also relies on a lake management plan that regional regulators have reviewed.
If approved by the full Board, the project will proceed under Daly City construction management with PUC funding oversight and required subsequent easements and agreements returning for separate approvals.