Synopsis: Morro Bay and Cayucos have selected a consultant to develop a new plan for their proposed wastewater treatment plant, presumably to replace the project that was not accepted by the California Coastal Commission in March. But questions still remain about the process, including many surrounding Susan McCabe, who was originally hired as a lobbyist and now is scheduled to help design a new sewer plant project.
Morro Bay and Cayucos, partners in the multi-year pursuit of a new joint multi-million dollar wastewater treatment plant, have taken what appears to be a major step in charting a new—and possibly a much more productive—direction toward building the plant. But other potentially significant questions surrounding that process are being raised.
The Morro Bay City Council and Cayucos Sanitary District Board authorized the hiring of a $350,000 consultant to design a project apparently to replace the one that the California Coastal Commission refused to accept for review three months ago, leaving the whole issue in limbo. But it is unclear at this stage whether the new project now being developed will adequately address the reasons that the previous one submitted last January was rejected by the Commission.
In its wake, however, the action left more of the questions, uncertainties, and confusion that have long plagued the effort. One question involves Susan McCabe, who was hired sometime in February or March (her contract is not clear on the date) to lobby the California Coastal Commission and its staff on behalf of the first wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) proposal and is now a consultant on the development of a second WWTP plan.
She has consistently identified herself as a former "member of the California Coastal Commission." But it turns out she was not a member, but an alternate for a member for almost two years between 1986 and 1988, according to Coastal Commission staff. How many commission meetings she actually attended as the alternate in place of the member who appointed her, Charles Warren, who was appointed to the commission by the Senate Rules Committee, was not available.
At the joint Morro Bay-Cayucos meeting on May 12, McCabe was asked by Morro Bay Mayor Bill Yates, "How many sewage plants have you worked on?" From the podium, she answered, "I don't believe I worked on any sewage plants."
But it turns out she was under contract to San Luis Obispo County in 2004 as a consultant "for lobbying in Sacramento," the minutes of the Aug. 3, 2004, Board of Supervisors meeting state. The minutes also mention "a letter to the Coastal Commission that will be on the August 17 . . . agenda, for the Board’s consideration, regarding the Los Osos sewer" project.
In response to a question, current county chief administrative officer Jim Grant said, "I don't know if McCabe was consulted by the county in any way regarding the Los Osos sewer project."
At that time, 2004, the sewer project was under the jurisdiction of the Los Osos Community Services District before the project was transferred to the county under legislation sponsored by then Assembly Member Sam Blakeslee, who was elected in November, 2004. Whether there were any discussions within the county about the sewer project and about how or whether the county might become involved in 2004 is not known publicly. Legislation transferring jurisdiction was reportedly adopted in 2006.
Sara Wan, who just ended her term as chair and member of the Coastal Commission, said, when asked about McCabe, she "has worked in Sacramento to get me removed" from the commission. A commission source also said McCabe "has always been a strong opponent of Peter Douglas and worked in Sacramento to get him removed." Douglas has been executive director of the commission since 1985, was chief deputy director from 1977 to 1985, and co-authored the California Coastal Zone Conservation Act of 1972, which was approved by California voters and established the Coastal Commission.
Someone experienced with the Coastal Commission said, "McCabe is one of the most destructive forces at work today in undermining the coastal program. She badmouths the commission to members of the legislature, and perpetuates the myth that the commission is an out-of-control agency determined to deprive hard working people of their property rights."
Her contract with Morro Bay and Cayucos pays her $1,000 an hour, including $350 for an aide, with a cap of $12,500 a month plus expenses for a one-year term, Dennis Delzeit, WWTP project manager, has said.
At their May 12 meeting, the council and the Cayucos board (who operate under a Joint Powers Agreement or JPA) authorized Delzeit to suspend McCabe's contract after review of alternative sites for a new WWTP project is completed by her, the new consultant and the council and Cayucos staffs in consultation with the Coastal Commission staff, and after the new project plan is being prepared. She then would "participate in the final technical report preparation" and return to lobbying the commission and staff to promote the new WWTP plan.
That, he said, would involve suspension of the contract for "five or more months" with "potential savings" of $62,500 in fees to McCabe. But he didn't mention that she would still stand to be paid $87,500—if the timeline as he has predicted materializes—under her one-year, $150,000 contract.
McCabe presumably will support and advocate the new WWTP plan that is expected to emerge during the coming months. But in one of her memos to Delzeit she indicated that the original Morro Bay-Cayucos proposal to build a new WWTP adjacent to the existing one may still be viable, even though the Coastal Commission staff found it to be unacceptable for a number of reasons, including the fact that it is in a flood zone and conflicts with the city's Local Coastal Plan.
"We believe that if an alternatives analysis demonstrates that the proposed location for the WWTP is the most appropriate location for the project, commission staff will be open to recommending approval of the project and that other issues raised in the appeal could be dealt with through conditions to the permit," she said. "While we cannot pre-judge the outcome of the alternatives analysis, we have every expectation that if the currently-proposed site is found to be the environmentally-preferred site, it will weigh heavily in the commission staff recommendation."
In other words, the city's Local Coastal Plan (LCP) could be modified with added conditions to allow the site originally proposed by Morro Bay and Cayucos and rejected by the commission. But she does not mention that such a revision in the LCP would require Coastal Commission approval and that such a location still may violate the Coastal Act, which can't be changed.
In his report at the May 12 meeting, Delzeit said the selected consultant, Dudek, will examine other sites for the new WWTP and a "scope of work" to develop a project plan will be prepared as those sites are examined. "A maximum of 10 sites will be evaluated in the 'rough screening' analysis and a maximum of three sites will be evaluated in the 'fine screening' analysis," he said.
"During this process," he said, "two public workshops would be held during the rough screening and one during the fine screening." Previously, Delzeit had proposed one workshop overall, despite the Coastal Commission staff having recommended several. Then he proposed two overall, but at the May 12 meeting in answer to Council Member Noah Smukler's question, he said there would be three.
Here is the tentative time line for meetings in the coming months provided by Dudek (which was unaware that Delzeit later changed the number of workshops to three at the May 12 meeting):
Draft scope of work: Public workshop presentations (2). Public Workshop No. 1 June 22, i.e. facilitated public forum—combines town hall format with open workshop dialogue. Provide public notice at least two weeks in advance, with use of an agenda to assist the public with understanding proposed format; held from 5-7 p.m. first public workshop with a working list of sites to cull down to 10 feasible options and the evaluation criteria for ranking them.
Coastal Commission Staff (and JPA staff) Meeting No. 2 August 19, JPA Presentation No. 1 August 24, Coastal Staff Meeting No. 3 on November 2 , Public Workshop/Presentation No. 2 November 9. Fine Screening Site Determination, and JPA Presentation No. 2 November 11. (The schedule apparently assumes that the March 11 meeting between the Coastal Commission and JPA staffs is considered to be the first of three being planned.)
Dudek's headquarters is located in Santa Barbara with seven other offices in California. It's website states: "For over 30 years, Dudek has been providing practical solutions for California's open space, land development, energy, transportation, water infrastructure, and municipal facility projects. Dudek engineers specialize in the design, construction, operation, and management of wastewater treatment facilities. Since 1980, Dudek has successfully planned, completed, managed, and inspected the construction of over 20 wastewater treatment plant programs that included obtaining financing, environmental, value engineering, constructability review, design-build, construction management and inspection, and owner’s representative service.
Dudek's project manager is a former Coastal Commission staff member, the company said.
Sage Institute, with a central coast office in Atascadero, was the other one of two finalist consultants submitted to the JPA, as required. But Delzeit said Dudek was the unanimous choice among Morro Bay and Cayucos staffs. Sage reportedly bid $140,000 for the consultant contract, although that information was not in the meeting agenda.
The council and Cayucos board had no hand in identifying the two finalists.
Cayucos board member, Michael Foster, said, "I don't think we have done a very good job documenting how we got to this recommendation on Dudek. We are agreeing to a contract before approving the scope of work."
The contract is set to be drawn up and awarded to Dudek by the Morro Bay and Cayucos staffs without the council and Cayucos board having an opportunity to review it.
The Cayucos board previously had voted to allow Foster to attend the meeting of the staffs on selecting the two finalist consultants, development of the proposed scope of work and discussions of the pending contract. But at the May 12 meeting, Foster said, "I was not allowed to participate in those discussions." He did not elaborate.
