Draft Environmental Impact Report - East Bay Municipal Utility District

Estates Reservoir Replacement Draft Environmental Impact ReportVisual Qualityconcerns. Primary concerns are graphically represented in Figure 3.2-4. Throughanalysis of the Project site, goals and objectives, and with community input from aseries of public meetings (detailed in the RHAA Estates Concept Design ProcessRecommendations Report, 2008 [updated 2009], and in Appendix A, PublicOutreach), five design alternatives were developed.The preferred design selected for the Project (Figure 2-3) includes:Demolition of the existing open cut reservoir, roof and structures.Construction of two smaller buried tanks in the existing basin, with backfillfrom the concrete reservoir lining debris and the earthen embankment.Construction of a textured retaining wall to provide a visually interestingtransition from the grass planted reservoir roof tops to the floor of theexcavated bowl. This wall will provide a distinctive, new architecturalelement to the site.Construction of a new valve pit at the base of the existing basin.A comprehensive landscape plan for all areas disturbed by construction (theexcavated bowl and cut area around the new road to the Montclair PumpingPlant below the reservoir), consisting primarily of native grasses and shrubs,and a few trees.Construction of a low wooden fence along the Estates Drive site perimeter.The proposed design will integrate the new construction within the existing site, tocreate a visually continuous and harmonious landscape, in a park-like setting.Proposed views of the site will be a visual improvement, and the overall aestheticimpact is considered beneficial and therefore a less than significant impact. However,because of the community concerns expressed about this Project, more detaileddiscussions and analysis according to defined CEQA significance criteria arepresented in Section 3.2.3, Impacts and Mitigation Measures.sb09_001.doc 3-2.5 7/22/2009