ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
Date: May 13, 1997
Dept. File No.:1.40.97.03
CC File No.: 3651-1
TO: Vancouver City Council
FROM: General Manager Engineering Services
SUBJECT: Dedicated Fire Protection System - Kitsilano Pump Station
RECOMMENDATION
A. THAT Engineering Services suspend the process of finding a
site for the Dedicated Fire Protection System s Kitsilano Pump
Station for two years to allow for conclusion of the Breach of
Trust claim regarding the transfer of ownership of the former
Kitsilano Indian Reserve which is currently before the courts.
B. THAT Engineering Services reprioritize the various components
of the Dedicated Fire Protection System implementation to
allow for further pipeline construction Downtown and in the
Kitsilano area to minimize the impact of delaying the
Kitsilano Pump Station.
COUNCIL POLICY
Council approved the dedicated fire protection system for implementation
on April 16, 1992.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this report is to defer the decision making process for
locating a pump station in Kitsilano Point for approximately two years,
to allow for the conclusion of a legal action for Breach of Trust
against the Federal Government regarding the transfer of ownership of
the former Kitsilano Indian Reserve. This legal action is currently in
the courts. Some of the lands claimed as part of the legal action
encompass feasible pump station locations.
BACKGROUND
The preliminary design of the Dedicated Fire Protection System (DFPS)
called for two pump stations in the Downtown area connected by a
skeletal network of distribution pipeline, as well as a pump station and
single extension pipeline in Kitsilano.
Figure 1
MAP AT THIS POINT.
In 1996, Engineering Services began investigating locations in Kitsilano
to site the Kitsilano Pump Station. A review of the preliminary system
design and pipeline configuration, as well as a review of possible sites
from Cambie to Alma, led the design team to Kitsilano Point. Further
investigation on the engineering feasibility of locating a station in
Kitsilano point led to a Preliminary Siting Alternatives Report,
identifying potential sites from the foot of Maple Street, to the East
Side of the Burrard Street Bridge.
On March 10, 1997, Engineering Services, in consultation with Board of
Parks and Recreation staff, obtained approval from the Board to meet
with the community to evaluate options for siting a DFPS pump station in
Kitsilano Point.
DISCUSSION
Breach of Trust Lawsuit
Since the Park Board approved meeting with the community to identify a
pump station site, Legal Services has informed us of a Breach of Trust
claim against the Federal Government that affects some of the potential
pump station locations.
Figure 2
MAP AT THIS POINT.
Three Native Bands (Burrard Indian Band, Musqueam Indian Band, and
Squamish Indian Band) have commenced a Legal Action against the Federal
Government for Breach of Trust by the Federal Government in their
transfer of the former Kitsilano Indian Reserve Lands to the Federal
Government and to other Government or private agencies.
The lands in question encompass the area bounded by False Creek to the
north and east, Chestnut Street to the west, and 1st Avenue to the
South. As can be seen in Figure 2, the claim encompasses all of Vanier
Park including pump station sites A & B identified in the Preliminary
Siting Alternatives Study. The parking lot area south of the Coast Guard
Station (site B) has received the least opposition to date from Parks
and the public, although no formal public process has yet been
initiated. From an engineering perspective, it is also a good location,
preferable over some of the other sites identified.
The Native Bands are seeking a number of alternative remedies, including
damages and/or a declaration that previous transfers of the Kitsilano
Indian Reserve Lands are void and of no legal effect. If the Courts
make such a declaration and the City has constructed a pump station on
these lands, the consequences could be the loss of the right to
continued use of the pump station site and at the least would result in
additional costs of obtaining such rights. While Legal Services is of
the opinion that the risk of such a declaration by the Courts is small,
the consequences of such a decision are so far reaching that the City
Engineer believes it is worth altering the DFPS construction sequence.
This would allow for a final decision from the Courts before proceeding
with a pump station in Kitsilano.
Avoiding the claimed area altogether, while physically possible, is
difficult. To the west of Vanier Park is an area that would be
unpopular with the public, and that has increasing environmental impacts
as the station moves further west. Most of the land to the east is
already developed and poses other engineering difficulties such as
ground conditions and infrastructure conflicts, as well as altering the
DFPS coverage area.
The Breach of Trust claim is currently before the Courts and it is
estimated a final decision will take approximately two (2) years to
complete.
DFPS in Kitsilano
The Kitsilano extension of the DFPS is designed to cover two aspects of
water supply for fire fighting in the Kitsilano area. The first is to
address problems in the area with available fire flows. The second is
to provide fire fighting coverage after an emergency, such as an
earthquake. There are three planned components for the DFPS extension
into Kitsilano, a Kitsilano distribution pipeline, a pipeline crossing
of False Creek to connect the Kitsilano system to the Downtown system,
and a pump station.
While the DFPS pipeline and crossing would address the increased every
day fire flow needs of the Kitsilano area, the pump station on the south
shore of False Creek is needed to ensure that pumped water will be
available after a seismic event. In a major emergency, such as after a
seismic event, it is anticipated that the two pump stations in the
downtown core will be busy supplying water downtown, therefore there may
be little water left for Kitsilano. Furthermore, any underwater
crossing of False Creek from Downtown is vulnerable during an earthquake
due to the nature of the soils that it is traversing. The system was
therefore designed to have one of its 10,000 gallon per minute pump
stations on the south shore of False Creek, in the Kitsilano area.
Based on the current need to extend DFPS coverage into Kitsilano, it is
recommended that implementation of the various components of the DFPS be
reprioritized to allow for further pipeline construction Downtown and in
the Kitsilano area, to minimize the impact of delaying the Kitsilano
Pump Station on the final completion date for the system.
In approximately two years, Engineering Services will re-evaluate the
options available and present to Council choices on how to proceed with
siting a DFPS pump station in Kitsilano.
These recommendations ensure that the basic needs and schedule of the
DFPS system are met by improving the water supply for fire fighting on
an everyday basis in those areas of expanded pipeline coverage. While
the presence of an underwater pipeline crossing from Downtown will
improve the post seismic reliability of the fire fighting water supply
in Kitsilano, the Kitsilano arm of the system will not have the same
degree of reliability as the Downtown system until the Kitsilano station
is built.
Delaying the siting process for two years allows for optimal siting
selection when the lands available will be more clear. It would be
undesirable to eliminate the claimed area from the siting process unless
absolutely necessary. Furthermore, by deferring the siting and
construction process we are avoiding any risk of losing that investment,
or having to pay large unforeseen operating costs due to a change of
ownership of the lands.
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