Renovation of a water / sewer project in Foster City, California. Design plans call for the renovation of a water / sewer project.

This project provides for the removal of 2 non-functioning lagoon pump engines, impellers, shafts, and associated plumbing that were abandoned in place when the two current pumps were installed in 2001, so that a third functioning lagoon pump may be installed. Studies have shown that from 1974 to 2019 storms have become more severe and frequent due to climate change effects. When a significant storm event is happening, there are short durations when both lagoon pumps have been in operation and the lagoon level continued to rise. This project will add a third pump to the existing lagoon pump station which will provide the City with the redundancy to reduce the risk of flooding should a failure occur to either of the two existing pumps during a severe storm and high tide condition. The two existing lagoon pumps were replaced in 2001 and are 20 years old. Although the useful life is approximately 35 years, if one were to fail, it could take several weeks to repair. In recent years, there have been incidents in which debris, tires, etc. have caused a pump to fail. If this were to occur during a storm event, it would be catastrophic. Adding a third pump would allow for uninterrupted operation, redundancy, staggered replacement of the lagoon pumps, and provide maximum protection against the potential for flooding and property damage. This project is included in the City of Foster City's Preliminary 2024-2028 Budget Document. Per the owner, as of July 30, 2025, this project is in the design stage, and an architect has been named. A general contractor has not yet been chosen and a timeline for construction has not been determined.