DUDEK - San Marcos Unified School District

San Marcos Unified School District Plans New Elementary School

Challenge: After selecting its proposed elementary school’s location, San Marcos Unified School District (SMUSD) discovered potential setbacks in the form of endangered plants, protected wetlands, and cultural resources.

Project Scope: Dudek prepared an environmental impact report (EIR), conducted biological surveys, processed permits, developed supporting reports and documentation, and prepared plans and specifications for the wetlands and rare plant mitigation. Additionally, Dudek’s subsidiary, Habitat Restoration Sciences (HRS), implemented the wetlands and rare plant mitigation designs.

Resolution: SMUSD encountered several potential setbacks after determining the school’s location. The site supported the state-listed endangered and federally-listed threatened thread-leaved brodiaea plant, contains state and federally-protected wetlands habitat, contains a cultural site, and is in close proximity to heavily-trafficked roads. Further, additional thread-leaved brodiaea were found on-site just weeks prior to the projected start of construction.

SMUSD enlisted Dudek to prepare an EIR that examined the site’s jurisdictional wetlands, cultural resources, traffic concerns, and endangered species. Additionally, Dudek conducted plant and wildlife biological surveys and processed all necessary permits over a two-year period.

The timing of the initial permit completion became critical as it neared the deadline to transplant thread-leaved brodiaea while the plants were dormant. If the permits were not completed with enough time to transfer the thread-leaved brodiaea from the school site to an adjacent nature preserve before the rainy season began, school construction would have encountered significant delays.

Dudek persevered, keeping the project on schedule. The day after all permits were approved, HRS was on-site transplanting the thread-leaved brodiaea to the neighboring mitigation site.

After the discovery of additional thread-leaved brodiaea within the development only a few weeks prior to the proposed construction start date, Dudek coordinated with the California Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to expedite the processing of permit amendments in order to avoid significant costly construction delays. Similar to the initial transplantation effort, HRS was on-site transplanting the species the same day that the permit amendments were finalized.

The school will be surrounded by a natural preserve with grasslands supporting the thread-leaved brodiaea and restored wetlands habitat. The on-site preserve will provide a natural buffer around the school and unique educational opportunities for its students.

Dudek is implementing a seven-year thread-leaved brodiaea maintenance and monitoring program as well as a five-year wetlands maintenance and monitoring program.

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