Rancho Cañada Floodplain Restoration Project Construction Management (Phases 2 and 3)

The Rancho Cañada Floodplain Restoration Project (Project) is located on the former Rancho Cañada Golf Club property in the Rancho Cañada unit of the Palo Corona Regional Park, Monterey County, California, along the Carmel River. The project site is approximately 185 acres in size and spans both banks of the Carmel River. The Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District (MPRPD, Owner) maintains the former Rancho Cañada Golf Club clubhouse on the property as its offices, and the facility also functions as a visitor’s center and trailhead for the public’s access to the remainder of the 4,350-acre Palo Corona Regional Park to the south. Immediately downstream of MPRPD’s property is the remainder of the former Rancho Cañada Golf Club property, which is now the 60-acre Rancho Cañada Village (RCV) property, a proposed residential development.

The Project is focused on restoring a 1-mile section of Carmel River so that natural geomorphic processes will reconnect the river with historic floodplain habitat and create a mosaic of self-sustaining riparian habitat types and instream complexity to benefit juvenile and adult steelhead and other aquatic riparian species. The project area currently serves as a public park and certain amenities/infrastructure are critical for it to continue to function this way.

To accomplish the overall goal of the project, the project will remove riprap wherever it is not protecting key infrastructure, recreate historical channel and floodplain features, widen the channel to increase habitat, and add alcoves for backwater habitats. Approximately 40-acres of connected floodplains will be created. These new floodplains will be revegetated with native plants and will require an irrigation system to be constructed, maintained, and disposed of at the end of the planting establishment period. The irrigation system will include replacement of the driving range well pump. Existing large mature trees are left in place to the greatest extent possible, and existing vegetation that must be removed will be reused as large wood habitat features in the newly created floodplains. Three existing bridges that cross the Carmel River will be removed, with one new replacement bridge added in a location sited to minimize its constraint on the river.

The Construction Manager shall serve as the Owner’s Designated representative, and as the key point of contact between the construction contractor, the Owner, the design engineer, biological monitors, and other consultants. The Construction Manager shall assist the Owner with financial and grant management, invoicing, progress reports, grant reporting, construction management, coordination between consultants, construction contractor, and Owner, and structural tests and inspections for the new pedestrian bridge.

The Project is divided into three phases of work. Phase 1 on the West side of the Project Area, was completed in 2025. Phase 2 will occur on the East side of the Project Area in Year 2, 2026. Phase 3 includes removal of the vegetation projection berm in Year 3. Cut and fill is balanced within each phase. All in-water work shall occur between June 15 and October 31st to avoid impacts to salmonids.

Surrounding landowners include the Carmel Middle School, the Hacienda Carmel retirement community, the Santa Lucia Conservancy, and a horse farm. The Carmel River runs through the Project site and the Project will involve in-water work. The Palo Corona Regional Park will be open during construction, with members of the public able to access the Rancho Cañada unit outside of the public exclusion fence for each phase. It is important that the construction contractor exercise judgement and caution in all areas of the project to follow permit requirements, emphasize public safety, provide superior dust control, minimize noise, and protect wildlife and plants.

The Construction Management Consultant (Construction Manager) team includes three defined roles: an on-site Owner’s Representative, a Resident Engineer, and Structure Representative. The on-site Owner’s Representative will serve as the construction manager and inspector. The on-site Owner’s Representative must have at a minimum 5 years of experience with construction management of restoration projects including in-channel and floodplain restoration work. The Resident Engineer must be a licensed Professional Civil Engineer registered in the State of California and have experience with restoration projects. The Structure Representative must have experience with bridge removal and construction. The Construction Manager should submit resumes of the on-site Owner's Representative, Resident Engineer, and Structure Representative showing this experience and also providing reference restoration projects with references and contact information with their proposal.

The Resident Engineer may also be the Structure Representative, and/or the on-site Owner’s Representative, or these roles can be filled by a team of staff working collaboratively under the on-site Owner’s Representative.