Highway 86 Water Transmission Main Phase 3 and 4 Project

The Coachella Valley Water District is advancing the Highway 86 Water Transmission Main Phases 3 and 4 Project to replace approximately 14.5 miles of aging 16-inch and 18-inch diameter asbestos cement and ductile iron pipe with a new 15.4-mile, 24-inch diameter ductile iron water transmission main. The pipeline will serve communities on the west side of the Salton Sea, including Salton Sea Beach, Desert Shores, Salton City, and adjacent unincorporated areas in Riverside and Imperial Counties. The alignment begins at a connection point west of Highway 86 at Lincoln Street/84th Avenue in Riverside County, proceeds east along 84th Avenue for one mile, then turns south to follow Caltrans Right of Way alongside southbound Highway 86 for approximately 13 miles. Near Postmile 61, just south of the Red Earth Casino, the route turns east for 0.75 miles before continuing south along Lesser Drive and intersecting Golden Avenue, where it turns west to terminate at CVWD’s Reservoir No. 1092 in Salton City. Approximately two miles of the pipeline will be installed within existing street rights-of-way or newly acquired private easements outside of the Caltrans ROW, connecting to existing distribution mains on Service Road and Golden Avenue. Environmental compliance is central to the project, with a Mitigated Negative Declaration certified under the California Environmental Quality Act and an approved Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program in place to address potential impacts. The project is administered by CVWD, with environmental oversight coordinated through Riverside and Imperial County agencies and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. The lead point of contact for environmental and program matters is William Patterson, Environmental Services Program Supervisor, with Carlos Huerta serving as the Environmental Resources Analyst for environmental documentation and compliance. No federal contract clauses, evaluation factors, pricing details, or formal solicitation numbers are present, indicating this is a locally managed infrastructure initiative under state environmental regulations with procurement processes governed by California public agency procedures. Payment and administrative functions are handled through CVWD’s office in Palm Desert, with no federal accounting codes or electronic invoicing systems specified. The project was approved by the CVWD Board of Directors in September 2025, with environmental documentation submitted and filed with county clerks and the State Clearinghouse, and no formal bid or contract award period has been established in the available materials.