4. Assignment of Proceeding
Geoffrey F. Brown is the Assigned Commissioner and Myra J. Prestidge is the assigned Administrative Law Judge in this proceeding.
1. The proposed easement will not interfere with PG&E's use of the property or with service to PG&E's customers, and will be utilized in a manner consistent with Commission and legal requirements.
2. The City of Vallejo is the Lead Agency for the proposed project under CEQA.
3. The City of Vallejo prepared an Initial Study pursuant to CEQA to review the potential environmental impacts of the Triad Community Development Project and determined that, with identified mitigation, the project would have no significant impact on the environment.
4. The City of Vallejo also prepared a mitigated negative declaration pursuant to CEQA for the Triad Community Development Project.
5. Triad was granted a permit for the planned development by the City of Vallejo pursuant to Resolution No. 96-447 N.C., adopted by the Vallejo City Council on December 10, 1996.
6. The City of Vallejo adopted the Mitigated Negative Declaration on June 18, 2003.
7. The City of Vallejo adopted the mitigation measures identified in the Mitigated Negative Declaration as conditions of project approval.
8. The City of Vallejo filed a Notice of Determination for the project with the County of Solano on July 31, 2003.
9. The Commission is a Responsible Agency for the proposed project under CEQA.
10. The easement will enable Triad to maintain slope stabilization improvements on PG&E land that are necessary to avoid safety hazards and the risk of damage to PG&E property.
11. The easement area is located on PG&E property that is not used for utility purposes and is not included in PG&E's ratebase.
12. At the time of its entry into the license with Triad, PG&E needed to have Triad complete the slope stabilization improvements without delay to avoid a safety hazard and the risk of serious damage to PG&E property.
13. Although the term of PG&E's license with Triad was 18 months, PG&E retained the right to terminate the license, with or without any reason, at any time upon giving Triad 30 days advance written notice.
14. Triad's slope stabilization activities under the license did not interfere with PG&E's operations, use of the site, or with service to PG&E's customers.
1. We have reviewed the City of Vallejo's environmental documents and find them to be adequate for our decision-making purposes.
2. We find that the City of Vallejo reasonably concluded that the slope stabilization improvements contemplated by the Triad Community Development Project as mitigated, would not have a significant effect on the environment, and we adopt the City's findings and required mitigation measures for the purposes of our approval.
3. No protests have been filed.
4. A hearing is not required.
5. PG&E's conveyance of the permanent easement for slope stabilization improvements to Triad will serve the public interest and should be authorized.
6. The Commission does not generally approve transactions in which a utility enters into a license pursuant to G.O. 69-C in order to circumvent the requirements for CEQA review and Commission approval pursuant to § 851.
7. Under G.O. 69-C, a public utility, such as PG&E may convey a limited interest in utility property, such as a license, without first obtaining our approval under Section 851 if the following three criteria are met: 1) the interest granted must not interfere with the utility's operations, practices and service to its customers; 2) the interest granted must be revocable either upon the order of the Commission or upon the utility's determination that revocation is desirable to serve its patrons or consumers; and 3) the interest must be granted for only a "limited" use of utility property.
8. The construction of facilities or improvements that are significant or cannot be easily removed from utility property does not qualify as a "limited" use of utility property pursuant to G.O. 69-C.
9. Under § 853(b), the Commission may exempt a public utility from the requirements of § 851 in appropriate circumstances when the application of § 851 is not necessary to serve the public interest.
10. Under the unique circumstances of this case, even if PG&E could not properly grant Triad a license to complete the slope stabilization improvements on PG&E land because the work performed by Triad did not constitute a "limited" use of utility property, PG&E would most likely qualify for an exemption from § 851 pursuant to § 853(b) for this transaction because Triad's completion of the slope stabilization improvements without delay served the public interest.
11. Since the easement area is located on PG&E property that is not used for utility purposes and is not in PG&E's ratebase, it is appropriate for the easement fee to be recorded as a gain to PG&E's shareholders.
12. The decision should be effective today in order to allow the permanent easement to be conveyed to Triad expeditiously.
IT IS ORDERED that:
1. Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is authorized to convey a permanent easement for slope stabilization improvements, described in the Application, to Triad Communities, L. P. (Triad), provided that the mitigation measures required by the City of Vallejo in its Mitigated Negative Declaration for the Triad Communities project be incorporated as enforceable provisions of the easement agreement between PG&E and Triad.
2. When the final easement documents are executed, PG&E shall submit a copy of those documents to the Director of the Energy Division within sixty (60) days of this order.
3. PG&E shall submit a legal description and plat of the easement area to the Director of the Energy Division by advice letter within sixty (60) days of this order.
4. PG&E shall credit the easement fee of $1,000 to as a gain to shareholders.
5. This proceeding is closed.
This order is effective today.
Dated April 7, 2005, at San Francisco, California.
MICHAEL R. PEEVEY
President
GEOFFREY F. BROWN
SUSAN P. KENNEDY
DIAN M. GRUENEICH
Commissioners
