SAND CANYON DRAIN OK'D STORN RUNOFF PROJECT APPROVED AFTER 10 YEARS.

Byline: Angela M. Lemire Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - After 10 years of requests, the city of Santa Clarita will finally get a 3,000-foot storm drain this year to divert floodwaters from Sand Canyon Road to the Santa Clara River.

The new storm drain is needed to provide safer passage to the Antelope Valley (14) Freeway via Sand Canyon Road and Lost Canyon roads, they say.

The Live Oak Springs Canyon Drain, a $5 million project, is being financed by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works and a $1.85 million grant the city received from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, according to city officials.

``It's been the city's highest drainage priority project for the last 10 years,'' said city project manager Chris Price. He later added, ``(FEMA) recognizes that this is a great hazard.''

Drainage problems for years have pooled deep storm water on Sand Canyon Road in a low-lying area near a Metrolink commuter rail crossing, Price said. Flooding becomes severe enough to close the traffic during moderate to heavy rains, he said.

Floodwaters also pose problems for emergency vehicles, as well as residents and buses bringing children to nearby Sulphur Springs Elementary School.

Motorists must take alternate back roads to reach the Antelope Valley and Golden State freeways. The circuitous back roads can prolong daily commutes to San Fernando Valley as long as 1 1/2 hours each way, Price said.

The Live Oak drain would extend from the southern banks of the Santa Clara River along Sand Canyon Road to roughly 300 feet south of Comet Way within the city of Santa Clarita, according to county public works reports. The storm drain would straddle the city border into unincorporated county territory near the river.

While under construction, the project would provide temporary detours along Sand Canyon Road between the south end of the Sand Canyon Bridge over the Santa Clara River to the Metrolink railway crossing, according to county Department of Public Works reports to the Board of Supervisors.

The storm drain, including design, right-of-way acquisition and construction, is projected to cost $5 million. The Los Angeles County Flood Control District budgeted roughly $3.15 million in its 2000-2001 budget for the project, while Santa Clarita has committed $1.85 million in FEMA funds.

The city initially received the FEMA grant several years ago, but delayed the project to wait for county approvals, Price said. The city hopes to begin construction of the Lost Canyon Storm Drain by July.

Before construction begins, county officials continue to negotiate a right-of-way easement in unincorporated territory - land valued at $147,800, according to county reports. The Board of Supervisors last week continued until March the property's condemnation hearing to address the owner's concerns about storm water erosion, officials said.