The herald., 1898-03-01
4 MOUNTAIN SUPPLY
arEcrAL COUNCIL Uol1ErTrEE
REPORTS
THREEPRoPosALs SUBMITTED
no Statement Made as to Which Il the
Most Feasible-Referred to the
Attorney and Engineer


terday was the report Of the special COM
mittee, consisting OF Councilmen Grider,
Hutchison and Mathuss. appointed several
weeks ago. to investigate mountain sources
of water and to report as to the feasibility
OF conducting such supply to the city for
domestic purposes. TIL report was made
Just before the noon recess. IT is as fol-
lows:
ITO the Honorable Council of the City
of Los Angeles-Gentlemen: Your special
committee, appointed on January 25th.
to Investigate whether or not 1t is feasi-
BILE and practicable to construct water
system which will bring water into the
city from a mountain source in sufficient
quantities for all domestic purposes and
with sufficient pressure for fire purposes,
beg leave to report as follows:
''Some seven or eight companies and in
dividuals having water rights in the noun
tains in this vicinity have appeared be-
fore the committee with propositions for
supplying the city with mountain water,
and have made detailed and explicit state
ments and explanations of their respect
i've properties. The holdings OF some of
these appear to your committee to be too
remote from the city to be of practical
utility to this city at the present time
and the rights claimed by two or three
others seem to already be disputed in the
courts or subject to reservations of water
already sold to owners of small tracts of
land. Still others seem to have very doubt
full titles.
'For these reasons 1t appears to your
committee that but three or four of the
propositions submitted to this committee
deserve serious consideration.
"The first proposition that includes an
adequate supply of good mountain water
l. r. xl,k v~,;,, nv~c,
inches of the Piru and Alamos creeks of
Ventura county. The water of these creeks
can be taken out of the streams at an ele-
walton of about 5000 feet. The distance
from the city to the place of diversion
on Piru creek is about fifty-seven miles.
The San Fernando mountains can be
crossed at an elevation of about 1900 feet.
which would give the city water enough at
a great pressure sufficient for fire pur-
poses.
"About six miles below the point of di-
version on Piru creek is an excellent site
for a reservoir OF about 1000 acres. About
six miles below this reservoir site is an
other reservoir site of about 500 acres.
Owing to the contour of the canyon in
the vicinity of these two reservoir sites
the dams for storage of water at each
place would be about $50 feet in length at
an elevation of 120 feet.
AS tHO pCuiOSh - u VI iiCdi thS sui
face in each case. and as good granite for
constructing dams is within easy reach,
the cost of those two dams would be COM
paratively small, while the storage capa-
city of the two reservoirs SO formed would
be enormous and far greater than suf-
ficient for the needs of the city for many
years to come.
Apparently reliable estimates by COM
petent engineers place the cost of con-
CT fha don md hIrild limo
a conduit from the lower reservoir to
Griffith park sufficient to carry perpet-
ual flow of 1000 inches of water at 81, ,26O 900.
'lt is also estimated that the construc
tion of a reservoir at Griffith park, extra
siphons, right of way, etc. will cost about
s550,000.
ALLOWING 10 per cent extra for incident
ais. would make the total cost of bringing
the water from Piru creek to this city,
as outlined above, about 100000.
Connecting the Piru water supply with
the existing pipe lines of the city at their
estimated value of $l,190.000 would make
the total cost about $3.190,0C0.
"Thesta figures include the cost of all
the water rights reservoir sites and other
lands of the Colorado and California Min
eral Developing company. situated on Piru
and Alamos creeks.
HEMET PROPOSITION
1.-The next proposition submitted Is that
of the Lake Hemet Water company
Although the distance from Lake
Hemet to the city is considerable. the
Lake Hemet dam is already constructed
of solid granite, and the water supply is
very large.
''The reservoir site consists of 1920 acres
of land.
1.-THE water rights of the company include
all the waters of the South fork or Main
fork of the San Jacinto river.
1.-THE Lake Hemet dam is 10 feet in
height and is 100 feet thick at the base and
30 feet thick at the top. At present the
dam is surmounted by an extension 12l2
feet in height and 10 feet thick at the top
making it's total height 1924 feet.
1.-THE dam was planned to be 100 feet In
height, and If completed to that height
the reservoir would have capacity of
about 12,OOO, 100000 gallons.
''It is estimated that the cost of piping
the water of Lake Hemet to this city, in
cluding cost of dam, reservoir site. con-
duit right of way, manholes and all other
appurtenances necessary to the proper
maint enance of such system would be
about SO, 10000; length of conduit system,
&c miles.
''That system would supply the city with
about 100 inches of water, with sufficient
fall for fire purposes and to supply power
enough 10 operate du eleClIlC lighting
plant equal to the needs of the city.
''The entire cost of such system, in addi-
tion to the present water plant of the city
water company at the estimate of 81, $780,,
600 made by the city engineer, would make
the total cost about 81, 100000
"It will be noticed that these figures in
clude the cost of the dam, reservoir site
and conduits and fumes now in use and
owned by the FANlet Land company.
LOS ANGELES MOUNTAIN WATER
COMPANY'S PROPOSITION
lowing to the short distance from this
city to the Big Tejunga drainage area,
your committee has been able to make
pretty thorough examination of that ter
ritory.
1.-THE Big Tejunga water shed comprises
an area of about 1874 square miles, varying
In elevation from 1000 to 5000 feet above sea
level
'"The water is of true mountain source.
Storage reservoirs placed within that
watershed would be filled during the win
ter months with water from melted snow
and during the remainder of the year from
springs or rain precipitation.
Sufficient water Is obtainable to fill all
the reservoirs the city might need
There Is a visible surface flow during
the entire year of from 200 to 700 miners
inches, while good indications point to
liberal subterranean flow, which may be
safely assumed as 800 inches at the mini
mum.
"A great canyon which traverses the
watershed from northeast to southwest
proves a good collecting channel, while
several sites suitable for storage reser
voirs are distributed along the route of
the canyon.
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