DWP Hopes to Upgrade Key Pumping Center

City water officials want to spend $20 million to rebuild a key North Hollywood pumping and chlorination station and add hydroelectric generators to produce power for commercial use.

Officials with the Department of Water and Power said reconstruction work at 11801 Vanowen St. is part of their effort to upgrade major buildings to withstand a severe earthquake. The work could start early next year and be completed by mid-1990, according to Tom Erb, water system environmental affairs coordinator.

About 29% of the city’s water passes through the station and adjacent pipelines from nearby wells and the Los Angeles Aqueduct, serving about 1 million people. “This is a very integral part of the water system for the city of Los Angeles,” Erb said.

He added that the existing pumping and chlorination equipment, contained in two buildings, will be housed in a new, 50-foot-by-180-foot structure.

The improvement plans include increased pumping capacity to deal with drought, and a cover for the forebay, a small reservoir at the plant.

The existing complex includes a regulator station, which uses valves to restrict flow and reduce the pressure of aqueduct water entering distribution lines. Erb said directing the high-pressure flow through turbines will generate $500,000 in electricity a year, enough to serve about 4,500 households.

A public hearing on the project is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on April 21 in the auditorium of the Fair Avenue Elementary School, 6501 Fair Ave. in North Hollywood.

A draft environmental impact report on the project is available at (213) 481-6084. Copies are also available at the Sun Valley Branch Library, 7935 Vineland Ave., and the Valley Plaza Branch Library, 12311 Vanowen St.