Chapter 1. Work Which May Be Done of California Streets And Highways Code >> Division 7. >> Part 3. >> Chapter 1.

(a) All streets, places, public ways, or property, or rights-of-way, or tidelands, or submerged lands owned by any city, open or dedicated to public use, and any property for which an order for possession prior to judgment has been obtained, and all tidelands or submerged lands to which all the right, title, and interest of the state have been granted to any city, all tidelands or submerged lands for which a permit, license, or easement has been issued by the United States Army Corps of Engineers or the state for work to be done pursuant to subdivision (m) of Section 5101, and all tidelands or submerged lands which have been leased by the state to any city for the construction of improvements authorized by subdivision (g) of Section 5101, are open public streets, places, public ways, or property or rights-of-way owned by the city, for the purposes of this division, and the legislative body of the city may establish and change the grades of the respective ways, properties, and rights-of-way hereinbefore enumerated and fix the width thereof and is hereby invested with jurisdiction to order to be done therein, over or thereon, either singly or in any combination thereof, any of the work mentioned in this division under the proceedings described in this part.
  (b) Nothing in this section shall supersede the legislative body's obligation to obtain a lease or permit from the State Lands Commission for the use of state-owned tidelands or submerged lands.

Whenever, in the opinion of the legislative body, the public interest or convenience may require, it may order the whole or any portion, either in length or in width, of any one or more of the streets, places, public ways, or property, easements, or rights-of-way, or tidelands, or submerged lands owned by any city, or tidelands or submerged lands leased by the state to any city for the construction of improvements authorized by subdivision (g), open or dedicated to public use, and any property for which an order for possession prior to judgment has been obtained, to be improved by or have constructed therein, over, or thereon, either singly or in any combination thereof, any of the following:
  (a) The grading or regrading, the paving or repaving, the planking or replanking, the macadamizing or remacadamizing, the graveling or regraveling, or the oiling or reoiling thereof.
  (b) The construction or reconstruction of sidewalks, crosswalks, steps, safety zones, platforms, seats, statuary, fountains, parks and parkways, recreation areas, including all structures, buildings, and other facilities necessary to make parks and parkways and recreation areas useful for the purposes for which intended, culverts, bridges, curbs, gutters, tunnels, subways, or viaducts.
  (c) Sanitary sewers or instrumentalities of sanitation, together with the necessary outlets, cesspools, manholes, catch basins, flush tanks, septic tanks, disposal plants, connecting sewers, ditches, drains, conduits, tunnels, channels, or other appurtenances.
  (d) Drains, tunnels, sewers, conduits, culverts, and channels for drainage purposes, together with necessary outlets, cesspools, manholes, catch basins, flush tanks, septic tanks, disposal plants, connecting sewers, ditches, drains, conduits, channels, and appurtenances.
  (e) Poles, posts, wires, pipes, conduits, tunnels, lamps, and other suitable or necessary appliances for the purpose of lighting the streets, places, or public ways of any such city or property or rights-of-way owned by any such city, or for the purpose of furnishing electricity and electric service or telephone service to property within a city.
  (f) Pipes, hydrants, and appliances for fire protection.
  (g) Breakwaters, levees, bulkheads, groins, and walls of rock or other material to protect the streets, places, public ways, and other property in any such city, from overflow by water, or to prevent beach erosion or to promote accretion to beaches.
  (h) Wells, pumps, dams, reservoirs, storage tanks, channels, tunnels, conduits, pipes, hydrants, meters, or other appurtenances for supplying or distributing a domestic water supply.
  (i) Mains, services, pipes, fittings, valves, regulators, governors, meters, drips, drains, tanks, ditches, tunnels, conduits, channels, or other appurtenances for supplying or distributing a domestic or industrial gas supply.
  (j) The construction or maintenance of bomb shelters or fallout shelters that are primarily designed to protect and shelter the population from conventional or nuclear bomb or missile warhead explosions, shellfire, radiation, and fallout in the event of an enemy attack.
  (k) Retaining walls, embankments, buildings, and any other structures or facilities necessary or suitable in connection with any of the work mentioned in this section.
  (l) The planting of trees, shrubs, or other ornamental vegetation.
  (m) The construction, repairing, maintaining, or improving of public mooring places for watercraft, channel improvements, and the building, repairing, maintaining, and improving of wharves, piers, docks, slips, quays, moles, port access routes, or other utilities, structures, and appliances necessary or convenient for the promotion or accommodation of commerce, navigation, and the protection of lands within the city, and for aiding and securing access to the waters of those lands to the people of the State of California, in the exercise of their rights to fish, or for the extension of public streets or places.
  (n) Compaction of land, change of grade or contours, construction of caissons, retaining walls, drains, and other structures suitable for the purpose of stabilizing land.
  (o) All other work that may be deemed necessary to improve the whole or any portion of those streets, places, public ways, property, easements, or rights-of-way owned by the city.
  (p) All other work auxiliary to any of the above, which may be required to carry out the above.

In the case of a proposal for a water supply system or sanitary sewers and facilities, the preliminary steps, including, but not limited to, environmental impact reports, feasibility studies, engineering plans, cost estimates, legal expenses, and elections, may, at the legislative body's discretion, be deemed to be improvements.

Whenever in the opinion of the legislative body the public interest or convenience may require, it may install, acquire, construct, develop, jointly develop, maintain, dispose of, or operate, in or along its streets or any public way or any easement, either singly or in any combination of the items mentioned in Section 5101 and this section, any of the following:
  (a) Works, systems, or facilities for the transportation of people, including rolling stock and other equipment appurtenant thereto.
  (b) All other work auxiliary or incidental to any of the above, which may be required to carry out the same, including terminal and intermediate stations, structures, or platforms, or other facilities which may be necessary for, incidental to, or convenient for, the loading of people into and unloading of people from the transportation facilities.
  (c) All other work auxiliary or incidental to any of the above which may be necessary for, incidental to, or convenient for carrying out, the same.
  (d) Any and all property, easements, rights-of-way, and other rights or interests which may be necessary for, incidental to, or convenient for carrying out, the purposes of the project.

Following the levy of an assessment pursuant to this division to pay, in whole or in part, the costs and expenses of works, system or facilities authorized by subdivision (a) of Section 5101.5 upon a district benefited thereby, and annually on or before June 30th, the legislative body may prepare and approve an estimate of the expenditures required during the ensuing fiscal year for the maintenance, operation, repair and improvement of such works, system or facilities and shall deduct from such estimate the amount of revenues, if any, which the legislative body estimates will accrue during such year from the operation of such works, system or facilities and will be available to pay costs of such maintenance, operation, repair and improvement. The legislative body may increase the assessment in accordance with the provisions of Section 53753 of the Government Code. The proceeds of the assessment shall be placed in a separate fund of the city and shall be expended only for the maintenance, operation, repair or improvement of such works, system or facilities.

The legislative body of a city may order the construction and installation of improvements authorized by Section 5101 in the right-of-way of a state highway or county road, or in a railroad right-of-way which is located within or adjacent to the corporate boundaries of the city, or in the right-of-way of a county road which is or will be an extension of a street, public way, or right-of-way of the city, if the legislative body determines that the public interest or convenience requires the construction and installation and that the land within an assessment district to be assessed to pay the cost and expenses of the improvements is benefited thereby. The construction and installation of the improvements in the right-of-way may be performed pursuant to a permit, license, lease, easement, or right-of-way granted to the city by the public entity or corporation having jursidiction and control over the highway, road, or right-of-way. The legislative body of the city may establish and change the grades of the highway, road, or right-of-way, or portion thereof, where the improvement will be constructed in cooperation with the public entity or corporation having jurisdiction and control over the highway, road, or right-of-way. Before ordering the construction and installation of the improvements, the city shall obtain the approval of the public entity or corporation having jurisdiction and control over the highway, road, or right-of-way. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, the legislative body shall not order the construction or improvement of a segment of a state highway except as provided in Section 5101.8.

(a) The legislative body of a city may order the construction and improvement of a segment of a state highway located, in whole or in part, within the city's jurisdiction, if the following conditions have been met:
  (1) The legislative body has made a determination that the public interest or convenience requires the state highway project, and that the land within an assessment district to be assessed to pay the cost and expenses of the state highway project will be benefited.
  (2) The legislative body has entered a cooperative agreement with the Department of Transportation, as provided in subdivision (b), to fund the construction and improvement of the state highway.
  (3) The highway project has been included in the state transportation improvement program pursuant to Section 14529 of the Government Code.
  (b) The cooperative agreement required by subdivision (a) shall provide for:
  (1) The Department of Transportation to perform the construction of the project.
  (2) The city funding of the costs and expenses of the project from the assessment to be levied on the land within the assessment district to be assessed, and from the sale of any bonds which may be issued pursuant to this division or Division 10 (commencing with Section 8500).
  (3) The agreement to become effective after proceedings have been taken pursuant to this division and the funds are available to carry out all its terms.
  (4) The division of financial and legal responsibility between the city and the Department of Transportation for the maintenance of the state highway improvements and encroachments upon completion of the work.

In any proceeding for the making of any work or improvement authorized under Section 5101 of this code, the legislative body may order any acquisition as defined in Section 5023.1 necessary or appropriate in connection with such work or improvement and assess the cost of such acquisition, as a part of the incidental expenses of such work or improvement. Any such acquisition shall be described in the resolution of intention in general terms and refer to plans, profiles, detailed drawings and specifications or such of them as may be suitable and proper for the full detailed description of the acquisition proposed. The city initiating such proceedings is authorized to advance the cost of any such acquisition from its general funds, and thereafter reimburse such general funds as a part of the incidental expenses of such improvement.

Whenever the work or improvement includes the installation of works or appliances for supplying electric, telephone, or cable television service, sanitary sewers or instrumentalities of sanitation, domestic or industrial water supplies, or mains and appurtenances for supplying or distributing a domestic or industrial gas supply, and the territory in which the work or improvement is contemplated is within the service area of a public utility, public agency, or mutual water company supplying the service, the legislative body may, before the adoption of the resolution of intention, enter into an agreement with the public utility, public agency, or mutual water company which may, among other things, provide for all of the following:
  (a) The supplying or approval by the public utility, public agency, or mutual water company of plans and specifications for the work or improvement.
  (b) The performance of work or service, for an allowance or contribution by the public utility, public agency, or mutual water company toward the cost of the work or service where provided for by its rules or regulations, and for the payment for the work or service.
  (c) That the agreement shall become effective upon the effective date of the resolution or ordinance ordering the work in proceedings taken pursuant to this division.
  (d) That, after the confirmation of the assessment, the public utility, public agency, or mutual water company shall have exclusive possession, control, and use of the work or improvement as long as the public utility, public agency, or mutual water company uses the work or improvement to render to the lands within the assessment district the services intended to be furnished by the work or improvement.

If the written consent of the owner of the property is first obtained, work may be done on private property to eliminate any disparity in level or size between the improvement and private property, provided that the legislative body determines in the resolution of intention to order the improvement that it is in the public interest and more economical to do such work on private property than to adjust the work on public property to eliminate such disparity. The actual cost of such work may be added to the assessment of the lot on which the work is done. Nothing in this section limits or restricts the authority of the legislative body to make agreements authorized by Section 1263.610 of the Code of Civil Procedure.

(a) Whenever, in the opinion of the legislative body, the public interest or convenience may require, the legislative body may undertake any work necessary or incidental to the prevention, mitigation, abatement, or control of a geologic hazard or to repair damages resulting therefrom.
  (b) For purposes of this division, "geologic hazard" means an actual or threatened landslide, land subsidence, soil erosion, earthquake, or any natural or unnatural movement of land or earth.
  (c) Such work may be performed on private property with the prior written consent of the owner thereof, if the legislative body, in the resolution of intention, determines that it is in the public interest to do so.