Petaluma homes make way for PG&E testing facility

Work has begun on a new Pacific Gas & Electric Co. testing site in east Petaluma that prompted neighbors to band together two years ago to form a unique agreement with the utility.

Two homes in the 1400 block of East Madison Street, near the corner of North McDowell Boulevard a block south of Lucchesi Park, were recently bulldozed to make way for PG&E’s natural gas pipeline inspection station, which will use what is called “in-line inspection” technology.

“Our inspection uses an innovative tool that travels through the pipeline looking for potential issues that can occur over time, such as dents and corrosion,” said Megan McFarland, spokesperson for PG&E.

“We prefer this inspection method because it does not require any digging and minimizes the need for road closures and other traffic impacts.”

Pipeline testing using "valve lots“ like this one might have prevented the explosion that killed eight people in San Bruno in 2010. From the testing site, PG&E will be able to serve 23 miles of transmission pipeline between Petaluma and Napa.

The utility’s only other current valve lots are located in Walnut Creek, Turlock, Clovis, Union City and Novato.

The properties at 1405 and 1401 East Madison St. provided the utility access to a 24-inch transmission pipeline that runs beneath McDowell Boulevard. PG&E anticipates construction of the new station will take about one year.

PG&E had spent $1.3 million in February 2020 to buy the two properties, but ran into resistance when dozens of neighbors organized in 2021 to form a group to challenge the project. One of the neighbors, civil rights attorney Kathleen Alvarado, represented them in negotiations.

The group of 65 neighbors pointed to decades-old restrictive covenants in their subdivision, which is named “Novak 3,” requiring developers to obtain approval from the majority of homeowners before constructing anything that is not a single-family home.

PG&E and the neighborhood group came to an agreement that May, determining that real estate and environmental experts would be brought in to scrutinize the impacts of the testing site.

“I will say that PG&E was cooperative,” though only after a “rigorous engagement” between neighbors and the utility, Alvarado said Tuesday. She added that PG&E was ultimately transparent with the neighborhood and provided extensive information to boost confidence on the overall safety of the project.

“Now as it’s being built, we have full knowledge of what’s happening and what’s going to happen,” she said.

Alvarado also said neighbors were directly involved in the project’s exterior fence and landscaping design to make it more in line with the “Novak 3” look and feel.

The utility said at the time that testing can last up to 49 days, but is only required once every five to seven years. That’s when a device called a pipeline inspection gauge – “PIG” for short – is inserted to travel up and down the lines looking for defects.

“When it’s not in use, it’s basically a gravel lot with a couple of valves,” a PG&E spokesperson said in 2021.

Ever since the San Bruno pipeline explosion, “PG&E has been rigorously inspecting pipelines to proactively ensure the safety and reliability of its gas system,” McFarland said.

“PG&E has also strength-tested and replaced pipelines, adding remote-control and automatic shut-off valves that can stop the flow of gas faster in an emergency, and checking for leaks on a strict schedule.”

Amelia Parreira is a staff writer for the Argus-Courier. She can be reached at amelia.parreira@arguscourier.com or 707-521-5208.