Socrates Mine Road Emergency Repairs (PL-26-352)
Summary
SCH Number
2026091114
Public Agency
Lake County
Document Title
Socrates Mine Road Emergency Repairs (PL-26-352)
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
9/25/2026
Document Description
BACKGROUND: On May 5, 2026, the Lake County Supervisors adopted Resolution No. 2026-42, declaring a local emergency due to geotechnical instability causing roadway failure in three locations along Socrates mine Road and authorizing an emergency contract for repairs. The Resolution noted that conditions pose an immediate threat to public health, safety, and welfare, including but not limited to:
• Loss of safe vehicular access for residents and the traveling public;
• Impaired or delayed access for emergency response vehicles; and
• Increased risk of injury, property damage, or isolation of residents due to roadway failure.
DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: The County of Lake, Public Works Department proposes to repair three land slides along Socrates Mine Road (within the public right-of-way). The landslides are located as postmile (PM) 1.0, 2.4 and 2.07 in the Middletown area (in the right-of-way adjacent to APNs 013-058-11, 013-057-01 and 013-058-16). The nearest cross streets are Foard Flat Road and State Highway 175. Each section and proposed repair is described below.
PM 1.0: The repair will consist of excavating the failed section of road through the slide plane and building back the failed roadway and shoulder with a reinforced soil slope. Further slope stabilization at the site will include installing a soil nail supported pinned mesh system on slope from the shoulder to the property line. The pinned mesh will include an erosion control fabric layer that will contain the slope soil behind the mesh and allow for revegetation of the slope with native grasses that can grow through the mesh. The finished stabilized slope will conform and revegetate to the surrounding slopes. Construction equipment would consist of an excavator, soil nail rig (most likely an excavator that has been outfitted with a soil nail launcher), compactor and dump truck.
Repair slide by excavating the failed section of road through the slide plane and building back the failed roadway and shoulder with a reinforced soil slope. Further slope stabilization at the site will include installing a soil nail supported pinnned mesh system on slope from the shoulder to the property line. The pinned mesh will include an erosion control fabric layer what will contain the slope soil behind the mesh and allow for revegetation of the slope with native grasses that can grow through the mesh.
PM 2.07: The repair will consist of clearing and grubbing the slope and repairing the failed detached section of culvert joint and stabilizing the site by installing a soil nail supported pinned mesh system on slope. The pinned mesh will include an erosion control fabric layer that will contain the slope soil behind the mesh and allow for revegetation of the slope with native grasses that can grow through the mesh. The finished stabilized slope will conform and revegetate to the surrounding slopes. This system will not require a guardrail system, and final asphalt restoration should be delayed at least 1 year to allow for minor shallow road settlement to be contained by the system. If the roadway is paved and restored after construction, it should be expected that crews would need to come back in a year to perform the final paving. Construction equipment would consist of an excavator, soil nail rig (most likely an excavator that has been outfitted with a soil nail launcher), and dump truck.
PM 2.4: The repair will consist of a Geosynthetically Confined Soil (GCS) wall with soil nail and micropile slope stabilization elements. The fallen center section of road will be stabilized using soil nails and shotcrete and the fallen material excavated and removed. The outboard lane will then be reconstructed as a GCS wall with CMU block wall face and micropile cap foundation for approximately 55 lineal feet. Construction access for the toe/face of wall will be achieved by a temporary sloped access bench along the eastern shoulder of the road. The slopes adjacent to both ends of the GCS wall will be stabilized with a soil-nail-supported reinforced shotcrete wing wall with a basic rough gun finish for approximately thirteen lineal feet on the west end and approximately twenty-five lineal feet on the east end. The maximum height of the GCS wall will be approximately 15 feet, with full restoration of the lost road width and shoulder. The repair will be designed with a minimum 3-foot-wide shoulder buildout to accommodate the installation of guardrail and the final restoration of the roadway will include new asphalt pavement and a hot mix asphalt dike. There is some minor vegetation that would need to be removed to allow construction, and there are no utilities within the project repair area or within the vicinity.
Contact Information
Name
Michelle Irace
Agency Name
County of Lake
Job Title
Senior Planner
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency
Phone
Name
Scott Hornung
Agency Name
County of Lake Department of Public Works
Job Title
Deputy Director of Engineering & Capital Projects
Contact Types
Project Applicant / Parties Undertaking Project
Phone
Location
Cities
unincorporated, Middletown
Counties
Lake
Regions
Northern California, Unincorporated
Cross Streets
Socrates Mine Rd; CA HWY 175; Foard Flat Rd.
Zip
95461
Parcel #
013-058-11, 013-057-01 and 013-058-16
State Highways
175
Railways
n/a
Airports
n/a
Schools
n/a
Waterways
n/a
Other Location Info
Road repairs in three locations along Socrates Mine Road, Postmile (PM) 1.0, 2.4 and 2.07 in the Middletown area (in the right-of-way adjacent to APNs 013-058-11, 013-057-01 and 013-058-16). The nearest cross streets are Foard Flat Road and State Highway 175. See map in the NOE.
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Statutory Exemption
Type, Section or Code
Sections 15269(b) and (d), Emergency Projects
Reasons for Exemption
The project qualifies for Categorical Exemption under California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Sections 15269(b) and (d), Emergency Projects, which includes ‘Emergency repairs to publicly or privately owned service facilities necessary to maintain service essential to the public health, safety or welfare. Emergency repairs include those that require a reasonable amount of planning to address an anticipated emergency.” Additionally, this exemption includes “Projects undertaken, carried out, or approved by a public agency to maintain, repair, or restore an existing highway damaged by fire, flood, storm, earthquake, land subsidence, gradual earth movement, or landslide, provided that the project is within the existing right of way of that highway and is initiated within one year of the damage occurring.” As previously noted, the condition of the road has been declared as a local emergency by the Lake County Board of Supervisors. The proposed repairs would remedy the hazardous conditions, which pose an immediate danger to the public.
In accordance with California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Division 6, Section 15300.2, there would be no cumulative impacts related to the project; there are no known unusual circumstances that would have a significant effect on the environment. Regulatory permits from other agencies will be obtained, as needed.
Based on the aforementioned, the Lake County Community Development Department has determined that the project qualifies for emergency exemption and no further CEQA is required.
County Clerk
Lake
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
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