BERKELEY — Reconstruction of Summit Reservoir is progressing on schedule, with the scene at the corner of Grizzly Peak Boulevard and Spruce Street a world away from the old covered facility that occupied that site since 1891.

Times change, as do water needs, and at present 90 percent of the area’s water comes from Pardee Reservoir, 90 miles away. The need for a 37 million-gallon reservoir no longer exists. A new 3.5 million-gallon tank at the Summit site will serve instead as a distribution center, along with 150 others in the EBMUD service area.

At present the basin shows work that represents about half of the project.

All of the old reservoir debris has been demolished, crushed and recycled.

A new permanent fence installed around the perimeter of Summit Reservoir along portions of Grizzly Peak Boulevard, Spruce Street and Beloit Avenue will soon be extended between the property and adjacent homes.

“The 8-eight-foot fence is chainlink with barbed wire at the top and meets security standards,” said Sharla J. Sullivan, East Bay Municipal Utility District community affairs representative. “It will protect our facility because it’s a critical distribution facility.”

The site itself shows it is a work-in-progress, with a whale-sized covered mound of soil, a semicircular concrete wall and gray puddles from recent rains.

The earthen dams that once held up the old reservoir basin have been removed; the sides have been stabilized and sprayed down with a mixture of mulch and seed to prevent erosion.

Crews have excavated to create the base of the foundation for the new tank, using steel and rebar. Half the concrete walls that form a semicircle for the partially buried tank can be seen from Grizzly Peak Boulevard. They are 50-percent complete and will be completed over the coming months, necessitating several more concrete pours.

The structure of a new pumping plant now has a roof and outside walls and now awaits electrical and mechanical work. A new inlet-outlet line is also being installed.

“The new inlet-outlet line for the new Summit Reservoir tank will run down the back side towards Vassar Avenue and ties into our distribution pipeline on Vassar Avenue,” Sullivan said. “A temporary line has already been established but we will be working there through the end of January into early February to establish that permanent inlet-outlet line for the permanent reservoir.”

Under the base of the reservoir lies a drainage system that percolates water slowly through clay and rock before it enters the environment, an explanation for the collected water presently visible. Additional work may be done to address water that stands for longer periods of time.

Once the new tank has been completed, the temporary one will be removed and as the project nears completion the area will be landscaped and planted with drought-tolerant trees and shrubs.

The community has been hands-on with questions and concerns throughout the project planning and work. Several local schools brought up the issue of student safety and trucks accessing the area.

“We made adjustments as part of our environmental impact review so we have flaggers out there and we’re able to direct our trucks to make sure that the local schools and community are safe,” Sullivan said. “Other things the community has been adamant about are project site safety and making sure the site is prepared for the rainy season in erosion and drainage.”

Rain days were included in the project timeline; since the project’s inception about 30 have been taken with an additional four this past October and November.

One of the most important community considerations, a pathway along Grizzly Peak Boulevard, has been resolved favorably. The new fence has been indented off the street so there will be a landscaped walking path.

“I think it will be very nice for the community; the path and a nice overlook, looking down at the new features, including a gravel pit with the bird architectural feature that was there before,” Sullivan said.

Seismic concerns have been met by lowering the basin and installing the new tank in place of the open-cut reservoir. Historical concerns regarding the demolition of the 1891 reservoir are at the mercy of changes in how water is accessed and the best methods of providing it.

“People used to rely more on local rain water, but EBMUD provides quality drinking water from our Pardee Reservoir and that’s what people are drinking in our system,” Sullivan said. “The need for a 37 million-gallon reservoir no longer exists.”

As of Dec. 12, the project was 56-percent complete and the anticipated completion date is the end of 2017.