Letter: Clarity on water districts’ costs
by Pete Norton
Apr 19, 2012 | 824 views | 3 3 comments | 10 10 recommendations | email to a friend | print
EDITOR,

The recent article “Lompico Water asks to borrow 30K to study merger” (Page 3, April 6) may be somewhat misleading. Instead of asking to borrow money, the Lompico board has signed an agreement, prepared by the San Lorenzo Water District, authorizing SLVWD to spend as much as $30,000 for soil studies at tank sites and inter-tie pipeline research. The Lompico board has agreed to repay those costs with or without a merger.

At the March 15 SLVWD board meeting, district Manager Jim Mueller asked their board to authorize expenditures of up to $30,000 for technical and engineering services relative to the proposed merger. At that meeting, a member of the Lompico board, who is opposed to the merger, stated that the Lompico district should pay for these items ourselves, because we need them regardless of a merger. He also said that the Lompico community did not want to merge, in spite of the Lompico board’s majority position and the recent survey of district customers which reflected an 87 percent majority of respondents in favor of pursuing a merger.

The SLVWD board then decided that the Lompico district would receive the most benefit from these expenditures. As a result, SLVWD produced the agreement that was approved by the Lompico board on April 4. The Lompico board acted quickly so that the signed agreement could be presented to SLVWD at its April 5 meeting, making it possible for that board to approve it at its April 19 meeting and proceed without further delay.

It is expected that spending these funds will reduce some major costs of the original 2010 merger proposal by consolidating the number of storage tanks that need to be replaced and greatly reducing the length of the inter-tie pipeline.

Pete Norton, Lompico

Comments
(3)
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Lompico
|
April 25, 2012
To Lompico- Take Heed

Felton Resident |May 03, 2011 Not to mention, remmember FLOW got us to buy CALAM and give it to San Lorenzo? That is another $500 /yr on our property taxes on top of all these rate hikes. CALAM never treated us like this.

To Lompico - Take Action

This will soon be our sad story if you don't get involved now. Lompico Water has 3 seats up for election. It's not rocket science, just takes a bit of smarts,a sense of ethics, dedication and interest in fixing our own system.

All things most of the current board seem to be lacking.

If the current board and their lackey Citizen's advisory committee had any sense of fair play, they would have investigated alternate plans also on saving the district, not just the merger.

I can't believe this board wasted years of Lompico's time and money....but we can still be saved, just need a new board of directors...LBRA need not apply!

Lars R
|
April 23, 2012
It doesn't matter. It's done. Already decided. You have no say. Lompico Water District WILL merge with San Lorenzo Valley Water District. It has nothing to do with the will of the people of Lompico.

A. Done. Deal.
Lompico Resident
|
April 23, 2012
Here is what is misleading. "87 percent majority" the truth is less than half the residents responded, and of that less than half, only 87% were in favor of the merger. So lets be honest, and say

"less than 40% of the residents say they are in favor."


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