No Will-Serve Letters Until Kapanicas Meets With Fraser

By: Libi Uremovic| Original Article at Patch.com

If Developers Want More Will-Serve Letters Kapanicas Must Meet With Fraser.

Below is a transcript from the October 8, 2014 Beaumont-Cherry Valley Water District. The District’s stipulation is that Beaumont City Manager Alan Kapanicas must meet with the Water District’s General Manager Eric Fraser before the District will issue any more Will-Serve Letters.

Dr. Ball: Last month we invited the citizens, the ratepayers, to come and talk to the Board about what their concerns were, what their interest. And I will refer you to; this is the letter given by the Mayor. The Mayor read it # 1 as Mayor of the City of Beaumont I’m here to provide an official statement from the City, so I take that as an official statement from the City concerning each Councilman and probably the City Manager.

“Since 1993..” – again, this is the Mayor speaking. “..the City and Water District have been working together to construct water lanes and recycled water, purple pipes.”

That is true. The City has also offered their recycled water to the District since 1993.

“Since 1993 the City and Water District have been working together to construct water lanes and recycled water, purple pipes, adopt a new water fee to purchase this water for new development. The City is also getting ready to provide recycled water for landscaping.”

Now, to me, here is where this letter gets cryptic. I attend City Council Meetings frequently and for the first time, not yesterday but the time before, Councilman Berg suggesting that the water be moved from the wastewater treatment plant to the golf course owned by the Morongo Tribe. At that point it gets a little hazy on what they intend to do with that water. I’ll continue with the letter.

“The City has also offered its recycled water to the District since 1993. Maybe now is a good time to hook up the pipes, but it might be a common misconception that this water will be cheaper, as it’s not. The City is currently in the process of re-applying for its Title 22 Certification.”

Dr. Ball: My concern is this: if indeed that water is moved to the golf course and some deal is structured and let’s say that water is overlapping water rights is deemed in someone’s eyes to be new water and it’s lifted over to new development where then and who is going to replace that depleted water and at what cost? And that’s a concern. Yes, the city has offered its recycled water to the District since 1993. I would like to offer each and every one of you my 1990 Corolla. The price is $1.5 Million. We can offer anything. Whether it’s prudent to purchase it or have use of it is a whole different story.

“..the common misconception that this water will be cheaper, as it’s not…”

No. When that water comes out of the wastewater treatment plant, who does it belong to?

It belongs to those that paid to clean that up. Those who pay sewer bills. And if I’m not mistaken that’s 4 out of 5 Councilmen. So, does that water belong to the Council? Individually, yes. 1 in 40,000th shares. Does it belong to the City Manager? No. He doesn’t pay a sewer bill. Does it belong to the Attorney? No. He doesn’t pay a sewer bill. It belongs to the Citizens. So who then will be left to pay that hole dug when the water is moved someplace else? It would be placed on the back of the sewer bill payers. They paid to clean it up and now it will be moved to someplace else. On the back of residence of Cherry Valley.

There’s a common theme being played now at City Council that everyone pay their ‘fair share’. The corollary to that is that no one pays more than their fair share. And yet the ratepayers will pay more than their fair share when we have to replenish that water that was moved away. I believe that water belongs to the Citizens and they should have a reuse of that water again and again and again. As many times as they pay to clean it up. It shouldn’t be moved someplace else.

So this letter to me is cryptic and I know I’m going to come back to this project, so bear with me please.

“The City is currently in the process of re-applying for Title 22 Certification. I don’t know this answer. Reapply meaning ‘they applied once and failed to get it’ or ‘they applied once, got it, and failed to maintain it’. Mr. Frasier, do you know the answer to that? Did the City ever have Title 22 Compliant water?

Fraser: Not approved by the Department of Public Health.

Dr. Ball: Thank you. And then it says: “…the current water from the sewer plant meets State and Federal quality standards.” My question is; reach the Regional Water Quality Board and base and objective. The answer is no. Finally, 700 gallons per day that goes into the ground for storage with the Regional Water Board’s permission. I think that’s temporary permission. It’s been long a contention that they are interfering with the quality of water by putting in this type of water that they’re putting in and it’s got to come to a head at some point at making sure that it’s proper for the Basin.

So now let’s get back to this Project. And here’s my motion: VP Ross, I make a motion that we table this until Mr. Fraser meets with Mr. Kapanicas. He will send an email to the City. And I know Mr. Kapanicas is busy, so at Mr. Kapanicas’ leisure, we’ll make an appointment for Mr. Fraser to meet him here in this building and discuss what this letter really means and whether that water is going to be used by Citizens, or if it’s going to be moved elsewhere and the Citizens will have to pay. I will close with the letter from the Mayor:

“I extend to you a spirit of cooperation.”

So I would like to see that cooperation with Mr. Kapanicas meeting with Mr. Fraser. And whether it’s one meeting or multiple meetings. Mr. Kapanicas alone. Mr. Fraser alone. No Dave Dillion, no Mr. Aklufi, no anyone else but Mr. Kapanicas and Mr. Fraser. That’s my motion.

Mike White: I’m a little lost. I don’t know what this has to do with wastewater treatment. And with regard to the City and the District; I’m failing to find a connection between my project and that issue. I would ask for clarification of why we’re being continued. This really has nothing to do with our project.

Dr. Ball: Your water will be used by homeowners and it will then go to the wastewater treatment plant which the City, in my mind, is going to move that water away. And so we will have more demand to replenish that. I understand that you have the overlaying rights.

Mike White: I appreciate what you’re saying, but again, I’m trying to make a connection in my mind between a sewer issue and my project and my asserting my water rights for the development of my project. I also ask: is every will-serve letter that’s coming up here for approval by the Board going to have the same scrutiny for this? I wouldn’t want to be singled out in this regard. But still, I’m finding it difficult for me to make a connection between the wastewater treatment issue and my assertion of my water rights.

Dr. Ball: We tabled this Agenda Item until Mr. Kapanicas meets with Mr. Fraser and delineates what’s going to happen with the wastewater treatment plant.