Hi Water Friends:
Today Santa Rosa City Council voted UNANIMOUSLY to file suit against SCWA
for failing to continue the quest for an extra 26,000 AFY water rights. SR
claims they don’t want the water for new growth, they just want enough water
to meet future needs (and what other needs besides new growth?)
While the City is always the first to complain about high costs of water,
they are unhappy that SCWA is no longer pursuing the very complex and
extremely expensive pipeline alternative.
Mike McCoy will have a story in tomorrow’s PD. While the City complained
that SCWA had not been up front with them, they slipped a joint meeting
(almost 3 hour) of both the BPU and City Council with hardly anyone knowing
about it. I always go to BPU meetings and failed to notice the
non-emphasized item towards the bottom of the Agenda.
I can’t write details right now, but the gist is that the City does not want
to let go of the quest for more water. They made it clear that they don’t
trust the Water Agency or their process. Chris DeGabriel attended. He is
head of the Technical Advisory Committee for the contractors. At their
meeting last Monday, the issue of lawsuit was discussed. It was determined
that the contractors, as a group, do not have the standing to file suit, but
that individual contractors did. And the City stepped up to the plate.
McCoy reports that the City Council approved the suit unanimously. (so much
for the progressive agenda)
The water wars have officially begun! The Board of Directors will meet on
this item on September 15th. The City plans to file suit before then. You
might want to plan to be there. There is more to this story, but I have to
quit here. Pass it around.
Brenda