Oceano board president facing property liens

May 29, 2016
OCSD Board President Mary Lucey

OCSD Board President Mary Lucey

Oceano Community Services District Board President Mary Lucey has two homes in Oceano which are facing liens because she has failed to pay her sewer bills. Lucey also serves as the Oceano representative on the South County Sanitation District Board.

On Wednesday, the sanitation district board is scheduled to vote on a staff recommendation to lien the properties of those who are delinquent in their bills, according to the agenda. Both of Lucey’s Oceano properties are listed as delinquent, which could prohibit Lucey from discussing or voting on the item.

Because Lucey has a financial interest in the decision to lien or not to lien her property, she may have a conflict of interest. Lucey said she plans to ask the district’s legal counsel if she can participate in the discussion and vote.

“It is a question for legal counsel,” Lucey said. “I won’t be doing anything that will be ethically incorrect.”

Last year, Oceano officials demanded substantially more money for each sewer charge included on its water bills than Arroyo Grande and Grover Beach charge the sanitation district. After a year-long dispute, the sanitation district board, which is comprised of a representative each from Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach and Oceano, voted to have the sanitation district mail bills to Oceano residents until it gets approval to place Oceano’s sewer bills on the county tax roll.

In the first week of March, the sanitation district mailed the first biannually sewer bill to Oceano residents, said John Clemons, the district superintendent.

While Oceano provided the district with billing addresses, about 300 were incorrect. Those rate payers, which does not include Lucey, received late bills and may be listed in the delinquent list.

Rate payers will have until mid-July to pay their sewer bills before liens are implemented.

Originally, Lucey supported moving the billing to the tax roll, but has since waffled suggesting the sanitation district has been unfair to Oceano and is punishing its ratepayers.

“This could have been avoided,” Lucey said.

In addition, Lucey claims the sanitation district did not mail bills out in March.

“I haven’t received a bill,” Lucey said. “The people of Oceano do not know what is going on. The district failed to explain and keep order.”

However, Lucey said she reads her twice monthly sanitation board packets which has included reports on the March billing.

“The district currently bills Oceano CSD directly,” a May 4 staff report says. “To date, the district has received $182,000 for four billing cycles.”

Clemons said that in addition to mailing sewer bills to Oceano residents, the bills are posted publicly.

“The idea that we never sent bills is incorrect,” Clemons said. “Mary Lucey is on the board and she knows we sent bills.”

On June 1, the board will hold a hearing to hear any public protests, but since the matter is administrative in nature, simply changing the way funds are collected and not changing rates, the protests will not likely change the outcome.  The district has cited Health and Safety Code 5471 (a) in its staff report as the legal ability to revise the method of collection of its service charges.

Lucey and others can avoid the lien by simply paying the past due charges.


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Another moral degenerate as an elected official


I cannot WAIT to read Karen’s report of last night’s meeting.


What a disaster.


There was a moment when I thought John Shoals was going to cry.


Board member Mary Lucey’s wife (Nancy MacNeil) kept yelling at the SSLOCSD board from the back of the room, loudly badgering several people in the audience and generally making a complete ass out of herself for the first half of the Sanitation District meeting.


Why Chair Shoals did not halt the meeting and take a 5 minute break when Nancy MacNeil stormed to the podium . . . for the second time on the same agenda item? It’s beyond me.


Control was not had at all, by Chair Shoals last night.


It’s clear the majority of the Oceano folks in attendance have NO clue how meetings are run and no understanding of how their own district (OCSD) got them to this point.


A complete out-of-control circus all the way around, last night.


This woman is a mess with her private life, on the OCSD Board and with the interaction with citizens of Oceano.


You have to feel sorry for the people of Oceano that have had to put up with the likes of these types of representatives and managers that have served them, mismanaged and robbed them, the corruption of their legal representatives, John Wallace and on and on. This has cost them millions and now this Wacko does not want to pay her share of the mess she has helped to create.


These local district boards to be cancelled andl go back to the County as time and again we see the issues that have cost the taxpayers a bundle of money for nothing. At least with the County you might pay but at least get something for the buck. Look at what Los Osos, Cambria and Oceano managers have cost the ratepayers and for what, more corruption.


OCSD Board President Mary Lucey is the tail on the dog that wags the dog on the South County Sanitation District Board.


http://calcoastnews.com/2016/04/oceano-tail-wags-dog/


Oh, JULES !

And you come from WTF Los Osos to air your trash in disadvantaged Oceano.

You have your own dirty laundry. Or do you do it in Matt Guererro’s Laundromat on Hwy 1??? Afterall he is your favorite elected attorney. hahahah LOL

Better watch out before you throw rocks through the glass houses of the disadvantaged in Oceano.

Now please stay away.


C.V. aka Lonnie Curtis, it is you that has been sent away from Oceano. Sniffing out thieves and liars, like you, has been my forte.


LOL…well ya know the old sayin’ Julie:


“If you want to catch a thief…hire one.”


It’s becoming obvious that Mary Lucey is not operating on all cylinders. Just pay your bill. If you can’t pay, take out a loan or sell one of your properties.


Are you trying to get an exemption from paying or an exemption from having a lien placed on your properties by being able to personally plead your case?


Do you realize what a dangerous road you take as a public official by ignoring “conflict of interest” and/or not paying your bills.


It is not in your best interests to interfere in the legally sanctioned process. Just pay.


Ms. Lucey … you have a financial interest in the vote before the San District; therefore, you have a conflict and are prohibited from voting. No need to ask your counsel or anyone else, the answer would be the same. I am very surprised that with the number of years that you have sat on public boards that you are not fully aware of this conflict of interest.


I wonder why Shoals has not even bothered to name an alternate, who is not under investigation, or should I say, her husband is not under investigation by the FBI.


Yep, Barbara Nichols husband was part of the corruption, but Shoals keeps her on the board. When she replaced him one meeting, she refused to vote on anything, saying she was not up to date with what was going on. She is correct, she does not need to vote, however Shoals does have a responsibility to keep the council informed, or at least his alternate.


REALLY! shoals that is part of your job,keep your alternate/council informed. hmmm sounds like Tony Ferrero all over again.I have been to Grover beach meetings and you DO NOT inform your board.


This area has a problem with incestuous relationships, and Shoals and Mary Lucy bring part of the crowd. Different faces, different names same corruption.


PEOPLE get involved they are just f&(*^ us all over an over.