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Grover Beach failed to properly notice proposed water rate increase

October 25, 2023

By KAREN VELIE

Grover Beach failed to properly inform rate payers of a plan to increase water and sewer rates by 112%, an error that is expected to cost residents $8,000.

At its meeting on Sept. 5, a consultant recommended the Grover Beach City Council raise their rates to cover the cost of Central Coast Blue, a recycled water project designed to establish a dependable water supply for residents and businesses of Grover Beach, Arroyo Grande and Pismo Beach. The city is also in need of critical sewer system upgrades.

City staff proposed a 19.7% annual water and sewer rate increase for four years, along with a 4% increase in the fifth year.

The Grover Beach City Council then initiated the Proposition 218 public noticing process on Sept. 25 with a public hearing set for Nov. 13. However, city staff did not send the notices to all rate payers as required by law.

At a cost of $8,000, the city is restarting the Proposition 218 public noticing process. The public hearing is now set for Dec. 11, the last day rate payers can protest the proposed increases. If at least 51% of rate payers protest the increase, it will fail.

 


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Didn’t Blue recently swear that water rates would come down, thanks only to them?


8

How about focusing on just what the rate increase is destined to enable? Another debacle combination of “toilet to tap” for the people of Grover to imbibe. Yum.


In Cambria, where we host a combo “toilet to tap”/desal unit, we are paying now astronomical water bills to finance the thing, whilst getting not a drop of water in return. The project is so poorly designed and inappropriate environmentally, it cannot get permitted. Our CCSD has failed to comply with testing demands, etc., and it would not pass environmentally even then. We have been forced to accept the project as an “emergency” measure, with absolutely no return. KA-CHING for the water “developer” cartels. At the ratepayer’s expense.


The contract with the designer/installers states that it would provide water by November of 2014, and so far, it has provided nothing. Except $300+ pe month water bills even with very minimal usage and not a drop of it from said unit. Said developers were supposed to be held liable for a $1,000.00 per day fine for every day that their product did not produce water past the aforementioned date. They are still receiving payments from us instead. What is wrong with this picture?


I hope that this faulty notification process gives Grover City a do-over chance to reject the project altogether. It is not the answer to their water problems.


Bringing back beavers to their watershed areas, updating infrastructure to prevent leaks, doing away with wasteful lawns and installing low flow toilets and grey water systems would be not only much, much cheaper, but also far more sound environmental investments.


But the citizens need to show up to vote against it, or they will get screwed just like Cambria. I hope they are more responsive this time.


11

So the City wants a 23% increase when the rate of inflation 8%. Isn’t the city staff just wonderful? Water wells are great!


12

So who at the city will be held responsible for this additional $8,000 of residents money and have real consequences for failing at their job?, no one, and likely a raise is in the works, especially if this obscene water rate increase passes.


11