Camarillo City Council: Water Angst

By Logan McFadden

At the July 22nd Camarillo City Council meeting an ordinance restricting the issuance of will-serve letters for new water customers was protested by several developers with projects already underway. A majority of the Council members voted to table the ordinance subject to further discussions between developers and the City. Following those discussions, the Council plans to call a town hall meeting to hear comments from the public. A revised ordinance was not on the August 26, 2015, agenda; however, several residents and interested parties presented their concerns about the water conservation mandate imposed by Governor Brown and the City’s plan to comply.

The public basically stated that the City Council should consider existing residents as the priority when considering a revised water ordinance. A local resident, Roy Villa, stated that the City Council has failed to communicate all of the water issues which results in unanswered questions which builds fear in the community. Matt Lorimer feels the City Council has turned its back on residents and new water demands from future residential and commercial customers will trigger a Stage 3 or Stage 4 water alert. Moving from the current Stage 2 alert would require existing residents to conserve more water in order to meet the demand from new customers.

Complicating the issue is the fact that the City is served by several water districts. As an example, the residents of Camarillo Springs are serviced by the Camrosa Water District. Camrosa has already called a Stage 3 alert which puts additional water conservation rules into effect. As a separate matter, the Council voted 3-2 approving the subdivision of the Mission Oaks Townhomes project into 129 condominium units with common landscaping, access, and parking. Councilmembers Jan McDonald and Kevin Kildee voted against the subdivision tract map application. The condo project is located in an area of Camarillo serviced by Camrosa Water District. Camrosa will issue the will-serve letter which will trigger a grading permit application requiring approval from the City. Barbara Williams, a Camarillo Springs homeowner, asked the Council to reject the subdivision request in order to stop Camrosa from considering issuance of a will-serve letter to service 129 new customers. Mayor Little stated that the City Council was not being asked to provide water from the Camarillo Water District; therefore he would support the condo project and leave the water supply issue to Camrosa. Matt Lorimer stated that the Council should not use Camrosa Water District as a “scape goat”. Mayor Little replied that Camarillo cannot determine the way Camrosa manages water and water quality. Ms. Williams did confirm that she had already expressed her concerns directly to the Camrosa Water District.

Merrill Berge, founder of Camarillo Sustainable Growth, proposed the creation of a multi-stakeholder task force to formulate a water plan which includes all of the water districts serving Camarillo and their drawing rights on over-drafted ground water basins. She underscored the need for a Town Hall meeting to discuss the “drastic situation” and develop a comprehensive long-term plan which includes the neighboring cities. She stated that “Camarillo is not an island”.

A representative from the Building Industry Association pointed out that new homes are water efficient and that the focus should be shifted to existing homes to ensure steps are taken to reduce water consumption. In other words, don’t put a moratorium on new residential building projects because existing homes waste water.

Bruce Feng, City Manager, told the audience that builders have rights and are subject to a legal process which could put the City into a “legal mess”. Developers currently have over $1 billion invested in Camarillo residential and commercial projects at risk and face losing project financing if lenders are told that a project is on hold pending access to City water service. Mr. Feng said that the City will present its findings in October. Mayor Little stated that the City Council is working to resolve water issues and it boils down to “developers bring water to the table” in conjunction with will-serve letter applications.

Camarillo Council Meeting Archive

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Logan McFadden is a Citizensjournal.us city reporter and a recently retired banker, residing in Camarillo. He volunteers for the Heritage Action Sentinel team and serves as the AMAC Delegate to the 26th Congressional District.

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