Jaime De La Cruz
Guest View
Many of your friends and neighbors in District 5 contacted me
about the sewer rate increases that the City of Hollister is
proposing in order to pay for a new sewer treatment plant. In order
to address these concerns, I hosted a Town Hall meeting at the
county supervisors chambers on Monday, Aug. 14 at 7 p.m. The event
was attended by almost 70 concerned citizens who had questions
about this project and how it will be paid for. I invited Dr.
Adrian Moore, an independent water/wastewater plant operations
expert as well as Hollister City Manager Clint Quilter and the
consultant for the city, Dave Jones. Each spoke for about 10
minutes.
Jaime De La Cruz
Guest View
Many of your friends and neighbors in District 5 contacted me about the sewer rate increases that the City of Hollister is proposing in order to pay for a new sewer treatment plant. In order to address these concerns, I hosted a Town Hall meeting at the county supervisors chambers on Monday, Aug. 14 at 7 p.m. The event was attended by almost 70 concerned citizens who had questions about this project and how it will be paid for. I invited Dr. Adrian Moore, an independent water/wastewater plant operations expert as well as Hollister City Manager Clint Quilter and the consultant for the city, Dave Jones. Each spoke for about 10 minutes.
To summarize the meeting, the experts and citizens agreed that Hollister needs to build a new sewer treatment plant. And the experts also agreed that the city of Hollister is on the right track to get the plant built. I had serious concerns before the meeting, but afterward I have full confidence that the city is doing its best to resolve this critical issue that hurts our local economy. Unfortunately, it is estimated that the new plant won’t be built and operational in order to relieve the state imposed growth moratorium until the year 2009.
On Sept. 4, the Hollister City Council will embark on a long journey of fixing the sewer problem by approving a $120 million construction bond in order to build a state-of-the-art wastewater treatment plant. The project will be financed based on monthly increases in sewer rates of about $15 for the first fiscal year with future increases up to about $70 per month. It is envisioned that residential development will increase about 2.6 percent per year after the moratorium is lifted. Impact fees for new connections will increase to approximately $24,000 per new house to help finance the cost of the new wastewater treatment plant. This will ensure that new development pays its own way.
Some very good ideas were presented by the audience. It was suggested that a new citizens watchdog committee be formed to make sure that capital funding is properly accounted for and rates are adjusted downward if additional funding becomes available, and that the City of Hollister create a reduced rate charges for low income families and senior citizens. Both senior citizens and low income families should allow for some type of assistance. Maybe the community should contribute to some type of fund and allow senior citizens to withdraw on this account in order for them to pay a lower fee for sewer services.
I believe that we must support the City of Hollister in these challenging times. To do otherwise, to protest or even delay the process, will only increase the cost of the new sewer treatment plant to over $200 million. The option of not moving forward with this project is not an option! The State of California has directed the city to update its wastewater treatment plant or face more fines and increased construction cost.
Please join me in supporting the finance, construction and operation of the new sewer treatment plant that will benefit our families, our community and our economy for several decades. If want to be informed on other issues, e-mail your e-mail address to [email protected] or call me at 831-297-2248.
Jaime De La Cruz is a San Benito County supervisor whose district covers northern Hollister.
