EDA set to send an announcement to SJB officials in coming
days
Though the outcome of the Economic Development Administration
audit of the city of San Juan regarding their $4 million grant for
a water treatment facility is still pending release, people in San
Juan Bautista are concerned about what the city will do should the
EDA revoke their grant.
EDA set to send an announcement to SJB officials in coming days
Though the outcome of the Economic Development Administration audit of the city of San Juan regarding their $4 million grant for a water treatment facility is still pending release, people in San Juan Bautista are concerned about what the city will do should the EDA revoke their grant.
For more than a decade, San Juan officials have worked to obtain an EDA grant worth $3.8 million in order to upgrade the archaic and inadequate water system that services the town of 1,700 people. When the city finally landed the grant in early 2005, the EDA made the San Benito Water District a co-recipient of the funds along with the city.
In August of that same year negotiations between the city and the water district broke down, leading to the grant’s suspension. By 2006, the two agencies had parted ways and San Juan continued to pursue the water improvement project on its own.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s office of the Inspector General completed an audit recommending that the EDA consider terminating the award.
Since that time, there has been little communication between the EDA and the city of San Juan, according to San Juan City Manager Jan McClintock, but last week an official statement was issued by the EDA.
The official statement was that the Economic Development Administration’s Seattle Regional office will issue an audit determination letter to the city on the Inspector General’s audit report recommendation within seven days,” according to Matthew Crow, deputy assistant secretary for external affairs and communications for the Economic Development Administration. The statement was issued Aug. 9 and the EDA staff had until Aug. 16, after press time, to send the letter to the city.
However, staff in McClintock’s office had no idea the report was coming. In fact, McClintock herself said last week they had not had any communications with the EDA in some time.
Greg Simms, a resident of San Juan, was downtown in the Mission city on Tuesday. He’d heard about the water situation in the past, but hadn’t heard anything recently. He’s been to a few city council meetings, but he hadn’t heard the grant was in jeopardy.
“I don’t know what will happen if we lose it,” Simms said. “But I sure don’t want to have to pay for a new water system myself.”
San Juan Mayor Priscilla Hill hadn’t heard about the EDA being close to handing down a verdict on the grant, but she did not want to comment on the situation. Hill said she has a policy as mayor that if a citizen comes to her with a complaint, they also have to have a realistic solution.
Another resident, Joe Sanchez, didn’t know anything about the grant. He works in San Jose and doesn’t attend city council meetings, but he’s had a few conversations with his neighbors about what could happen.
“The last I heard the city was still working with the EDA,” Sanchez said. “If things have changed, it’s news to me. I’m certainly not a fan of the city council, but I’m not rooting for them to lose this grant. I think it could be a big problem if they do.”
Some of the residents that have wells on their property seem less concerned about the water situation. Sam Ramos and her husband live on a ranch south of San Juan.
“We have a well on our property so we don’t depend on city water,” Ramos said. “My husband and I have been following this situation for some time, but I don’t see how you can build a multi-million dollar water system without assistance.”
