City officials and lobbying group says they are needed to ensure
moratorium is lifted
HOLLISTER
– Los Osos, located near San Luis Obispo on the Central Coast is
a city not unlike Hollister was 30 years ago. The town has a
population of nearly 15,000; it is a bedroom community for nearby
larger cities. It has two major grocery stores, a post office, a
pharmacy, a bakery and several smaller bu
sinesses. It has a golf course and elementary schools, but for
the remainder of their needs, residents have to travel out of
town.
City officials and lobbying group says they are needed to ensure moratorium is lifted
HOLLISTER – Los Osos, located near San Luis Obispo on the Central Coast is a city not unlike Hollister was 30 years ago. The town has a population of nearly 15,000; it is a bedroom community for nearby larger cities. It has two major grocery stores, a post office, a pharmacy, a bakery and several smaller businesses. It has a golf course and elementary schools, but for the remainder of their needs, residents have to travel out of town.
What Los Osos doesn’t have is a sewer.
The community has had a building moratorium in place for 17 years because the community is divided over whether to build a sewer and where it should be located. The cost of a new sewer system is estimated at $150 million and Los Osos residents have complained they can’t afford to pay $200 to $300 per month in increases. One-half of Los Osos population has moved away, businesses have closed their doors and the state may still be imposing $11 million in fines if the town doesn’t come into compliance.
City officials have drawn comparisons between the two cities and said that Hollister could ultimately face a similar fate if it does not mend its ways.
A debate looms as residents will be faced with sewer rate increases that will be used to front the money for a new $120 million sewer treatment facility.
CLEAR – Community Leaders for Economic Activity and Recovery – is lobbying elected officials about the disastrous effects the building moratorium has had on San Benito County.
The organization wants to speed up the process of building a new sewer facility, and consequently having the moratorium imposed by the state in 2002 lifted. The moratorium was mandated after the city dumped 15 million gallons of treated sewage into the San Benito River.
CLEAR and other grassroots organizations are working with the city to get the word out about the increases and what not passing increases could do to the city, said Annette Giacomazzi, a consultant with CLEAR.
City Manager Clint Quilter explained that sewer-rate increases are necessary in order to give bond buyers faith in the city’s plan.
A new five-year rate plan proposes to increase rates from the current $62.60 for single family residences and $54.57 for multi-family residences and increase the amount 48 percent during the coming fiscal year, starting in September.
The following fiscal year that rate would be increased 40 percent; then the amount would be increased 39 percent during the 2008-2009 fiscal year and 38 percent during the 2009-2010 fiscal year. Ultimately ending up at $248.80 single and $216.89 multi-family.
The first increase from the current single-family rate of $62.60 would bring the bi-monthly payment to $92.65 and happen during the 2006-2007 fiscal year. The second increase would happen during the 2007-2008 fiscal year and bring the new rate to $129.71.
“The first two increases are automatic and cover the debt service. After that, the income from new development starts to come in, during that third year and when that happens the growth starts to pay for itself,” Quilter said. Therefore, the other increases would not be necessary so the city would not have to implement them.
Should the council approve the rate plan at their meeting Monday night, there will be a 45-day protest period. After that, the council could accept the plan on Sept. 5.
If the city’s plan is approved in September and bidding on the project comes in on time and they award the bid by October of 2006, Quilter said that there is a 24-month construction timeframe. He said that they concluded on 24 months by surveying similar projects and discovered the average timeframe was 18-30 months, with the bulk of projects coming in between 20 and 24 months.
“I shutter to see Hollister like Los Osos,” Giacomazzi said. “Yes, rates will be higher, but the price paid for not accepting the increases would be higher.”
