Taps still dry in subdivision

Methods of extending water lines to dozens of Rancho Calaveras residents with dry or dwindling well supplies were presented to the Calaveras County Water District board Wednesday.

The area has suffered water problems for more than a decade. Currently, at least half a dozen residents must truck in water to flush their toilets or take showers.
  

So far, there are two main options for the area. One is to extend a nearby water line up the short cul-de-sac of Da Lee Court, where a number of residents are prepared to finance the project themselves, according to district staff.

“That’s a standard project for us,” said Larry Diamond, district general manager. The district requires residents pay for any extensions to the water line, in addition to hookup fees.

The second option is for the district to take out a U.S. Department of Agriculture loan secured by the value of the properties and paid by an additional fee on the area’s property tax bills, according to a staff report.    

That would be the easiest, most cost effective and also most difficult option, Diamond said. Getting enough residents to agree to such a plan has limited historical success. Plus, there is no guarantee that the project would meet the loan guidelines.

“We don’t know what’s viable until we run that gauntlet,” Diamond said.

An estimate for a 1997 project to extend water service to the whole area comes to $900,000 when adjusted for inflation. Additionally, the per-house connection fee has risen from $1,400 to nearly $9,200, according to the report.

The district has sent out questionnaires to the 59 parcels bordering Da Lee Court, Da Lee Road and Cassidy Road and will seek resident feedback at a public meeting Oct. 8 organized by Supervisor Russ Thomas.

There is also a nascent local organizing effort. Don Powlesland and his wife Dixie, who live on Cassidy Road and have endured poor water quality since they moved in, have printed flyers supporting a property tax fee and are lobbying neighbors.

“We’re trying to get everyone on board,” he said.

A third option, relegated to last-resort status, is to run narrow pipes into affected properties through easements.

Problems with such arrangements abound. Accessing such pipes for maintenance is tricky, as sheds, fences and gardens often are built over them, and permission is needed even if the land is empty.

“It’s not the way we like to go,” Diamond said.

Director Ed Rich, whose district includes Copperopolis’ Diamond XX subdivision, whose 59 homeowners have long been struggling with similar water issues, said the district better be prepared to step up for other subdivisions.

“What they’re doing right here cracks me up, because they wouldn’t help me with Diamond XX,” he said. “I think this is the tip of the iceberg.”