Twain Harte’s Bryant resigns from CSD seat

After more than 40 years of public service, veteran Twain Harte Community Services District Director Bill Bryant has resigned.

His resignation was accepted without comment by his fellow directors Thursday.
  

Bryant, 83, cited personal reasons in his resignation letter and de-clined to elaborate.

“My only regret,” Bryant said, “is not finishing the term I started.”

A robust man whose manner and appearance belie his age, Bryant has immersed himself in civic activities since moving his family to Twain Harte from Stockton in 1962.

Soon after moving to Twain Harte, he became active in Boy Scouts of America, was president of the countywide Little League Association, joined the board of the Twain Harte Golf Course and became an active member of the Twain Harte Rotary Club.

Bryant eventually became a member of the golf course’s board of directors. He and his fellow directors in the late 1960s proposed forming a park and recreation district for the community, and he was on the park district’s original board of directors.

  In 1969, Bryant was appointed to fill a vacancy on the board of directors of Tuolumne County Water District No. 1, which served the Twain Harte area at that time.

He was re-elected to that board every four years until 1996, when the water, fire and park and recreation districts were combined to form the Twain Harte Community Services District.

Bryant said helping to establish a regional sewer system with Tuolumne Utilities District and Jamestown Sanitary District is probably the biggest achievement during his years of community service.

Bryant was appointed by the  Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors to serve on the new district’s board of directors, then re-elected to that board every four years, most recently in November 2008.

He was on the losing end of several 3-2 votes recently. He voted against a $6.22 hike in the monthly basic water rate for district residents and in favor of directors refusing to accept stipends for attending meetings.

He would not say whether that hastened his departure.

“I hate to see Bill go,” said Judy Selby, chairwoman of the Jamestown Sanitary District and another longtime board member involved in establishing the regional sewer system. “He has been such an asset over the years. He has served on the Regional Sewer Advisory Committee for decades. He’s so knowledgeable, I hope he will continue to be active.”

Bryant said he plans to continue playing golf and attending Twain Harte American Legion events.