Chuck Day appointed to LDPCSD board

September 21, 2009 – © Foothill Express

Chuck Day

Charles “Chuck” Day of Don Pedro was appointed this week as the newest member of the Lake Don Pedro Community Services District Board of Directors.

Three out of the four members voted for Day to fill the position recently vacated by Steve Marquette. Sally Punte voted against Day.

The board room at Tuesday’s special meeting was once again crowded with local residents.

Vice President Wes Barton said he was very pleased with the growing involvement of the community in working together to develop solutions for the water district.

For example, he pointed out that the number of qualified candidates grew from only two to eight during the final days.

During the meeting, board members interviewed candidates, who listed their top three priorities for the district.

Although issues centered primarily on the lack of funds and need to raise rates, candidates were also concerned about the lack of planning and leadership since the district has been without a general manager for more than a year.

In his letter to the board, Day stated his concern that the board had failed to address the problems of the Community Services District, making it “more difficult to restore the health of the district.”

The other candidates were Millie Beranek, Vicki Keefe, Orb Hatton, Dwight Mueller, Ron Hunt, and Alton “LeRoy” Butler.

In other business, the board discussed the 2009-2010 budget adjustments, including the loss of revenue due to the recent closure of the Lake Don Pedro Golf and Country Club, changes in office staff and reduction in legal fees from last year’s budget.

The overall impact of the closure of the golf course is projected to be negative, approximately $36,288. Staff changes will reduce expenses by $19,020, and legal fees are projected to reduce by $10,000.

The board discussed what could be done to balance the budget within one year.

Vice President Barton indicated that costs have exceeded revenue for the past several years and that the board needs “… an actual plan to drive us to what we should be doing … We can’t look at this organization as the way it was. We have to look at it as the way we want it to be … We must begin to look at what we want to accomplish and decide now that we want to do it,” said Barton.

Members discussed various solutions, including issuing bonds and submitting requests for federal grants as potential sources of funds, rather than relying on rate increases.

Director Emery Ross stated, “We can’t even get leaks fixed. We can’t do more with less.”

The board agreed that hiring a general manager is critical to addressing these operational issues.

A presentation on the water rate study was made by a consulting group, Bartle Wells Associates, to address alternative approaches to rate restructuring and increasing revenues.

The board agreed that improving the infrastructure had not been addressed in the report, and that this was a critical concern for the future.

The first rate increase could be as early as December 2009.

The board asked Bartle Wells to come back to the September 21 meeting at 1 pm with more specific recommendations for the next five years.