News Category

Category: News

February 16, 2022 - Board Meeting

The February 16, 2022, Board meeting featured the Board’s adoption of its annual objectives ranging from initiating new high technology leak detection programs to strategies to minimize operational costs. One specific objective I requested and adopted was studying the District’s unfunded employee pension liabilities and setting specific policies to manage those costs. OMWD is partnered with nine other agencies forming North San Diego Water Reuse Coalition partners in other matters. This successful partnership has resulted in water reuse projects saving millions of gallons of potable water in our community. OMWD staff reported that the Coalition had recently been awarded a $6.1 million grant for North County water reuse projects and that additional grant applications are being submitted. We heard a staff presentation on the Elfin Forest Recreational Reserve and its continued success. The reserve averages almost 120,000 visitors per year. The board also approved a rate adjustment required by increased wholesale water rates. We must continue to press our wholesalers to keep their expenses under control and their rates down, so we don't have to pass them along to you. Finally, the Board held its final public hearing to adjust its Division boundary maps consistent with the 2020 census, and it adopted the new division boundary maps.

You can review past and present Board and committee meeting agendas and background materials online at https://www.olivenhain.com/about-us/governing-board/board-meetings/.

Posted on 17 Feb 2022, 16:10 - Category: News

January 22, 2022- Olivenhain Reservoir

Posted on 22 Jan 2022, 12:16 - Category: News

January 19, 2022- Board Meeting

At the OMWD’s December Board of Directors meeting, the most important agenda item was a preliminary economic feasibility presentation by consultant Doug Gillingham regarding OMWD’s San Dieguito Valley Brackish Groundwater Desalination Project. Since 2008 the OMWD has been studying the feasibility of this project, which would cost over $40 Million to build. Its purpose, if approved, is to provide OMWD with about 10% of its water from local groundwater found in the San Dieguito Valley. The groundwater is brackish (salty), so it would require desalination treatment and special pipelines before it can be consumed. Whether to proceed with this project is a HUGE Board decision, which likely will come to a decision point in the next 24 months. A full detailed workshop is scheduled for March 30, 2022. I will provide more detail at that time.

Among other meeting items, the Board unanimously supported a resolution directing staff to apply for grant funding to cover the costs to expand parking at the Elfin Forest Recreational Reserve. Due to the reserve’s popularity, especially on weekends, both the primary and overflow lots become full, limiting park use.

You can review past and present Board and committee meeting agendas and background materials online at https://www.olivenhain.com/about-us/governing-board/board-meetings/.

Posted on 19 Jan 2022, 17:36 - Category: News

December 15, 2021- Board Meeting

Happy Holidays. The OMWD’s December Board of Directors meeting included the Board's approval of new agreements with OMWD’s employee associations. Those agreements were negotiated over many months and, for the first time, require OMWD employees to pay into their medical plans, which is something I had brought up shortly after my Board appointment. The agreement also allows certain employees a limited ability to work remotely from home, as long as doing so does not impact customer service. Also, caps were placed on the future cost of living adjustments tied to inflation. The Board meeting also set a time and place for a special workshop to discuss progress on OMWD’s San Dieguito Valley Brackish Groundwater Desalination Project. If economically and technically feasible (which remains an open question), the project will contribute some local water to OMWD’s water supply. The workshop is set for March 30, 2022.

You can review past and present Board and committee meeting agendas and background materials online at https://www.olivenhain.com/about-us/governing-board/board-meetings/.

Posted on 16 Dec 2021, 10:12 - Category: News

November 30, 2021- Association of California Water Agencies Conference

The Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) conference took place in Pasadena from November 30 to December 2, 2021. I attended, along with other OMWD Directors and staff. The ACWA conference is an invaluable opportunity to attend education programs about water issues and hear from state leaders about the direction of water policy and law in California. This is especially important with looming water shortages and possible drought restrictions. I was able to compare notes with Directors and staff of other agencies about management practices and possible ways to improve how OMWD uses its resources and takes care of its customers.

For me, the most valuable class was on how to assess and manage District employee pension liabilities through the possible formation of reserve accounts and the importance of setting unfunded pension liability policies and goals, which are missing from OMWD written policies. I am pushing to establish those policies so the District can more accurately predict and manage its future pension contributions and obligations.

Which programs would you attend? The conference program is found here: https://www.acwa.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/FC21-OSschedule-WEB.pdf

Posted on 03 Dec 2021, 16:16 - Category: News

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