Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
August 8, 2007
5. Agencies, Programs, People
FLOOD INSURANCE MANDATE:
Levee exemption deadline nears - Stockton Record
BAY AREA FLOOD CHANNEL TO BE REPAIRED:
Work is under way to fix flood channel; City officials uncertain when effort to repair cracks will be completed - Contra Costa Times
OROVILLE FACILITIES RELICENSING:
SBF funds first projects - Oroville Mercury Register
IMPERIAL IRRIGATION DISTRICT MANAGEMENT:
IID expects new general manager by year’s end - Imperial Valley Press
Editorial: Santa Clara Valley Water District appointee right choice for change - San Jose Mercury News
FLOOD INSURANCE MANDATE:
Levee exemption deadline nears
By Greg Kane, staff writer
The Federal Emergency Management Agency offered the two-year extensions in late spring for levees that appeared headed for decertification in the nationwide remapping process. Extensions would provide partial accreditation, allowing officials more time to prove their levees meet federal standards.
Even if supervisors approve them, the extension agreements may still be in jeopardy because other agencies, including reclamation districts and the state Department of Water Resources, are also in some cases required to sign. The state has refused to support a reclamation district's application for a levee protecting homes in Weston Ranch and Lathrop, and some fear similar denials can happen again in the coming weeks.
"We can huff and we can puff, but the state is the one, as far as the project levees go, that is the veto," Supervisor Larry Ruhstaller said. Project levees are in the federal levee system and include some protecting
FEMA is expected to release preliminary flood maps in October and will finalize them about a year later following public hearings and workshops. Levees maintained by the San Joaquin Flood Control Agency covering much of Brookside and homes north of
Others have been offered the extensions after federal officials failed to find evidence that the levees meet 100-year flood protection standards that indicate the homes they protect have no more than a 1 percent chance each year of flooding. Those include levees along the
The reclamation districts responsible for both sides of
Without provisional accreditation, thousands of homes behind those levees will likely sit in a newly declared flood plain when the new maps are released, requiring homeowners with federally backed mortgages to purchase flood insurance, which can cost $400 per year for $100,000 of coverage.
County officials have not said which levees they will support for extensions. Those recommendations are expected to be made public in a report Friday. Supervisor Steve Gutierrez, who was denied an extension earlier this summer so officials could have more time to review all the county's levees, said Tuesday the board has little choice but to stand by county levees or watch them disappear from flood maps. "We're being backed into a corner here," he said. #
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070808/A_NEWS/708080314
BAY AREA FLOOD CHANNEL TO BE REPAIRED:
Work is under way to fix flood channel; City officials uncertain when effort to repair cracks will be completed
Contra Costa Times – 8/8/07
By Nargis Nooristani, staff writer
Residents living along the Grayson Creek Flood Control Channel in
Repair work to mend the cracks in the 2.3-mile waterway is under way, but it is unclear when the
Jaclyn Wong, a civil engineer for the district, said the cause of the damage is due, in part, to the added weight from debris collected at the fence atop the 18-foot-deep structure and, in part, to the trees that grow along the creek banks.
"As the trees get older, the roots expand and crack the walls," Wong said. "Some of the cracks you can stick your hands in."
Removal has begun on several hundred trees less than 4 inches in diameter. The 45 larger trees also deemed damaging to the channel's structure, Wong said, require an environmental permit that the district is still waiting to receive.
Wong said most of the residents whose homes abut the problem areas were informed of the project and have been understanding.
"What we're trying to do is protect the walls," she said. "In removing the trees we're preserving the channel and (residents') property value."
The channel runs behind Lisa Hillier's and Diane Tenuto's homes, and both said uprooting the trees would disrupt a habitat that has formed among foliage.
"There are a lot of animals that live out in the trees," Tenuto said. "They're what makes this area beautiful."
Hillier said she understands the work is necessary, but believes the cement is hazardous to the natural habitat along the creek.
"I would prefer if there were a natural creek," she said.
A natural creek is unlikely, Wong said, because it would require further sloping of the banks and would encroach on people's property.
"It's difficult to make a natural channel without taking out a lot of people's homes," she said.
The flood control district is considering replacing the lost trees, even though it is not required to do so.
"But it is going to cost us a lot of money to have that kind of a program," Wong said.
The district is looking to the city of
Some residents support the channel repair project as proposed.
"It's better than having a broken channel and flooding," said Jeff Leonard, a resident of
Lane Coulter, another
"This was built right," he said. "There's no sense in letting the trees tear it up." #
OROVILLE FACILITIES RELICENSING:
SBF funds first projects
Oroville Mercury Register – 8/8/07
By Mary Weston, staff writer
The Supplemental Benefits Fund steering committee selected the first projects to fund from the money promised to the community under Appendix B for relicensing of the Lake Oroville Dam.
After more than four hours of rating, ranking and talking, the SBF committee awarded $5,000 grants to seven of the 13 local applicants who asked for funding for programs, although one committee member questioned whether the money was being used as intended.
However, Bill Cochran of the Department of Water Resources, said the steering committee could use their own discretion in approving projects. Additionally, Cochran said the recreation master plan being developed for DWR's pending license to generate electricity at the Lake Oroville Dam had proposed beneficial programs, especially for youth.
"The plan hasn't been done yet, so you have a lot of people differing on what could be eligible at this time," Cochran said.
Committee Member Vene Thompson, a representative of the Feather River Recreation and Park District, said he had thought DWR and the water contractors intended the SBF to fund projects that benefited the community-projects DWR could put their name on.
Thompson said 50 years from now, when DWR is applying for another license and the programs are gone, the community will ask what DWR did for the community in the last relicensing, as people had asked of the last relicensing. Additionally, Thompson said he thought money from the SBF should be given to either a nonprofit or a governmental agency to oversee a project to ensure accountability of public funding.
Thompson said the SBF committee should stick with the original plan for waterfront development the city developed for relicensing negotiations, and the projects approved should be in the realm of that plan with a nexus to the
However, the city and Cochran, the DWR representative on the committee, overruled Thompson's objections.
City Administrator Sharon Atteberry said the water contractors and DWR had intended the SBF as a regional fund, and the projects did not need a nexus to the river.
City Attorney Dwight Moore said DWR and the water contractors had wanted to make the money available for other projects because they thought the original waterfront plan might not be developed.
Although people disagree about the purpose of the fund, it will bring $1 million a year for projects over the licensing period if the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issues a license for 50 years. Additionally, when the licensed is issued, DWR has promised to provide grant writing assistance to bring in additional SBF funding. The money comes from the California Department of Water Resources and the State Water Contractors.
The committee voted to fund Oroville Gone Wild for activities only, a program proposed by Judy Johnson, to take Southside Oroville youth to the
"A lot of kids have never been to
Johnson said she would recruit kids to the program by going door-to-door, as she grew up in Southside and knows the neighborhood. She said they would also have booths at events and go to schools to tell about the program.
Johnson said the program is proposed by the "Tree of Hope Foundation," a grass roots group that does not have nonprofit status. The group she said has five other members besides herself, but she declined to identify those members when asked who they are.
The committee also funded a community pottery class proposed by Artists of River Town (ART), which formed two and a half years ago and received a nonprofit status this year. Freda Flint, of ART, said they have a board of directors and their names are available. They have sponsored art shows locally at events and in the state theater. This year, they partnered with Feather River Recreation and Park District to teach pottery during Kid's Art Day, as well as other art classes. They will be holding the pottery classes in the court building on
The committee also voted to fund an Oroville YMCA swimming pool repair project, equipment for the Oroville Library conference room, Oroville Fire Department Water rescue equipment and landscaping for the "Chinese Building"/ Bolt Antique Tool Museum.
Four voting members of the SBF committee made the decisions: John Allen and Thompson, FRRPD board representatives, and Sue Corkin and Jim Prouty, City Council representatives with City representative Mayor Steve Jernigan absent. However, Jernigan sent his rating and ranking of each project.
The SBF projects require matching funds and must be completed before the applicants apply for reimbursement from the SBF.
Bob Sharkey, general manager of FRRPD, said this is the first time the committee had gone through the funding process, so it was new to everyone, but he thought they did a good job.
"It's good to see people get money for projects," Sharkey said.
The SBF committee will consider the funding applications submitted for large projects and economic development projects at a meeting to be scheduled at a later time. #
http://www.orovillemr.com/news/ci_6568654
IMPERIAL IRRIGATION DISTRICT MANAGEMENT:
IID expects new general manager by year’s end
By Darren Simon, staff writer
It could take at least three months to find candidates for Imperial Irrigation District’s general manager post, IID officials said Tuesday during a board meeting.
It could take even longer to select the new GM.
Three months is the time headhunting firms proposing to lead the GM search at a cost of up to $50,000 say they will need to present possible candidates.
No firm has been hired yet to conduct such a search. A firm could be hired later this month.
Discussion of the GM search Tuesday included a recommendation by Director John Pierre Menvielle that a citizen’s committee take part in any interview process.
“People in the community want input,” Menvielle said.
No action was taken on his recommendation.
The district finds itself in a search for a GM after the recent 4-1 vote to fire Charles Hosken, whose firing came after he served less than two years of a three-year contract.
Menvielle cast the lone vote against firing Hosken.
Other board members have been mum on their reasons for terminating his contract due to a nondisparagement clause in Hosken’s contract.
But in a recent interview Director Anthony Sanchez said the board wasn’t happy with the pace of change in the district.
Board members also have raised concerns with the flow of information to the board and with the level of fiscal controls in the district.
Hosken’s firing came in the wake of an investigation into a flawed energy trading program that cost the district millions of dollars, but board members have said Hosken’s termination was not specifically tied to that issue.
A day after Hosken was fired, Assistant General Manager Elston Grubaugh was named acting GM, and there was no move Tuesday to change that status.
This is Grubaugh’s second stint as acting GM. He served in that role for six months before Hosken was hired.
Board President Stella Mendoza on Tuesday said the board has begun the search process and she added the board is taking the search “very seriously.”
“It is my hope by the end of the year we will have a new general manager aboard,” she said. #
http://www.ivpressonline.com/articles/2007/08/08/news/news03.txt
Editorial: Santa Clara Valley Water District appointee right choice for change
With Patrick Kwok's move from the Cupertino City Council to the Santa Clara Valley Water District board, the city's loss will be the county's gain.
Kwok was chosen to fill the seat vacated by Greg Zlotnick, who was snagged for a paid district staff position by CEO Stan Williams. The hire was an outrage because Williams didn't seek other applicants for the $184,000 job or tell the rest of the board he was hiring their colleague.
But it may turn out for the best. Finally the district, with its $364 million operating budget, may get the public scrutiny it deserves. The board has tightened hiring rules, passed a revolving-door ordinance to prevent other board members from jumping directly to paid positions - and welcomed Kwok to its ranks.
Kwok has the perfect background. He's an engineer who worked for 23 years at
The water district is a progressive environmental organization, appropriate for this valley. But it probably can do the same good work with fewer people: Its salary costs have doubled between 2000 and 2006, shooting to $99 million. Until this month, when the board took greater control over hiring, Williams had carte blanche to fill 33 jobs like Zlotnick's without consulting the board.
It's a credit to the elected board members that they appointed Kwok, who could make things uncomfortable by critiquing the organization they've been running. It would have been easy to name a crony instead and ride out this storm.
Normally bailing on one elected office for another isn't particularly noble. Voters expect their choices to finish out the term.
But
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