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Ann Becker
RVSD should inform its ratepayers of the terms of the proposed settlement agreement
The majority of community members believe that the Ross Valley Sanitary District Board of Directors should inform its ratepayers of the terms of the proposed settlement agreement BEFORE it votes on the matter in closed session.
The RVSD Board will meet this week in closed session to make decisions that could impact growth and development at San Quentin Prison in the future.
A mini-San Francisco at the 101/Larkspur/Richmond bridge intersections? How about 2100 housing units, a “world class “transportation hub,” and a side order of treated wastewater for your household?
In 2012, public outcry stopped the Supervisors’ Consent Calendar PDA designation for the San Quentin peninsula, a product of backroom meetings, closed sessions, and Staff negotiations to evade open hearings as required by the Brown Act.
Now, a proposed give-away of Ross Valley Sanitary District’s assets and its sphere of influence over the San Quentin peninsula advances this massive development, with grave consequences for Marin.
As recently as April 8, Congressman Jared Huffman informed a Rotary crowd in San Rafael about the “vibrant” possibilities for mega-development blanketing the San Quentin peninsula.
New State legislation promotes unrestricted growth. Sewer capacity is one of the last recognized means for locals to assure appropriate development. The agency that controls San Quentin sewer service via a contract with the prison controls development of the SQ peninsula. Since 1981, that has been RVSD.
In 2012, CMSA (Central Marin Sanitation Agency), with a no bid process by the prison, poached that contract, but continues to use RVSD’s pipes to collect and transport SQ wastewater to San Rafael. RVSD sued for breach of contract, trespass, and an annual loss of $1.2M. That loss will have to be made up by rate hikes on RVSD's ratepayers.
When CMSA was established in 1985 as a JPA, it was confined to being a treatment facility only, not a sewage collection agency. RVSD is a collection agency. To exacerbate matters, as a JPA, the fees that CMSA charges our sanitary districts, RVSD included, are exempt from review or appeal by any other agency.
Despite RVSD’s winning a decisive hearing in Sonoma Superior Court that bolsters the District’s suit, subsequently, RVSD Director, Tom Gaffney, has held private backroom closed door settlement meetings with the Defendants. Supervisor Katie Rice, who represents one of the defendants in the suit, the County of Marin, mediated the matter, despite the clear conflict of interest and her lack of any experience as a mediator. RVSD’s adversaries in the suit know the settlement terms, but the public does not, a clear violation of public trust.
And the kicker? The proposed MMWD-EBMUD Intertie will enable the importation of desal to Marin, thereby evading a public vote on a desalination plant. [The proposed Intertie pipeline will also enable water flow from Marin to other areas, thus rendering Marin even less water-self-sufficient.]
Before giving away the store, RVSD should inform its ratepayers of the terms of the proposed settlement agreement at its April 22 meeting BEFORE it votes on the matter in closed session outside the public's eyes.