The Mendocino County Fair Board was made aware of this Amended Agenda of the Board of Supervisors less than 30 hours before the meeting. This may be a violation of the Brown Act. Please explain why the public did not receive proper notice.
The AVCSD hasn't requested access for testing from the Board of Directors of the Fairgrounds. A very preliminary proposal for the fairgrounds site was brought to the Directors by AVCSD and the project engineer, and the Directors had some opportunity to express their concerns, of which there were many. The Directors voted that the board was not in favor at this time of siting the project at the fairgrounds as proposed - more information would be needed to address the concerns. It seems presumptuous for the AVCSD to be requesting access from the county before requesting from the Board of Directors of the fairgrounds.
We are the Board of Directors of the Anderson Valley Community Services District in Mendocino County. We are pursuing a municipal Clean Water (Sewer) system for Boonville, the principal town in our district. Boonville is a Severely Disadvantaged Community (SDAC) according to the American Community Survey.
Boonville has never had municipal water or sewer systems; since its inception in the 1870’s, the property owners have provided their own septic systems and wells. In 1974, a sanitary survey by Mendocino County Health was done on 146 of the town’s parcels and found problems with sewage effluent on the ground due to the high water table, and problems with close siting of wells and septic systems, resulting in contaminated well water. At that time, the study advised that these problems could only be addressed with a municipal sewer system.
In the 1980s, when most communities who did not already have municipal systems were provided with sewer systems, Boonville again, for whatever reason, opted out. This left Boonville as the only community of its size in Mendocino County without a municipal system.
As the parcels in the Boonville corridor tend to be small, problems have continued with siting septic systems and wells. Most of the 50’ frontage parcels are out of compliance (developed before lot size ordinances) and have no space to remedy failing septic systems. In 2016, the District did a blind study of 24 wells in the most densely populated parcels and found alarming results of E Coli and nitrates contamination. Installing both municipal systems, Drinking Water and Clean Water, will alleviate the contamination issues and will also allow better use of parcels for providing housing.
In 2015, we approached the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) Financing Division, and were able to secure two $500,000 planning grants for both systems: Drinking Water and Clean Water. We have been provisionally approved for construction grants of $19 million for the Drinking Water and $16 million for the Clean Water projects. We hired Brelje & Race Engineers for the planning process. At this time, we are continuing efforts to identify feasible sites for the wastewater treatment plant and disposal. Once the sites are identified and the District is provided access, special studies will be conducted and the District will be able to complete its environmental analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). After completion of CEQA, the District can identify its preferred alternative site and develop our Rate Studies and activate our Drinking Water and Clean Water district powers. The District anticipates having the Proposition 218 votes in the coming year. If the systems are approved by the District voters, we are hoping to start the two-year construction process.
The Mendocino County Fair Board was made aware of this Amended Agenda of the Board of Supervisors less than 30 hours before the meeting. This may be a violation of the Brown Act. Please explain why the public did not receive proper notice.
The AVCSD hasn't requested access for testing from the Board of Directors of the Fairgrounds. A very preliminary proposal for the fairgrounds site was brought to the Directors by AVCSD and the project engineer, and the Directors had some opportunity to express their concerns, of which there were many. The Directors voted that the board was not in favor at this time of siting the project at the fairgrounds as proposed - more information would be needed to address the concerns. It seems presumptuous for the AVCSD to be requesting access from the county before requesting from the Board of Directors of the fairgrounds.
We are the Board of Directors of the Anderson Valley Community Services District in Mendocino County. We are pursuing a municipal Clean Water (Sewer) system for Boonville, the principal town in our district. Boonville is a Severely Disadvantaged Community (SDAC) according to the American Community Survey.
Boonville has never had municipal water or sewer systems; since its inception in the 1870’s, the property owners have provided their own septic systems and wells. In 1974, a sanitary survey by Mendocino County Health was done on 146 of the town’s parcels and found problems with sewage effluent on the ground due to the high water table, and problems with close siting of wells and septic systems, resulting in contaminated well water. At that time, the study advised that these problems could only be addressed with a municipal sewer system.
In the 1980s, when most communities who did not already have municipal systems were provided with sewer systems, Boonville again, for whatever reason, opted out. This left Boonville as the only community of its size in Mendocino County without a municipal system.
As the parcels in the Boonville corridor tend to be small, problems have continued with siting septic systems and wells. Most of the 50’ frontage parcels are out of compliance (developed before lot size ordinances) and have no space to remedy failing septic systems. In 2016, the District did a blind study of 24 wells in the most densely populated parcels and found alarming results of E Coli and nitrates contamination. Installing both municipal systems, Drinking Water and Clean Water, will alleviate the contamination issues and will also allow better use of parcels for providing housing.
In 2015, we approached the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) Financing Division, and were able to secure two $500,000 planning grants for both systems: Drinking Water and Clean Water. We have been provisionally approved for construction grants of $19 million for the Drinking Water and $16 million for the Clean Water projects. We hired Brelje & Race Engineers for the planning process. At this time, we are continuing efforts to identify feasible sites for the wastewater treatment plant and disposal. Once the sites are identified and the District is provided access, special studies will be conducted and the District will be able to complete its environmental analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). After completion of CEQA, the District can identify its preferred alternative site and develop our Rate Studies and activate our Drinking Water and Clean Water district powers. The District anticipates having the Proposition 218 votes in the coming year. If the systems are approved by the District voters, we are hoping to start the two-year construction process.