MINUTES

• Tony Linegar, Mendocino County Assistant Agricultural Commissioner, Member of County West Nile Virus Prevention Committee -
  
• Special Presentation on West Nile Virus. Mr. Linegar provided handouts on the virus to those present. He stated to date there were 550 human cases in California. Of those with symptoms, 181 developed West Nile fever. He clarified that contrary to popular opinion, the flu-like symptoms were severe, and so far there have been 15 deaths. The time lapse from being bitten and showing symptoms is 5 to 15 days. In Mendocino County there have been one horse and six bird cases. The best time to attack the mosquitoes is at the larval stage, as with mosquito fish, which are being aggressively distributed. He acknowledged there was not a vector mosquito control spraying program in place in the County. If a vector district were formed, it would carry an assessment cost for residents.
  
  Mr. Linegar then took various questions from the audience. He stated that the two reservoirs are probably not big mosquito sources due to mosquito predators such as dragonflies. He described a "mosquito donut" made of sawdust impregnated with BT which can be purchased at the farm supplies to help alleviate mosquitoes. He said BT should not affect birds or mammals and can be sprayed on vegetables. Mosquito season lasts until first frost. He advised that it was not necessary to report dead birds because once a positive test has been found on a bird within a zip code, no more need to be tested. President Orth thanked Mr. Linegar for presenting this information to the community.
  
  
• District General Manager Mike Chapman: Report to the Community on Potential Water Sources/Storage Methods and on Future Growth. General Manager Chapman stated he wished to place before the public the realistic options for new water sources. He explained the District is currently doing exploratory wells, and that we are also investigating the options of a new "rubber dam/spillway." This technology, if approved by the Division of Dam Safety, would allow more flexibility to raise the dam when needed, and not be tied to a specific date of April 1 for raising splashboards each year. A third realistic option is the dredging option. However, in a recent meeting held with CA Fish & Game it was obvious that it may be very difficult to get the required permits through all of the various agencies, because the 30 years of sedimentation has created a "wetlands." Despite these obstacles the dredging option should still be pursued, and core drilling for a soils report would be done in the near future.
  
  General Manager Chapman felt the community needed to look at the serious obstacles to building a third dam, and instead we needed to try to modify the 1982 water rights application to raise Lake Emily 15 feet, and include other options as well, such as off-site water storage facilities. Some of the third dam obstacles include CA Fish & Game and the issue of a dam being built on an on-site fishery stream (Willits Creek) with Federally listed salmon species; raising the floodplain itself due to a 2,400 acre-foot reservoir; and that the construction toe area of the proposed dam is one of the worst slide areas in Brooktrails.
  
  President Orth confirmed that a boring operation had been done some years ago on a proposed site for the third dam, and the boring caused a landslide. He stated the EIR for the third dam concluded there was major landslide potential within the canyon. He further suggested that CA Fish & Game opposes a third dam because it is an "in-stream reservoir." He described the "off-site storage facilities" being used in the East and stated the District does have the potential for such future covered storage-as for example the old soccer field on the west side of Willits Creek, and a quarry site on Sherwood Road. He stated that water is pumped into storage facilities. President Orth advised the water rights application should be modified as to use, but total requested acre-feet remain the same, so the District can look at "higher tech" options as they become available.
  
  Director Horrick asked if a new and expensive EIR will be required. President Orth stated the Specific Plan is tied to a third dam scenario, and therefore mentions 4,000lots as the expected development. He stated a Proposition 218 election would be used to finance any infrastructure, but that cost estimates / EIR would be needed before conducting an election. He also felt that the issue of a second access road is linked to further growth, and that should be covered in the same election.
  
  Director Pohlson said she would like the District to recognize when it is and is not reasonable to pursue an option. She stated that growth is not always the way to go if it is too costly, and the benefits are not for the residents who would have to pay for it. In response to her query, General Manager Chapman stated the estimate of increased capacity for raising Lake Emily would be approximately double according to a 1993 study. After some discussion of figures, she felt the District could increase to 2,000 homes if all went perfectly and Lake Emily was raised 15 feet (and no water obtained from wells). An audience member commented that the lot owners who wanted to build might contact lawyers if the District did nothing. Another audience member commented she wanted to be able to get tanks on the properties. President Orth stated there was not enough water in the county to fill those tanks and that it was the District's responsibility was to provide water. He stated that you could only drill wells on the large parcels in Sylvandale or Spring Creek.
  
  A third audience member asked what the SFR capability would be if Lake Emily were dredged and General Manager Chapman said about 1,200. If Lake Emily were raised 15 feet, it was consensed it would go to about 2,000. A resident said that if dredging were done it would come out of the property owners' pocket first, and asked about those who wanted to come in and build. President Orth said the dredging cost would be paid by present residents using the current water system because it was maintaining the lake to its present capacity. For adding capacity, those costs would be assessed by a Proposition 218 engineer who would assess each of the 6,000 lots in terms of the benefit it would receive. Each lot would have one vote. He stated vacant lot owners would pay more than a developed lot. He reiterated that the lake raising and second access road were companion projects and should be in the same election.
  
  Director Horrick inquired whether the proposed actions would allow some building to take place. General Manager Chapman responded that would depend on the success of the wells and reaching 1,500 SFRs. President Orth described the locations for the first three wells and stated that generally more water is found at higher elevations. He stated that Sherwood Road is a point where continental plates meet and that on one side fractured sandstone is present, which can hold water, and that on the other side of Sherwood it is "mélange," a combination of materials.
  
  Bob Whitney stated that Spring Creek is a subdivision within the Community Services District, with large lots and their own ground water rights. He stated that parcels to the west of the District also own their own ground water. He asked whether the District would consider allowing property owners who merged their Brooktrails lots into larger parcels to drill wells. He stated he felt the District should investigate that now and would not need an EIR for it, but could do it on the existing EIR and Specific Plan. District Counsel Neary responded that everyone who received a deed for Brooktrails subdivision from the Bank of California received the reservation of water rights condition. He stated that for the District, as a municipal purveyor, when it accesses groundwater, it uses groundwater throughout the District to the extent that it does not impair current groundwater users. He stated that if hypothesizing that there no reservation of water rights issue, and considering District policy in such a case, would the District want to create a policy to have development review authority over the development of wells, and to ensure that they are sufficient distance from a District sewer main.
  
  Dick Robie asked what the next steps were. President Orth responded that the initial well drilling was first, and General Manager Chapman said the rubber spillway was next. District Counsel Neary said there was another procedure, perhaps a "wild card," that essentially the gathering of new data from our stream gauge (Willits Creek) might create persuasive data to suggest to Department of Health Services to release more connections. He said Richard Estabrook understands the data better than anyone involved, and that this plan may or may not be possible.
  
  An audience member asked why using a concrete spill gate was not used instead. General Manager Chapman said that for whatever reason, the present dam water strike line was chosen at 1,567 with spill boards at the time of construction in 1972. President Orth said the District is in the process of negotiating for as much height for the rubber dam as possible. He clarified that raising Lake Emily 15 feet will involve total re-engineering of the dam. President Orth advised that the first well, next to the water plant, allowed determination of soil type as fractured sandstone. He stated it presently produces 6 gpm. Furthermore, the drilling at higher elevations is more expensive, and since well drilling is a gamble, cost is a factor. He stated that wells also provide backup security in case of poisoning of an open water source.
  
  Bob Whitney asked if a private property owner wanted to drill a well, with or without the District's knowledge or cooperation, if they then went and applied for a building permit, what would the District's position be. President Orth advised that the first thing you must do in getting a building permit is prove a water source, and that drilling a well by yourself would only get you in trouble. District Counsel Neary said he was not sure; he stated that an application for a building permit within a certain range of APNs has in the past required a "will serve" letter from Brooktrails. President Orth then asked if the District would then have the right to take eminent domain over that well; District Counsel Neary said yes. President Orth reiterated there was a restriction placed on every Brooktrails property prohibiting water development (Bank of California). District Counsel Neary said the Bank of California reserved water rights on all residential lots for the purpose of retaining its availability.
  
  President Orth asked for a Board discussion on the issue. He stated he believed the water rights application needed to be modified to reflect reality and be made a phased application. He postulated some special legislation from the state might be needed to do this. He stated that we first have to get back up to the 1,500 capacity that we have now, and the community will have to pay for that. He said that once that point is reached, then future growth could be assessed. Director Horrick said he supported the idea of off-stream storage in the future. General Manager Chapman confirmed that Fish & Game is positive about off-site storage facilities. Director Horrick said he was a strong advocate of orderly growth of the community. Director Ziady said she wanted the community to know about the options, that people are tearing down dams now and the possibility of a third dam for the District is very remote. She stated she wanted the community to know that developing these sources through a Proposition 218 election would be very expensive and that the lot owners would be assessing themselves this cost and needed to consider it. She further stated that as to groundwater, if multiple individual wells were allowed to pull down an aquifer, then the District would have big trouble. She stated she considered the aquifer a community resource. An audience member said he felt it was a bit late to have enough infrastructure to build out all 6,000 lots. Director Ziady stated the District would push forward as much as it could to develop water because people who own property have rights, but that the District can only do it as its financial condition will allow. If it acts unsoundly, the District won't qualify for the grants and loans on which it depends. An audience member asked if an aquifer can be recharged in a very wet year and various directors commented it could, and likewise deplete in a very dry year. An audience member asked for clarification of the complete reservation of rights in her deed as to water, gas, and minerals, and specifically about 50% of gas and minerals going to the District. President Orth said he felt the issue of granting some well rights within the District with potential ownership to the District should at least be explored. An audience member was advised there are about 1,500 homes now and that dredging alone will only bring us up to 1,200 SFRs. She asked if the dredging and the wells would bring us up to 1,500 and was advised this was a function of the water quantity in the wells. She asked what raising the reservoir 1 foot would do and was told that is only 10 days of water. Once again Director Pohlson said that if the Lake was dredged and raised 15 feet, that would allow 2,000 SFRs.
  
  President Orth stated direction was needed to staff to prepare options for an upcoming board meeting. General Manager Chapman stated he saw a three-stage process: (1) this community forum, (2) a public hearing for more discussion, with publicity in the newspaper, and (3) then bring it before the Board. District Counsel felt the proper sequence was that staff should develop some options to become talking points for that hearing, and not the other way around. .
  

• Brief Report on Recreation, Greenbelt & Conservation Committee Scope and Activities. Director Ziady gave a brief report on the direction of the Recreation/Greenbelt Committee. She first mentioned that the committee will give an extensive report at the next regular Board meeting on September 28, 2004. Director Ziady welcomed the public to attend the Recreation Greenbelt Committee meetings scheduled each month on the fourth Thursday. Director Ziady then updated the Board and public as to the series of meetings scheduled for review and discussion of the CFIP greenbelt management plan survey as follows: (1) preliminary draft at the October 26, 2004 regular Board meeting; (2) review of the draft at the October 28, 2004 Recreation/Greenbelt Committee meeting; (3) public discussion meeting scheduled for Saturday, October 30, 2004 at 10:00 a.m. at the Community Center, and (4) full report to the Board of Directors on December 14, 2004 regarding the greenbelt management plan. Director Ziady also gave a brief update on other activities the committee is researching regarding the Ohl Redwood Park. The Board thanked her for the report.
  
• Report on Specific Plan Advisory Committee Activities and Request for Public Input on Parking Ordinance Issue. Chairman Don Dussault from the Specific Plan Advisory Committee briefed the Board on some of the recent activities that they were working on. He suggested that the committee has now finished with the water storage tank issue and that staff could commence to construct policy on that matter. Director Pohlson then briefly addressed the issue of parking regulations in Brooktrails, particularly on collector streets, and the need for an ordinance; she distributed several handouts regarding parking and fire department access. The committee is still in the process of researching this and other issues. The Board was very receptive to her input and thanked her and Chair Dussault for their presentations.
  
• Report from Neighborhood Emergency Services Team (NEST). John Lemmer from NEST (Neighborhood Emergency Services Team) briefed the Board that the group has only five members at this time, and therefore has placed itself in a reserve mode.
  
• Brooktrails/Spring Creek/Sylvandale Fire Safe Council. Bob Whitney, President of the Brooktrails, Spring Creek, and Sylvandale Fire Safe Council, spoke to the Board about the confusion between the District and the Sheriff's Department regarding who was to prepare an updated evacuation plan / procedures for the District. While Mr. Whitney conceded that it was the responsibility of the Sheriff's Department to physically evacuate the community in face of a disaster, it was his position that it was Brooktrails Fire Department's responsibility to actually prepare such a preparedness plan. He also commented that he would like the District to prepare a neighborhood flyer with a map on one side, and evacuation basics on the other side. Mr. John Lemmer asked Mr. Whitney if Brooktrails, Spring Creek, and Sylvandale Fire Safe Council were operating under MESA (Mendocino Emergency Services Authority) authority. Mr. Whitney said no Mr. Dick Robie inquired Spring Creek and Sylvandale residents had actively volunteered as firefighters for the fire department. President Tony Orth interjected that, in the past, residents from those communities have volunteered as firefighters for this fire department.