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The proper treatment ofstormwater, accordingto new regional
re-
quirements, is coming at ahigh cost to the city of Clare-mont
and other local cities.Claremont officials estimatemore than
$400,000 will beneeded to comply with a newset of stringent
guidelines putinto place by the Los AngelesRegional Water Quality
board.And thats only for starters.
The Claremont City Council Tuesdayunanimously approved moving
forwardwith plans to adhere to the water qualityboards new rulesnot
because ofagreement with the stricter standards,but because they
believed there was no
other choice.We either pay the fines and fees [im-posed by the
water quality board] or wepay the consultants, said Councilmem-ber
Sam Pedroza.
The newly adopted Municipal Sepa-rate Storm Sewer System Permit
(MS4)further regulates the treatment ofstormwater runoff that
recedes into thewaters of the San Gabriel Valley Water-shed,
providing for water conservationamong many other benefits.
In order to comply with the new un-funded mandates, cities must
compile areport detailing their plans to complywith these stricter
rules.
Among many concerns, local offi-
cials have voiced frustration that allcities are being held to
the same strictstandards, regardless of their positionalong the
watershed. Claremontmuchmore upstream, resulting in fewer
pollu-tantsmust comply in the same way asthe beach cities, where
most of the pol-lutants are found. Acting City EngineerLoretta
Mustafa emphasized the finan-cial burden that results.
She also noted the financial demandsof the preliminary
consultant work toput the water quality boards guidelinesinto
place. A consultant was needed toadvise as to which water
managementplan the city should adopt, yet moreconsultants are
needed to draft the dif-
ferent water management plansbothfor the San Gabriel Valley
Watershed aswell as the Santa Ana River Water-shedand a part-time
consultant willbe needed to manage all the plans.These consultant
fees plus preliminarytasks associated with water manage-ment for
2013-2014 is estimated at al-most $500,000.
To combat the financial impact, theClaremont City Councilhas
directed staff to joinforces with the cities of
La Verne, Pomona and San Dimas toprepare a group water
managementplan. It is hoped this joint venture willhelp save money
for all cities involved.
While council members recognizedthat seeking out grants and
other finan-cial help might be worth exploring inthe future, they
momentarily concededto the water boards feesdirectingstaff to draft
a notice of the citys intentto complyin order to avoid yet more
costs. Despite the financial burdens,closer examination of the
citys runoffcould provide the opportunity for poten-tial
environmental gains, noted Coun-cilmember Joe Lyons.
We should turn this challenging op-portunity into creative
solutions, Mr.Lyons said. Especially with regards towater and our
location, it does offer usopportunities to come up with
someout-of-the-box thinking that might serveour long term
sustainability needs.
Discussion on litigation continuesThe Claremont City Council
dis-
cussed ongoing litigation between thecity and longtime Village
eatery Pizza
N Such in closed session prior to thecouncils
regularly-scheduled meeting.
Mike and Sue Verbal, owners ofPizza N Such, recently filed a
com-plaint against the city of Claremont al-leging city officials
violated anagreement made in regard to more than$150,000 of in-lieu
parking fees paid bythe Verbals to the city.
The Verbals believe the city misusedthe money, which they
believed was in-tended to pay for development of park-ing for use
by customers dining at theirrestaurant in the Village. Mr.
Verbalsays he later learned his money wasused for the 4-story
parking structure
just west of the Packing House on FirstStreet in Village
West.
City officials, denying any wrongdo-ing in the case, remain
tight-lipped overthe lawsuit: We have given our lawyerdirection,
Mayor Opanyi Nasiali statedon behalf of the council after
returningfrom closed session.
No other comments were presentedfrom the council, the citys
attorney ormembers of the audience.
Club islands still under reviewCity officials postponed further
re-
view of the Claremont Club neighbor-hood hardscape, despite an
expected citycouncil discussion on Tuesday night.
The city council is being tasked with thefinal decision on
whether or not to leaveseveral Club islands on Davenport,Elmhurst
and Stanislaus Circle intact.
City Manager Tony Ramos an-nounced the postponement, stating
in-formation received from a law firmprior to the council meeting
required fur-ther review. It is unknown when the itemwill be back
on the councils agenda.
Im not sure how long its going totake to get the information
that I need inorder to validate what [the lawyers] aresuggesting,
Mr. Ramos said.
Beth [email protected]
Claremont COURIER/Friday, June 14, 2013 3
It started on May 20 in a letter to Mr.Ramos where Mr. Smith,
the author of aneconomic study thatsought to outline
costsassociated with the citysproposed purchase of the water
company,requested that Mr. Ramos retract state-ments made in his
April 25 mailer to res-idents.
In the April 25 mailer, Mr. Ramos chal-lenged the objectivity of
Mr. Smithsstudy, noting that the economic study wascommissioned and
paid for by GoldenState, and thus it says exactly what the
for-profit company wants it to say.
Mr. Smith took offense to the sugges-tion and in a letter to Mr.
Ramos assertedthere was no basis for your statement at-tacking the
credibility of my work.
Mr. Smith went on to write, Yourstatement claiming the study was
con-trolled by Golden State provides a trou-bling insight into your
own value system.The city, undoubtedly, has invested tax-payer
dollars for consultants to providereports on many different issues.
Does
the city really tell its consultants that theirreports must say
exactly what the citywants it to say? If so, that would be
un-ethical.
He gave a May 24 deadline for the cityto respond to his request
for retraction ofwhat Mr. Smith deemed as an irrespon-sible and
inflammatory statement.
On behalf of the city of Claremont,Kendall H. MacVey of Best,
Best &Krieger, the citys law firm, responded inwriting to Mr.
Smith on May 24.
The April 25 letter simply notes whatyou have acknowledged, Mr.
MacVeywrote, that the report provided to thepublic by Golden State
Water Companywas a report paid for by Golden State
Water Company. The letter does not ac-cuse you of unethical
behavior.
Mr. MacVey references an op-edpieceauthored by Mr. Smith and
pub-lished in the Inland Valley Daily Bul-letinwhere Mr. Smith
emphasizes whathe sought to prove in his economic study:A city
takeover of the water companywill have negative consequences for
res-idents for generations to come.
The city stands by Mr. Ramos assess-
ment, Mr. MacVey said, and does not feelthat his remarks warrant
a retraction. MrMacVey also notes that Mr. Smith seemsto be acting
as an advocate for one sideof the public discussion.
The volley continued on June 10 withthe submittal of another
letter from MrSmith, which proclaims that MrMacVeys meager attempts
to change thesubject are not at all satisfactory. His re-sponse is
nonsense.
The letter includes a public records re-quest asking for all
written work productof any and all city consultants you re-viewed
in reaching your conclusion thatStratecons study says exactly what
the
for-profit company wants it to say.
A total of 6 requests for documents arelisted, each relating to
meetings, corre-spondence, emails and letters, whichmight support
Mr. Ramos suggestionthat the study says exactly what the for-profit
company wants it to say.
Mr. Smith says he intends to take allnecessary steps to protect
his reputation
Stratecon will pursue a resolution toits satisfaction, either by
a written formalretraction by the city or by the legalmechanisms
available to hold officialsaccountable for their actions, Mr.
Smithsaid.
As far as the public records request,Mr. Ramos says the city
will respondappropriately and under the guidelines
of the law. Kathryn [email protected]
Stormwater treatment proves to be costly endeavorCITY NEWS
The battle between Claremont and Golden State Water hastrickled
into unchartered territory as Claremont CityManager Tony Ramos and
Rodney Smith, president of
Stratecon Inc., campaign to discredit one another through
ongo-ing correspondence.
Sideshow ignites in the
battle with Golden State
Final plans being made forcitys Fourth of July celebration
The 2013 Independence Day Com-mittee invites all Claremont
residents toenter the annual House Decorating Con-test. Decorations
must be outdoors andvisible from the street. Judging will takeplace
on June 23 and will be based onspirit, appearance, and
creativity.
The Grand Prize Winner will receiverecognition at the pre-parade
reception,a special place in the parade, fireworkstickets and an
American Flag that flewover the Capitol. Entry forms are avail-able
at www.Claremont4th.org.
The Fourth of July Celebration is a
time-honored tradition in the city ofClaremont. The celebration
consists ofa 5K run, pancake breakfast, flag rais-ing, festival
area with games, a paradeand a Fireworks Sky Show.
Four time slots remain open between1:20 and 2:20 p.m. for the T.
WillardHunter Speakers Corner. Speakers arelimited to 8 minutes of
oration on anytopic of interest. No foul language, nonudity and no
promotion of commercialgoods or services is allowed.
To sign up, email Karen Rosenthal [email protected].
WATER
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