OROVILLE — A study on a pipe to carry water from Paradise to Chico will be back before the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday.
The $144,000 study to see if the project was feasible was first approved on a 4-1 vote by the supervisors on Sept. 10.
Half the cost would be paid out of a $1.1 million Proposition 1 grant the county received to study ways to reduce reliance on groundwater, as required by a recent state law.
The other half of the cost would be split between the Paradise Irrigation District and the California Water Service Co.
But Chico Supervisor Debra Lucero said Oct. 8 she wanted to rescind her vote because Cal Water hadn’t provided copies of reports the contractor, West Yost Associates, had done for the utility earlier.
The matter came up Oct. 22. At that meeting, Cal Water Chico and Oroville Division Manager George Barber said the reports would be provided. The matter was continued until Tuesday’s meeting.
County officials received the reports on Friday.
The project is under consideration because it would reduce Cal Water’s dependence on groundwater, reducing stress on the aquifer. It would also provide a buyer for PID water, something needed for the district to survive.
The board will actually be considering three items: the contract with West Yost, a cost-sharing agreement between the county, PID and Cal Water, and a budget adjustment.
The adjustment — basically adding $144,000 to the Department of Water and Resource Conservation budget — is the sticking point, because changing the budget requires a four-fifths vote of the board.
Chico Supervisor Tami Ritter opposed the study on Sept. 10; if Lucero votes no the budget can’t be changed and the county would have to cancel the contract.
The matter is a timed item, set for 9:45 a.m. Tuesday.
The board meeting begins at 9 a.m. in the Board of Supervisors Chambers in the county Administration Building, 25 County Center Drive in Oroville.
Other items
The board has several items relating to the Camp Fire, including naming Nov. 8 Camp Fire Remembrance Day, and asking people to observe a moment of silence at 11:08 a.m. that day every year.
Supervisors will also be asked to add $2.2 million to extend a contract with North Valley Catholic Social Services to provide counseling services and training through Feb. 29, 2020.
Accepting a grant of $100,000 to set up a community service center in Paradise is also on the agenda.
Other actions before the board include:
- Declaring a project complete to decommission the septage ponds at the Neal Road Recycling and Waste Facility, and approve several contract changes that added 31 percent to the original cost estimate. The final cost was $3.1 million.
- Approving a $300,000 budget adjustment to provide generators at fire stations at Kelly Ridge, Palermo and Bangor in light of planned public safety power shut-offs.
- Adding $108,000 to the construction contract for a new radio tower at the sheriff’s substation in Chico, to cover additional grounding that was found to be necessary. The new total for construction is $703,000, with the total project costing $1.1 million.
- Approving $128,000 to replace three District Attorney’s Office vehicles.
- Placing liens on three properties. Two involve marijuana grows on adjacent properties in Feather Falls, in which the owner agreed to a settlement, then stopped making payments. They are for $55,652 and $47,842. The third lien, for $5,445, is for removing junk from a yard in Biggs.
- Appointing two members to the governing board of Butte Choice Energy, the electrical power buying entity being created by the county and the city of Chico.
The full agenda is available on the counties buttecounty.net website or at https://tinyurl.com/buttesupes1105.
