Modesto, Ceres, Turlock spar over water

Turlock and Ceres have rejected Modesto’s request to delay a project to build a water treatment plant by the Tuolumne River in order to discuss cheaper alternatives.

This came out of Thursday’s contentious meeting of the Stanislaus Regional Water Authority, the joint powers authority the three cities formed in 2011 to build a plant that would serve Turlock, Ceres and south Modesto. The SRWA board consists of Turlock Mayor Gary Soiseth, Ceres Mayor Chris Vierra and Modesto Councilman Bill Zoslocki.

While Soiseth and Vierra did not agree to a delay, that’s what they got because Zoslocki would not vote for proposals to push the project forward. It takes a 3-0 vote to approve a proposal. Those proposals included spending about $542,000 for legal and environmental services, scheduling tours of other water treatment plants and inviting other communities to join the SRWA.

Vierra accused Zoslocki several times of holding the project hostage. He also asked that at a December meeting board members discuss Modesto’s departure from the authority. Vierra said he does not want a repeat of Thursday’s meeting, which he called frustrating, and he objected to what he considered Modesto thinking it knows best for its neighboring cities.

“I don’t harbor any ill will against them,” Vierra said after the meeting. “But just don’t hold us up. I just want them to come forward and tell us whether they are in or whether they are out.” Ceres and Turlock officials have said they are committed to the project and could look for other partners if Modesto leaves.

Zoslocki had been instructed by his City Council to ask his fellow SRWA board members to postpone the votes until December to give Modesto time to talk to the other cities about alternatives to the plant, whose cost was estimated several years ago at $150 million to $200 million. Zoslocki also had been instructed to vote “no” on the proposals if Soiseth and Vierra declined his offer.

Modesto officials have declined to provide details about those alternatives but say they are less expensive than building the water treatment plant.

After Zoslocki said one of Modesto’s concerns was financial, Soiseth amended the proposals that cost money so Ceres and Turlock would cover Modesto’s costs. But Zoslocki continued to vote “no,” after a brief recess in which he conferred with city officials. Soiseth said that while he and his two colleagues represent cities, they also are expected to act independently and in the best interests of the region while sitting on the SRWA board.

The project is critical for Ceres and Turlock because they rely solely on wells for drinking water. The project would lessen that reliance and improve water quality at a time when groundwater is stressed by four years of drought. Modesto is in better shape than many Northern San Joaquin Valley cities because it has two sources: wells and river water.

The SRWA reached a deal with the Turlock Irrigation District in July to have the district supply the plant with as much as 30,000 acre-feet of river water annually. The plant is proposed to be built near the Tuolumne River and southeast of Hughson.

Modesto is concerned about the project’s cost and says a new analysis shows it will not need the water from the proposed plant once the Modesto Irrigation District completes an expansion this year of its water treatment plant. That plant provides much of the city with drinking water from the Tuolumne River.

Modesto also says its share of the SRWA plant would be at least $55 million while it can spend $20 million to undertake its own water infrastructure improvements to serve south Modesto.

Utilities Director Larry Parlin reminded the SRWA board Thursday that he and other Modesto officials had informed them in early September that the analysis was showing Modesto would not need the proposed plant. He added Modesto officials have been talking with their counterparts in Ceres and Turlock.

This story was originally published October 29, 2015 at 5:08 PM with the headline "Modesto, Ceres, Turlock spar over water."