Candidate for
Mayor; City of Pismo Beach

Bill Rabenaldt Member of the Pismo Beach City Council 791 Price Street #187 Pismo Beach CA 93449 (805) 773-4473 H (pismobill@charter.net

October 2, 2008

TO: Members of the Pismo Beach City Council & Residents of the City of Pismo Beach

RE: Rabenaldt Water Allocation Program (RWAP) Author: Bill Rabenaldt

Introduction:

The Central Coast of California is by definition a "desert". As we continue to grow and prosper, the demand for water will outweigh our ability to deliver this precious resource to our residents and business communities. To date, there are several options being considered by our Sister Cities Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach and the Nipomo Community Services District to provide water for the long term. Desalination appears to be high on their agenda but there are those in Sacramento that insist this will never happen on their watch. Other communities like Paso Robles, Templeton, Atascadero, San Luis Obispo, Morro Bay and Cayucos are also exploring distributing water through a massive pipe and pumping system between Lake Nacimiento and these respective communities.

I don't believe anyone can argue that water and the ability to provide water in the future is going to become a major hurdle. In years past, State Water was offered to the Central Coast of California but not all communities were able to see the long term benefit. Those that did participate are doing quite well. Others are scrambling to overcome their potential shortages. But, even this source of water is in jeopardy. Environmental concerns over the well being of the "delta Smelt" and other species are causing the State of California to rethink their distribution in favor of these concerns. Should the closure of this valuable resource be terminated or greatly reduced, millions of gallons of potable water will diminished or lost forever.

Pismo Beach City Council Page 2 RWAP Proposal submitted by Bill Rabenaldt

History:

In November of 2003, I introduced to the City Council a proposal to demand that all new construction and/or remodels of 50% or greater, install an internal water recirculation system (purple piping) to reuse the grey water generated on site to water the landscaping, wash cars and many other uses. This relieves the City of Pismo Beach's potable water delivery system from meeting these demands. Based upon research and published data, only 30% of potable water is consumed in the home or business and 70% is for "other" uses. I was even able to convince Larry Persons, Developer for the Los Robles Del Mar project, to adopt this principle if it were applied city-wide.

As a member of Zone 3 representing the City of Pismo Beach, I opposed our inclusion in the Santa Maria Basin law suits and fought to keep our water "ours". In that capacity, I also opposed our City's inclusion in the greatly anticipated Nacimiento Pipeline based upon cost and need.

As a member of the Pismo Beach City Council, I opposed Wells 9 & 10 being used as a local resource to supply water to Los Robles Del Mar. I also opposed a hotel and residential retrofit proposal by Los Robles Del Mar, to ensure their project more water. These additional water resources should be left in tact for our residents and business.

I have publicly suggested that low flow toilets, shower heads, bath fixtures and the installations of Cisterns be considered for our residents benefit only and be introduced to the IBC and by local ordinance.

I have asked that the City Council consider a tertiary head be installed prior to the outfall line which currently goes to Oceano. This is my proposal.

RWAP Proposal:

The City of Pismo Beach generates between 1.6 and 1.8 million gallons a day of level 2 affluent (nearly 6 acre feet a day or 2,190 acre feet per year). We then ship this water to Oceano and eventually to the ocean outfall line. This is an extreme waste of water that originates on shore from Lake Lopez, State Water and Aquifers. This water MUST be captured and re-used for optimum efficiency and reduce our potable water usage. We can accomplish by:

Pismo Beach City Council Page 3 RWAP Proposal submitted by Bill Rabenaldt

• Take a hard look at the documents we signed with the State of California to receive State Water.
• Take this document and amend it to our specifications to become a local purveyor of non-potable water.
• Take steps necessary to find out the cost of installing a tertiary head on our system. The estimated cost is $5 million.
• Take steps necessary to approximate the cost of installing a water delivery network to Price Canyon, Los Robles Del Mar and the cities of Arroyo Grande and Grover Beach and CalTrans.
• Offer this agreement to developers that are looking to annex into our community and, much like State Water, agree to pay for this infrastructure over the next 20 years. This is in opposition to increased Development Impact Fees to pay for the infrastructure.
• Offer this modified State Water Agreement to the Cities of Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach, Nipomo, CalTrans and the development community looking to annex into our City.
• The purpose of buying into this agreement would be to lower the use of potable water usage by as much as 70%. Historic research tells us that residential usage of potable water reflects 30% for consumption and 70% for all "other" uses like irrigation.
• I propose opening a window for purchasing this water for 1 year or until this allocation is "sold out". The City of Pismo Beach will take an allocation off the top as determined by the City Council and the remainder will be available for purchase.
• The residents of the City of Pismo Beach will receive this benefit but at no cost to the rate payer.
• The City of Pismo Beach would then take this additional income (due to the much lower use of potable water) and pay the individual water bills for our residents and business. The remainder of this income would be used for paying down our debt on our sewer system, City Hall, Dinosaur Caves and debt in general.
• This proposal will contribute millions of dollars to the City's economy over time as the infrastructure is paid by others and there will be a cost of water and water delivery to our subscribers eventually.
• I anticipate charging nothing for water to those that sign onto this project until the debt service on the infrastructure is paid. Those that do not enter into this agreement with the City of Pismo Beach and would like to purchase this water in the future would pay a much higher price for this water and would pay penalties for their inclusion. In addition, they would be required to pay a pro-rated cost for the infrastructure to relieve the financial burden placed on the initial investors which then be returned to them in the form of lower annual payments. WRAP Proposal Page 4 Submitted by: Bill Rabenaldt

How do we finance this proposal?

The City of Pismo Beach will acquire a 20 year loan (bond) at the lowest rate available. The cost of this loan will be born by the contracting parties with security for this loan amount established. An example would be; if the cost for this public works project is $15 million and 5 contractors enter into this agreement, their individual commitment over 20 years would be $3 million.

Once this note is completely paid, a cost of this water will be established for those that initially participated in this opportunity and another rate for any others that we may be able to accommodate at that time.

NEW INFORMATION

I have promoted this proposal to several organizations. All agree it makes sense but have also contributed more information for us all to consider. This is an example of how communication can be of benefit to all.

No one that I know of wants to continue to dump processed sewage into the ocean. If the City of Pismo Beach can install a tertiary head on our plant that provides another level of purification we can do the following;

1. Redirect 1.2 million gallons a DAY of water away from the ocean.
2. Use piping to bring this water to Price Canyon
3. Create a wildlife preserve 4 Re-activate the aquifers through natural percolation
5. Have the development community pay for the infrastructure.

The more we discuss our alternatives, the closer we come to a solution. It is time to take a stand and stop polluting our environment. What are we teaching the next generation? When we die, what is the model left behind for others to follow?

Respectfully submitted,

Bill Rabenaldt, Member of the Pismo Beach City Council