Amador County – The Amador Water Agency learned that two supervisors supported discussing the Gravity Supply Line project, and that the agency has about $1 million in cash.

General Manager Gene Mancebo told the board last week he had spoken to Amador County Supervisors John Plasse and Chairman Brian Oneto, who “want to see us proceed with the GSL” and support having the full Board of Supervisors consider a request to push back a due date for the agency to repay a county loan of Water Development Funds.

Mancebo said he met October 13th with Oneto, Plasse and county staff and discussed the possibility of pushing back the due date of the $900,000 loan. He said the agency wants to change the due date from December 31, to August 31 of 2011. He said they supported taking that question to the full board of supervisors for consideration.

Finance Manager Mike Lee said the agency has about $1 million in cash. He showed the board budget assumptions for the remainder of the fiscal year, with and without the GSL and its USDA grant and loan.

Lee said the county loan would be assumed to be deferred and renegotiated. The GSL in this fiscal year would take about $320,000 to get the project out to bid, buy easements and give a notice to proceed.

Lee said money coming from USDA for the Gravity Supply Line would allow the agency to pay back the county and reimburse all of its own sunk-costs.

Mancebo said they had already spent $1,145,000 on the GSL, and “all of that would come back in the way of reimbursement, above the $900,000.”

Director Don Cooper said it would take $70,000 to go out for bids. Another $250,000 would get them to the “finish line,” if they decide to proceed.

President Bill Condrashoff said the report seemed to say the agency would be “better off proceeding with the GSL than not proceeding with the GSL delay.”

Vice President Debbie Dunn liked “looking at it in both directions,” and likened it to deciding whether to “buy a new car.”

Cooper said a “delay means we are moving forward” on the GSL, and the agency has “a couple of really huge hurdles to bring it to the finish line,” including a rate change to finance the USDA loan. Director Terence Moore said they are “not assuming any rate increase through June.”

The board sent the budget report to the finance committee for further review.

Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.