Amador County – The Amador Water Agency board of directors voted unanimously Thursday to amend an agreement with JTS Communities for early payment of standby participation fees for 148 Castle Oaks units that could bring in $1.1 million to the Agency by 2013.

Agency General Manager Gene Mancebo recommended the agreement which used a portion of previous rate studies to determine and set a participation fee of $8,000 per unit for 148 units in Castle Oaks Village 3. It was reduced from $11,300 in fees per “Equivalent Dwelling Unit” (EDU) in a previous study, because it took out part of what was studied.

Mancebo said the “water treatment plant” for the participation study was specifically replaced. The fee structure removed the future assets from construction of the plant, and it instead used a portion of the study that looked at “incremental expansion and the costs associated with it,” at Ione and Tanner water treatment plants.

Critics, including Bill Condrashoff said it was selling assets that belong to the Amador Water System, by selling water capacity to JTS. Condrashoff said they were selling “units for 70 cents on the dollar” and AWS was funding all of its $12 million pipeline. He said “AWS is balanced. What is the fire Sale for?” Ken Berry said it “may be a 100 percent discount” because upgrades were at a plant that would be discarded.

Board President Don Cooper refuted that, saying the $11,300 per EDU rate was “associated with a regional water treatment plant that will not be there in the foreseeable future.”

Kronick said what was being overlooked was that the new agreement provides significant financial benefit to the AWA, and JTS is making significant financial concessions. In the agreement, JTS would pay all fees for 148 lots by the end of 2013. At $8,000, that is $1.18 million. Kronick said in the agreement, JTS is paying the fees “well in advance” of the existing agreement, which predates the new standby fee policy. The current agreement would not have payments occur until lots are sold, a home is built, or service is requested, which could take “many, many years.”

Kronick said JTS has a right to $112,000 in fee credits earned from paying for a pump station at the new 2 million-gallon water tank built near Wildflower Subdivision. Kronick said JTS in the agreement is deferring using their fee credits, another “significant financial concession.”

Kronick said: “No asset is being sold at a Fire Sale. The asset does not exist and it may never happen” because Mancebo “came up with the interim improvements,” which means they may not need to have a new plant to have increased capacity.

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