VOLUME 8 NO. 28

SATURDAY, JULLY 12, 2014

WATER IS THE ISSUE....CONSERVATION IS A MUST

Phase III Mandatory Water Conservation Approved; Building and 
Water Conservation Moratoria Passed Unanimously

STATE TO VOTE ON ADDITIONAL WATER 
RESTRICTIONS TUESDAY

By Susan Henderson

On Tuesday, the Sierra Madre 
City Council made a decision that 
may very well become known as 
the “defining moment” in the 
city’s history. Unanimously, 
Mayor John Harabedian, Mayor 
Pro Tem John Capoccia, and 
Councilmembers Gene Goss, 
Rachelle Arizmendi and Denise 
Delmar voted to implement 
Phase III of the Mandatory 
Water Conservation Ordinance 
and passed both the moratoria 
on new water hookups and on 
building. The votes will place 
the city in a better position to 
manage its water resources for 
the duration of the drought, 
however long that is.

The council chambers were filled 
with residents, some of whom 
had never before attended a 
council meeting and most of 
whom shared rational arguments 
and/or suggestions on what they 
wanted the councilmembers 
to do. Many brought to the 
attention to the council and 
members of the public needs 
for the ordinances that had not 
previously been discussed or 
considered.

Former Mayor Clem Bartolai, 
one of the first speakers, noted 
that any further drain on 
the city’s resources would be 
unsustainable. Those comments 
were reiterated in many different 
ways throughout the night.

Both the audience and the 
council made it crystal clear 
that the issue was WATER and 
not the development of pending 
projects throughout the city. 
“Running out of water is not an 
option”, said Matthew Bryant, 
a new resident and community 
leader.

Speakers included several youth 
including 16 year old Chase 
Cruz who has been watching the 
political operations of the town 
for his own edification.

What Do Residents Do Now

The implementation of Phase III 
of the Mandatory Conservation 
Ordinance will have the broadest 
impact on residents. It will 
require an immediate 30% 
reduction of water consumption 
by all users. Resident Bill Pete 
asked the council, “How do I 
meet these new requirements”, as 
he has already removed his lawn 
and implemented several water 
conservation efforts long before 
the original ordinance went into 
effect. However, one resident, 
Chris Cowell who lived in 
Tuscan before coming to Sierra 
Madre suggested that residents, 
“Get over having a lawn”. Her 
comment brought laughter 
from the audience even though 
the truth in her statement was 
difficult to swallow for some.

City Manager Elaine Aguilar 
explained to the audience 
that the baseline for the 
30% reduction was 
their usage in 2012. An 
example given was that 
if a resident had already 
reduced their water 
consumption by 20% 
over the 2012 usage, they 
would only be required 
to reduce another 10% 
in order to be compliant. 
She also noted that there 
is a minimum usage 
level (11 unites) and 
those households that 
are already at that level 
will not have to conserve any 
further.

Penalties

The issue of penalties was 
discussed with several residents 
encouraging them. Councilman 
Gene Goss, who said he was 
moved by “the level and 
depth” of the public comments 
informed the public that the 
goal was to establish rules that 
were equitable and would treat 
people fairly. He acknowledged 
the challenge that residents face 
because of the discolored water 
(where it is necessary to run 
the water until it is clear before 
using), and indicated that no 
penalties will be leveled against 
anyone while that remains an 
issue. The council is currently 
scheduled to review penalties for 
non-compliance in November.

Sierra Madre has its own water 
company that manages its 
underground wells. Due to the 
drought, the levels have dropped 
to the point that water is now 
purchased from the Metropolitan 
Water District (MWD) via our 
membership with the San Gabriel 
Valley Municipal Water District, 
until the wells reach a sustainable 
level. The MWD connection has 
caused a great deal of concern 
among water users as the 
quality is inferior compared to 
the water drawn from the city’s 
own wells. Further, the MWD 
water is treated with chloramine 
which interacts in an unpleasant 
manner with Sierra Madre’s 
current water system, causing 
discoloration that is offensive. 
While the claims are that the 
water quality is still acceptable 
for human consumption, the 
town is anxious to get cut its 
dependence on imported water. 
In the meantime, the city has 
hired an environmental engineer 
to seek solutions to the problems 
should a long term dependence 
on imported water become 
inevitable. The city will notify 
residents of the specific steps 
they will need to take.


On Tuesday, July 15th, the State Water Board is set to consider emergency regulations in 
response to the Governor’s State of Emergency Drought Declaration and his Proclamation 
of a Continued State of Emergency. If passed as submitted, water suppliers with 3,000 
customers or more will be required to implement mandatory conservation measures and 
submit monthly data on water production, limitations on outdoor watering and more. 
Sierra Madre’s water company will be subject to the new regulations. Until it passes, the 
city will not know to what steps additional measures may have to be taken. The above 
chart, showing the severity of the state’s water situation was released earlier this week.

Inside this week: 

“THERE IS NO WATER EMERGENCY”

Attorney’s For The Stonegate Project Declare A Non 
Water Emergency In Letter Submitted To Council

 

CALENDAR Pg. 2

SIERRA MADRE NEWS

 Pgs. 3-4

 During public comment at 
Tuesday’s Council meeting, 
there was one very determined 
voice of dissent, the attorney’s 
for the Stonegate (1 Carter) 
development. Attorney 
Francisco Nicholas cited a 
letter that he distributed to the 
council which declared that no 
water emergency existed and 
included several allegations 
against the city. His comments 
came despite the obvious, that 
the city, county and state were 
all suffering from a severe 
drought with no foreseeable 
resolution in sight.

 Nicholas’ statement that 
no emergency existed was 
loudly protested by those in 
attendance and appears to 
be frivolous in the face of all 
the evidence to the contrary 
statewide.

 Said one resident, “The 
suggestion that we use up all of 
our water and resources before 
we declare an emergency is 
extraordinarily irresponsible.”

 Director Tom Love from the 
San Gabriel Valley Municipal 
Water District, of which Sierra 
Madre is a member told the 
council of a few resources 
that may be available, water 
that was ‘stored’ in various 
locations but also reminded 
the audience of the dire 
situation with the State Water 
project, the Bay Delta issues 
and the water levels of the 
Colorado River, all caused by 
the drought.

 As Director Bruce Inman 
has indicated on numerous 
occasions, a two year water 
supply is all we know of at this 
point.

 The letter, written by Attorney 
Richard McDonald, also from 
the firm representing Stonegate, 
suggested that the MWD had 
an agreement to supply water 
to Sierra Madre until 2035. An 
attachment to the letter from 
Jeffrey Kightlinger, President 
of the MWD states that MWD 
has an agreement with the 
San Gabriel Valley Municipal 
Water District through 2035. 
Kightlinger goes on to mention 
the relationship that the city 
has with SGVMWD. He notes 
that MWD has been supplying 
water to the city and in a rather 
polluted statement says that 
they (MWD) will do so as 
long as the agreement exists, 
through 2035. However, except 
for the two year agreement that 
the city entered into in October, 
2013, no other commitment 
has been made by the MWD to 
Sierra Madre. 

 It should also be noted that 
the source of water to the 
MWD is also in jeopardy and 
if the drought continues as it 
has, it is questionable whether 
the agency will have water to 
sell to anyone.

 As indicated by Love at 
the council meeting, and by 
Inman, water from MWD is 
via the SGVMWD and is only 
a temporary measure to be 
used an emergency. 

SGVMWD is only to be used 
as a “supplemental” source 
during “emergencies”. That 
emergency manifested itself 
last October when the Sierra 
Madre wells fell below the 
required 500’ level.

 Sierra Madre Mayor John 
Harabedian, also an attorney, 
said that, “It is obvious that 
they are trying to create a 
record in case they decide to 
sue the city.” “Our actions are 
completely defensible”, said 
Harabedian. The Mayor also 
reiterated that water obtained 
from SGVMWD via MWD, 
cannot be used to sustain or 
support growth. “We need to 
get back to our own wells”, he 
said.

Another resident, after 
viewing the meeting on TV 
was wondering if perhaps the 
developer had access to a direct 
pipeline from the Midwest to 
Sierra Madre. “That’s about 
the only reliable water source 
in the entire country right 
now”.

 While developers may not like 
the actions taken by the council 
on Tuesday, those actions were 
clearly in the best interest of 
the residents of Sierra Madre.

 When and if the city is able 
to lift the Moratoria and 
Conservation requirements 
remains to be seen. 

 Resident Tom Brady made a 
comment that all developers 
might want to take into 
consideration. He suggested 
that as they criticize the city 
for preserving its’ resources, 
perhaps they should note that 
we’ve not only got a shortage of 
water but we also have a 100 
year old system that needs a lot 
of maintenance work done. He 
said, “...while I see developers 
pushing us to stretch our 
resources to accommodate 
their projects, I don’t see them 
waiving million dollar checks 
to help us preserve our city.” 

S. Henderson/MVNews

PASADENA/ALTADENA

 Pg. 5

ARCADIA NEWS Pg. 6

MONROVIA/DUARTE 

 Pg. 6

EDUCATION & YOUTH

 Pg. 7

SIERRA MADRE 
COMMUNITY 
FOUNDATION’S ROB 
STOCKLY TO SPEAK TO 
KIWANIS

FOOD & DRINK

 Pg. 8

BEST FRIENDS

 Pg. 9

HEALTHY LIFESTYLES

 Pg. 10


On Tuesday, Rob Stockly of 
the Sierra Madre Community 
Foundation which speak at 
the Kiwanis Club weekly 
luncheon. Stockley will give 
an overview of the groups 
history and its plans for the future.

 SMCF serves as a steward for individuals, families, 
foundations and business organizations seeking to 
maximize their long-term philanthropic impact for the 
benefit of the Sierra Madre community. The Foundation 
serves as a resource for building and preserving 
permanently endowed funds that enhance the welfare 
of the residents and generally enrich the quality of life 
in Sierra Madre. 

 Further, the Foundation serves as a catalyst for 
collaborative efforts with organizations having similar 
missions. SMCF also builds partnerships with other 
local organizations with a focus on making Sierra Madre 
a better place to live.

 Come out and learn more about both valuable 
organizations. The program will begin at 12:30 and is 
free. Lunch is served at noon and costs $10. Call 626-
355-0728 for reservations.

 The club meets at The Lodge (formerly the Masonic 
Temple), 33 E. Sierra Madre Blvd., Sierra Madre, Ca. 
Ample parking in the back of the building.

KIWANIS NEXT WEEK: 

DR. BILL PATZERT, CLIMATOLOGIST!

THE GOOD LIFE

 Pg. 11

SECTION B 

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

THE WORLD AROUND US

 Pg. B2

 BUSINESS NEWS Pg. B3

 OPINION Pg. B4

 LEGALS Pg. B5

SMTV CHANNEL 98

 B 6

WATER AND BUILDING 

MORATORIUMS FULL TEXT Page 4