For the average rate-payer, the once-every-two-months bill will increase from $95 to about $110.
However, a rate increase alone will not solve the district’s financial woes.
“Whether it passes or not, we need to cut expenses,” board president Rob Hansel said.
The district’s board of directors discovered that district expenses have exceeded revenues for the past several years, fully depleting its general fund, capital improvement fund and reserve fund — dire straits for a district with only 500 connections.
The district operates on a $400,000 per year budget but has less than $1,000 in reserve, Hansel said.
It has reached the point where the general manager and district secretary will write checks and put them in the district safe until the money comes in to pay the bills, Hansel said.
Where has the money gone?
Water sales have decreased and revenue in the past two years has gone down by more than $40,000, and the district spent about $60,000 on engineering costs related to the Lake Boulevard washout.
However, two-thirds of the district’s budget relates to its employees.
“It comes down to employee costs, I believe,” Hansel said.
Until two years ago, the district had been paying about $200,000 for employee costs for payroll, sick time, overtime, vacation and benefits.
Then in 2007, the cost went up to $228,000, and last year it was $262,000, Hansel said.
For the past six months, the board has been working to figure out why.
“Right now, we’re trying to get to the bottom of this,” Hansel said. “We’ve been stonewalled every step of the way.”
“The manager has not presented all the facts and figures to the board,” Hansel added.
The board is also looking to monitor all the bills that are paid by the district, Hansel said.
Cuts on the horizon
In a letter to customers outlining the rate increase, Hansel said the board is determined to make cuts in expenses by investigating each expense, item by item, to trim costs.
Hansel said that 10 years ago the board of directors set up a retirement account for the district manager that depleted district funds. The district manager is salaried but also earns overtime — a total of $330,000 in overtime costs in the past 10 years.
The board met with a labor attorney to discuss how to fairly compensate its employees.
“The human relations committee is coming up with a (new) contract for our manager,” Hansel said.
The board will also look for a new insurance carrier, Hansel said.
Lompico residents can protest the rate increase by submitting a letter to the district with the address and parcel number of their property stating that they are against the increase. If more than half of the 500 connections protest by June 8, the board is required to nix the increase.
At a glance
WHAT: Rate increase public information meeting
WHEN: 7 p.m. May 14
WHERE: Zayante Fire Station, 7700 E Zayante Road, in Felton
INFO: 335-5200
Editor's note: The Press-Banner Web site went through a re-design in the midst of the below comment conversations. We've transferred the comments over, below, so that the conversation may continue.
1. Rob is completely ineffective as Chairperson. His job is to direct the meeting, enforce policies/procedures and keep people in line. He doesn't.
2. The little hand gestures (signals?) from Lois Henry towards Mr. Frech do not show professionalism. My wife brought this to my attention and others also noticed it.
3. Multiple times the public had to inform the board that things they were doing were illegal, or at least questionable.
4. Many comments/responses from board members were childish and/or unprofessional.
This board needs to sit down and become intimate with both the Brown Act and Roberts Rules of Order. And follow them. Otherwise they will continue to attract criticisms.
I do want to commend Jane on her performance. She seemed to be the only one on the ball.
Duane Davis, President
Lompico Community Center
duaned@lompicocc.org
Let's see: going back to our fearless leader's original article:
1) Have you CUT anything OTHER THAN the salary and benefits of the ONE person who has run that district for 20 years, day and night, weekday and holidays, using his own vehicle as necessary?
2) You have NOT agreed to cut YOUR stipends for all the meetings you are having (but you've only been there a couple of months.) How about cut that by 50% OR gasp! 100% due to financial crisis - and I'm only talking the LEGAL meetings you are having (not the illegal ones breaking the Brown Act). Don't groan about how hard you are all working - I KNOW for a fact how hard MIKE works.
3) You are cutting the lawyer who has given the district a huge discount for many years.
4) You hired a new lawyer with higher rates. You are paying him good bucks to figure out a way to screw Michael. Pure and simple.
5) You didn't like the district's engineer who also charges low rates for many years so you hired a SECOND LLBRA engineer for what was it, an additional NON-BUDGETED $7,000?
Yes- you admitted this guy is Freck's engineer.
6) You are sending all financials to the County to handle, which in the orignal meeting was estimated $7,000 additional expense (that's BEFORE the January raise in the County's prices that are UNKNOWN at this time. I estimate $10,000 or more UNBUDGETED EXPENSES). I will bet on it. Once the governator is thru, it will be WORSE. Bet on it.
Anybody ever considered a regular out of office bookkeeper - ours charges $15.00/hour (same price for 10 years now) for our construction business. Yep - does taxes, checkbooks, deposits, payroll and payroll taxes, A/P, A/R, etc. I believe this would be far cheaper and much easier than going thru the county. And a hell of a lot less headaches. When is government efficient or CHEAP??????
As proof-there is a track record. Shannar Abraham said the county did the books years ago and it was a complete screw-up and a huge mess. The district fired the county and took it all back.
Suggestions (dripping with sarcasm): please read your packets and your mail prior to each meeting and come prepared & organized, especially you, ROB. THAT'S WHAT WE PAY YOU FOR.
Please read ROBERTS RULES OF ORDER, ROB.
Please REALLY read your financial reports. Not too sure you understand and comprehend what you are reading.
And if Debra Loewen can't keep control of her snarls, snorts and sarcasm every time Jane speaks at the board meetings, I suggest she be prevented from attending. Barnyard noises are only appropriate in the barnyard, miss piggy.
And remember,kids, you have broken the Brown Act many times already. WE ARE WATCHING and gosh, we have read it!!
And my last little opinion: Mike is a stand-up guy. He's been wearing so many hats in that job for many years. How many general managers you know dig in the dirt? The guy is stretched way too tight so if he doesn't get something quick enough for ya, he's probably flushing a fire hydrant somewhere or covered in mud and water fixing a break so you can flush your toilet. He deserves our appreciation and he deserves the salary he earns.
(Small is way too big for you.) I do apologize I was unable to attend last night’s meeting. I had better things to do than waste my time on three worthless idiots that make up the majority of the board.
However, through the grapevine I heard that President Hansel still comes unprepared to Board meetings. President Hansel, Director Henry and yourself, the tiniest of men, didn’t bother to get your stuff from your District mailboxes prior to the meeting. Why is it again that you have a key if you don’t get your mail??? For what purpose do you have this key?
Director Tinyman, please remember that your issues are not with my mommy watching you, at this point your issues are with the Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s office.
Looks like your still at it TOS, and you obviously must of not been at last nights meeting. By not going to the meeting it shows how little that you really have to contribute.
None of your accussations are sticking, because anyone can see that you do not follow up with specifics. Even your creative name calling, is only providing only entertainment; nothing to take seriously. In conclusion, its obvious that your only goal is to stir up conflict. You can claim fame in this sand box of ideas. Have fun, but remember your mommy is watching.
Welcome to this commentary board. New people are always welcome, and ones opinion will be treated respectfully…, other than the opinion of Director Snoopy-hard-working-not-pushing-Frech’s-agenda-going-to-serve-time-in-jail Henry, and Director Smallman, the persistent man who attempts to amend the Constitution.
As for your concern, at this point it’s not about Mike’s salary, the Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s office will not even look into the matter. The issue is… illegal actions by the Lompico Board of Directors, especially the 3 LBRA puppets. Constant violations of the Brown Act are the smallest of their problems.
The District Manager’s actions have always been supported by board resolution. Some of them weren’t sound decisions, but still legal. Mike gave Ol’ Director Snoopy-hard-working-not-pushing-Frech’s-agenda-going-to-serve-time-in-jail Henry all the documentation (as per the Public Information act, it’s the law) regarding board resolutions granting Mike COLA (cost of living increases) every calendar year. Since she’s a mature woman and has too many cob-webs in her brain, she keeps lying to the entire community about not receiving the paperwork that she requested. Maybe her short term memory isn’t as good as it used to be.
Mike’s job description calls for a full time position (2080 hours a year). If the district owes Mike 3000 hours, as you said, he wouldn’t have to come to work for approximately 1 year, 5.8 months.
Welcome to this commentary board. New people are always welcome, and ones opinion will be treated respectfully…, other than the opinion of Director Snoopy-hard-working-not-pushing-Frech’s-agenda-going-to-serve-time-in-jail Henry, and Director Smallman, the persistent man who attempts to amend the Constitution.
As for your concern, at this point it’s not about Mike’s salary, the Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s office will not even look into the matter. The issue is… illegal actions by the Lompico Board of Directors, especially the 3 LBRA puppets. Constant violations of the Brown Act are the smallest of their problems.
The District Manager’s actions have always been supported by board resolution. Some of them weren’t sound decisions, but still legal. Mike gave Ol’ Director Snoopy-hard-working-not-pushing-Frech’s-agenda-going-to-serve-time-in-jail Henry all the documentation (as per the Public Information act, it’s the law) regarding board resolutions granting Mike COLA (cost of living increases) every calendar year. Since she’s a mature woman and has too many cob-webs in her brain, she keeps lying to the entire community about not receiving the paperwork that she requested. Maybe her short term memory isn’t as good as it used to be.
Mike’s job description calls for a full time position (2080 hours a year). If the district owes Mike 3000 hours, as you said, he wouldn’t have to come to work for approximately 1 year, 5.8 months.
Thank you very much. I have been lost for a couple of days not being able to read the posts. Let's keep this going!!! We MUST shine a light on what is going on with these tyrannical myopic board members.
I have served on several other boards in business. Board members DO NOT constantly interrupt the flow of work by showing up at the office. They show up for the meetings but DO NOT interfere with daily on-going office work. I have noticed that LOIS HENRY is at the office A LOT. Is there a normal limitation to how much a board member can pester the staff and keep them from getting their work done? Should someone let the woman know that she is not a tyrannical PERSONNEL MANAGER - she is a board member (temporarily I hope)? The duties are vastly different, dear Ms. Atilla the Hunnette. You obviously do NOT have skills to deal with personnel. You are abusive and corrosive, demanding and critical, just like the Frecks. Would any one of us want to work with that?
These LLBRA people have been demanding and pestering the staff so much since 2006 that daily work is definitely affected. Their constant criticisms and demands have worn the staff down. There is literally a mountain of documentation of their demands. THEY DEMAND SERVICE. Unfortunately, it is to the detriment of everybody else in the district. The rest of the public DOES NOT get served while these jerks continue on their nefarious hateful and vengeful campaign. They have far exceeded their pound of flesh from the staff. What motivates these people? How can someone live like that?
Time for new blood. Time for new energy for the district. And time to kick their areses out the door and never allow them to darken it again.
2nd - Work Related = Compensated - Enough said having to do with the staff of the Lompico Water District.
I hope there was a lot of community interest generated for the water district. Im sure Snoopy and the gang are really ticked off about all their naughty deeds coming out into the sunlight. If good people get involved and stay involved, it will all work out for the better.
Zazoo hurt. But would never call names. Bless you.
He needs to get out from behind the computer and see whats really going on in the real world. I know you will reply with name calling..... whatever get a life!!
Hang on SNOOPY!!!!!! Im calling her SNOOPY from here on. Snooping in confidential records, snooping in on confidential attorney/client meetings. WHAT ELSE????? WHO ELSE????? WHO AMONG US IS NEXT??????
Also heard that she said she would "lay down in front of the trucks to stop the water district from repairing the water main" on Lower Lake Blvd.
Such a fine upstanding STABLE board member, eh? Recall SNOOPY!!!!
Please email me at lompicotos@yahoo.com to discuss a potential recall. There are about 180 people who joined so far. I registered at the Press Banner website, no one can write in my name.
WOW. The tentacles of LLBRA reach far and wide, eh? Here I thought mr. freck was just an ALMOST-engineer. Come to find out he's employed by the water district. Gawlllly. I asked myself today "Myself, did mr. freck and mr. smallman ALMOST graduate from the same engineering skool? How cute. (And no caps are intentional-see lois' writing below.)
HAVE ANY OF THE NEW BOARD MEMBERS ATTENDED REQUIRED ETHICS CLASSES YET? Cuz they must have left the room to get a drink of iced tea (reference to Al Gore intended) when the ethics part came up. Or they took the class and don't care that they are doing anything WRONG, WRONG, WRONG (reference to Robert Byrd intended. If you don't watch the news, forget what my references are about!!! They are jokes, son.)
Gee, I aint no big time Mr. ALMOST engineer, but I can figure out that the bridge to where? up there hasn't been built right, and it's a coming down AGAIN. You don't mess with mother nature and build things without a permit. 'Scuse me for thinking again, but isn't that DANGEROUS/HAZARDOUS? That could kill somebody.
Perchance then this is why the district's REAL engineer DOUG ALLEN and FEMA and Michael really, really don't want to attach the water main to it!!!! How smart they are all looking right now!!
Oh hey, on the surprise letters in the mail-I hear tell that kinda the same thing happened to the former employee who received a letter in the mail saying "enclosed please find print-out you requested from EDD". The poor thing was confused cuz she never requested anything. Come to find out, it came to her house instead of to Lois Henry's address. BUSTED........
WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?