By Myrna Trauntvein
Times-News Correspondent
The "first-come first-served" water shares pool was
not working so it was determined that water share owners who
wanted to put water into the city trust to be rented by
interested water users would be allowed to do so.
The number of shareholders participating in the trust
will no longer be limited to those who sign up first because
there will no longer be a ceiling on the amount of shares
allowed to be placed in the pool.
Everd Squire, who oversees the water share rental
program for the city, told council members that he had
researched the costs of allowing all who wanted to
participate in the program by putting water into the
pool.
"The situation is that there are too many in the pool
for those who want to take water out," said Squire. "To
major shareholders were not able to put water into the pool
because there were already too many participants."
The actual cost for adding all who wanted to
participate in the water rental program would be #3,000.
That would give everybody who wanted to put water into
the trust the $30 collected from the renters whether or not
the water is actually rented, he said. The $30 fee is the
cost the city collects for allowing rental of the water to
those who do not own water for outside use but who want to
participate in the secondary system.
The irrigation company actually owns the system but
the city has agreed to do the rental phase so that those who
need water can obtain it.
It was hoped a few shareholders in the irrigation
company would step forward and allow rental of the resource.
However, said Squire, it has turned out that more want to
participate than the city anticipated.
Of those who participate in the secondary system, said
Squire, 60 percent do not own there own water and 40 percent
do own the water they use for outside watering purposes.
"The city could afford to do this," said Squire. "The
cost to the city would actually dwindle over time."
It would create good public relations with the
shareholders and there are an awfully lot of people, he
said, who would benefit from such and action on the part of
the city.
"The city won't have to subsidize the pool for too
long," said Gordon Anderson, city council member.
Nothing is being added to the pond but all
shareholders who want to rent water will be allowed to
participate by putting water shares into the account
partitioned out by the city to interested renters.
Let's do it," said Cory Squire, city council member.
"The city will absorb the cost beginning this year. It is
just another step in the right direction."
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