March Update

Dear Member:

Thank you to all who attended the annual membership meeting held at the Country Club on March 18, 2015. It was again another nice turnout. Your board of directors appreciates your participation. We are all in this drought together and we need to continue to work together. Minutes of the meeting can be seen by clicking here.

On April 1, 2015, Governor Brown directed the State Water Resources Control Board to implement mandatory water reductions in cities and towns across California to reduce water usage by 25 percent. This savings amounts to approximately 1.5 million acre-feet of water over the next nine months, or nearly as much as is currently in Lake Oroville. Click here for more water news.

Belmont Water Corporation is on track to meet the mandatory reductions with a March year to date savings of 23%. Click here to see the chart of savings.

I received several comments on the Belmont Country Club’s (BCC) use of water this past week. BCC aerated the greens this last Monday and Tuesday and more water than usual is needed to encourage growth and recovery. In addition, the BCC wells are beginning to pump more sand into the irrigation system. The flooding on the ninth fairway was caused by back flushing the irrigation lines to clear the sand. This is not an ongoing occurrence, but may become more frequent if the water table drops.

There has been considerable discussion about the drought situation and its effect on the course by BCC staff and board. An expert has been engaged to determine what can be done with the outdated water delivery system along with a potential redesign of waste and boundary areas for water conservation. BCC also needs to balance the needs of the golfers to maintain a playable golf course. I believe most of us also moved to this area to be near a golf course and a nice well maintained course increases the value of our homes. The above photo of the old Palm Lakes Municipal Course describes pictorially what BCC could look like if not maintained.

The 2015-16 water assessments are due on April 15, 2015. Please send your payment at your earliest convenience.

The summer PG&E electrical rates begin May 1 which substantially increases the cost of pumping during day time hours.

Thank you for your continued support.

Board of Directors