Editorial Opinion of The Tribune

Proposed Nipomo hotel deserves water service

Growing community will need taxes that more businesses would provide

When it comes to conserving scarce water resources, it’s better to err on the side of caution — which is why we support the Nipomo Community Services District for postponing a decision on granting water service to a proposed 71-room hotel.

The district’s board will reconsider the request in June, after it has the results of groundwater readings taken in the spring.

Certainly, the district’s board of directors is obligated to put the health of the basin first, especially since that remains Nipomo’s sole source of water.

But here’s our concern: After a nearly decade-long boom in homebuilding, we hope the district isn’t forced to deny water service to the businesses needed to serve the growing community.

That kind of lopsided development is bad from an economic standpoint; bad for the environment because it forces residents to drive further for shopping and services; and it’s just plain inconvenient for the growing number of residents and visitors to the community.

With a population of about 22,000 residents in the greater Nipomo area, the community is overdue for a hotel.

It does have a bed-and-breakfast inn, but Santa Maria and the Five Cities area are the closest places with a sizeable inventory of hotel rooms. That’s no doubt forcing visitors to those communities — which means less revenue for Nipomo.

If Nipomo is to ever have a real option of incorporating—an issue that’s been discussed, off and on, for years — it’s going to need the sales and bed taxes that more businesses will provide. But until it gets its water supply problem solved, that will continue to be a problem.

The district is moving forward on construction of a pipeline to Santa Maria, so it can import water from that city. That’s good.

But that project is expected to take three years, and in the meantime, Nipomo must continue to rely completely on the groundwater basin.

Until then, the community services district is going to have to be cautious in signing on new customers.We urge the agency to give priority to those services that are most needed—and we’d put a hotel among those at the top of the list.