Wealthy SLO County community gets $2 million grant to improve drinking water capacity
A gated community in San Luis Obispo County recently received a nearly $2 million grant from a California Department of Water Resources program that typically assists disadvantaged communities.
The $1,986,000 award was given to Baron Canyon Mutual Water Co., the entity that oversees the water use of the Baron Canyon Ranch neighborhood that rests in the scenic hills along Highway 1 between San Luis Obispo and Pismo Beach, to help it expand its drinking water well capacity.
The grant is part of the state agency’s Small Community Drought Relief program.
The money will fund two new wells for the neighborhood, a new, 100,000-gallon water storage tank and a backup power supply for the wells, according to the Department of Water Resources.
Baron Canyon Ranch’s water board applied for the funds from the state because its sole operational, drinking water well is reportedly “under stress due to the current drought” and “as dry conditions continue, the water level in the well is expected to drop,” according to the Department of Water Resources.
“We’ve been looking for ways to upgrade our water system for a while now,” said Bill Chadwick, a member of the community’s water board. “With the ongoing droughts, our well level gets low, and we just don’t know how much longer it’ll last.”
The grant was awarded to the community to “strengthen drought resiliency and prevent emergency action,” according to the agency.
San Luis Obispo County has experienced “extreme” or “exceptional” drought conditions since early June, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
Luxury SLO County community is not the typical grant recipient
Tucked away in a community behind a large gateway, residents live in homes that cost anywhere between $1 million and $3 million and feature “luxury finishes throughout” including “herringbone wood floors,” wine cellars and “cathedral ceilings,” according to online listings for some of the properties.
The wealthy neighborhood is an outlier among the other grantees in the state’s Small Community Drought Relief program.
Chadwick said the application for the grant asked whether Baron Ranch was a disadvantaged community.
“Which we didn’t mark,” he added.
The Department of Water Resources partners with the State Water Resources Control Board for the program to “determine these funding commitments, which complement the board’s historical and ongoing financial assistance to small, economically disadvantaged communities for water infrastructure needs,” according to a news release about the awards.
In total, the Department of Water Resources gave away $26 million to communities across California in December. It’s the latest round of grants given from the $200 million available for the program.
Of the 11 communities awarded funds this month, most appear to be disadvantaged communities where local schools have a majority of students receiving free or reduced-price lunches, according to statistics from the California Department of Education.
“Of the awarded projects, four will benefit severely disadvantaged and underrepresented communities,” according to the news release about the Small Community Drought Relief program grants.
None of the 116 applicants to the program have been denied since the program began in August. About 67 applicants have been deferred to future rounds of awards, according to the Department of Water Resources.
Those deferred include several tiny farming, mining, coastal and mountain towns throughout California — most with neighboring schools where a majority of the students are on free and reduced lunch programs. Three Native American tribes were deferred as well, according to the Department of Water Resources.
Projects are awarded funds on a first-come, first-served basis with priority given to communities showing an urgent need for drought resiliency and drinking water supplies, the agency said.
When asked why Baron Canyon Ranch was chosen for the grant over other, disadvantaged communities, the Department of Water Resources noted that “there are no criteria in the guidelines that consider the wealth of a community when applying.”
Since launching in August, the Small Community Drought Relief program has awarded $92 million to 48 communities across the state.
“More than half of these funds have been awarded to projects that benefit disadvantaged communities,” the agency wrote in a statement. “DWR has selected projects that invest in long-term solutions to help small communities overcome current and future droughts.”
This story was originally published December 16, 2021 at 10:00 AM.
