Malibu City Council is rolling up its sleeves to discuss the future of water rates for locals relying on the Civic Center Water Treatment Facility. The meeting is slated for February 26, 6:30 PM at City Hall, where residents will get a breakdown of what's coming for wastewater and recycled water rates. According to a city announcement, Mayor Steve Uhring hailed the facility, saying "Our new water treatment facility puts us ahead of the curve of smart, environmentally sound water management practices while combatting the realities of climate change and drought here in California."
With the sunset of current rates on the horizon, June 30, the City Council's presentation will also serve as a springboard to fire off notices to all property owners affected by the changes, a step that's in the dancers with California Proposition 218. The proposition, ringing in voter approval since 1996, is a mandate for locals to have their say on new taxes and fees hitched to their properties.
The city first set wastewater and recycled water service rates in 2017, undergoing a refresh in 2021 with an expiration date this summer. The upcoming review aims to keep the Civic Center Water Treatment Facility (CCWTF) sustainable and efficient, ensuring the numbers add up to cover operation, maintenance, and management without breaking a sweat.
For citizens preferring the comfort of their own homes, remote participation is an option with Zoom at the ready. Details for the virtual hookup and the meat and potatoes of the agenda will be plastered on the city's website before the meeting rolls around. A public hearing is also penciled in for April 22 to get down to brass tacks on service rates for the next four fiscal years.
The CCWTF isn't just another infrastructure project. Tailored to respond to the watchdog eyes of the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board and the State Water Resources Control Board, the facility kicked septic systems to the curb in favor of high-tech treatment. Completed in October 2018 with a $60 million price tag, its tools of the trade — ranging from filtration systems to bio-digestion — are producing 200,000 gallons of Title 22 recycled water daily. That means Malibu greenspaces stay lush while saving 70 million gallons of H2O for the tap each year. Diving deeper into the CCWTF is just a click away with a virtual tour on their webpage, complete with snapshots and reels.
