Pleasanton council adopts citywater system management plan; members highlight water loss and next steps

Pleasanton — The Pleasanton City Council voted unanimously to accept the final Water System Management Plan (WSMP) dated October 2024, adopting staff—s recommendation during its meeting. Council members said the plan gives the city a clearer inventory of needed repairs and a path toward prioritizing capital work and operations.

Council members said they want the next phase to include a detailed review of the water enterprise fund so future rate decisions reflect the utility—s current fiscal condition. "It will take into account the fiscal performance of the fund, right?" a council member asked; a staff member replied, "I'll attempt to answer that and the answer is yes. Of course, they're gonna look at fund balances, anticipated revenue, expected expenditures over a period of time and also looking back a few years ..." The staff member said the team will return in March for a deeper review of fund assumptions and that the WSMP—s financial modeling is transparent and available to the public.

Why it matters: The WSMP is intended to guide prioritized repairs, system upgrades and operations work. Council members cited asset-condition findings in the plan showing roughly 25% of the water system assets rated "poor" or "very poor," and emphasized that reducing water loss can lower long-term supply and treatment costs.

Key details from council discussion: Council members pressed staff on measured water loss. The plan's water-loss audit reported Pleasanton at about 30.9 gallons per day per service connection and an estimated daily system loss presented in the report at roughly 679,000 gallons per day; council comments noted that state comparison metrics use gallons per service connection and that the state target is roughly 18 gallons per day per connection. A staff member reminded the council that measured loss includes both leaks and unmetered uses such as fire flows, line flushing and aging meters that under-register consumption.

Council action: Council member Gaydos moved to accept staff—s recommendation to adopt the final WSMP dated October 2024; Council member Eicher seconded the motion. A roll-call vote recorded ayes from Council members Gaydos, Eicher, Nyberg, Testa and Mayor Balch; the motion passed unanimously.

What happens next: Staff and the consultant will return to council with further financial detail in March, including fund balances, multi-year revenue and expenditure projections and a public, shared spreadsheet the presenters said is available for review. The WSMP identifies capital projects and operational changes that the city can use to reduce system breaks and losses over time.