Gaston resident tells Yamhill County commissioners waterline damage and pressure problems leave dozens without reliable service

Delinda Morgan, a Gaston resident, told the Yamhill County Board of Commissioners on Aug. 28 that damage to a shared water line, a contested meter relocation and limited county follow-up have left her and other households with low pressure and unreliable service.

Morgan said she delivered a 75-page packet documenting the issue and asked the board to forward a single email to 17 agencies she has contacted so those agencies will “step up” and offer “expertise, materials, work, and or money as soon as possible.” Morgan said she and her husband are elderly and that the problem affects “about 800 other people.”

The matter matters to residents on sections of the LA Water Co‑op line that Morgan said were installed decades ago and designed as a loop to avoid stagnation and pressure loss. She told the commissioners that a nearby tenant’s construction work punctured her line and that the co‑op later replaced a tap with a valve, eliminating a way to purge the system. “My meter is at my house,” Morgan said. “The rule was the … you cannot move a meter more than 100 feet without the written signature of the owner of the property.”

Morgan described technical fixes discussed with builders and longtime system contributors, including a recommendation to replace part of the system with larger-diameter pipe — changing a 2‑inch/6‑inch loop to an 8‑inch feed to increase pressure to Bald Peak and adjacent users. She said pressure is low enough that some households cannot reliably shower and that pumps have burned out in the past. “Those poor people are dying in August because of their water pressure,” she said.

Commissioner Steyer said she would spend time with county counsel to assess whether the issue should be handled as a civil matter and whether the county can assist beyond referring the parties to counsel. The chair and other commissioners directed staff to have public works and planning staff review the materials Morgan submitted and to follow up with Commissioner Garrett for continued contact.

County staff present — including planning staff Ken Friday, who Morgan said had assisted previously — told the board the packet had been received and that follow-up would require review of deeds, plans and the cooperation of the water co‑op and public works. The board did not adopt any immediate enforcement action at the meeting.

Morgan said she has contacted state and federal agencies, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and earlier sought assistance from the county’s planning and public works departments. She asked the board to send her prepared list of emails to the 17 agencies she named so the county’s contacts could help coordinate a solution.

The board asked Morgan to continue working with Commissioner Garrett and county counsel and requested that staff examine whether the county has an administrative remedy or whether the matter should proceed in civil court. The commissioners closed public comment and moved on to the agenda without setting an action deadline.

Morgan’s full packet and the county’s follow-up plan were not resolved on the record. County staff said they would review the documents and report back to the board.