Resident tells Yamhill County commissioners co‑op moved meter, broke line and left shutoff a quarter‑mile away

Delinda Morgan, a Gaston resident, told the Yamhill County Board of Commissioners at its June 26 meeting that a local water cooperative moved a meter and shutoff away from her home, severing the original 2‑inch domestic line and creating what she described as an unlawful and potentially unsafe water arrangement.

Morgan said the meter and a shutoff valve were placed “a quarter mile away from me,” breaking the original pipe layout shown on the property’s blueprints. “The 3 things that our water company did that was wrong is they put a meter or a shutoff valve to my home a quarter mile away from me,” Morgan said during the public‑comment portion of the meeting.

She told commissioners she had asked Commissioner Vershauer to raise the matter with the co‑op board and that local staff told her, in freezing temperatures, she could “just hook up a garden hose to a meter they installed in asbestos concrete, which is illegal.” She said the original plans show a 2‑inch connection from the main to her house and that the co‑op repeatedly cut the original line and installed temporary flanges.

Morgan said she has water rights attached to the donation land claim for her property and that those rights should run with the parcel. “Water law reads on the front page, Oregon Water Law. I put it in there. The senior user gets water first,” she said, adding that she believes she is the senior user and that she has been singled out for disconnection.

Morgan said she has pursued the matter with multiple agencies and officials, including her state representative, and has gathered historic plans and other documents. She told the commissioners she would email the materials to the board’s public address and asked staff and the board to review them. A county official on the dais urged her to send the documents so staff can follow up; Morgan said she would provide the original blueprint pages and additional files.

The commissioners did not take immediate formal action; the chair asked staff to review Morgan’s submitted materials and follow up. Morgan told the board she has already contacted local public‑health and water resources agencies and several state offices because she regards the matter as a public‑health concern.

Ending: The commissioners acknowledged receipt of Morgan’s comments, asked her to provide the documents to the county record, and indicated county planning and development staff will review the materials and follow up. No formal enforcement or policy action was recorded at the meeting.