Soledad council declares emergency to repair Well 11, authorizes emergency procurement and regular reporting

The City of Soledad City Council on July 30 voted 4–0, with one absence, to declare an emergency and authorize immediate emergency repairs to Well 11 after multiple city wells went out of service, while declining to impose mandatory Stage 2 water restrictions.

City Public Works Director Don Wilcox told the council that three of the city’s five water wells had been out of service at one point and that staff had observed storage tanks at roughly 70–75% full the morning of the meeting. Wilcox said Well 6 returned to service with a vibration, Well 10 was scheduled to be back online by Monday, and Well 11 — a below-ground pump unit that failed Tuesday — required a pull-and-assess procedure.

“Based on the model number and everything, the better estimate today was $50,000 to $60,000,” Wilcox said, describing the difference between a simple pump-and-motor replacement and a more extensive below-ground repair that could increase costs and delay return to service because parts may take a month or more to arrive.

The resolution as introduced referenced emergency repair authority and an estimated amount up to $120,000 based on a review of past emergency repairs. Council discussed the difference between the paper estimate and staff’s on-the-ground estimate and directed staff to include contingency and to report actual costs at each council meeting until the project is closed out.

Councilmembers also raised concerns about communications. One councilmember said the city’s press release on the outage reached the public before councilmembers received it; staff acknowledged that was an oversight and described steps to improve outreach, including bilingual social posts, website updates, door tags and flyers for apartment complexes, and a short informational script or video to be posted by the Public Works Department.

On the question of conservation levels, staff recommended Stage 2 voluntary reductions (about 25% savings if residents limit outdoor irrigation), but after reviewing the near-term return of Well 6 and the expected restart of Well 10, council opted not to implement Stage 2 mandatory restrictions at this time. Mayor Anna Velasquez told residents, “for right now, just for the public, you won't lose your water,” and emphasized that staff will continue to monitor tank levels and provide updates.

Unidentified Speaker 5 moved to approve Resolution No. 6138 with directions that staff provide status reports every council meeting until the work is complete and that the council not pursue Stage 2 mandatory restrictions at this time. The motion was seconded by Mayor Anna Velasquez and passed 4–0 with one absence.

Next steps: staff will arrange for the pump to be pulled and assessed, order parts if needed, and proceed with repairs under emergency procurement. The council required staff to return regular cost and status updates at council meetings and asked that public communications be shared in both English and Spanish.