New Water Resources Department staff update: staffing, broken mains and a projected revenue gap

City staff updated the Water Commission on creation of a standalone Water Resources Department and on operational and financial pressure points facing the utility.

The director said City Council formally approved the departmental split on Feb. 3 and described a reorganization into five divisions to focus on administration, operations and capital delivery. Staff highlighted workforce initiatives—job‑shadowing, office hours and training cohorts—and said proposals to hire additional in‑house engineers are included in the FY27 budget to reduce reliance on consultants and lower long‑term costs.

The director reported unusually variable weather with a very wet late fall/early winter and a warm January. Recycled‑water production is low and the plant is expected back online April 1. City water demand for February was reported near 634 acre‑feet; year‑to‑date revenues are behind plan and staff currently projects an approximately $3 million shortfall for the year, prompting program cuts and project delays as mitigation options.

Operationally, staff described multiple recent water‑main breaks over consecutive days, including failures on aging mains that damaged private property when storm drains were blocked during paving work. A planned new main in one neighborhood remains offline because Caltrans has not issued an encroachment permit to tie the line in; staff are elevating that issue. Bids for the Cater Reservoir Resiliency Project came in about 40% above engineers' estimates; staff said they are negotiating and will return with recommendations.

Commissioners thanked staff for morale and community responsiveness and pressed for performance indicators to track departmental goals. The director said staff will return to the commission with proposed KPIs and more detail on project scheduling and budget tradeoffs.