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Yachats staff: current water supply meets demand for now; commission asks for a simple public summary
Summary
Public works staff told the planning commission that a seasonal contract with South Lincoln plus local creek flows bring the city’s available supply to about 350,000 gallons per day; commissioners asked staff to translate projections into a single public statement and update data through 2024–25.
Chair Mark Sakamoto opened the work session by asking the commission for a clear answer on whether the city has enough water to support anticipated housing growth. He said he wanted the conversation to end with “a simple yes or no” backed by data.
Rick McClellan, joining on Zoom from the water treatment plant, said an agreement with South Lincoln provides 100 gallons per minute (about 144,000 gallons per day) and, when combined with the lowest recorded flows on Reedy Creek, brings available supply to roughly 350,000 gallons per day. “We don't have a water problem like we used to,” McClellan said, adding that the highest single-day demand historically has been around the July peak.
Commissioners pressed for details on contract terms, drought scenarios and price risk. McClellan said the South Lincoln agreement is renewed seasonally and includes fees that adjust with index measures; he also said South Lincoln is investing in its infrastructure and that staff have tested the interconnect pumps at full capacity. He noted the city currently holds about 1.7 million gallons of storage across multiple tanks and is exploring a new 1.5 million-gallon reservoir to replace a seismically vulnerable tank.
Sakamoto and other commissioners asked staff to update consumption and production charts through 2024–25 and to prepare a single, plain-language statement the city can share with residents about how much water is available, how much is projected to be needed, and what margin — if any — exists between the two. McClellan agreed to supply updated graphs and to return for the next meeting to answer follow-up questions.
The commission did not take formal action; the briefing was informational and the next step is a staff-produced comparison of supply and demand for use in public communications and further planning.
