FS Community Meeting information and letter
the following is the text of the letter mailed to Forest Springs homeowners on July 1st calling for a community meeting on July 30th at the Boulder Creek Community Center. There is a message from the president following the invitation and agenda.
YOU ARE INVITED: Forest Springs Improvement and Maintenance Association (FSIMA) Special MEMBERS* Meeting
*the hard copy of the letter stated “shareholders” but members is a more appropriate term, apologies for the typo
BC Rec and Park District Downtown Office: 133333 Middleton Ave., 2PM Sunday July 30th
Purpose of the Special Meeting:
This purpose of this special shareholder meeting is:
To disseminate information regarding the Water System Consolidation Project with San Lorenzo Water District
To affirm community support for Consolidation and next steps
To give shareholders a forum to ask questions
To address any urgent association business that requires a community vote (time permitting)
Agenda:
Consolidation
Summary of consolidation project and current project status
mainline project (Acorn 1, 2, 3 and Reservoir Rd)
mechanism for input on mainline meter placement
laterals for private Roads and Acorn 4 (this has also been referred to as the “distribution phase” or phase 2)
Describe potential costs of all phases of Consolidation and funding sources
update on current funding search
review cost estimate from Sherwood Engineering for lateral project detailed engineering (anticipated to be available by 7/30)
Describe individual homeowner’s responsibilities with regard to the consolidation project
Time for additional Q and A
Motion(s) -lateral project design and funding of next steps
Summarize draft Consolidation Agreement and changes already made vs. original draft - level of detail will be determined by time available
Conceptual discussion of potential for changes to the association post signed consolidation agreement
Motion(s) with regards to next step(s) with respect to consolidation
Vote(s) by Shareholders
Other Forest Springs Business (as needed and time permitting)
Reading and approval of Sept 2022 Community Meeting minutes
Scheduling of Sept 2023 Community Meeting
Nominations and community vote to fill any board director vacancies
any other business from the floor
Dear Forest Springs,
In late May, I updated the community regarding the water system consolidation progress: https://www.forestsprings.org/updates/update-consolidation-status-upcoming-slv-walk-through
Since that time, we have inched forward and it is time to meet together for a community discussion.
Below is additional background for the meeting, some previously communicated:
Per the Letter of Intent to Consolidate between Forest Springs (FS) and San Lorenzo Valley Water District (SLVWD) signed May 10, 2022, a consolidation project has been undertaken with SLVWD as the lead agency. This Project is designed to assure safe, reliable drinking water, and fire safety water for the Forest Springs and Bracken Brae neighborhoods. Construction will occur in two Phases. Grant funding has been obtained by SLVWD for Phase 1, with the exception of the storage tank portion of the project. As a reminder, in Phase 1 SLVWD will:
Build a pump station
Construct a mainline to Bracken Brae
Construct a mainline in Forest Springs by going up Acorn 1, Acorn 2, Acorn 3, and Reservoir Rd
Install 120,000 gallons of water storage capacity, either one or two tanks at the Forest Springs tank site on Reservoir RD
Install fire hydrants, and laterals with meters to the homes along the mainline
meter placement will generally be in collaboration with homeowners
At the conclusion of water line construction, a 2” overlay of Acorn 1, 2, 3 will be done.
Key unknown: Acorns 1, 2 and 3 are county roads, what responsibility or ability does the county have to pre level and or repair the Acorns before the 2” overlay? Acorn 4 will also be a part of this discussion.
Phase 2 of the Consolidation project is the distribution system, including fire hydrants and laterals with meters to homes in FS on Acorn 4 and the private roads. FS has been working with Sherwood Engineering to finalize the conceptual design. The next step in this process is to take the conceptual design and generate an engineering plan.
FS Board members and FS community volunteers are working with Sherwood Engineering and SLVWD to identify and apply for grants or long-term low-interest loans to fund the storage tank project, the detailed engineering plan for Phase 2, and the Phase 2 implementation. We will continue to collaborate with SLVWD to find funding sources to minimize the financial impact of design and construction costs on our community.
Per the legally binding LOI, a Consolidation Agreement must be finalized and approved by both parties that details the terms and conditions of consolidation of the Forest Springs Water System into SLVWD. The grants obtained by SLVWD are conditional based on completion of the Consolidation Agreement. A draft of this agreement has been prepared by SLVWD’s legal counsel. FS and SLVWD are currently engaged in review and discussion.
This project is crucial to the future of Forest Springs and we have a lot to discuss as a community.
Thank you,
Elizabeth Bacon, President of the Forest Springs I&M Assoc. Board of Directors
PS-Link to initial draft of consolidation agreement and the LOI will be made available on our website. We are also planning to include a form on the website to update contact information. Please check for this contact form update in mid July**.
*I am still figuring out how to add the consolidation agreement document to the website. It is confidential (internal to Forest Springs members and SLV) so it would not be appropriate to have open access. Thanks for your patience.
**This update is also in progress.