Bankruptcy-Sewer News

Stopping that last sewer project had horrible financial impacts on the Los Osos CSD (bankruptcy) among other things of course. Last night at the CSD meeting, Mike Seitz, general legal counsel to the CSD, reported out of the Board's closed session that Judge Riblet had signed the order to dismiss the bankruptcy, but the case will remain open for the next two years to accommodate the creditors. Multiple checks have been written to those many creditors to date.

In other financial news from the CSD last night was the mid-year budget adjustment. Since the solid waste franchise was transferred to the County on December 31, 2013 for $2.8 million to help pay for the bankruptcy, the income from this asset was terminated, so much shifting of monies to cover the deficit was required. This financial loss was decried by a couple of speakers who were both major players in causing this bankruptcy to happen, necessitating the sale of the solid waste franchise (bake sales presumably having failed to make up the deficit in CSD funds to cover the bankruptcy costs). Of course there was no shame or any recognition of culpability at all in their demeanor or speeches and much mud was flung at innocent parties to distract viewers from the speaker's moral lapse.

A "just-like-old-times" footnote: There was rich dramedy as these speakers attempted to shout over the loud, repeating beeps of the three-minute timer signaling the end of their public comment period. It was a pretty rowdy meeting too from the noise makers at the back of the room. CSD President Craig Baltimore had to rightly request the chatter and shouts to cease at the back of the room multiple times and had to ask one loudmouth to leave.

World Toilet Day!

Darn, we missed it, it was yesterday! Well, check out the link here to see what it was about. Be sure to click through all the pictures as they are rather fun! You can go out apparently to celebrate, or you can celebrate at home!

However, it is very sobering to see what the lack of sanitation can cause. An excellent book on the topic is The Big Necessity The Unmentionable World of Human Waste And Why It Matters by Rose George. A fascinating read.

Los Osos is having its own daily toilet celebration I guess, seeing that the aim of the World Toilet Day was SANITATION! Our sewer project is moving along swiftly in the attempt to clean up the disgusting fact of, dare I say it? (sure, why not, it's my blog), peeing and pooping right on top of our water supply! Ugh. UGH. UGH!

A major side note to the cleaning up of things beyond water in Los Osos will occur Wednesday afternoon, November 20, 4:00 p.m. at the District Office on 9th Street. The BANKRUPTCY. This meeting is for the directors to vote on transferring the solid waste franchise to the County for $2.8 million. Read all about the meeting here.

This quote out of the staff report outlines a brief history:

As a result of the District's termination of the wastewater project being constructed under contract to the District, the creditors filed a series of claims and initiated legal action against the District.  As a result of those actions, the District declared Bankruptcy in August of 2006. The total amount of the creditor's claims at that time exceeded $46,500,000.

The bankruptcy was finally, finally approved on October 9, 2013 and this transfer is the last thing to be done to conclude these years of stress and I'd say torture even, imposed by a clueless, feckless board on its successors and our town. Fortunately for us, the final settlement amount was whittled down to  a mere $11,396,505.

For perspective, the entire operating budget of the District has been around $4.9 million yearly, but with the income from the Solid Waste Franchise gone, it will now be less. The periodic rate adjustments to our bills will no longer be determined by our LOCSD board, but by the County. The $151,000 in yearly franchise income, flushed down the toilet as it were. And that is the event on our agenda for the day after World Toilet Day. Get the facts here.