Commission asking applicant to scale down water project
By Gloria I. Wang
No matter how much acreage a property has, water usage must be minimized.
That's what the Los Gatos Planning Commission recently told a hillside homeowner who wanted to store 1.5 million gallons of water for 62 acres, 38 acres of which is open space.
According to the applicant, his family's water use in the summer is about 12,500 gallons per day, while in the winter the family of four uses less than 1,000 gallons per day for the household and not landscaping. The existing water supply system--consisting of two wells and a spring--cannot adequately supply the family in the summer and autumn months, so they must truck water in.
Nicole and James Richardson proposed to build two concrete storage tanks on their Kennedy Road property, one with a million gallons and another with 500,000 gallons, to fulfill their needs.
At the April 24 meeting, commissioners asked the applicant to consider a "scaled-down project" that would be sufficient for minimal water use--redoing their landscaping if necessary--plus enough fire protection.
Commissioner Mike Burke, himself a hillside resident who has often had concerns with fire protection, said a smaller alternative was needed. "I look at the water usage and I still think it's excessive," Burke said.
Constructing storage tanks, said Ken Lindberg of Power Engineering Contractors, would "curtail the environmentally unfriendly practice of trucking water."
The large trucks have done everything from cause road disintegration to increase noise pollution and increase traffic, Lindberg said. The reservoirs would not only remedy those problems, Lindberg said, but also increase fire protection because of two proposed fire hydrants on-site.
"The goal here is never to truck again, ever," Nicole Richardson said.
Trucking did negatively impact the road, agreed neighbor Frank Dorsa. The problem with the application was its proximity to his own house, Dorsa argued. "We question the visibility of putting one million gallons of water just above our fence," Dorsa said.
Dorsa said one option would be to change the location of the storage tanks such that they would be on terrain above the house, instead of below, as is currently proposed.
Commissioner Phil Micciche was concerned that limiting the size of the tanks would encourage the trucking of additional amounts of water. Micciche wondered if the town wanted the Richardsons to require less water by changing their landscaping.
Commission Chairwoman Lee Quintana said the commission should look at a "reasonable, minimal use of water on the hillside," while Commissioner Jeanne Drexel said if the property did not conform to the town's vision for the hillside, it should not be approved. The Richardsons' vineyard, with 300 vines, was not necessarily a reasonable use for the hillside.
Quintana made a motion to review a revised application on July 24. Quintana asked the applicant to submit new plans, along with a bevy of information, including details on dwarf hydrants, topographical drawings and plans from the town's consulting arborist.
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Los Gatos, California Since 1881
