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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend September 12, 2005 Water district may disband Shady Cove residents will vote through Sept. 20 on whether to dissolve the district By SANNE SPECHT Mail Tribune SHADY COVE — Residents should vote to dissolve a local water district that has no plan or purpose, a former member said. "We voted to dissolve in October of ’04," said former board member and secretary Tom Borgen. "This should be a dead issue." Although bisected by the Rogue River, the town has no municipal water system. It relies on 900 private or shared wells that are all drilled within a few miles of each other. The Shady Cove Water District was formed in 2002 over the objections of several new members now seeking to maintain perceived power, Borgen claims. District residents will vote through Sept. 20 on whether to disband the district. Two years of boundary setting and research — including a study by Lee-Pace Engineering Inc. — showed there is no cost-effective way to create a municipal water system that "wouldn’t impose an unbelievable financial burden" on the district’s 2,300 residents, said Borgen. Advertisement At that point the majority of the board decided to disband, he said. "The patient was DOA and nobody at the county would recognize it," said Borgen. "Now (the current board members) want to get an office with a secretary and staff. It’s like they’re setting up camp to play water district." After realizing the district’s options would create a financial hardship, board President Arthur Smith and members Paula Trudeau and Borgen asked the City Council for permission to dissolve, Borgen said. But board members Jim Collier and Bob Hawkins — also members of the Shady Cove Taxpayers Association — went before Jackson County Commissioners demanding an election in May when Trudeau’s term expired, and requesting the district remain intact. Borgen and Smith were removed for failure to attend meetings, Hawkins said. But Borgen said the board didn’t publish meeting times — even to all its members. "I’d read I’d been fired (in the newspaper)," said Borgen. "It would have been nice to know there were meetings." The current board consists of Joe Petko, Wayne Barnes, Collier, Hawkins and his wife, Dee Hawkins. Initially leery of the district’s implementation, Dee Hawkins said she became convinced of the need for a board "over time." "People need to have a voice," said Dee Hawkins. "This district was voted-in." District funds are currently $393.56, according to Bob Hawkins, who also is the district’s treasurer. If all else fails, the board could assess taxes, Collier said. The water district "could immediately raise a levy of $33,750," Collier told the Mail Tribune in 2002. And that is still the case under Oregon statutes, he said. The Hawkinses agree. "We would do anything possible to keep people from being taxed," said Bob Hawkins. "But the board has the ability to tax." Not so, said Debbie Minder, attorney for a proposed private water system, Shady Cove Waterworks. Minder was also Jackson County’s assistant co-counsel in 2002. She researched the district’s powers and duties, she said. "The Shady Cove Water District has no taxing authority," said Minder. "And the IRS would be (in Shady Cove) like you wouldn’t believe if they tried." Collier is looking to create a larger district out of the current network of smaller associations and "mini water districts." Bob Hawkins said there may be private funding opportunities. Dee Hawkins said state and federal grants are a possibility. "The town of Kirby got grants and a loan," she said. Who will get the bill for Sept. 20’s Measure 15-62 is unclear, said Jackson County Elections Deputy Donna Connor. The probable cost for the election would be around $1,000, she said. "But I am not clear as to (whether the county or the water district) is going to get the bill," said Connor. Reach reporter Sanne Specht at 776-4497 or e-mail Water district may disband ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker dvd-r Distance Education Computer Security Ztech Media Hosting Sports Equipment Student Loans Online Pharmacy tcg student loan consolidation Online Casino Reviews Myspace Home Equity Loans Windermere Van Vleet Deep Muscle Stimulator Discount Hotel Reservations Southern Oregon Loans Online Casino News Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Salvia Divinorum Online Casino Advertisement s