On July 15, the San Luis Obispo Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) voted to decrease the Nipomo Community Services District sphere of influence—the area to which it provides water, sewer, and solid waste services—by about 1,000 acres.
As a result, the NCSD will no longer be responsible for about 800 acres of rural land off Orchard Road in Nipomo and about 200 acres of agriculturally zoned land near Highway 101 and Hetrick Avenue, protected under the Williamson Act.
According to LAFCO documents, the recommendation was made because agency staff members questioned whether or not the NCSD would be able to provide services to those portions of its ever-expending district. The district’s jurisdictional sphere includes more than 5,000 acres in the Nipomo area and was last updated in 2004.
These two areas were selected specifically because property owners said they had no plans to convert the land to another use necessitating water and sewer services supplied by NCSD.
In an interview with the Sun, LAFCO executive officer David Church said the decision is “consistent with LAFCO’s policies,” namely preserving ag land.
NCSD general manager Don Spagnolo said the district was in favor of the change.
“It’s my understanding that the farm land wasn’t going to change its zoning any time soon, so it didn’t make any sense to have the district providing services,” he said.
The LAFCO board must approve all annexations and removals of areas from NCSD’s jurisdiction, as well as other districts. The board is composed of representatives from the county and city levels.
This article appears in Jul 22-29, 2010.
