Mesa Water District to Pursue Merger
COSTA MESA — Despite already carrying more than $40 million in debt, the board of directors of the Mesa Consolidated Water District has decided to pursue a multimillion-dollar merger with the Santa Ana Heights Mutual Water District.
Mesa Consolidated, which has 22,000 customers, has not said how much it will offer to buy out the Santa Ana Heights water agency, which serves 2,200 people in unincorporated land adjacent to Costa Mesa and Newport Beach. Mesa Consolidated officials did say, however, they expect to pay at least $6 million to upgrade the aging equipment now in place at Santa Ana Heights.
“It is appalling,†said Heather Somers, co-founder of the citizens watchdog group Coalition for Clean Water-Costa Mesa. “They don’t have the money to do this.â€
But Mesa officials have said they do not want to go ahead with a purchase if it means raising their customers’ rates.
In fact, the district said it is studying whether a merger will help its financial position. By taking on more customers, said Mesa Consolidated spokeswoman Lisa Lawson, the agency may be able to spread its current debt among more customers, allowing each to shoulder a smaller share of the burden.
Mesa Consolidated must submit a proposal to Santa Ana Heights by April 1.
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