Half Moon Bay loses case over sewer pipeline

After a long-standing legal battle, Judge Julia Allogiamento found that replacement of the intertie is an operations and maintenance cost, of which Half Moon Bay must take on 62%, and not a construction or reconstruction cost, which the districts would take on.

In response, the city is considering rate increases, reconsolidation into a special district that manages the pipeline equally or even appealing the decision in a San Jose court, the press release said.

“Assuming [the ruling] stands, the City will need to move forward with rate increases to pay for 62 percent of the cost to replace the intertie pipeline,” City Manager Matthew Chidester said in the press release. “We believe the ruling will also disincentivize Montara and El Granada from making cost-efficient infrastructure decisions if they know Half Moon Bay ratepayers will pick up 62 percent of the tab.”

In an email statement, the Granada Community Services District said that the ruling accurately reflected the Joint Powers Agreement the three entities entered into in 1979 to manage coastside wastewater treatment.

“The decision affirms that the City must continue to pay its fair share toward work on the SAM Intertie Pipeline System, a vital part of SAM’s and the coastside’s sewage network,” the statement read.

The district acknowledged the impact that the decision would have on ratepayers.

“While GCSD is understandably pleased with the Court’s decision, it laments the costs of the lawsuit on its ratepayers, and all three agency’s ratepayers,” the statement read.

Half Moon Bay argued in its statement, however, that city ratepayers should not be unduly burdened with replacement of a pipeline that only benefits Granada and Montara residents.

“The purpose of these efforts has been to protect Half Moon Bay ratepayers from paying unwarranted costs to replace the intertie—a system of pipes and pump stations that carry wastewater from Granada and Montara to SAM’s treatment plant in Half Moon Bay — a pipeline system which does not serve Half Moon Bay ratepayers,” the statement read.