Residents in Stanislaus County's Diablo Grande shoulder massive debt amid water crisis
Residents in the Stanislaus County community of Diablo Grande said they're on the hook for a $13 million water debt, and they're not getting any help.
Homeowners there are now paying a base rate of nearly $600 a month just to keep their water on until December 31.
Community members met with Congressman Adam Gray's office Friday morning to discuss their ongoing water crisis. Residents said that they're hearing the same thing they've heard from other government officials.
Diablo Grande resident Debra Antigua said it's a finger-pointing game when it comes to who will step in to protect the community's water supply.
Congressman Gray's office told CBS13 in a statement that he "is committed to exploring relief options at the federal level through legislative efforts and federal funding requests."
But Antigua says even that comes with conditions.
"I asked, 'What do we need to do to get federal water?' " she said. "And I was told that Western Hills Water District would have to reach out to them first."
The meeting comes after residents agreed to a major water rate increase at the end of June to keep water service going through the end of the year.
Diablo Grande resident Kevin Halverson says he's paying even more.
"A base rate of $568 plus usage, and everybody's forgetting that. Plus usage," he said. "I have a pool, so I'm top tier in the amount of water we use, so my bill is about $700."
Before the increase, Halverson said that he paid just over $300 per month.
"Whether it be the state, the federal government — somebody needs to come in and help," he said.
The community's water comes from Western Hills Water District, but the district is over $13 million in debt to Kern County Water Agency. That's because the Diablo Grande community was originally planned for thousands of homes, but only around 600 were built, meaning much of the water they contracted for was never used.
Western Hills recently sent a letter to Kern County Water Agency, demanding to know what happened to the water originally allocated to Diablo Grande. They also asked for permission to sell that unused water to pay off their debt.
"Everything is landing on the residents to pay forward," Halverson said.
Kern County Water Agency has not yet responded to Western Hills' letter.
