The Los Banos City Council adopted a resolution at its June 19 meeting that addresses the detachment of properties from the Central California Irrigation District (CCID). This decision refers the matter to the Merced County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCo) for final approval.
Stacey Souza Elms, the city’s community and economic development director described the resolution as an important “housekeeping” effort. The resolution aims to detach 72 parcels within the city limits, which although no longer engaged in agricultural activities, remain part of the CCID.
Elms explained that this initiative has been a long-standing goal for a long time with the city. Historically, parcels annexed into the city were supposed to be detached from the irrigation district, but several were overlooked and remained within CCID.
The parcels include commercial areas such as those that encompass Walgreen’s and Home Depot, on property which no longer requires irrigation services. Elms reassured that this detachment would not affect the properties’ access to city water services, since they are already connected to the city’s water supply.
CCID conducted outreach and public meetings with property owners to encourage support for the detachment. The next step involves a public hearing process with Merced County LAFCo.
Elms concluded by thanking Jarrett Martin, CCID’s General Manager, and Maria Fatima Sequeira, CCID’s assessor, for their efforts and acknowledged LAFCo’s Executive Director
Bill Nicholson for his guidance throughout the process.
