Council President discusses supporting alternative water systems

By Anthony King | SDUN Editor

Council President Todd Gloria released his “100 Days of Progress” on March 12, highlighting several initiatives he and the City Council have addressed during his second term, and first as president. His stated goals are simple, he wrote: “to strengthen the City Council as a legislative body and to work cooperatively to improve the quality of life in San Diego.”

Sworn in as Council president after winning reelection in the newly drawn District Three, Gloria succeeded Tony Young as president, who resigned from the Council. In an interview to discuss the first 100 days, Gloria remained gracious to his predecessor.

“Tony Young carried himself with a lot of grace, and therefore I think made it look quite easy,” Gloria said. “I find that it is a lot of work.”

Part of that feeling is self-imposed, he said, acknowledging that a hallmark of his time on the Council has been saying yes to appearances more often than saying no. He was quick to call himself a workaholic.

“It’s definitely way more work” he said. “I don’t mind.”

While several topics addressed in the councilmember’s 100 days letter seemed to be immediate to the actual first 100 days – Gloria was sworn in Dec. 3, 2012 – most are projects that have been in process for several years, some prior to when he was first elected in 2008.

“A lot of stuff that you saw in the first 100 days was stuff that we worked on in the first term that are now starting to pay dividends,” he said. “The reason to spotlight it is that, and this is the great thing about representing District Three, we start a lot of [these] ideas here. Then, they are exported elsewhere in the city.”

That is not to say Gloria does not see the multiple benefits of spearheading projects typical of a president, who has the added responsibility of overseeing the entire council and, in turn, the entire city. In fact, he welcomed the greater city connection.

“The issues are really the same across the city,” Gloria said. “As I’ve taken on more of this city-wide role, every neighborhood is focused on infrastructure. Every neighborhood is concerned about public safety. And while there may be some nuance to it in Hillcrest verses, say, Clairemont, the reality is that the values are still the same, so it is not difficult to navigate those in different neighborhoods.”

One topic in the 100 days letter that affects a larger population than Uptown residents is the work done by the Water Policy Implementation Task Force. Recently reauthorized, Gloria wrote the process was a “collaborative approach” that he hoped would continue on the full Council. Council President Pro Tem Sherri Lightner heads the group.

The task force was created to develop strategies for the City’s Comprehensive Water Policy, and work is expected to be complete later this year, when they will present recommendations to the Natural Resources and Culture Committee and then, if successful, to the full Council.

Among the recommendations on the working Water Policy document is the support of alternative sources of water, including indirect potable reuse (IPR) and greywater systems. Both, Gloria said, were critical to Uptown.

“We know that additional density and new development is planned, and I think that communities want to have confidence that the infrastructure that’s needed to support those new developments will be there,” Gloria said. “A big part of that is water. Not just the pipes, but the actual asset; the commodity.”

Supporting the new systems – which includes research, education and financing, among other means – is something that extends beyond Gloria’s first 100 days as president as well.

“The Council has been pursuing [this] for years now, but I think we are doubling down on this approach to diversify our portfolio,” he said. “The reality is we are at the end of the line when it comes to water supply, and we are really captive to other interests when it comes to what we pay.”

The San Diego County Water Authority is currently entangled in lawsuits with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California – a Los Angeles-based organization that supplies water to 26 cities and water districts, including San Diego – regarding overcharging customers. One lawsuit filed in June 2012 states overcharges will amount to over $50 million in 2013 and 2014.

The 2012 lawsuit is the second filed by the County Water Authority, having sued the Metropolitan Water District in 2010 over similar charges for the years 2011 and 2012. It remains unresolved as well.

Gloria was well aware that what happens outside San Diego, as well as in the courts, is going to affect Council District Three.

“We’re going to do as much as we can locally, whether that’s through conservation, greywater systems or indirect potable reuse,” he said. “There’s really no stone that should be left unturned to this issue because we are in a very arid environment with a growing population.”

There is growing interest in greywater systems, where households re-route wastewater from their kitchen sinks, showers and appliances to help water lawns and foliage outdoors, and one the councilmember said surprised him when he was originally campaigning.

“I can tell you from walking door to door in 2008 that was very much in front of people’s minds. It was one of these things you wouldn’t expect,” he said.

At the time, several people in Uptown were installing unpermitted greywater systems, which were illegal. Over the last four years – again, reaching beyond the first 100 days – the City Council has worked with the County to develop guidelines for homeowners to implement these systems.

“We’ve changed that culture now. This is going back to the broader question of diversifying the portfolio,” Gloria said, who, as it turns out, recently had dinner at a home in Uptown that featured a complete greywater system.

Gloria will be the guest speaker at the April 9 Hillcrest Town Council held at the Joyce Beers Community Center, located at 3900 Vermont St. Town Council President Luke Terpstra said the councilmember will be updating the community on a number of topics pertinent to District Three. The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. and is open to all.

Editor’s note: this is the first in a multiple-series profile of Council President Todd Gloria, taking a deeper look at the many initiatives brought forth in his “100 Days of Progress.” Subsequent stories will appear in all San Diego Community News Network media, including San Diego Uptown News, San Diego Downtown News and Gay San Diego.