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Stung by water bills that are increasing 172%, Castlewood County Service Area residents flocked to a meeting last week to hear what their volunteer board of directors was doing about it.
The service area, established in the late 1950s, provides water, sewer and road maintenance for the 187 homes in the Castlewood area plus older homes along Foothill Road in unincorporated Pleasanton. Fees are billed on the property tax bill, with monthly charges assessed only if a homeowner uses more water than his annual allotment.
The bad news from the Castlewood Property Owners Association board on Sept. 17 was blunt — there’s nothing that can be done about the 2024-25 property tax bill that will be hitting mailboxes soon.
The Alameda County Board of Supervisors already approved it, with local supervisors Nate Miley and David Haubert supporting it with the caveat that they asked something be done about the huge increase. County managers in the Public Works Agency pushed ahead with the staggering hike.
Castlewood homeowners will see the water maintenance and operations charge on their bill soar from $1,089 to $2,958, or $338 for 330 units per year. City of Pleasanton rates, even after this year’s hefty increases, are $180 while Dublin San Ramon Services District clients pay $169 and Fremont area users pay $168.
That’s motivated the board members to dive deeply into the finances, where they said the county has been less than responsive.
Doug Ricketts, who works on the water committee, has tried to investigate the finances, as has Dan Dilger. Ricketts said he was given a big data dump from the county and, despite asking, received no training on how to deal with it.
Dilger pointed out how the annual audited report through 2022 contained detailed charts showing revenues, expenses and the bottom line. Charts vanished in 2023, he said.
Dilger’s analysis showed a $1.9 million difference between what the auditor reported the ending balance in the Castlewood dedicated account was and what the county financial staff listed in its report to the board. The county also has not been forthcoming to show where the differences stem from as well as explaining details of spending that sent the water bill soaring, directors said.
In addition, the county is claiming there’s a shortfall in the account of $1.237 million, about $6,000 per household. Public works sent the board a slide deck an hour before the scheduled general meeting in August laying out the shortfall and options for payment with the demand that a decision be reached that evening, directors said. The board pulled the slide from the deck and did not show it.
The board believes the association must protest the shortfall and refuse to pay it. They’ve hired an attorney who is experienced dealing with the county. They said they hope to avoid legal action.
Board President Rick Hammel summed up the situation saying that the public works director had said to his face that Castlewood was a “bleep-bleep-bleep”. He said that the director would like Castlewood to find another alternative to the county.
The board, noting that the membership would make any final decision, had Vice President Mike Mitchel lay out three potential options.
1. Convince the county to properly fund the area. The county receives 15% of the property tax. It provides sheriff’s services and fire protection to Castlewood with the homeowners bearing the burden for the rest. Doing this would require the supervisors’ approval, and they would still have the final say on budget.
2. Form a Community Services District, in effect, a mini-city with a directly elected board. The county would have to agree to allocate 12-13% of the property tax pot and would still retain ultimate control. Administrative costs would increase.
3. Annex to the city of Pleasanton. Pleasanton receives 18% of the property tax. The challenge is the city has little incentive to annex unless there’s additional revenue that comes with it. The City Council would make governance decisions. City services are better than what’s provided by the county and local officials presumably would be more responsive, directors said. Pleasanton is facing its own structural budget shortfall, and the council majority has placed a 1/2-cent local sales tax increase proposal on the November ballot.
The board said it will be a multi-year process, and it would be pursuing all three options until one or more are determined infeasible.
Editor’s note: Journalist Tim Hunt is a freelancer for the Pleasanton Weekly. Hunt and his family live in the Castlewood area and pay these taxes.
Have you ever been to Castlewood? Please, drive up there. There is no security booth. It’s lush. The members can afford to pay water rates and membership dues, along with the montly nut (purchase food, etc. ) that most of us lipeople cannot.
Tim go up there, and tell me the members are hurting.
p.s. Tim, are the 1%? Then, I do not have any sympathy for you. I once follow you, and you sold out.