EMWD approves land exchange with City of Hemet

Joe Naiman

Writer

The Eastern Municipal Water District approved a land exchange with the City of Hemet.

The 4-0 EMWD board vote Feb. 15, with Randy Record absent, will exchange 0.37 acres currently owned by Eastern for a 1.24-acre parcel currently owned by the city. Eastern will pay the City of Hemet the $357,000 difference in property valuation and will also be responsible for transaction costs. The board action declared the EMWD land to be surplus, authorized the land exchange agreement and the escrow process, and authorized total appropriations of $412,000.

The Cawston Lift Station was built on a 7,000 square foot lot north of Stetson Avenue. The EMWD lift station, which pumped west Hemet’s sewer flow to the San Jacinto Valley Regional Water Reclamation Facility for treatment, operated from 1978 to 2019 and had a capacity of 4.5 million gallons per day (mgd).

In 2021, the San Jacinto Valley Reclamation Integrated Plan report was completed. That report recommended that a lift station with a capacity of 5 mgd be put into operation by 2027 as a replacement for the Cawston Lift Station. The report also recommended that the lift station have the capability to be expanded to 11.4 mgd. The existing Cawston Lift Station site could not accommodate that expansion.

T hree potential sites for the new lift station were identified.

A property owned by the City of Hemet less than 1,000 feet from the Cawston Lift Station was identified as the ideal site. That property is on the northwest corner of Stetson and Cawston avenues and is next to Fire Station No. 4. The property totals five acres and much of that land is not being used. The City of Hemet expressed willingness to exchange a portion of that property with Eastern, and during 2022 EMWD staff worked with city staff to identify an appropriate property to exchange for the benefit of both the city and the district. Two legal parcels on the southeast corner of Stetson and Palm avenues were once the site of Eastern’s Diamond Valley Booster Station which was taken out of service in 2009 and demolished shortly afterward. The land totaling approximately 16,100 square feet is adjacent to Fire Station No. 2, so the city could gain operational flexibility and benefit with that property

The two properties agreed upon for exchange were appraised. The larger city-owned parcel was appraised at $486,000. The land owned by Eastern was appraised

EMWD approves new five-year lease with Quality Turf

Joe Naiman

Writer

Quality Turf Inc. leases land from the Eastern Municipal Water District, and a Feb. 15 EMWD board action gave Quality Turf a new five-year lease.

Randy Record was not at the board meeting, but the other four board members all approved the new lease. The lease area encompasses 140 acres adjacent to Eastern’s San Jacinto Valley Regional Water Reclamation Facility.

The land east of Warren Road, west of Sanderson Avenue, south of Ramona Expressway and north of Cottonwood Avenue is referred to as the Buena Vida property. The lease was originally approved in 2014, and the lease area at the time was 190 acres. New leases were approved in 2016 and 2018.

The most recent lease was approved in July 2020 with Quality Turf paying $80 per acre annually.

Eastern expects the completion of five megawatts of solar power generation in the near future as well as future on-site water treatment facilities, so the lease area was reduced to 140 acres. The 2020 lease agreement included a Feb. 28, 2023, expiration.

The district obtains benefits from the lease other than rental income. The presence of a tenant who uses recycled water allows Eastern to sell some of its recycled supply, and the lease rental amount does not include water purchases. The lease means that Quality Turf, rather than the district, is paying for maintenance and upkeep. In the

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Offered at $397,000 absence of a tenant, Eastern would be responsible for maintenance and upkeep costs and would also be required to provide appropriate security.

EMWD staff solicited bids for a new lease on Dec. 15, 2022. A lease of up to five years was offered. Bidders were advised that over the five-year term the lease area might be reduced from 140 to 75 acres due to construction of the San Jacinto Valley Advanced Water Purification Facility and that if planning, coordination and con-

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Offered at $410,000 at $129,000. struction activities associated with that project impact the acreage available for use the tenant would receive a written notification of no more than six months in advance. Quality Turf submitted the only bid by the Jan. 13 deadline. The lease area has a high alkali level in the soil, so its value is less due to the type of crops which can be grown. Quality Turf plans to grow alfalfa and/or rye on the property. Quality Turf will pay $80 per acre during the first year of the lease, $84 per acre in the second year, $88 per acre for the third year, $92 per acre in the fourth year and $97 per acre for the fifth year.

In addition to paying the city the value difference, Eastern will also pay approximately $30,000 for surveying and fencing and approximately $10,000 for title and escrow costs. The $412,000 total appropriation also includes $15,000 for EMWD staff time expenses.

The transaction itself is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act review, although any future use of the acquired property will be subject to CEQA. Environmental documentation will be prepared once enough information on those projects allows for the identification of potential impacts.

Eastern’s original acquisition of the Buena Vida property included an existing single-family home on approximately 10 acres of land in the 2700 block of Ramona Expressway. Ralph Daily, who owns Quality Turf, currently leases the 10-acre property under a separate agreement. Eastern does not believe that the house or the surrounding ten acres would be of use to the district in the future. The residence agreement expires on Dec. 31 and the residential home is expected to be razed after the end of that lease period. After the residential property lease ends and the disposition of the house is completed, the 10-acre property may be incorporated into the Quality Turf lease by a written amendment to the lease agreement. Quality Turf will be permitted to farm that area and may also store and stage equipment and appurtenances.

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