I hear there's some campaign mud slinging going on. The City promised me they would sling mud and ruin my name if they didn't get their way. At least they are following through on their promise. Remember that they've made up their endorsements and spent months attempting to fabricate a story that fits their agenda to build large developments and destroy Tehachapi as you know it. The long and short of it is that they want to control the TCCWD Board so they can end the lawsuit they are in with TCCWD and vote themselves into being entitled to 75% (or more) of all the imported water in Tehachapi. Thankfully the current TCCWD water board has voted unanimously to protect existing residents and water users from these attempts to take control of TCCWD and the imported water supply. Read the attached letter below and you can see in written black and white that the City of Tehachapi and Golden Hills together are attempting to take control of 75% of the imported water supply. Why would they need to do such a thing? It's simple, they want to grow the City of Tehachapi rapidly and they are attempting to grab all the water they can; plus they've promised some developers water they don't have. Go figure.
Yes, as the Board President, I did reject the process the City and Golden Hills requested to address this topic and that rejection was solely based on the fact that I wanted a hard record with written requests to work from. To your face, they act as if they are not trying to take the water from existing users and they act as if they are looking out for the greater good of Tehachapi and existing residents, but that's not the truth. TCCWD already has water agreements with these organizations to make sure existing residents get their water. That's not the issue, the issue is that Golden Hills and the City of Tehachapi want MORE water and I finally got them to write it in black and white. They want 75% of the water!
Joel Peel and Nathanael Harbison are endorsed by the City of Tehachapi and their made up tax watchdog organization because they will vote for the city projects and all the imported water the city wants. Why? Follow the money and you will find the truth. Who benefits from a large number of new houses being approved in the City? Developers? Real Estate Agents? City employees? Or maybe even "investors" in a project? Do you know any developers, real estate agents, or city employees closely related to these two candidates? Do your homework folks.
They are selling a pack of lies that will line their pockets and they don't care about Tehachapi in the future. In the words of City Manager Greg Garrett himself, on April 6, 2021, during a meeting about water use in Tehachapi, he told me that Tehachapi must "Grow or Die". In that meeting we discussed that some solutions presented did not keep the basin in balance and could end up with a water shortage in the future. His reply, "It doesn't matter what happens in 30 years, we won't be here." I don't share his opinion and I would hope that nobody else who is in a position to plan for the future of Tehachapi does either.
It's not Us versus Them. We are all in this together. Tehachapi is an ecosystem that must maintain a balance in water, homes, city growth, rural use, business development, commercial agriculture, ranches, open space, parks, schools, wildlife, and so much more. We have an amazing cultural history and a greatly diverse group of individuals that make up an ever changing landscape. None of these issues should become an Us vs. Them, but when a small land mass and populous is asking for 75% of what belongs to the whole and pretending that it's in defense of their existing residential base then it's just a lie.
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