By Mary-Justine Lanyon
The news was good at the Jan. 27 meeting of the Lake Arrowhead Community Services District board of directors. Despite getting what they called a “substantial” amount of rain over the Christmas holiday, “things went smoothly,” said Field Operations Manager Nathan Porter in his report.
The meeting began with members of Boy Scout Troop 89 leading the board, staff and audience in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Engineering Manager Scott Schroder reported that the new corporate yard is “pretty much finished.” Still to be done is completing the generator pad and doing some landscaping, which won’t happen until spring. He gave his fourth-quarter report on projects to the board: the Spyglass slope protection has been completed, Meadow Bay and Blue Jay Bay slip lining are 45 percent complete, manhole inflow reduction is 80 complete and the solar farm is under construction.
The pipe on this unimproved section of Highway 173 was exposed during the heavy rain in December. (Photo: LACSD)
Porter told the board that a pipe had been exposed on the unimproved section of Highway 173 during the heavy rain; staff had to rebuild the road. He also reported that 428 hydrants had been maintained during 2025; they have been color-coded to show the gallons per minute they produce.
That pleased ratepayer Tony St. John, who had spoken to the board last year after the Los Angeles-area fires, raising concerns about access to water. He had asked if hydrants were checked regularly and had been told they were not. However, following his appearance at that board meeting, the hydrant in his neighborhood was cleaned out.
When Porter said the hydrants are now color coded, St. John – who reiterated his concerns at the Jan. 27 meeting – gave him a thumbs up in appreciation.
Operations Manager Matt Brooks gave his monthly and annual analyses of water consumption. It was down 8.2 percent in December, 67.41 acre-feet in 2025 compared to 73.39 in 2024. In 2025 consumption was down 6.2 percent – 1183.51 a-f compared to 1261.35 a-f in 2024.
Lake draw was slightly down: 50.15 a-f in December 2025 vs 50.79 a-f in December 2024. It was also down for the year: 15.8 percent in 2025 (670.48 a-f) vs 796.12 a-f in 2024. The 2025 draw was just 42.8 percent of the allotted 1,566 a-f per year under SWRCB Order WR 2006-001.
Well production was up: 18.60 a-f in December 2025 vs 9.81 a-f in December 2024. For the year, it was up 27.1 percent, 203.86 a-f vs 160.43 a-f.
Water purchase from CLAWA is down: zero a-f in December 2025 vs 13.61 a-f in December 2024 and 317.95 a-f in 2025 vs 329.10 a-f in 2024.
LACSD staff was able to repair and rebuild the road. (Photo: LACSD)
Recycled water deliveries ceased for the season on Nov. 11, 2025. Delivery was down 11 percent for the year: 190.47 a-f in 2025 vs 213.23 a-f in 2024.
The board – under the direction of President Steve Boydston – considered the yearly review of Ordinance No. 65 which limits the number of water connections per year to 60. Schroder said they try to limit the number of permits to five a month but did not have that many any month in 2025, when the total number of permits issued was 14. Staff saw no need to change the ordinance and the board agreed.
Under board member comments, Boydston noted he had taken a tour of the LACSD facilities with incoming GM Ryan Gross. “It was fun but, more than that, it was outstanding. I had not been deep inside the facilities. I was very impressed with the facilities and the employees.
“I have looked at money spent and wondered if LACSD was doing the right thing for the ratepayers,” Boydston said. “We have an incredible system.” He added he was impressed with the monitoring and the cleanliness of the facilities. “That speaks well of the employees,” he said.
“My favorite part of the tour was the reclamation. I thought it would stink and not be fun but it was the complete opposite. It was extremely clean with grass growing in places. I saw deer there – where else will you see deer at a sewer plant? I was waiting for the Disney song.
“Every employee I talked to was highly knowledgeable. I could ask any question, they had an answer. The average person is not aware of what we have in these facilities. They just turn on their water and flush their toilets.”
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