December 10, 2023
Grover Beach City Council Meeting
Good evening, Council. I’m Rebecca Larsen, a property owner in the Nacimiento community. We are the newest member of the Grover Beach Neighborhood Watch Program. I had hoped to be present this evening to present my comments in person.
However, I was pulled away by continued issues relating to insurance claims directly relating to the matter I planned to discuss this evening.
I, along with other members of my community, are concerned for the health and safety for ourselves and our families, which includes our pets. We are also genuinely worried about the preservation of our homes and property values.
Our community has been affected by destructive flooding for years. The fact that these issues were exacerbated by severe storms in early 2023 has only strengthen our determination to see that the City is held accountable. The City has an obligation to maintain its waterways and protect the lives and property of its citizens.
The City has an indebtedness to the Citizens of Grover Beach that put them in office.
Our short-term ask is that the City recognize and respond to the hazards caused by the flooding of Meadow Creek. This can be accomplished by immediately removing the debris and sediment in Meadow Creek as well clearing the debris and sediment in the storm drains within our community.
I can tell you from my personal experience, that watching water overtake your home is a traumatic event that I continue dealing with today. Having to live through the flooding from Meadow Creek, and knowing now that the City had the authority to do something to prevent it yet did nothing is even more devastating.
The City of Grover Beach was notified of the Governor's Emergency Executive Order N3-23 issued February 13, and N-4-23 issued on March 10. These orders suspended Fish and Game Code section 1600, allowing the City to immediately take action to remove sediment and debris, as well as change the course of a waterway, if necessary, to protect property without any permitting or recourse from the Department of Fish and Wildlife.
On August 4th, the governor of our State was still concerned about the citizens effected by the storms and flooding. Governor Newsome issued Executive Order N-10-23, which specifically calls out coastal streams on the Central Coast. The order states that “there remains a need for removal of floating vegetation and debris…and that removal must expeditiously occur before the next rainy season begins in fall of 2023 in order to mitigate the risk of additional flooding and allow for continued recovery efforts…”. The time for completion of N-10-23 ended on November 1st. However, there are workarounds in place for projects that weren’t completed by the deadline.
The problem is GROVER BEACH TOOK NO ACTION AT ALL.
Arroyo Grande took action. Pismo Beach has taken action. San Luis Obispo has taken action. I ask the Council members and our City Manager; Knowing about the damages caused by the storms earlier this year, how can you stand by and watch surrounding cities take preventative measures to protect their citizens while you do nothing? In 2017, a member of our community lost their home and nearly lost their life to due to a fire caused by a flood from Meadow Creek. The wiring under his home was ignited from a short caused water and it created the fire. Neighbors had to rescue our neighbor.
The Lift Station at the end of Nacimiento Avenue has overflowed multiple times during routine storm events, releasing raw sewage into our roadways and onto our properties.
Raw sewage presents a health hazard and should be a major concern of the City of Grover Beach.
I’ve had to wade through it to protect my property and my dogs have had to swim through it to evacuate. I no longer have my beautiful plants in my front yard. Some people say, “shit happens,” but we have had more than our fair share of literal shit in our community.
STORM WATER MANAGEMENT studies have been done by the City of Grover Beach dating back at least to 2006. The point is that the flooding issues are not a new to the City. Each Council Member, the City Planner, City Manager, and the City Attorney, should take the time to educate themselves of the ongoing issues that are in these costly studies.
I had the opportunity to hear Matthew Bronson conduct a presentation to the CA Association of Realtors earlier this year. During the Q&A portion of his lecture, I posed the question to him about who was responsible for managing a City’s waterways. He stated that the City of Grover Beach is responsible for its waterways. Of course, he added some circumstances controlled by the Fish and Wildlife Department that could impeded a City from managing its waterways. I am certain that he was speaking of Meadow Creek when he did so. The Executive Orders issued this year were an opportunity to bypass those restrictions.
Our community is talking with our Regional Representative at the Department of Fish and Wildlife and other Government organizations. We are educating ourselves on the facts, as well as looking into changes that have taken place this year – some affecting the protected species list to Lake and Streambed Alteration Programs, and even Supreme Court rulings.
Your community and its citizens are paying attention to you and expecting action to be taken. 2024 is an election year that we intend on influencing.
Thank you for your time.
Rebecca Larsen
(805) 268-3551
www.oakvalleyterrace.com