DWP’s Gage Will Be Named to MWD Board

Moving to strengthen the city’s voice in the struggle over water rights, Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley plans to appoint Michael Gage, his outspoken former deputy mayor, to the board of the Metropolitan Water District, officials said Friday.

Gage, president of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power board, has been highly critical of San Diego and other Southern California communities that draw water from the MWD but have failed to impose mandatory rationing.

“He will be a prominent voice on the city’s behalf,” Deputy Mayor Mark Fabiani said. Gage, he said, will attempt to force San Diego and other cities to impose mandatory water conservation programs, as Los Angeles has done.

San Diego Mayor Maureen O’Connor and local water officials telephoned Gage on Friday to set up a meeting next week to begin to mend fences with Los Angeles and to discuss San Diego’s conservation policies.

“We called up and introduced ourselves. I said, ‘Hi, Mr. Gage, this is the wicked witch of the south,’ ” said O’Connor, who has maintained that her city can save enough water through voluntary conservation.

“He’s got a perception that San Diego’s using more than its share,” O’Connor said. “We don’t want to get into a city-by-city fight. . . .”

San Diego and Los Angeles are among 27 cities, water districts and water agencies that get some or all of their water from the MWD.

Last week, the giant water wholesaler disclosed that in February, the San Diego County Water Authority had exceeded MWD water conservation goals by 46%. While Los Angeles was cutting back sharply on its purchases from the MWD, San Diego was exceeding its allotment and racking up penalties of $4.6 million, according to a MWD survey.

“We do not object to San Diego getting somewhat more than their entitlement,” Gage said on Friday. “But I felt like they were being a little bit piggish.”

On Thursday, Gage set the stage for an intercity squabble over water by publicly criticizing San Diego, saying that if everyone in Southern California behaved as San Diego has, “We’d all be out of water pretty soon.”

Among the options available to Los Angeles, Gage said, is a legal challenge to the MWD’s water allocation program. If the MWD were forced to adhere strictly to a water-rights distribution formula, some water that now goes to San Diego and other cities could be diverted to Los Angeles.

Because Los Angeles has other sources of water, it has traditionally taken less than its entitled amount, while San Diego, which gets 90% to 95% of its water from the MWD, has taken more.

The MWD board has long been a backwater among the dozens of commissions to which Bradley makes appointments, but the obscure panel has been thrust into the spotlight as water supplies dwindle in the fifth year of a drought.

Los Angeles has eight appointees on the 51-member MWD board, more than any other member of the MWD, which includes 27 cities, municipal water agencies and county water authorities. San Diego is second, with six appointees.

Los Angeles’ delegation “has never been particularly cohesive or coordinated,” Gage said Friday.

Gage is to replace Frank S. Wyle, who offered his resignation to Bradley on Friday, Fabiani said.

“The city needs a coordinated approach to water issues, especially during this time of crisis,” Fabiani said. “Mike Gage will ensure that the city speaks with one voice.”

Gage is believed to be the first DWP official ever appointed to the water district’s board. His presence on the panel is expected to help push the agenda of Los Angeles’ huge water utility.

As deputy mayor, Gage was frequently combative and confrontational, but he said Friday that he plans to work for cooperation among Southern California’s drought-stricken cities and water districts.

His appointment must be approved by the Los Angeles City Council.

Times staff writer Amy Wallace in San Diego contributed to this report.