Merger Would Create New City Water Dept.

Aiming to provide more efficient services to residents, the City Council on Tuesday will consider requesting that the Capistrano Valley Water District be merged with the city.

All five council members now serve on the water district’s board. If the two organizations were merged, water service would be provided by a newly formed city water department, governed by the same council, city officials said.

“This is just a better way of running the water district and the city,” said Councilwoman Carolyn Nash, adding that the two agencies often duplicate jobs.

“It’s just more financially advantageous to have some of the same functions performed by one group rather than two,” she said.

The Capistrano water district now serves about 30,000 customers in San Juan Capistrano and a small section of Dana Point.

Though customers at first would not see big savings in water fees, the water district could save money by consolidating administrative functions, said Ray Auerbach, general manager of the water district.

“There will certainly be some savings, but we’re not sure how much,” Auerbach said.

The merger would have to be approved by the Local Agency Formation Commission.