For many years, homes in Cabrillo Estates have used septic tanks, but some residents would now like to see a sewer system put in.
The Cabrillo Estates subdivision was not included in the switch from septic to sewer that much of the town went through several years ago.
Los Osos Community Services District (CSD) General Manager Ron Munds says the Cabrillo Estate's neighborhood’s older septic system is now starting to fail.
“To replace a septic system up there, under the new California regulations, is extremely expensive, upwards to $150,000 to replace, plus there’s ongoing maintenance and reporting requirements,” Munds said.
Munds said the neighborhood’s septic could be contributing to nitrates in the groundwater, and if that’s the case, it’s important that a sewer system be installed.
The Cabrillo Estates Property Owners Association (C.E.P.O.A) surveyed all property owners, and 73% favored switching to a sewer system.
“A lot of our homes up here are on the older side, so we’re looking at septic systems that have been here for 30 years, so it’s just a matter of time when these are going to fail and we will have that huge expense,” said Carla Lalley, vice president of the C.E.P.O.A.
According to estimates done at four different properties by Crizer Construction, replacing individual septic tanks would cost anywhere from $75,000 to $120,000, while the property owners' association says switching the whole neighborhood to a sewer and connecting to the Los Osos wastewater system would cost an estimated $8.2 million or about $75,000 per parcel.
At last week’s County Board of Supervisor’s meeting, the board decided against fronting $500,000 to initiate the project and instead suggested it be community-funded or the project be given to the CSD.
“Their money is our money," said Deborah Howe, a Cabrillo Estates resident. "It's our taxpayer money and that money is meant to provide services for us, so we’d like for them to see it from our point of view and hopefully we’re able to bring it back to the board of supervisors, they’ll vote yes instead of no.”
KSBY News reached out to District 2 Supervisor Bruce Gibson, who said in part:
“I'm supportive of their efforts to pursue this infrastructure project — the first issue is how to fund development of the assessment proposal that could then be voted on by the affected property owners.”
Supervisor Gibson also said it could be a few months before there are any updates.
