Supervisors OK Pioneertown loan

SAN BERNARDINO – County supervisors Monday approved an $80,000 loan to provide new water sources for Pioneertown’s trouble-plagued water system.

The county board at the same time scheduled a hearing for 2 p.m. Aug. 3 on a plan to levy fees of $124 per acre in the community’s Improvement Zone W-4 to repay the loan in the coming fiscal year.

Special Districts Department engineer Ed Houston reported that Pioneertown Water Association’s private system has been out of water since June 6, necessitating hauling of water to homes and businesses.

He said fees levied in the community this year financed development of one well nearly ready for operation, but another is needed. He said the loan will provide that second well and installation for three-fourths of a mile of pipeline to carry water to the association’s system.

Because of system inadequacies, the county is proposing replacement facilities and, for that purpose, is seeking a $1.3 million loan from the state Department of Water Resources that would be paid off through Zone W-4 property assessments.