MLIRD approves land purchase

MOSES LAKE - The Moses Lake Irrigation and Rehabilitation District Board of Directors approved a $362,000 land purchase, for a lot that will eventually house a permanent MLIRD office, during a special meeting Tuesday night.

The lake-front lot that MLIRD will acquire was previously occupied by the Frank Holmes Lumber Company, located on Marina Drive.

Director Rich Archer and Board Chair Mick Hansen both voted in favor of acquiring the property, while Director Ron Covey voted against the land purchase.

Hansen said although the property is 5.1 acres, some of the acreage is underwater. He said the district has about 2.5 acres to build on.

Covey expressed concern over the purchase of the lot during the meeting. Covey said he was not comfortable making a decision on the purchase since he had not had an opportunity to go over the findings of a recent economic impact study.

"I had no opportunity to see the pros and cons," said Covey. "I don't feel comfortable putting ratepayers' money into a situation where we may be screwed."

Covey said it was unknown if the district would be able to put in a boat launch, and the county's shoreline master plan is being worked on, which could also affect the property.

He also said that the lot is too small to build an adequate office, meeting area, shop and boat launch.

"I'm not going to support this at this time," said Covey.

Archer said that since the property was originally going for about $565,000, MLIRD should take advantage of the deal on the property.

"We're talking about lake-front property, something we don't have a lot of in Moses Lake," he said. "If we don't get on it right now and purchase it, we're going to miss the boat."

Archer said it made sense to invest in property so MLIRD can have a central location to house equipment, versus having MLIRD property spread out around town.

The MLIRD board also adopted their 2013 budget during Tuesday's meeting.

Next year's budget is based on a 25/25 assessment ratio, meaning 25 cents would be assessed per $1,000 on the irrigation side of fees and 25 cents would be assessed per $1,000 for irrigation and rehabilitation fees. The 25/25 budget is estimated to bring in between $800,000 and $900,000 of income for the district.

Director Ron Covey moved to leave the budget for next year at a 75/25 ratio, however his motion was not seconded. Director Rich Archer moved to adopt the 25/25 budget and his motion was seconded by Board Chair Mick Hansen.

Hansen and Archer voted in favor of the 25/25 budget, while Covey voted against the motion.

MLIRD provided a budget and schedule of expenditures for 2013, based on a 25/25 budget, during a previous meeting. According to that document, the district expects to have an operating budget of about $830,000.

MLIRD had an operating budget of about $2.4 million in 2011, according to the document. Last year's budget was around $1.6 million, Hansen said at the meeting.

Funding for aquatic herbicide treatment is one of the categories that will see a significant funding cut next year, compared to previous years.

In 2010, MLIRD spent about $212,000 on herbicide treatment, and about $255,000 in 2011. The 2013 budget sets aside $30,000 for herbicide treatment.

Funding for Connelly Park also decreases in 2013, from $284,000 spent on the park in 2011 to $25,000 next year.

Hansen said he felt it was necessary to reduce the assessment fee ratio, and essentially the budget, since the state auditor's office raised concerns over the district's assessment methods.

He said he received a letter earlier this year, informing the district that they needed to make sure fees assessed for irrigation were only spent on irrigation programs and that fees assessed for rehabilitation were likewise only spent on rehabilitation programs.

"I think we're still in violation of the state auditor quite honestly," said Hansen. "But I think that if we have repercussions and it comes back to bite us, it's not going to be a total devastation if we have to pay it back."

Hansen said he was worried that if the district's assessment fees were challenged at a later time, MLIRD could be responsible for paying back any wrongfully assessed fees.

Although the board voted to reduce the 2013 budget, Archer said that he believes there will be enough money to fund the land purchase.

Archer said if the district combines the $170,000 that was set aside in 2012 for equipment purchase and the $105,000 that was set aside for land investment, MLIRD could fund a big chunk of the land purchase.

The remaining cost could easily be split up over the next five years, so that MLIRD would end up paying about $20,000 a year for five years for the property, he said.