CAVE
CREEK – Town council took the final step in the purchase
of Desert Hills Water Company at its May 7 meeting.
Council
unanimously approved a $6.6 million Water Infrastructure
Finance Authority loan for the purchase and improvements
to Desert Hills Water. The loan reimburses the town for
money already spent on the purchase and will allow for
necessary upgrades to be made.
This
loan comes on top of the $20.1 million loan approved last
month for the purchase of Cave Creek Water Company.
Attorney
Fred Rosenfeld, special counsel to Cave Creek, said this
approval is the “last” action town council must take toward
the purchase of the water company.
Repayment
of the 20‑year loan, at about 3.5 percent interest,
is to come from the Desert Hills system’s
revenue. The line item for the first payment, totaling
$75,338, is already included in
next year’s proposed budget presented to council May 7.
Councilman
Gilbert Lopez said the town was “fortunate the opportunity
to buy Desert Hills Water Company came about,” adding
the council bought the water company for “strategic reasons”
and to provide good drinking water to its customers.
The
assets of Desert Hills Water were transferred to the town
on May 8, according to the Arizona Corporation Commission.
In
other business, the council approved two intergovernmental
agreements with Maricopa County.
The
first IGA is for animal control services through June
2010. Services will be paid for from the town’s General
Fund at a cost of $5,250, according to the contract.
The
second agreement is for a reciprocal borrowing program
with the county Library District through June 2009.
Town
council also approved a double‑pass chip seal paving
and a single‑pass chip seal paving contract with
Sunland Asphalt. The double‑pass chip seal is for
4.5 miles of road from 49th through 53rd streets north
of Carefree Highway. Only a single pass is needed for
the 1.5 miles of paved road in the contract. The value
of the contract is $252,952.
Town
Engineer Wayne Anderson said the work would take about
two weeks to complete.
