Could CL lose recreational rights to lake?

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The contract for the lake lease between the Canyon Lake Property Owners Association and Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District was back in the news this week.

In February, Canyon Lake’s Legal Counsel Scott Levine warned members at the CLPOA Board of Directors meeting, “EVMWD will likely begin a PR campaign or a ‘scare’ campaign . . . Don’t be fooled by EVMWD’s scare campaign.”

An article in The Press-Enterprise this week (March 23) started out with this statement, “Recreational activity on Canyon Lake is at risk of being shut down due to a dispute between the water district that owns the lake and the property owners association allowed to use it. If the closure takes place, nearly 11,000 residents and their guests would no longer be allowed to fish, boat, water ski or swim at the lake that stretches across 383 acres.”

Perhaps this is what Levine meant by “scare campaign?”

The article went on to state that EVMWD officials sent a notice to the Association last week that it is in default after failing to make a payment of $344,303 that was due March 15. EVMWD’s attorney warned that failure to pay could lead to termination of the lease, with the possibility that members “may no longer be permitted as a matter of law and public policy to make recreational use of Canyon Lake.”

The District’s action was in response to the CLPOA’s notification, sent to the District on February 18, informing EVMWD that it owed Canyon Lake more than $6 million for overcharges that the Association claims amounted to an “illegal tax.”

At that time, Levine told members the Association would put the March 15 lease payment into an escrow account while waiting for EVMWD’s response.

After getting EVMWD’s response last week, the CLPOA filed a lawsuit against EVMWD that seeks to clarify the rights and responsibilities of both parties should the lease terminate.

As Levine explained to members at the February and March meetings (see presentations at canyonlakepoa.com), state law prevents agencies such as water districts from imposing increases beyond the costs of the services provided or what is reasonable for providing services. He showed the history of the lease and the costs to EVMWD of owning and maintaining the lake. He demonstrated that what Canyon Lake has been paying and will be paying, based on the current contract, far exceeds the “costs of services provided or what is reasonable for providing services.”

Levine reminded members:

• “EVMWD needs to know that you will not sit back and watch the cost of the lake escalate an an average of 8 percent per year compounded.
• “EVMWD needs to understand that they can lose this cash cow.
• “EVMWD needs to negotiate, not dictate.

“Follow the money,” he said, “EVMWD has $1.5 million reasons to continue the current lease. Don’t be fooled by EVMWD’s ‘scare’ campaign.”