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OTAY'S PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE
On an overcast summer day in 1955, a plumber, a civil engineer, an attorney, a newspaper publisher, and two owners of large tracts of land gathered for lunch at Christie's Restaurant in Chula Vista. They met to discuss how they could bring life-giving water to an arid region of southeastern San Diego County. By the end of the day, they had a common vision, a few thousand dollars to spend, and the framework for what later became the Otay Water District.
When compared to most water agencies, the Otay Water District is a youngster. During this relatively short time span, however, the availability of water helped transform the District's 125.5 square mile service area of mostly scrub and cactus-covered backcountry, into a wonderful blend of diverse environments shared by both people and nature. |
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Today, the District serves the needs of its customers by purchasing imported water from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the San Diego County Water Authority and the Helix Water District. Otay takes delivery of most of this water through several connections to large diameter pipelines owned and operated by the San Diego County Water Authority.
The District of today is the result of the merger of two small water districts: the Otay Municipal Water District established in 1956, and the smaller La Presa County Water District. La Presa formed in 1957 to provide water service to the communities of La Presa and south Spring Valley.
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Since the two small water agencies shared a common service area, in 1962 they entered into a Joint Powers Agreement to make the best use of equipment, labor, management, and operations. The consolidation worked perfectly resulting in savings for water customers and the construction of a joint use facility.
With the success of the combined operations, the two boards of directors voted unanimously to officially dissolve La Presa in 1969, with the Otay Water District taking control of all of La Presa's assets and resources.
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The Board of Directors of the La Presa County
Water District and Otay Municipal Water District dedicate their new joint facility in 1962. |
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The Otay Municipal Water District's first headquarters in 1956. This small office on the left was at 427 Third Avenue in Chula Vista, California. |
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La Presa County Water District headquarters circa 1957. Located in east Spring Valley, near the intersection of Sweetwater Springs and Jamacha Blvd., this building was close to the District’s current administrative offices. |
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The Otay Municipal Water District moved into this second office in 1961. The slightly larger upstairs office was at 737 Third Avenue in Chula Vista. |
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Since they both served portions of Spring Valley, the Otay Municipal Water District and the La Presa County Water District joined together to establish this headquarters, which was officially dedicated in 1962 (this photograph was taken in 1963). The office was later demolished as part of a building expansion. |
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Now known as the Otay Water District, following the merger with La Presa County Water District, this office served as the District's headquarters after 1974. This office was also located at the District’s present address, however, it was remodeled as part of the expansion of the headquarters in the late 1990s. |
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Otay's current headquarters at 2554 Sweetwater Springs Blvd, Spring Valley, CA. The facility was constructed in 1997. |
For almost as long as it has been delivering potable water, the Otay Water District has collected and recycled wastewater generated within the Jamacha drainage basin and pumped the recycled water south to the Salt Creek basin in eastern Chula Vista. From there, recycled water is used to irrigate parks, golf courses, parkways and road medians.
For the Otay Water District, the future promises to be as eventful and interesting as the early years. Responsible resource planning, sound fiscal management, respect for the environment, and paying close attention to its customers' needs will all be necessary to ensure Otay's future looks as good as its history.
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