River Heights approves purchase of 7.5 irrigation shares for $3,000

River Heights City Council voted Feb. 3 to buy 7.5 irrigation shares from ProLog for $3,000 to increase the city’s water-share holdings.

Janet Matthews explained the offer and said the shares are mostly associated with the ditch used by the city park. The city would pay ProLog, which would then distribute payments to prior owners (some of whom were in arrears). ProLog’s arrears policy was discussed — ProLog may reclaim shares after two years of nonpayment — and staff confirmed that recovered shares sometimes reflect prior owners who did not use or pay for them.

Council members discussed how the city might use additional shares, noting that converting irrigation shares to culinary water requires a formal change with the state engineer and can be complicated. The council also discussed renting shares as a revenue option; the city cannot freely resell municipal shares and should check state rules before considering sales. Council approved the purchase by voice vote.

Ending

The mayor closed the item after the vote; staff will finalize the ProLog transaction and update the city’s water-share inventory.