Staff: Don’t assume responsibility for country-club drains; district to pursue stormwater standards

Corey, a district operations staffer, told the Rancho Murieta Community Services District improvements committee that a June 1988 storm drainage and flood-control master plan shows multiple pipes and channels around the Rancho Murieta country club that the district does not have paperwork to accept.

"We don't have any documentation of any of that," Amelia, a staff member, said, summarizing a review of permitting and inspection records. "We didn't put it in. We didn't inspect it. We didn't accept it. It's not ours." Corey showed a color-highlighted copy of the map and identified green areas he said were club pipelines and pink areas that had pipes placed later and in some places collapsed.

Travis, operations staff, said the country club recently notified the district about sinkholes and failing pipes and that staff have been investigating whether those features are district-owned or private. "We were told they're ours," he said, describing initial conflicting information. He urged caution before accepting liability: "We as staff recommend that we don't move forward with these, and that we're not responsible to repair these," adding that if repairs are completed and documented, the ownership conversation could be revisited.

Committee members pressed staff to reach out to the club and property owners for supporting documents and said staff should include Google Earth images and ground photos in the next packet so members can see the features in context. Eric Dutton, who identified himself as the country club board president and general manager, said club records are "atrocious" and that staff should allow time to locate any as-built plans or easements.

The discussion also flagged a separate but related compliance issue: one collapsed culvert on the South 1 fairway appears to discharge directly to the river. Corey said that if a pipe within district boundaries discharges directly to the river it may qualify as an additional MS4 outfall that must be added to the district's annual MS4 testing and reporting. "Any outfalls to the river are to be tested on an annual basis," he said. Staff noted the district currently tests seven outfalls annually and acknowledged the newly discovered outfall was not on that list.

Separately, staff proposed a small consultant task order to develop district-specific stormwater quality standards and guidance so development reviewers and engineers have clear, locally tailored requirements rather than pulling disparate county manuals. Joe, a consultant present for the discussion, said the deliverable would be "a guidance technical memo that could turn into a standard, you know, by board resolution." The initial task-order figure discussed by staff was $19,092.

Why it matters: If the district were to assume responsibility for privately installed drains without formal acceptance (permits, inspections, recorded easements), it could inherit significant repair liabilities. Staff told the committee it would continue document discovery, coordinate with the country club and property owners, and present refined materials and photos at the next improvements-committee meeting.

What’s next: The committee directed Corey, Travis and staff to continue discovery, to contact the country club for records, and to include clearer maps and ground photos in the next packet. Staff can bring a refined consultant task order and recommendation to the board if additional scope or funding is required.