Kuenhold sets December

status hearing



By RUTH HEIDE

ALAMOSA — District Judge O. John Kuenhold on Friday indicated he would likely consolidate court hearings for objections to the San Luis Valley’s first water sub-district management plan.

The judge will preside as water and district court judge over both the objections to the state engineer’s decision to approve the plan and the Rio Grande Water Conservation District’s approval of the management plan. The water district is the sponsor of the sub-district.

The judge held a hearing on Friday regarding the objections filed to the water district board’s approval of the management plan, a district court matter.

Kuenhold scheduled a status conference for December 20. He said he would consider a motion to consolidate the cases unless the attorneys involved stipulated ahead of time that they would agree to consolidate them. “In that case I would have granted that beforehand. You can pretty much assume I will consolidate.”

Ingrid Barrier, attorney for the Rio Grande Water Conservation District, said she would contact the other attorneys to see if they would be willing to consolidate the cases. She said she anticipated the other attorneys would agree.

“Having one hearing will hopefully allow everyone’s objections to be dealt with in one spot on one schedule in front of one judge in front of one court,” Barrier said.

Timothy Buchanan, attorney for objector Bill Ellithorpe, said he had no objection to the cases being consolidated.

Barrier told the judge she also prepared a procedural stipulation between the district and the objectors that would have allowed the sub-district to begin collecting fees and assessments, but four of the sub-district board of managers had concerns about it and objected through their attorney to Barrier’s procedural motion. Barrier told the judge this made her extremely apprehensive because the water district’s goal has been to have “the most public and open process we could possibly imagine.”

She told Kuenhold based on the fact there might be some splintering on the board of managers about how the case should proceed, the water district would prefer in the best interest of the sub-district to try to consolidate the district and water court hearings.

John McClure, attorney for Skyview Cooling Company, said that the proposed stipulation “was really designed to accommodate the district.” He said it would have allowed the district to proceed forward with assessments of the administrative fee and Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) fee with the fees to be escrowed pending the determination of the court regarding the plan.

McClure said he did not think his client would have any problem with consolidating the cases.

The attorney for the sub-district board members who objected to the stipulation said a consolidation of the cases would be acceptable to them as well.

“I am hearing everyone is in agreement, at least the parties to this case, to the motion for consolidation being filed and considered by me and probably granted,” Kuenhold said. He said that meant he would not hold a hearing on Friday but would schedule a future status hearing.

“There are some significant legal issues that have been raised obviously,” Kuenhold said. “Unless there is significant change to the plan, it won’t be resolved without judicial action.”

Gathering with water district and sub-district board members after the court hearing on Friday, Rio Grande Water Conservation District Board President Ray Wright said the way the matter is now being played out the sub-district will not be able to collect any monies immediately. However, he suggested that the sub-district board work with a group such as the Rio Grande Water Users Association to apply for water grant or loan funding through the Rio Grande Basin Roundtable and Colorado Water Conservation Board.

Barrier also addressed the problems that had surfaced among the sub-district board members. She said she took responsibility if some of the board of manager members felt they did not have enough information. The sub-district board of managers members who took exception to Barrier’s motion were members of the Rio Grande Canal. They stressed they did not object to the plan.

Tom Corzine said it was a matter of not having enough information and understanding it within a short time frame. “I would rather take some time and get it right than push something through that I am not comfortable at all with,” he said.

Barrier said she was operating under a directive by both the water district and sub-district boards to do everything possible to at least get some money on the tax rolls.

Carla Worley and others said they did not feel the board was splintered but was simply dealing with communication or misinformation issues.

Barrier said the sub-district board of managers’ efforts were impressive and they had devised a plan that now had to be defended in court. “We have got a plan. We have got a lot of alligators in the pond trying to take a bite out of it. Now it is our job to try to defend it.”