End of An Era at Valley Center Municipal Water District

OpEd


Something profound happened at 3:22 p.m. on Monday afternoon, November 19, 2018, at the Valley Center Municipal Water District. After serving as a Director for Election Division 3, Board President, and San Diego County Water Authority Representative, Gary A. Broomell walked out of the board room for the last time as a water board director.

As the general manager of the district for close to 30 years, i have seen a few board members come and go.  What was profound about Mr. Broomell’s final exit was that it came after 48 years of continuous public service to the citizens, ratepayers and landowners of the Valley Center Municipal Water District.  

While not having done an official survey, we do believe that 48 years has to be pretty close to the top of the list of years served as an elected official.  Again, not an official count, but we calculate that in those 48 years Gary Broomell attended and presided over somewhere between 900 and 1,100 board meetings, involving countless hours in the board room.

As a young citrus farmer establishing his ranch in Valley Center, Broomell certainly understood the importance of water, the agencies that delivered it, and public service.  He translated that interest into an appointment to fill a vacancy on the VCMWD board in May of 1970.  The Board and District worked hard to plan, design, finance and install the pipelines, build reservoirs and pump stations to stay up with the rapid agricultural expansion in the 1970’s and 1980’s. Today, VCMWD has a water system with 330 miles of pipe, 43 reservoirs and 29 pumping stations, as well as two wastewater reclamation plants and 57 miles of collection lines.  

Though the sheer volume of agricultural activity has diminished, and its character is changing from permanent tree crops to annual row and nursery crops, as well as wine grapes, a part of Broomell’s legacy is that we now have a water and wastewater system well suited to serve Valley Center’s needs, now and far into the future.  Another part of Gary Broomell’s legacy, maybe the most important, is that he leaves behind an agency culture of excellent and responsive customer service, integrity, and cost control through sound operational and financial practices.  Finally, as the iconic leader of the Board, he also imparted a steady and clear understanding among his fellow board members and the district staff that we all were here to serve the community and not ourselves. 

Every form of human endeavor comes to an end; every one.  Though Gary Broomell’s tenure on the VCMWD Board has ended, he should take great pride and deep satisfaction for what he helped to accomplish during his almost 5 decades of service on the Valley Center Municipal Water District Board of Directors. 

*Note: Opinions expressed by columnists and letter writers are those of the writers and not necessarily those of the newspaper.

2 responses to “End of An Era at Valley Center Municipal Water District”

  1. Jack Anderson says:

    It must be tough for Larry to retire and give up that several hundred thousand dollar a year job where he only manages about 75 people. Let’s find a new manager who is more capable and who costs less.

    • Sharon Albritton says:

      I hope that someone clarified to Jack that it was Gary Broomell that retired from his elected position as a member of the Board of Directors. He was not the General Manager. You’ll never find a better man than Gary Broomell!

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