Metro Water Public Meeting: Sandy City Council & History, October 22, 2025
Metro Water Public Meeting: Sandy City Council & History, October 22, 2025
A collaborative meeting was held on October 22, 2025, bringing together the Sandy City Council and leadership from the Metropolitan Water District (Metro Water) to discuss the historical relationship, water rights, infrastructure challenges, and financial commitments between the two entities. The gathering emphasized the concept of a "Metro water family," highlighting the long-standing partnership since Sandy's annexation in 1990, while addressing critical upcoming projects, including the rebuild of the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant and various aqueduct replacements.
Consent Calendar
- No formal consent calendar items were recorded in the transcript; the meeting proceeded directly into an informational presentation and discussion.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Sandy City Council Member: Expressed deep appreciation for the historical context provided, noting the tangible connection between the district's 1930s formation and the 1850s/1930s era, citing personal ownership of a 1937 Chevy once driven by a nurse named Mabel as a tangible link to that history. The council member affirmed the importance of the partnership and the need for transparency to ensure trust is maintained between the cities and the water district.
- Tom Godfrey (Chair, Metro Water Board): Expressed full support for maintaining open lines of communication, encouraging council members to directly call staff with questions, and affirmed that the current relationship ensures accountability to city councils regarding taxing authority.
- Anne Lyne (Metro Water General Manager): Emphasized the "Metro water family" concept, stating that staff meet at least once a month and are available for direct consultation. Expressed a desire to ensure the Sandy City Council understands the complexities of water treatment and distribution to foster informed decision-making on tax and rate issues.
Discussion Items
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Historical Context and Annexation:
- Speaker details the formation of the Metropolitan Water District in 1935 during the Great Depression and drought, noting Salt Lake City's lack of bonding capacity necessitated the creation of an independent entity.
- Speaker explains Sandy City's petition for annexation (denied in 1980, approved in 1990) was driven by water demand projections, the high cost of acquiring independent supplies, and the desire to utilize the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant.
- Speaker notes the unique status of Metro as the only Utah district representing more than one city (Salt Lake and Sandy), governed by specific interlocal agreements regarding board composition and boundary annexation.
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Infrastructure and Capital Projects:
- Speaker outlines the current reliance on aging infrastructure, specifically the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant, where original flocculation and sedimentation basins from 1960 pose reliability concerns.
- Speaker discusses the "flipped" timeline for construction: The Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant rebuild is being prioritized to finish before the 2034 Olympics, while Salt Lake City's Big Cottonwood plant has been delayed due to revenue constraints. The goal is to avoid having two major plants under construction simultaneously.
- Speaker mentions upcoming projects including the Salt Lake Aqueduct hardening (slip-lining), the Cottonwoods Connection (Pipeline Reach One), and the Raw Water Little Cottonwood Conduit Replacement to ensure resilience.
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Water Sources and Financials:
- Speaker details Sandy's access to Provo River Project water, Little Cottonwood Creek rights, and the Ontario Drain Tunnel water (2,766 acre-feet), which Metro manages to allow flexibility in divesting water rights if no longer needed.
- Speaker compares Metro rates (~$645/acre-foot) to Jordan Valley rates, asserting Metro's rates are competitive for Sandy.
- Speaker notes upcoming property tax increases projected for fiscal years 2028-2031 and water rate increases of 6% in FY27-28 and 7% in FY29 to fund capital improvements.
- Speaker clarifies the difference between Metropolitan Water Districts and Water Conservancy Districts, noting Metro does not have retail customers and has different statutory powers regarding tax rates and conservation focus.
Key Outcomes
- Project Timeline Adjustment: It was confirmed that the Little Cottonwood Water Treatment Plant rebuild will proceed immediately, with a target completion date prior to the 2034 Winter Olympics, effectively accelerating the project relative to Salt Lake City's delayed timeline.
- Financial Commitments Identified:
- Sandy City is currently paying approximately $1.1 million annually for the Ontario Drain Tunnel assessment, with the final payment due in 2031.
- The Metro Water Project (associated with the tunnel) requires current payments of $4.2 million, dropping to $2.1 million by the final payment in 2036.
- Rate and Tax Projections: The meeting highlighted projected water rate increases of 6% (FY27-28) and 7% (FY29), alongside property tax rate adjustments, to fund necessary infrastructure resilience and replacement.
- Strategic Partnership: A mutual agreement was reaffirmed to maintain open communication channels, with Metro Water staff pledging accessibility for direct consultation to ensure Sandy City Councils understand the value and necessity of district investments.
Meeting Transcript
No, I'm gonna stand. I'm gonna folks um I'm Tom Godfrey, the chair of Metro Water, and um I want to welcome you all to our house. We always come and visit you at your house. So welcome to our house. And I gotta give you a little history. Um Sandy is a part of Metro Water because of my vote. I was on the city council in 1990 when we voted to bring Sandy into Metro Water. So I have a little background there. And one of the reasons we've called this uh gathering is that as we presented property tax things and budgets to you folks. Questions have come up about the relationship between Metro and Sandy. Um what are the benefits for Sandy? What are the costs of water and things like that? So we thought it's time to have a chat together with your folks. So that's why you're here. I just want to welcome you and uh hope it's a good meeting for you. So Annalie. Tom, do you want to say anything about the inside of that? Um thank you, Annaline. I I would second what Tom has said. I didn't know that, Tom, that you were on the board or on the city, Salt Lake City Council. I knew yourself a city council member. But that's really good. I would say a takeaway for you as counsel to just go with what Thomas said, that you see these people that we work with, we meet at least once a month. Many times it's more often. That if you have a conservator in question, that you feel comfortable to call in on me. Call Tom, call myself and my staff, anybody on the staff. We call ourselves the Metro family. So it's Salt Lake and Metro and Sandy. We meet together as your staff, and as you'll see, it is not in consequential what these folks are doing. I know we have a lot of important things in Sandy, of course, part of your water team. But I think you will see that I'll quote uh this time I'll choose uh know the value of water when well runs dry. So our job is to make sure that it's always flowing, it's always clean, there's so much that goes into it. Um Tom is one of seven trustees, and we got Florence and John, who you know we're on your P We V board. Um John, how long have you been on PAB? Uh PUAB, I think Jimmy will told me uh 2001, maybe long this board 2003 with a brief interlude when I was in West Africa. Yeah, and then Florence, maybe if you could just introduce remind them about some of your background. Well, I I was with Salt Lake City, I worked with Salt Lake City from 89 um to 2013, and I retired. Um I was water quality administrator, so I have a little bit of a background in water, water quality, uh water treatment. And I have been with Tom, I think, for eight years. Florence is just one of my first bosses. It's and then I was her boss for a little while, and then we got to work together again and so and I you know I've been on the Sandy's uh public utilities board for about eight years, I think. Sandy resident that whole time. Oh, I've been a resident since 89. Yeah. So I've been here a long time. And I, at the expense of potentially embarrassing some folks, we have some of the icons in Utah Water, are part of this. Florence and John and Tom and the trustees. So we're well represented, but then one of the best ways we can do that is just following what Tom said, having a relationship so that you feel comfortable asking us questions, and if we're not educating you or helping you, you've got a principal number here. So thank you, Tom. Thanks, Tom.
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