LW communities are protesting proposed water rate increase

PRESIDENT'S COLUMN

by Linda Herman

GRF President

Every Seal Beach resident recently received a notice from the City of Seal Beach regarding a proposed increase in water and sewer rates, scheduled to take effect this August.

Leisure World’s situation with regard to the rate increase, and the process to approve that proposed increase, is unique. According to the city’s letter: “GRF is the only customer account representing Leisure World. GRF administers the shared trust property and facilities owned by 16 mutual corporates, which are property owners of record. Mutuals 1-16 are stock cooperative entities, under which residents are shareholders. Mutual 17 is the only condominium association, with 126 separate record owners. The total number of eligible parcels is 253.”

The letter also explains that oral or written testimony is welcome at the public hearing. However, only written protests submitted by record property owners or account holders will count toward the formal protest under Proposition 218. That means Leisure World has only 253 eligible protest votes.

Recently, several GRF directors and staff met to discuss how to respond on behalf of the community. As 126 of the 253 possible protest votes come from Mutual 17 and represent the individual condo owners of that Mutual, it would be incumbent on the owners to respond to this proposed rate change with a protest letter.

The remaining 127 protest votes as divided among GRF and the remaining 15 mutuals, all of whom own the various property parcels that comprise Leisure World Seal Beach. The GRF Board and these Mutual Boards would need to submit letters on behalf of the parcels they own to have a protest vote that must be legally counted by the city.

In order to maximize the impact Leisure World Seal Beach can have on the process, GRF and the Mutuals will need to work together. And time is short—the deadline to submit written protests is July 14, 2025. If a majority of the affected parcels through the city submit valid protests, the rate increase must be rejected under state law.

This proposed rate increase will have a signifi cant impact on the Mutuals’ assessments. If you are concerned about this, you should contact your Mutual directors about sending in a protest letter before the deadline. Protests received after the deadline will not be considered.

It is possible that our community’s protest votes will not be enough to make a difference. But this year’s election cycle in Leisure World has shown us that elections can be won and lost by narrow margins, and on an issue this important, we need to make sure our voices are heard and our votes are counted.