The Fallbrook Public Utility District on June 5, celebrated its 100th year of providing water and sewer service in Fallbrook. From its first years serving 800 customers, the utility district, or FPUD, now supplies water to more than 35,000 residents in North San Diego County.
The Fallbrook Public Utility District on June 5, celebrated its 100th year of providing water and sewer service in Fallbrook. From its first years serving 800 customers, the utility district, or FPUD, now supplies water to more than 35,000 residents in North San Diego County.
The Fallbrook community celebrated FPUD’s centennial on June 4. Photo: Fallbrook Public Utility District
The public celebrated the centennial with an old west themed community celebration on Saturday, June 4, including water games and hands-on water/science labs for kids; antique tractors and vehicles; and activities led by North County Fire Department and the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department. A crowd of 1,200 residents took part in the celebration.
A mural depicting the Fallbrook community. Photo: Courtesy Fallbrook Historical Society
In 1922, the tiny Fallbrook Public Utility District consisted of 500 acres and was incorporated on June 5 to serve water from local area wells along the San Luis Rey River.
Fifteen years later, in 1937, the Fallbrook Irrigation District voted to dissolve, and a portion of the former Irrigation District became a part of FPUD, increasing FPUD’s footprint to 5,000 acres. Responding to the growth, FPUD developed additional groundwater supplies from the San Luis Rey and the Santa Margarita rivers.
As Colorado River water became available in 1948, water consumption gradually increased.
Customer service has always been a priority. This photo dates to the 1950s. Photo: Fallbrook Public Utility District
Significant expansions of the service area took place in 1950 when FPUD annexed the last remaining portion of the Fallbrook Irrigation District and in 1958 when the area to the north of town on both sides of the Santa Margarita River was annexed to the District. By 1959, FPUD was consuming 10,000 acre-feet per year. (An acre-foot is about 326,000 gallons, or enough to serve the annual needs of 2.5 typical four-person households for one year).
The use of Santa Margarita River water ended in 1969 when floods destroyed the district’s diversion works. One year before the floods, the U.S. federal government agreed to develop a dam and reservoir project on the river for FPUD and the U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. It was the culmination of 17 years of water rights litigation in the U.S. vs. Fallbrook case. The federally sponsored project was known as the Santa Margarita Project.
When water became available in the 1920s, avocado trees were planted. By 1985, the region reached a peak of 88,000 acres of avocados. Photo: Fallbrook Historical Society
In 1978, FPUD began receiving water supplied by the California State Water Project, further supporting the area’s business, agricultural, and residential development.
FPUD’s footprint grew by 11,789 in 1990 when voters in the DeLuz Heights Municipal Water District to the northwest of FPUD decided to dissolve their 17-year-old district. Its entire service area was annexed to FPUD.
FPUD’s scope of operations grew once again in 1994 when the Fallbrook Sanitary District was dissolved, and FPUD assumed sewer service responsibilities within a 4,200-acre area of downtown Fallbrook.
In November 2021, FPUD celebrated the launch of the Santa Margarita River Conjunctive Use Project, some 70 years in the making. The district now receives approximately 50% of its water needs from the river. It was made possible by settling a lawsuit filed against FPUD in 1951 by the federal government over rights to the river.
Fallbrook is well-known for its high-quality agricultural crops, led by avocados and citrus. But according to the Fallbrook Historical Society, before the formation of FPUD, agriculture had to withstand drought conditions. Bee farming was widespread, followed by olives and cattle ranching.
When water became available in the 1920s, avocado trees were planted. By 1985, the region reached a peak of 88,000 acres of avocados. The Fallbrook area also supports commercial nurseries growing flowers, palms, cactus, and plants.
Imported water permitted Fallbrook to thrive. This view of Main Street is from 1984. Photo: Fallbrook Historical Society
Today after 100 years, the District provides imported and local water and sewer service to 28,000 acres. About 30% of the water is used by agriculture. FPUD also produces about one and one-half million gallons of recycled water daily to irrigate nurseries, playing fields, landscaped freeway medians, homeowners associations, and common areas.
(Editor’s note: The Fallbrook Public Utility District is one of the San Diego County Water Authority’s 24 member agencies that deliver water across the metropolitan San Diego region.)
Fallbrook, Calif. – Fallbrook Public Utility District has been providing water and sewer service in Fallbrook for nearly 100 years. Now thanks to a unanimous vote by the San Diego Local Agency Formation Commission, or LAFCO, the process is moving forward for the district to be able to provide additional community services under the umbrella of parks and recreation services, streets, and street lighting.
The Fallbrook Public Utility District turns 100 years old on June 5.
The district is celebrating its anniversary with a huge, open-to-the-public event June 4, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., to mark a century of supplying water to more than 35,000 residents in Fallbrook.
Due to an old address being given out for the mailing of protest letters, causing some of the letters to be returned to their senders, the San Diego County Local Agency Formation Commission is extending the deadline for the submission of protest forms on the commission’s earlier conditional approval to expand Fallbrook Public Utility District’s activated functions to include (a) parks and recreation, (b) street lighting, and (c) roads and streets.
The Fallbrook Public Utility District declared three FPUD-owned parcels to be surplus property.
The 5-0 FPUD board vote April 25 makes the findings that the properties are surplus land but does not authorize any sale. An interested public agency will have the first priority to purchase the property. If no public agency expresses interest or if good faith negotiations do not determine a mutually agreeable sales price and terms, the land can be sold on the public market.
Local residents spoke out at a packed standing room only town hall meeting last week about a proposal by the Fallbrook Public Utility District and Rainbow Municipal Water District to switch water suppliers, a change that they are reportng would save ratepayers millions of dollars.
Following years of escalating water costs from the San Diego County Water Authority, averaging 8% per year, FPUD and Rainbow are seeking to change water suppliers – through a process known as detachment – from the Water Authority.
The San Diego County Water Authority has filed multiple rate lawsuits against the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California and has been awarded legal damages and interest payments.
To understand why water agencies in Fallbrook and Rainbow are in revolt, consider the squeeze faced by Ismael Resendiz and the 250-acre cut-flower farm where he grows Protea, Pincushions and Banksia.
Resendiz said his flowers are barely getting the water they need to thrive. He said he’s had to cut irrigation in half over the last two years because of soaring rates. Over the last five years, his monthly bill has jumped from about $25,000 to $30,000 a month.
Now he’s considering dramatically shrinking his crop.
San Diego County’s Local Agency Formation Commission has released the draft municipal service review updates of Fallbrook special districts for public review. Discussion on updating the municipal service review information for the Fallbrook Public Utility District, the Rainbow Municipal Water District, the North County Fire Protection District, and County Service Area No. 81 was part of the Dec. 6 LAFCO board meeting although releasing the report for public review did not require a vote.
More than 130 people took advantage of a drought-tolerant plant giveaway program offered by the Fallbrook Public Utility District. Since picking up their free succulents in November, homeowners have started their drought-tolerant home garden projects.
Participants were provided empty flats and invited to select from an assortment of three-inch potted succulents to suit their needs. Each person took home approximately 28 plants.
