San Diego’s Water Leader Joins Met Board

The leader of the San Diego County Water Authority is joining the delegation that the region’s main water buyer sends to manage its water seller – the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. 

It’s rare that the Water Authority’s general manager, Dan Denham, serve in this capacity. Metropolitan has 26 member agencies, including San Diego’s Water Authority. Most of the board’s directors are political appointees. But it’s the votes of these member agencies that determine who will lead Met after its general manager was ousted, among other things.

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Denham will now, potentially, have a vote or a say on the matter. Denham stressed that he’s not been sworn in yet, and likely won’t be until September. (The quest to find Met’s new leader is in progress now – in fact the board is meeting in closed session Tuesday on the matter.)

As to why he was selected, Denham said it’s because he’s fully up to speed on what’s going on at the Los Angeles-based water wholesaler who provides water to all of Southern California. 

“I really do know how to separate the policy side from the politics if you will. It’ll be a good test,” Denham told me. 

Under Denham’s leadership, the Water Authority settled a years-long dispute with Metropolitan over the cost of transporting Colorado River water to San Diego. 

“Dan came in and was clear that he would be more of an externally focused GM focusing on his board but simultaneously on Met, and the settlement with Met being part and parcel to that,” said Nick Serrano, chair of the Water Authority’s board and San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria’s deputy chief of staff.

Denham replaces Gail Goldberg who is leaving her post on the delegation due to health issues. 

The post San Diego’s Water Leader Joins Met Board appeared first on Voice of San Diego.