History
About the Community
San Lorenzo Valley is located in the Santa Cruz mountains in Santa Cruz County, California. The area was once heavy in the logging industry, especially during the rebuilding of San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake. More recently, the growth in Silicon Valley has made the area more desirable and slightly more affordable than other areas of Silicon Valley. The San Lorenzo Valley contains multiple state parks, golf courses and an active railroad attraction. Over the years, the District’s service area has changed from rural and vacation cabins to a more urbanized, year-round water-use area. It is home to an estimated 35,000 people. The District’s service area covers the towns of Ben Lomond, Felton (including Lompico-Zayante areas), Brookdale, Boulder Creek and parts of the City of Scotts Valley.
About the District
The San Lorenzo Valley Water District was established in 1941 as an independent special district. The District is governed by a five-member Board of Directors, elected at-large from within the District’s service area. A special district is a local government agency formed by voters to perform a needed service, such as water or sewer. The District’s boundaries comprise approximately 60 square miles and 190 miles of pipeline. The District currently provides service to approximately 7,900 residential, commercial, and institutional connections. The District relies on both surface water and groundwater resources, including nine currently active stream diversions, one groundwater spring, and eight active groundwater wells. The District owns, operates, and maintains two water systems from separate water sources. These sources are derived solely from rainfall within the San Lorenzo River watershed.
The District owns, operates, and maintains a wastewater system in Boulder Creek’s Bear Creek Estates, which serves approximately 56 homes.