Reclamation Roard Tour
By Don Strickland

Five of the seven members of The Reclamation Board, who took office in April, spent Friday, August 17, 2001, on a tour of Chico area flood control projects and problem areas on the upper Sacramento River.

Burt Bundy of Los Molinos, Tony Cusenza of Modesto, William Edgar of Sacramento, Mark Garrett of Merced, and Jeff Mount of Davis all made the trip. Betsy Marchand and Cloria Moralez were unable to attend.

• Burt Bundy, the Board Secretary, was appointed by Governor Pete Wilson on July 16, 1998. A Los Molinos resident, Bundy served as a Tehema County Supervisor from 1981 to 1993. He and his wife run a small commercial cattle and catfish operation at the ranch where he has lived for more than 50 years.

• Tony Cusenza, of Modesto, was appointed to The Reclamation Board by Governor Gray Davis on March 21, 2001. A retired dentist, he is a member of the Stanislaus Fish and Wildlife Committee and the Stanislaus County Planning Commission.

• William Edgar, of Sacramento, was also appointed by Governor Gray Davis on March 21, 2001. In a government career spanning nearly 40 years, he served as both City Manager and Assistant City Manager for the cities of Sacramento and Pleasanton and as executive director for the Sacramento Flood Control Agency and the City/County Office of Metropolitan Water Planning.

• Mark Garrett, of Merced, was appointed by Governor Davis on March 21, 2001. He is a licensed real estate broker and Managing Partner of a private investment company. He served in Washington DC, as an Administrative Assistant to Congressman Gary Condit from 1989 to 1991. From 1977 to 1989, he held a number of senior-level positions on the staff of Congressman Tony Coelho, both in Washington and in California.

• Jeff Mount, Ph.D., was named to the Board by Governor Gray Davis on March 21, 2001. Mount is a professor in the U.C. Davis Geology Department and active in teaching and research about California’s rivers and watersheds. His book, “California Rivers and Streams: The Conflict Between Fluvial Process and Land Use,” is widely used as a college text and reference for professionals.

• Board President Betsy Marchand of Davis was appointed by Governor Davis on March 21, 2001. She was the first woman elected to the Yolo County Board of Supervisors and served from 1973 to 1997. During her tenure as Supervisor, Mrs. Marchand served on many committees including chairing the Yolo County Flood Control Task Force. Mrs. Marchand is from a pioneer California family and has a life-long interest in water and flood issues.

• Vice President Gloria Moralez, of Fresno, was appointed by Governor Gray Davis on March 21, 2001. She is the President of the Multi-Ethnic Small Farm & Community Development Corporation in Fresno. She was recently elected National President of the Rural America Association of Community Based Organizations based in Oklahoma City. Ms. Moralez has experience in farming, environmental, water, and soil issues.
After touring flood project sites in the Sycamore Creek and Rock Creek/Keefer Slough areas, the attending Reclamation Board members boarded boats at the Woodson Creek County Park for a look at bank erosion and river concerns from the park to Hamilton City.
The tour, partially conducted by DWR engineers, will help The Reclamation Board members better understand flood control issues that will come before them for decisions. As board member Mark Garrett put it, “this kind of helps us connect the dots.”
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