However, Vidovichs comments do not address whether all the river and groundwater is being used in Kings County or sent elsewhere a question that has become nearly impossible to answer. Later, Page would run for and win a seat on the Kern County Water Agency board. The Kings is as erratic a river as the Kern so floodwaters are unpredictable. Anything that has water on it, youre going to contend with big money. That includes land with river rights, state water contracts or even just groundwater. var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; Right, smoke from local fires mutes the South San Joaquin Valley sky over I-5 and farms operated by . But a pipeline, which Vidovich is allowed to build under the Semitropic agreement, could span that distance. California produces 99% of all domestic walnuts. They went to law school together and joined the same program in the Navy reserves. Vidovich shrugged it off, saying the flaw amounted to putting the descriptions on the wrong pages and quickly appealed. gcse.async = true; Hes a 61-year-old developer who grew up on a farm in Sunnyvale in the heart of what would become the Silicon Valley. The company is run from its Pasadena offices by James W. Boswell, chairman, CEO and great-nephew of the founder. (Vidovich said he didn't think Sandridge had hit 100,000 acres, total, yet.) In 2016, the levees had to be built up another four feet. A trial date has been set for December 2022. No, no, Im not selling water to LA, he said. Comments from the Boswell camp got downright personal, calling out Vidovich by name and all but accusing him of hiding groundwater usage by moving it through pipes outside the area. The Blakeley runs southwest next to Highway 41 down to Kettleman City, conveniently near to the California Aqueduct. Many Kings County farmers, who have watched water leaving their region, wonder if its being sold to Los Angeles. Today, the company is run by 66-year-old John Vidovich, a former military intelligence officer and Santa Clara Law School graduate. Typically, irrigation pipelines taking water from one portion of a farmers land to another dont require permitting. Groundwater and floodwater are two very different things. Founded in 1966, with legacies dating back more than 100 years; our highly trained staff provides value-added, client-centric investment sales, leasing, advisory, management, and financing services to clients across the . The award included $73.4 million in compensatory damages and $55.2 million in punitive damages. First of all, the myriad laws and rules that govern water wouldnt allow that to happen, they say. Vidovich owns the property in question, and he is well known in Valley circles. She commenced her career working administratively for a medium sized American oil company until it was bought by BHP Billiton, where she continued as Executive Assistant running the London office of the Chairman & CEO. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); (function() { Other water districts contended it was much more. Nor for the man who runs it, John Vidovich, nor for his current pipeline project that will move water from various places in Kings County to various other undisclosed locations. In contrast, John Vidovich, who helms Sandridge, comes from a Silicon Valley farming-turned-developer family. If so, it would mean the pipeline would have to undergo a full blown environmental impact report, including multiple public hearings. Five key principles guide us in a unified approach across the food and agribusiness investment landscape: Safeguarding and improving the livelihoods and social wellbeing of individuals producing food and processing agricultural products, Conserving, protecting and enhancing our natural ecosystems, Instilling transparent governance within natural and human systems, Fostering holistic innovation and sustainable growth for all stakeholders. He often points out that water districts, which oversee water allocations and maintain infrastructure, are public entities, and the public has a right to information, as he told SJV Water in an interview for this story. California Farming Country Buckles Under COVID-19. That shadow drove him to work hard in an effort to be useful to De Anza. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. To bring it to fruition the district would have to apply to the United States Department of Agriculture or California state revolving fund for money, then build a new treatment facility and construct a line to get its wastewater to the Sandridge line. Its principals and employees are rarely quoted in the media. The boundaries of that service area, however, have yet to be determined. Avila, along with his wife and children, grows nearly 100 varieties of fruit trees on multiple small plots of land and sells the produce at dozens of farmers markets from Beverly Hills to San Luis Obispo. Ag Giants Boswell, Vidovich Sling Mud at Each Other, Tulare Man Convicted on 20 Counts of Molesting Two Girls and a Boy, Big Raises for SCCCD Part-Time Faculty 'A Really Good First Step, But Just The First Step', Bud Light Sales Fall 26% as Transgender Backlash Worsens, Speaker Kevin McCarthy Blasts Russia Over 'Killing of the Children' in Ukraine, Its Farmers vs. The corporations and the bigger guys are buying up land left and right for astronomical prices, Smith said. Vidovich is, after all, a powerful landowner in the Central Valley. The sale is still considered a blow to Kings' water portfolio by other farmers. Not a chance. Boswell has also been moving water out of Kings. This is what businesses do, he said. Vidovich is gobbling up all the parcels he can so he can keep on pumping, Mitchell said. Sandridge - Wikipedia Local It wanted an operating agreement and hefty insurance coverage. More recently, he filed a voter initiative in 2016 to allow a 48-foot-tall hotel after the Cupertino City Council shot down a De Anza proposal for building a 105-foot-tall hotel in the western Santa Clara Valley town. After Vidovich sold his Dudley Ridge state water, Pace said he drilled several wells in Green Valley, built a pipeline across I-5 and took the valleys groundwater to keep his Dudley Ridge trees alive. In fact, his detractors call him the single greatest threat to Central Valley farming ever to come down the pike. Whether those pipes end on Vidovich lands or Resnicks is hard to know. The association contends that even though those lands are in the county, they are beyond whats considered the rivers service area. And river water cannot be taken outside that service area, according to the lawsuit.