SAN MIGUEL — With many communities facing program and service cuts, one community is going in the opposite direction. The San Miguel Community Services District Board of Directors expanded its services to include landscape maintenance.
The board voted to assume responsibility for the downtown landscaping and gateway signs for San Miguel.
The CSD identified funding for the landscaping after Board Vice President Anthony Kalvans researched state laws.
“Our board and staff worked very hard to be smart with our street light funding, spending way less than we receive year after year,” Kalvans said. “I noticed in the law that street lighting and landscaping were in the same group of service, so we asked our legal team to verify this, and they said yes.”
This allowed the CSD to expand its services and improve the downtown area.
“It is really exciting for us to find ways to reinvest in our community,” said Board President Ashley Sangster. “By us taking on the responsibility, we have been able to redo the entire irrigation system and add more plants.” Sangster continued, “This has saved our water resources and will hopefully encourage more people to visit our downtown.”
Sangster extended his thanks to everyone who made it possible.
“This was a group effort and I want to personally thank the San Miguel Chamber of Commerce for writing the grant to purchase the new irrigation equipment, our staff for the time invested, and San Miguel Garbage for donating the woodchips.”
The downtown landscaping is only a small part of the CSD’s efforts to reinvest in San Miguel, according to the board. The District has upgraded the decorative streetlights to LEDs and is working on initiatives to keep trash out of the downtown.
