Martinez to take helm at IID
EL CENTRO — After only a little more than six months as the Imperial Irrigation District energy manager, Henry Martinez will be the next permanent general manager of the district starting Jan. 1.
Martinez succeeds current GM Kevin Kelley, who will retire as of Dec. 31.
The announcement was made with little fanfare during Monday’s meeting of the IID Board of Directors. IID General Counsel Frank Oswalt made the announcement coming out of closed session with the board. Neither Martinez nor any member of the board addressed the issue.
In a statement released by the district later Monday afternoon, Martinez said he realized the district is at a critical time, but he is ready to move the organization ahead.
“I look forward to continuing to work to prioritize the needs of our ratepayers and implement the vision and direction provided by the IID Board of Directors,” he said.
“Mr. Martinez has a long and impressive background, and I believe he has the skill set and experience to assess where the IID is today and chart a course that takes the district to where it needs to be in the 21st century,” said Jim Hanks, IID board president, in the news release.
Martinez, who came on board at the energy department in May, brings more than 40 years of experience in the utility sector, holding key management roles in both energy and water areas. He has worked for Southern California Edison, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, and the Tennessee Valley Authority.
Prior to IID, he worked for engineering firm Cordoba Corp., where he managed several public projects. He was executive/principal-in-charge on the City of Industry Public Utilities Commission project and capital improvement program and led efforts on projects sponsored by the City of Los Angeles Department of Sanitation, according to IID. He also oversaw work in support of the LADWP’s Owens Lake dust-monitoring and compliance program.
He served six months as interim general manager of Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and was chief operating officer there as well.
He earned his bachelor’s degree in engineering from California State University, Fullerton, and has completed executive training programs at Pepperdine University and the University of Virginia.
Martinez’s appointment comes as Kelley’s tenure with IID winds down. Kelley started at the district overseeing public affairs in 2006 and became general manager in 2011.
During his time with the district he led the agency through major successes and what would have to be described as shortcomings.
Among them, after two years of major overuse of water, he started the Equitable Distribution Program, which allowed the district to manage its water supply without any overruns. The program was largely successful in managing overuse. But the program was halted in February 2018 after farmer Mike Abatti’s lawsuit against the district.
It could be argued that Kelley was responsible for holding the state’s feet to the fire regarding its responsibilities at the Salton Sea by petitioning the state Water Resources Control Board that ultimately led to action on the sea.
He also implemented the onfarm conservation program in which farmers voluntarily conserve water and receive $285 an acre-foot for that conservation, allowing the IID to end its fallowing program.
At the same time, his years as GM were filled with derisive, troubled relationships with parts of the farming community unhappy with the EDP, and many water-based decisions by Kelley and his respective boards.
It was also under Kelley’s watch that the IID was ordered to pay millions of dollars in fines by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for IID’s role in a 2011 blackout that left millions of people in the dark in California, Arizona and Mexico.
And while Kelley led the district as it developed a first-of-its kind renewable energy battery storage system, he was also GM under the conflict-of-interest allegations that arose between the district and battery engineer ZGlobal.