Oroville Dam: Assemblyman James Gallagher brings group of legislators to Oroville

OROVILLE – Assemblyman James Gallagher rounded up a group of bipartisan legislators to visit Oroville on Thursday, where they met with community members and toured the now-infamous dam.

Representatives of districts ranging from Southern to Northern California came to better understand the place where the evacuation of about 188,000 people occurred just over a year ago. They said they wanted to educate themselves about the dam – what happened during the crisis, the repairs now being done and other outstanding issues – and also just see what the community is like.

Gallagher, R-yuba City, said the purpose of the trip was to give his fellow legislators a chance to talk with locals and see what was going on in Oroville, outside of the crisis. He highlighted the area’s agricultural and manufacturing industries and a growing downtown in Oroville.

“Before this whole thing happened that put Oroville in the national and international news media, (people) were doing amazing things in this community,” Gallagher said. “Look, we don’t want this disaster to define us.”

On the flip side, residents needed a hand up, he said. He said the community needed to see change in how the dam was operated and a shift in culture within the state Department of Water Resources.

“Unemployment is way too high,” Gallagher said. “There are too many people without opportunities. This dam has a great benefit for the entire state, 26 million people that get their water from Oroville Dam. We need to make this facility work for Oroville.”

Oroville Vice Mayor Janet Goodson spoke to impacts on the economy and on distrust that resulted from the spillway crisis.

“The breaking of the spillway fractured not only the dam infrastructure, but it also fractured the trust that our citizens have had for so very long with the Department of Water Resources,” Goodson said.

She said that what Gallagher organized was admirable and she appreciated that representatives, who don’t often see eye-to-eye, were willing to come together for the issue.

“Although we have differences, we know there is a common thread here,” she said. “We all have an important role to play in the operation of the Oroville Dam. It is my hope that when you come again you will see a vibrant (and) a very prosperous city which we so richly deserve.”

Sandy Linville, president and CEO of the Oroville Chamber of Commerce, told the attendees their assistance was needed to move the community forward. About 40 came to the event hosted by Gallagher at the Southside Oroville Community Center.

“(We) need your help to carve out a better future, not just for Oroville, but for our Central Valley and Southern California neighbors who depend on this water,” Linville said. “It’s not just an Oroville problem. It’s a California problem.”

Holding up pamphlets from the dedication of the dam, Linville explained some benefits that never materialized. The community received a fraction of what was promised, she said.

“About 50 years ago, Gov. Ronald Reagan claimed that Oroville would be, and I quote, ‘one of the greatest recreational and fishery lakes in California.’ He also said, ‘the construction boom in Oroville is over but it will be followed by even larger growth as recreation brings millions to the lake.’”

Among some of those things that were touted included a high speed train, a monorail and an estimated 5 million visitors to the lake each year.

“For 50 years, we’ve lived with these broken promises and shattered expectations,” she said. “The past 50 years not only informs the present, it’s also going to inform the future.” James Gallagher R-yuba City