Nipomo’s main problems can be summed up in two words, water and traffic.
Depending on who you talk to or which report you read, an “overdraft in the Nipomo Mesa area either exists currently or is imminent” or Nipomo has plenty of water available for future generations. You can read the full report from the Nipomo Community Services District website regarding supplemental water at http://ncsd.ca.gov/cm/News_and_Info/Supplemental_Water.html.
The other major issue affecting Nipomo is lack of road infrastructure which translated into traffic. There is currently only one road over Hwy 101 and at peak times traffic can be a problem. SLO County and CalTrans have possible solutions, but unfortunatley no money available to fund the projects.
Most of the funding for road projects come from new development in the form of Road Imact Fees, but with the cost of labor and materials out pacing the road fees coming in, most of these much improvements are being delayed indefinately. This creates a Catch 22 senario. We can’t have more development because of the traffic problem, but we can’t build more roads without the funds needed from the Road Impact Fees.
These issues with Real Estate in Nipomo won’t be solved anytime soon, but many local groups are working hard to maintain the balance between state mandated growth and quality of life.
If you have any questions about these issues or anything else related to Real Estate in Nipomo please contact me or leave a comment on this blog.
Kevin Beauchamp
kevin.beauchamp@kw.com
April 24, 2007 at 7:03 pm
I find it interesting to compare the water situation in Nipomo to that which has been happening in Cambria. Both are communities with water problems, and Cambria’s problems have been occuring for much longer. Interesting to note that prices in Cambria seemed to skyrocket (more so than in other areas) in light of the water issue. Cambria was forced to restrict growth due to limited water; with a restricted supply and growing demand, Cambria became an expensive proposition.
The very same thing can happen in Nipomo, if the community does not approve a solution in the short term. There needs to be a balance between controlled growth and artificially imposed restrictions to growth. Those who try to hold back growth to maintain the status quo in Nipomo are actually contributing to its radical change.