Oakdale Irrigation District General Manager Steve Knell is retiring from the District at the end of May after serving as GM for the last 20 years.
Knell said, “I’ve been fortunate to have served as OID’s General Manager. There is no better feeling at the end of a long career than to leave a place in better shape than you found it, and we have done that at OID. I say ‘we’ because had it not been for the strong Board of Directors over this period, who had a vision too of making a great district, and who more importantly supported and stood by their convictions, OID would not be as well positioned as it is today.”
Knell came to the area after a 16-year career with the Imperial Irrigation District in Imperial, California and eight years with the USDA’s Soil Conservation Service. Knell’s background and experience brought a progressive era for OID.
Upon Knell’s arrival, he immediately began working with the OID Board and public to develop a strategic plan outlining OID’s framework for the future.
That effort led to the adoption of a Water Resources Plan in 2007 that detailed the rebuilding and modernization of OID’s 100-year old water delivery system, and more importantly how to pay for it.
Using revenues generated from the sale of its surplus water, OID has been able to spend over $100 million to-date on its rebuilding plan for OID. That commitment has produced a highly modern irrigation system with a high degree of efficiency and reliability for its customers.
Over 20 percent of OID’s irrigation system is now fully automated utilizing some of the best industry technology found on the market. A testament to the success of the upgrades are the numerous visits OID gets each year from other irrigation districts in the Central Valley, Mexico and South America.
OID’s conservation efforts had produced enough additional conserved water by 2011 to allow OID to annex and expand its irrigated agriculture base from 55,000 to 68,000 acres, adding support for the area’s local agricultural heritage.
The enhanced water reliability from the rebuilding of OID has provided customers with significant drought resiliency as proven during the 2014-2016 drought and in this ongoing drought, as evidenced by those around OID facing water shortages.
On the financial side under Knell’s leadership, OID has seen its cash and investments grow from $14.5 million in 2002 to $73 million in 2020, all while continuing to modernize and improve customer service to the agricultural industry OID serves.
Knell said, “OID has also be able to attract some of the best water professionals, office, field personnel and construction and maintenance staff one can find in the Central Valley. Collectively, all of these fine people have helped position OID to meet the water challenges of the future.”
