Madera Ranchos citizens upset
Hundreds of Madera Ranchos citizens packed Ranchos Middle School this week to demand answers on why their water system, and as some alleged their government, has failed them in recent months.
There was standing room only inside the school’s multipurpose room Tuesday night as citizens first listened to, then questioned and criticized, a panel of county staff from the special districts and public works departments as well as supervisor Manuel Nevarez.
“We moved out here to have a rural lifestyle,” said 63-year-old Wayne Amoruso, who’s lived in the close-knit community since 1978. “We expect you to maintain the system like you promised us … we’ve paid our money, and we want our water system fixed now.”
Three of the area’s six wells, known as the Fernwood, Sparta, and Old Fender wells constructed in 1959, 1961, and 1984, respectively, have all failed due to mineral or bacterial contamination...