KINGMAN, Ariz. – For three years, Valle Vista residents have dealt with water shutoffs, low water pressure, and now high utility bills.
Gary Wilson, President of the Board of Directors of the Property Owners Association (POA) in Valle Vista said the area’s water problems began not long after Foothills bought out Truxton as their water supplier.
“We’ve been starved for water at the golf course,” Wilson said.
“Mike Neil, owner and manager of Truxton, agreed to stay on and help Foothills for a year. He gave them a complete list of what was needed to maintain repairs by priority.”
However, Mr. Wilson said, Foothills got rid of Neil (Truxton) before the end of that year.
“We’ve had nothing but problems ever since,” Wilson stated. “The problems started as soon as Mike Neil left.”
Those problems, he said, was water being shut down frequently for extended periods of time.
“Sometimes it’s shut down for a week,” Wilson said. “A week ago, it was shut down for three or four days.”
He said they had a townhall meeting with Foothills General Manager Ed Fortner and Wastewater System Manager Gabe Martinez.
“We were looking for answers,” Wilson said. During that meeting Wilson said someone asked if Foothills was deliberately shutting off the water in retaliation to all their Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) complaints. He said Gabe Martinez then walked out, saying it was a hostile environment.
“We’ve called the ACC with so many complaints that they told us they’re sick and tired of our complaints,” Wilson said.
He said the way the system should work is when the ACC gets complaints, they file paperwork with Foothills and they have five days to respond.
“It only goes to Gabe who does nothing about it,” he said.
Foothills spent $250K to replace a pump and motor according to Wilson, but it’s burning out due to a lack of maintenance.
“They don’t have anyone that knows what they’re doing. It’s bad management.”
“Without a dependable, consistent supply of water,” Wilson said, “we cannot operate our business as we should.”
Maria Hernandez who manages Valerie’s Restaurant at the Valle Vista golf course agrees.
“Two weeks ago, it was shut down twice for two days. I had to close the restaurant, send employees home.”
She said she has lost a lot of money because of Foothills shutting off their water supply multiple times.
“It’s hard to pay rent or pay my employees and I lose a lot of food,” she said.
Doug Dorsten, a Valle Vista homeowner who works for the POA, said they had a water main break because of improper fittings.
“We had what they needed to fix it, but they declined to take us up on that,” Dorsten said. “We were without water for three, four, five days.”
The system in Valle Vista is over 50 years old, Dorsten said while adding, “(Foothills) problem is their inability to fix it. It took them half a day to cut off nuts that should have taken 10 minutes.”
POA President Wilson said when Truxton supplied their water, they had someone here at the pump overnight to make sure it worked, but Foothills does not.
“We’ve had three years of drought on the golf course due to Foothills lack of proper maintenance of the system. They’ll fix it here, it’ll leak there. They fix it there, it’ll leak here.”
He said on top of everything, Foothills is requesting a 98% increase in water rates.
“That’ll put us out of business,” Wilson said. “Just because they ask for it doesn’t mean they’ll get it.”
He plans on attending the Arizona Corporation Commission in Phoenix in January.
The Standard reached out to the ACC for answers about complaints filed by Valle Vista residents and for the date, time and location of that meeting, but they replied by email to file a complaint online. However, the meetings for utilities companies requesting a rate increase, such as Foothills, is usually held in the ACC’s Phoenix office, 1300 W. Washington Street.
The ACC on Foothills water rate increase
The Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) has provided information on Foothills Utilities rate increase request, but there was no record of a 98% rate increase request as mentioned by Valle Vista Property Owners Association Gary Wilson.
Docket W-02168A-26-0162, filed by Foothills Kingman East April 30, 2026 stated, “In the matter of the application of Foothills Water and Sewer, LLC, an Arizona Limited Liability Company, for a determination of the current fair value of its utility plant and property, and for changes to its rates, charges and tariffs, for its Yuma water and wastewater divisions, and its Kingman East and Kingman West water divisions, and for certain related approvals.”
Nicole Garcia, Public Information Officer for the ACC said via email, “The hearing will be held in a courtroom setting and all parties argue their case for and against the rate increase before an administrative law judge. The judge will produce a recommended order and the commission will vote on that order. All documents related to this case will be posted to the docket.”
An ex parte has been invoked for this case which means the commissioner and their advisors are prohibited from communicating in writing, by phone, or in person with persons about any current, active case.
Comments for or against this case may be filed on the ACC portal at: efiling.azcc.gov
The hearing will be held at 9 a.m. January 26, 2027 in Hearing Room 1 in ACC’s Utility Division, 1200 W. Washington Street in Phoenix. For more information, call the ACC at 602-542-4251 or 800-222-7000
Foothills Utilities responds to Valle Vista water problems
Valle Vista is in District 1 which is in Travis Lingenfelter, Chair, Mohave County Board of Supervisors (BOS-1). He told The Standard that although the county does not regulate private water companies such as Foothills, he was well aware of Valle Vista’s water problems and asked Public Works Director Steve Latoski to look into it.
Latoski contacted Gabe Martinez, General Manager, Rose Valley Water Company in the Foothills Yuma office.
Martinez responded to Mohave County officials Sup. Lingenfelter and Director Latoski with the following by email:
“I appreciate your ongoing engagement and concern regarding Valle Vista’s water system. I’d like to provide a comprehensive update and assure you of our continued commitment to transparency and service.
We have not experienced any water issues in Valle Vista related to our water source or the delivery of water to our storage tank. All our water wells have been fully rehabilitated, both mechanically and electrically. Over the last two months, we implemented scheduled shutdowns—residents were notified by email and text each time—to replace and add isolation valves. This new infrastructure allows us to work in one area while still providing water to other areas, and we maintain records of all notifications.
Our contractors have consistently reached out to the county to secure appropriate permits as needed. We’ve also kept the Valle Vista POA informed of ongoing projects. Additionally, we have coordinated with Paul Carpenter, the golf course superintendent, to schedule watering in a way that does not impact water pressure during peak demand.
Our billing office is currently being centralized with other water companies across the US, which has unfortunately led to some customer service challenges. Our corporate IT team is actively working on a solution. We understand that these changes have caused inconvenience and appreciate residents’ patience. Please know that we are committed to addressing concerns promptly and transparently.
The scheduled shutdowns are necessary for repairing our distribution system. It is important to note that contractors and homeowners digging in easements without proper utility locates have caused approximately 60% of water main breaks in the past year. I met with Tina from the POA over six months ago to discuss these matters.
We will continue to upgrade infrastructure until all critical transmission lines are replaced and will work closely with our engineers to address other essential needs. The Arizona Corporation Commission is well informed of our efforts in Valle Vista, as well as any new development in the area with ACC approval. I am personally involved in every complaint filed and am aware of resident concerns regarding billing. We recently completed our meter replacement project; previously, some residents were only charged a base fee because the old meters were broken or did not spin.
I welcome the opportunity to meet with Director Latoski as a courtesy to share these updates, and I encourage the inclusion of staff from the Arizona Corporation Commission as part of our collaborative approach. Thank you for your understanding and support. Please let us know if you have any questions or suggestions—your feedback is invaluable as we continue working to improve Valle Vista’s water system.
Kind regards,”
Gabe Martinez
General Manager
Rose Valley Water Company
12486 S Foothills Blvd
Yuma, AZ 85367
928-581-3540
gmartinez@foothillsutilities.com
