On October 4th, the Modesto City Council approved an agreement and introduced an ordinance that ended litigation between the City and Stanislaus Foods. The litigation involved a dispute over fees charged for sewer services and the availability of treatment capacity, with alleged damages in excess of $10,000,000. The settlement agreement approved October 4th provides that the City has fully complied with the terms of a 2014 agreement that partially settled the litigation. By clarifying Stanislaus Food Products’ ability to discharge wastewater into the City’s sewer system, the settlement agreement resolves the disputes involved in the litigation, with no payment of damages or attorneys’ fees by the City. This settlement agreement is one of a series of actions that the City has taken in collaboration with Stanislaus Foods and other wet industry companies, to maintain a strong partnership between the City and vital, jobs producing industry. Other actions to support the local food industry include new sewer rate and fee structure, new improvements to the City sewer system, a modification to the capacity bank ordinance and new discharge permits restoring allocated capacity for all industrial customers. The Stanislaus Foods settlement and ordinance are latest developments in this effort. The City believes that these actions provide a strong foundation for the growth of wet industry and other food processing operations in Modesto.
