Delano water facility expected to bottle 2 acre-feet per day

Nov. 25—One of the Central Valley's most precious resources will soon produce local jobs and municipal revenue as a Diamond Bar-based company wraps up construction of a large water bottling facility in Delano.

Niagara Bottling LLC plans to invest $160 million in a 420,000-square-foot building expected to employ at least 60 people earning an average of about $59,000 per year, not including overtime, bonuses or benefits. The operation is anticipated to produce $343,000 per year in city revenue.

A Delano city councilman said the facility will use about 650,000 gallons per day — about 2 acre-feet — from a city-owned source. That quantity of water usage is expected to cost the company $900,000 per year in fees, not including $283,000 in sewer impact costs.

Although the project has raised some concern that Niagara will be taking Delano's water, it has also been welcomed as an addition to the manufacturing base of a city that council members said prevailed against several other Central Valley cities anxious to land the company's investment.

"We're super-excited to have Niagara come to Delano," Mayor Joe Alindajao said. He added that the bottling facility's water usage will involve putting in a new water well in the city's northern portion. He said the operation will not create a local risk of water shortage.

Councilman Mario Nuñez said his understanding was that the specific area where the water will be drawn from is of high quality with sufficient reserves to supply the plant for 30 years. He said the operation will not affect other wells in the area and that residents won't be affected by the water use.

The operation, set to open in the first quarter of next year at Schuster Road and South Lexington Street, may be expanded to provide up to 120 jobs, while the facility itself may eventually grow to 800,000 square feet, Delano council members said.

Niagara did not respond to repeated requests for comment Tuesday and Wednesday. Neither did staff at Delano City Hall.

The company's website stated the project will create local employment opportunities, drive capital investment in the area and reinforce Delano's position as a manufacturing leader in the bottled beverage market. It noted the company owns other bottling plants throughout the United States and Mexico.

Family owned and operated since 1963, Niagara says it works with large retailers around the country that sell its sparkling, vitamin, flavored and regular drinking water, teas, sports drinks, protein and nondairy milk products, as well as ready-to-drink coffee.

The company stated it is committed to responsible resource usage and integrating sustainability into every aspect of its business.

With specific regard to water stewardship, Niagara's website says, a company facility "uses less water to produce its products than it takes to keep a few golf courses green."

"Niagara pays volumetric fees for the water it uses," it continued, "and millions in taxes and fees to municipal systems that enable them to maintain and improve their infrastructure."

A November 2022 Facebook post about the project elicited a few comments from members expressing worries the facility would cut the local water supply.

Vice Mayor Salvador Solorio-Ruiz said the city would not have approved the project if it were unsustainable.

"I'm excited about it," he said. "I think it's going to put forward more opportunity and jobs to the city of Delano."

Alindajao said the city entered talks with the company in 2021, and that the bottling project was approved late that year or in early 2022. He said construction started last year.

The plant's water usage is a "minor point," he said.

"Delano's not that ignorant in the sense that we're not going to commit ourselves to $1.2 million impact on our water and sewer system if we don't think we can handle it," he said.

As of last week, Niagara had 14 jobs listed as in need of being filled, ranging from senior maintenance technician to human resources manager of manufacturing.