THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KINGSLEY
Published in the Feb. 14, 2026 issue.
The Feb. 9 Inyo County Water Commission meeting began with some hearted verbal theatrics when commissioner Paul Huette insulted two fellow commissioners and county staff and then threatened to quit the commission if he was not elected as chair. The five-member commission duly elected Huette chair; he rewarded their confidence by proceeding to lead a meandering three-hour meeting.
The night’s only concrete action was the commission approving the final Environmental Impact Report for the Owens River Water Trail, a project that has been bubbling up and down for at least a decade. Public comments and discussion then centered on vegetation cover in the Owens Valley. Moved to a March Water Commission meeting was the effort by the public and environmental groups to have a louder voice in local water policy by offering suggestions to help guide the county’s response to the upcoming Los Angeles Department of Water and Power’s (LADWP) annual pumping and operations plan.
After plenty of chat and discussion regarding how the county Water Department staff handles LADWP, data collection, public presentations and a full calendar of meetings this spring, commissioner Teri Red Owl made a concrete suggestion. She asked Water Department Director Holly Alpert if she could put together an estimate of how much additional staff would be required to fully handle the department’s ongoing workload. With that estimate in hand, the Water Commission and public could go to the Inyo County Board of Supervisors to advocate for additional staff in the Water Department, Red Owl said.
In addition to its constant engagement with LADWP, the Water Department’s workload includes staff support and data analysis for the Owens Valley Groundwater Authority and reviewing and commenting on all county EIRs that include issues about groundwater or surface water (the Crystal Geyser EIR for its new plant in Olancha, for example). Alpert said she could try and work up some estimates of additional staffing levels.
But let’s get back to the tantrum and the drama!
The meeting started with the usually humdrum and routine election of a new chairperson. Commissioner Randy Keller, an attorney who is retired from the Inyo County Counsel’s office, nominated former Inyo County Supervisor and new Water Commissioner Matt Kingsley, because of his experience with the region’s water issues. Kingsley, of Lone Pine, recently stepped down after serving as a District 5 supervisor for 12 years and represented Inyo County on the Inyo-LA Standing Committee for 10 of those years. Kingsley said he would not be offended if he didn’t get the chairman’s role, since he was fairly new to the Water Commission.
Huette, a longtime member of the commission and an operator for the Big Pine Tribe’s water plant, jumped in and offered a rambling challenge to Kingsley. As the vice chair he said he should be moved to the top spot, or else he would resign from the commission. Huette said making Kingsley chair was a set up, “a done deal,” since “people on the staff don’t like me.” He said he knew the plan to make Kingsley chair was coming after a previous meeting when then-chair Red Owl was absent and Alpert suggested Kingsley chair. “Shame on you Randy Keller,” Huette said, and also added Alpert to his shame list.
He said he knows how to speak to LADWP officials, is a personal friend with one LADWP commissioner, and has the time to attend and represent Inyo County at the Inyo-LA Standing Committee meetings. He said he would fight to protect the valley’s water and was dedicated and committed to representing “the people,” the implication clearly being Kingsley would not.
The board then voted and handed Huette the gavel.
The only action item on the agenda was certifying the final EIR for the Owens River Water Trail. The commission had reviewed the EIR previously and quickly approved the final. Water Department Mitigation Manager Larry Freilich, who has been working on the River Trail for about 12 years, said the Inyo Board of Supervisors will have to also certify the final EIR.
That approval should clear the way to receive a grant from the Sierra Nevada Conservancy to start construction on the 6.3 miles of river trail, which will run from where the Owens River crosses the Lone Pine Narrow Guage Road to the Keeler Bridge. The work includes mechanically clearing the tule-choked river channel and building put-ins, parking and other amenities to allow public access to the river. Once complete the river will be able to host floaters in kayaks, canoes, paddleboards and, in true Inyo County tradition, float tubes.
Also, LADWP and the county still have to finalize a lease agreement to allow work on LADWP land. The department paid about $500,000 for the EIR and Freilich said LADWP’s initial concerns have been addressed in the final EIR.
Next came another chapter in the perennial saga over vegetation cover, how it is measured, how it is interpreted, legal issues surrounding vegetation cover in the Inyo-LA Long-Term Water Agreement, accusations the county is not aggressive enough in pressing LADWP on the issue, and more.
Those issues and more will likely be aired at the hastily scheduled March Water Commission meeting. The public will have a chance to suggest how the county should pre-emptively question and then respond to the 2026-27 LADWP Operations Plan. The numerous environmental groups in the Eastern Sierra Water Alliance will “do some work” and present data, ideas and other information at the meeting, said Wendy Schneider, executive director of Friends of Inyo. The groups hope their suggestions will be incorporated into the county’s official response to the LADWP operations plan.
That meeting has been scheduled for March 16 in Independence.
