Simon J. Murphy founded the East Whittier Land and Water Company in 1889. A newly constructed pumphouse served the communities we know today as Whittier, La Habra and Brea. While the pumphouse was taken out of service and abandoned in the early 1900s, easements created during those early days are still used by Cal Domestic to deliver water.

Cal Domestic was incorporated when George Chaffey purchased water rights from the East Whittier Land and Water Company. Chaffey served as the manager initially and later became a member of the Board of Directors. Over time, Cal Domestic acquired assets such as land, wells, equipment, flumes, ditches, and rights-of-way from its predecessor, leading to substantial growth through infrastructure development and further land and rights-of-way acquisitions.

The Cal Domestic and La Habra Water Company offices were originally located in Los Angeles. The mutual water companies made the move to Whittier in 1907, when they relocated to Greenleaf Avenue in Whittier.

After it set up shop at several different sites in the early 20th century, Cal Domestic moved into new, Art Deco-style offices in 1934. The company has remained at the site on Whittier Boulevard ever since. The building was recently renovated and modernized. The office structure retains its original shape and windows, the steel and glass door, and most of the Art Deco features, such as the triangular parapet. The metal letters reading “California Domestic Water Co.” on the façade were also preserved from the original facility.

For more than half a century, Cal Domestic water was distributed and accounted for by the zanjero, which is Spanish for “the keeper of the ditches.” The zanjero controlled and measured the amount of water coming over wooden flumes. The water was originally used primarily for irrigation of local crops and as domestic water on the ranches. By the 1950s, local ranches and oilfields were being divided into suburban homesites. Ditches and flumes were replaced by pipes, with meters to track water use. Land developers began transferring water service from Cal Domestic to the local municipal and public utilities. Throughout this transition, Cal Domestic continued to supply water to Whittier, La Habra and Brea, with the cities becoming stockholders in the Company.

To take advantage of changing tax policies, Cadway, Inc. was formed in 1964 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Cal Domestic. Utilizing Cadway to acquire and develop the Company’s properties provided numerous financial benefits to Cal Domestic and its Shareholders.

Water producers in the Main San Gabriel Basin agreed to an adjudication of their pumping rights, with a nine-member Watermaster Board overseeing the resolution under California’s Superior Court. Cal Domestic allocates common stock entitlements to Shareholders based on the determination of the Main San Gabriel Basin Operating Safe Yield (OSY) and available water supply resources acquired through purchase or lease. The Cal Domestic Board of Directors annually establishes the Shareholder common stock entitlement rate.

In response to the urgent need for environmental protection, Cal Domestic took decisive action by constructing an advanced air stripper treatment facility. This facility effectively removes industrial solvents, Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), found in the Main San Gabriel Basin water supplies and Cal Domestic wells in the 1970s, and is a testament to our unwavering commitment to safeguarding the community’s water resources.

A Water Master Plan was finalized, aimed at increasing the water system infrastructure’s delivery capabilities and meeting growing Shareholder demands.

Cal Domestic took proactive measures to enhance water quality by constructing ultraviolet light and ion exchange treatment facilities. These facilities successfully removed Perchloride and NDMA from the water supplied to Shareholders, ensuring a safe and reliable water source. In partnership with other water utilities, Cal Domestic reached a pivotal settlement with the parties found responsible for water contamination in the Main San Gabriel Basin. Known as the Baldwin Park Operable Unit Project Agreement, this landmark settlement became part of the nation’s largest Super Fund clean-up site. As a result, Cal Domestic was reimbursed for capital investments in treatment technologies, along with 100% of operation and maintenance expenses for the treatment facilities from 2001 to 2027. This compensation led to substantial cost savings for Shareholders, amounting to approximately $150 per acre-foot on all delivered water.

Cal Domestic made major investments in water rights acquisitions and water rights leases to control the cost of water supply resources for Shareholders and to offer Shareholders supplemental water entitlements throughout extended periods of drought in the local watershed.

As a result of increased sampling of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the Main San Gabriel Basin, Cal Domestic constructed an ion exchange treatment facility for the removal of PFAS from Cal Domestic’s Well B. The facility ensures all state and federal quality standards are met on all water delivered to Shareholders, supplementing the water quality facilities competed in the 1990s and early 2000s.

Cal Domestic operates a sophisticated water system with high-efficiency pumping plants, advanced water treatment facilities, and a highly trained professional staff. Functioning largely as a wholesale water provider for our three primary Shareholders, the Company produces and sells anywhere from 20,000-25,000 of acre-feet per water annually. Cal Domestic remains dedicated to delivering a clean and reliable supply of water to the community and its Shareholders.