Project Status

Construction was completed in August 2025.

Background

West Goshen is a small, unincorporated community just west of Visalia in Tulare County. While a portion of the community has been connected to safe drinking water from California Water Service since 2015, another 57 households still relied on private wells until this project. During the 2012-2016 drought, some of the wells supplying these households went dry, leaving families with no running water in their homes. Several contaminants, including nitrate, 1,2,3-trichloropropane, and uranium, also made the well water unsafe for drinking, cooking, and, in some cases, bathing.

Thanks to the advocacy of West Goshen Residents, the area was able to get Technical Assistance from Community Water Center, and the West Goshen Drinking Water Project was initiated

• In 2021, West Goshen residents formed the community-based organization West Goshen Water for Life.

• In 2022, Community Water Center worked with West Goshen residents and the engineering firm Dee Jaspar & Associates to complete an alternatives analysis study. After the completion of the alternative analysis study, the community of West Goshen decided to consolidate with Cal Water Visalia as its long-term water solution.

• In 2022, the Department of Water Resources awarded Tulare County a $3.4 million grant for the express purpose of connecting nearby West Goshen homes to a permanent and sustainable water source.

• In early June 2025, Community Water Center hosted a groundbreaking ceremony to celebrate the years of dedicated effort, advocacy, and leadership from the community as well as the successful partnership of the Department of Water Resources, State Water Resources Control Board, Tulare County Resource Management Agency, Cal Water, and Community Water Center. Construction began in May 2025. Watch the groundbreaking celebration below.