The proposed Mi Pueblo grocery on Fremont Boulevard will get its extra water, the Seaside City Council decided Feb. 4. Just over one-quarter of an acre-foot – siphoned from an existing allocation for a back-burnered restaurant project near Home Depot – will accommodate a 1,811-square-foot deli/taqueria inside the chain store.

The credit is scaled back from the 0.293 acre-feet requested at the Jan. 21 meeting, when the item was continued in light of council and public concerns.

With Mi Pueblo reps on hand, Deputy City Manager Diana Ingersoll vouched for the project, saying it meets the city’s points-based criteria for water credits: revenue generation, blight removal, business retention, jobs creation and central location.

In response to the perception that the city favors big businesses, Councilman Tom Mancini recounted water credits granted to local, family-owned markets. “We try to take care of our small businesses when they come in and ask,” he said. “We’re not mind-readers.”

A group of two dozen local businesses, mostly Latino grocers, has characterized the franchise as a small-business-murdering monopoly akin to Wal-Mart. Several spoke against the water allocation.

“Please deny the water,” said Sofia Magaña of La Morenita market. “Competition is good, yes, but we’re asking that the competition is fair.”

Javier Moreno doubted Mi Pueblo would purchase locally, said jobs created would not offset those displaced, and suggested the allocation process lacked transparency. “Keep it fair,” he said. “What they proposed originally is enough.”

Staff is looking for council direction on what to do with the remaining 3.743 acre-feet of water from the Home Depot project, Ingersoll said.

Throwing a bone to Mi Pueblo’s detractors, Mayor Ralph Rubio said the council may be open to re-charging the water account for small businesses.