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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1988-02-16 Min - Board REGULAR MEETING February lb, 1988 The regular meeting of the Board of Directors of the Truckee Donner Public Utility District was called to order by President Corbett at 7:05 P.M. in the TDPUD Board Room. ROLL CALL: Directors Aguera, Maass, Sutton and Corbett were present. Director White was expected. EMPLOYEES PRESENT: Tom Buckhouse , Peter Holzmeister and Susan Craig. CONSULTANTS PRESENT: Counsel James L. Porter. OTHERS PRESENT: Among those present were Mr. and Mrs. George Gardai. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Director Maass moved, and Director Aguera seconded, that the Secretary be directed to prepare the minutes of January 18 , 1988 in final form as written, All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED, Director Sutton moved, and Director Aguera seconded, that the Secretary be directed to prepare the minutes of January 25 , 1988 in final form as written. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. BILLS FOR APPROVAL After a review of the bills presented for consideration, Director Maass moved that they be approved for payment; seconded by Director Aguera, All Directors , aye , by voice vote. SO MOVED. MANAGER'S REPORT Lease of second story Mr. Holzmeister reported that he spoke with Dennis Cassella concerning renting the remaining space on the second story to the County of Nevada for services now located in the School District administrative building. He has provided Mr. Cassella with a copy of the lease agreement with CalTrans and indicated the Board would probably want similar terms in an agreement with the County. Director White arrived at this point in the meeting, 7:10 P.M. The Board briefly discussed use of the Board room by the County, parking and landscaping. Mr. Holzmeister noted that he will keep the Board informed. New record system peak ^ Mr. Holzmeister reported that the District reached a record electrical system peak on December 31 , 1988. This surpassed the previous January 1985 peak by 20.13%. He noted there will be a very large wholesale power bill -1- from Sierra Pacific Power for the peak period. Newsletter The Board packets included a proposed story line and time table for the next newsletter. Mr. Holzmeister said water quality and costs will be featured. Director Maass suggested directions on how to read the new bill be printed in the helpful hint section of the paper. Consumer deposit policy The Manager noted that the Directors received a letter from a customer who asked that a change be made in the way the District handles co-signing in lieu of paying a consumer deposit. Staff has requested that the Board consider this matter and make a decision as to whether a change in policy should be made. Current policy requires a new customer to pay a deposit equal to two times the highest monthly bill for the premises being occupied. The deposit is kept for two years and then returned to the customer provided the payments have been timely. Letters from other utility companies in lieu of a deposit are not accepted. Credit checks are not performed. A customer in good standing is permitted to co-sign for a new customer in lieu of the deposit. After some discussion, Director Maass moved that the Board authorize staff to review the consumer deposit policy and bring an analysis and recommendation to the Board for consideration; seconded by Director White. All Directors , aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. Hirschdale water system status report Mr. Holzmeister reported that the well was completed on February 10. The next day a four hour draw-down test was performed yielding 175 gallons per minute. The 72 hour continuous pump test is scheduled for completion on February 18 and there will be a period of no activity at the construction site while the California Department of Water Resources evaluates the pump data and the water quality report. Mr. Holzmeister indicated Counsel Phelps and Consulting Engineer Cook are putting together information on Schedule C for Board consideration at the March 7 meeting. PUBLIC INPUT There was no public input. CORRESPONDENCE Attorney General's letter of 2/3/88 re Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe v. Hodel, et al. County of Nevada letter of February 9, 1988 concerning Pyramid v. Hodel The subject case was briefly discussed and note was made that to intervene, motions must be filed no later than February 21 , 1988. The County is -2- ,•-- intervening because of its interest in the issues involving the Truckee River, possible management of its tributaries and the groundwater basin which may influence river flows. After some discussion, Director Maass moved that a copy of the Planning Department letter dated February 9 , 1988 regarding the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe v. Hodel be forwarded to Bruce McDonough for comment. The motion was seconded by Director Sutton and passed by consensus. COMMITTEE REPORTS There were no committee reports. PUBLIC HEARING - BUDGET FOR 1988 The public hearing was opened at approximately 7:50 P.M. At an earlier meeting, Director Maass requested an analysis of fees paid to Keith Sauers during the past two years. The question was posed in the context of Mr. Holzmeister's proposal that a full time in-house civil engineer be employed. Mr. Holzmeister provided the Board with a spread sheet of 1987 billings from Sauers Engineering. Based on the analysis, he said it appears that employing a full time civil engineer may be a wash. The advantage of having a full-time engineer -i11 40 hours of service per week. Al h p so, there are engineering needs that are not being addressed yet such as Donner Lake , Proposition 55 and Tahoe Donner. The Water Department , Mr. Holzmeister noted, would be put under the supervision of the engineer, and he would be responsible for water quality. Additional clerical staff would not be needed; Water Foreman Rully and Engineering Technician Black would be his support staff. The engineering position is in the proposed budget with a figure of $53,500 plus benefits. Various revisions requested by the Board have been included in the budget , the Manager advised. There being no comment from the public, Director Maass moved that the public hearing be closed at 8:05 P.M. The motion was seconded by Director Aguera and passed unanimously by voice vote. CONSIDERATION OF ADOPTING THE 1988 BUDGET Director Sutton asked for reaffirmation that the Board would be able to make the decisions regarding when and who conducts the rate study mentioned in the budget. Mr. Holzmeister assured her that would be the case. After some discussion, Director Sutton moved that the Manager be directed to prepare a letter requesting a copy of any outstanding opinion or Attorney General opinion concerning longevity pay and payment of service club dues by a public utility. Director Maass seconded the motion. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. Director Maass moved that the Board review the letter before it is mailed out , and that Director Sutton -3- participate in its preparation; seconded by Director White. All Directors, aye , by voice vote. SO MOVED. Note was made that longevity pay is a provision of the Memorandum of Understanding with the Union and cannot be deleted without prior negotiation. Director Maass moved that the Budget, as revised, be adopted; seconded by Director Aguera. ROLL CALL: all Directors , aye. SO MOVED. DISCUSSION OF OFFER OF GEORGE GARDAI TO LEASE A WELL TO THE TDPUD; POSSIBLE DIRECTION Mr. Holzmeister advised that a representative of Hydro-Search has reported a concern with the data contained on Mr. Gardai's well log. The well is 200 feet deep; water was encountered at 172 feet. During the eight-hour draw down test , while pumping 146 gallons per minute , the water level dropped from 172 feet to 187 feet , leaving only 13 more feet of water. Mr. Fox of Hydro-Search is recommending that an eight-hour pump test using the equipment presently in place be performed to see if duplicate findings are recorded. If this is the case , consideration of the well should probably be abandoned, Mr. Holzmeister said. Director Maass moved, and Director Aguera seconded, that Hydro-Search be authorized to perform a preliminary scope of services for $880 plus out-of-pocket expenses. They are to supervise an eight-hour pump test and write a report with their findings and recommendations. ROLL CALL: all Directors, aye. SO MOVED. DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE DIRECTION RE COMPUTERIZED MAPPING SYSTEM After a review of the draft resolution and letter prepared by Counsel Phelps, Director Maass moved that the Board adopt Resolution No. 8803 authorizing competitive bidding with respect to a computerized mapping system without the use of "or equal" products; seconded by Director Aguera. ROLL CALL: all Directors, aye. SO RESOLVED. DISCUSSION OF CABLE TELEVISION SERVICE; POSSIBLE DIRECTION Director Maass moved that a committee consisting of the Manager, himself and any other Director (as required) be established to look into the possibility of becoming involved in cable television service; seconded by Director White. All Directors, aye , by voice vote. SO MOVED. Director Sutton suggested that the committee request information regarding franchising and rates from the County. CONSIDERATION OF A REQUEST BY iWESTSTAR CABLE TELEVISION TO INCREASE THE SIZE OF THE SATELLITE ANTENNAS ON PROPERTY LEASED FROM THE DISTRICT With respect the WestStar's request to increase the size of the satellite antennas on property leased from the District , Director Sutton stated she would like District approval to be contingent upon approval of the project by the Planning Department, Director Sutton moved that staff be directed to prepare a written amendment -4- to the site lease agreement with WestStar Communications to accommodate changing equipment as requested in their letter of February 5, 1988 for review by the Board; seconded by Director Maass. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. CONSIDERATION OF PARTICIPATING IN A STUDY WITH THE NORTHERN CALIFORNIA POWER AGENCY REGARDING POSSIBLE UPGRADE OF A PG&E TRANSMISSION LINE After a brief review of the proposed terms of a study of the upgrade of a PG&E transmission line that would permit the movement of 30 MW of power from NCPA to Truckee, Director Maass moved that the Board do whatever is necessary to enter into the agreement with NCPA for the study at a cost of $41 ,000; seconded by Director White. ROLL CALL: all Directors, aye. SO MOVED, CONSIDERATION OF SCHEDULING A PUBLIC MEETING TO DISCUSS THE POSSIBLE ACQUISITION OF THE DONNER LAKE UTILITY COMPANY Mr. Holzmeister noted that there have been preliminary discussions with a representative of Donner Lake Utility Company regarding acquisition. He suggested scheduling a public discussion to listen to comments from residents of Donner Lake and to begin formulating criteria by which to decide whether or not to acquire the company. Manner of notification of the Donner Lake residents was discussed. Director Sutton suggested the matter be discussed by the Water Committee, and Director Maass moved that the acquisition of the Donner Lake Utility Company be remanded back to the Water Committee for scheduling of appropriate meetings with the public; seconded by Director Aguera. All Directors, aye , by voice vote. SO MOVED. BOCA PROJECT - CONSIDERATION OF REQUEST FROM R. W. BECK AND ASSOCIATES The Manager noted that the Boca project is on hold because there is not yet an economical means of getting the power to the District's system. The District is presently negotiating wheeling with Sierra Pacific. By letter dated December 1 , 1987, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has requested that the District prepare a plan on how the oxygen levels in the Little Truckee River will be monitored when the plant is built. The plan already submitted did not satisfy their requirements and additional information must be provided. After review of the R. W. Beck proposal, Director Maass moved that the Board authorize Beck to comply with FERC' s request for supplemental information on the Boca project at a cost of $3,000; seconded by Director White. ROLL CALL: all Directors, aye. SO MOVED. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING WITH THE IBEW CONSIDERATION OF ADJUSTING DEFERRED COMPENSATION FOR CERTAIN MANAGEMENT EMPLOYEES (OFFICE SUPERVISOR, ENGINEER, ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT) - -5- POSSIBLE DIRECTION POSSIBLE DIRECTION TO SCHEDULE PUBLIC TO CONSIDER ADJUSTING DEFERRED COMPENSATION FOR GENERAL MANAGER AND FINANCE SUPERVISOR These items were put over to the next regular meeting. CONSIDERATION OF A POLICY REGARDING PARTICIPATION IN PUBLIC SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS This matter was put over pending receipt of an opinion from the Attorney General. CONSIDERATION OF A POLICY REGARDING MANAGEMENT OF THE ANNUAL BUDGET Mr. Holzmeister advised that this item is not ready for consideration; he and Director White are still working on the proposed policy. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Board, the meeting was adjourned by unanimous vote at 9:47 P.M. TRII E ri R PIIBL UTILITY DISTRICT Joh . Corbett, Pr ident Pre aced by Susan M. Craig, Deputy District Clerk sm/5d.6 -6-