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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1986-02-18 Min - Board REGULAR MEETING February 18, 1986 The regular meeting of the Board of Directors of the Truckee Donner Public Utility District was called to order at 7:06 P.M. by President Maass in the TDPUD Board Room, ROLL CALL: Directors Cooley, Corbett , Hamilton, Sutton and Maass were present. CONSULTANTS PRESENT: Counsel John M. Phelps and Ferris Gilkey of R. W. Beck and Associates. EMPLOYEES PRESENT: Mary Chapman, Bruce Grow and Peter Holzmeister. OTHERS PRESENT: Dick VanLandingham. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Director Corbett moved, and Director Hamilton seconded, that the Board approve the minutes of January 20, 1986. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. Director Hamilton moved, and Director Corbett seconded, that the Secretary be directed to prepare the minutes of February 3, 1986 in final form as written. All Directors, aye , by voice vote. SO MOVED. BILLS FOR APPROVAL Director Hamilton moved that the bill presented for consideration be approved for payment; seconded by Director Corbett. SO MOVED by voice vote. MANAGER'S REPORT Electrical outages Manager Holzmeister noted there were storm related outages in Tahoe Donner and at Donner Lake beginning on the afternoon of February 15th , and continuing through the evening of the 16th. There was little or no equipment damaged; most of the outages were caused by unloading ice and wires slapping together. He reported several downed trees and poles, and noted the SPPCo 60 KV line was down for a short while on the 16th. Mr. Holzmeister said the entire system is now up and operating with the exception of service on Ute Drive , where two trees took down a power pole and primary line. The area was evacuated due to mud slide danger, but the crew should be able to make repairs on February 19th. Director Corbett reported District customers he spoke with were pleased with PUD service and repairs during the storm. Director Cooley said he would like to compliment the Manager and staff for the amount of work they put in; the other Directors added their compliments. Stampede hydroelectric project -1- Director Hamilton stated there was a mud slide at Stampede which drove a construction shed into the building and through all the cable trays. This will probably set back the date Stampede hydro power will be available to the District. PUBLIC INPUT There was no public input. CORRESPONDENCE Counsel Phelps' letter dated 2/11/86 President Maass made note of the February llth letter from Counsel Phelps relative to regular, special and emergency meetings - ordinances - hearing requirements - and publication requirements. After some discussion, Counsel suggested that the District consider sponsoring legislation to amend the law requiring an ordinance for expenditures of $100,000 or more. This limit, Mr. Phelps advised , was set in 1953; as inflation continues, it will become more and more of a problem. It was decided that the Manager should discuss the matter with Jerry Jordan or the CMUA, and possibly with Senator Doolittle. Wellner letter re SPPCo - Truckee Meadows groundwater Director Corbett noted that, as a member of the Water Advisory Council, he received a letter from Assistant County Counsel Wellner, which advised that Sierra Pacific was instructed to hire Desert Research Institute to perform a survey of the Truckee Meadows groundwater basin. SPPCo is presently taking 12 thousand acre feet out of the groundwater basin, and is not permitted to increase that amount. Senator John Doolittle - groundwater management Director Corbett said he received a letter from Senator Doolittle, and will be sending a personal reply. He will refer the Senator to the District's response concerning formation of a groundwater management council. COW4ITTEE REPORTS Director Hamilton reported that the Electric Committee met concerning the Boca hydroelectric project. The matter will be discussed under Unfinished Business No. 1 following. BOCA HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT - STATUS REPORT AND POSSIBLE DIRECTION At the request of the Manager and Electric Committee, Ferris Gilkey of R. W. Beck and Associates summarized matters discussed at the recent committee meeting. He advised that the District received the license in May of 1985 to operate the dam, and there are requirements which have to be met prior to May of 1986. Construction must begin by May of 1987. Mr. Gilkey noted ^ that the information originally put together is outdated - the requirements of the Stampede water storage and flows have changed. R. W. Beck has stayed in touch with the Bureau of Reclamation and influenced the items -2- �-- included in studies they have performed. A computer print-out has been provided to Beck of various flow data which may be used for projections of generation and economic assessment of cost per kilowatt hour. R. W. Beck suggested the following action: 1 ) That the District immediately proceed to prepare and file with FERC, prior to May 1st, the plans required by the license. Counsultation with the Forest Service and Water Control Board will be necessary. At least 30 days should be allowed for that consultation to obtain concurrence with plans. 2) That, as a first step in determining project feasibility, available generation be determined based upon the alternative hydraulic operational studies provided by the USBR. Based upon those generation figures, the size of bond issue which that generation would support for several energy values and several bond interest rates could be determined. This is a way of ascertaining the capital construction cost which could be supported at the various energy values and would provide general guidance as to whether or not to proceed with a detailed construction cost estimate. 3) Concurrent with these activities, further informal discussions with certain state and federal agencies to determine their attitude toward support for a stay or extension of the license. 4) In addition, there should be further discussions with SPPCo personnel regarding connection of the Boca facilities with their distribution circuits , and any wheeling or other contractual arrangements which may be required. After hearing and discussing the recommendations, Director Hamilton moved 10000- that the Board authorize R. W. Beck to respond to the license articles for an estimated cost of $5,000; to estimate the monthly generation at an estimated cost of $3,000; and to develop a supportable construction cost at an approximate cost of $3,500. Director Corbett seconded the motion. Director Sutton suggested an analysis of the condition of Boca Dam be conducted, since the dam is in the neighborhood of 50 years old, and the appropriateness of construction be reaffirmed prior to expending these funds. It was noted that SEED, a governmental safety division, investigated Boca and had no concerns after their evaluation; also, at the time the license was being considered, the Bureau of Reclamation looked at the issue very carefully and noted no concerns. The President directed that R. W. Beck reevaluate the reports prior to going forward. All Directors voted aye on the motion made by Director Hamilton. SO MOVED. It was noted that preliminary discussions with Sierra Pacific and the NCPA have been held concerning wheeling. Director Sutton stated the District should determine if wheeling will be a problem prior to becomming too involved in the Boca project. Discussion followed. By Board consensus, the Manager was directed to pursue discussions with Sierra Pacific Power Company respecting wheeling. VEHICLE MAINTENANCE REPORT - REVIEW AND POSSIBLE DIRECTION With the meeting material, the Manager provided to the Board a Vehicle Operating Costs Summary for 1985, which included fuel, repair and maintenance costs on each of the vehicles and an analysis of cost per mile by age of vehicle. A copy has been attached to these minute for reference. The Foreman of Technical Services, Bruce Grow, was present in the audience to answer questions posed by the Board. Hiring an in-house mechanic and -3- preventive maintenance were discussed. The Manager noted that Unit 18 requires repairs at the present time , and the Board agreed that he should continue having D & C Roadside Service perform necessary repairs. REVIEW AND POSSIBLE APPROVAL OF RESPONSE TO SENATOR DOOLITTLE RE GROUNDWATER MANAGEMENT DISTRICT The Board reviewed the draft letter to Senator Doolittle regarding formation of a groundwater management district prepared by Manager Holzmeister. Director Sutton asked that the Manager determine whether or not formal action requesting the Senator to propose legislation was taken by the Board of Supervisors. President Maass asked that Mr. Holzmeister pursue this request. The Board determined that the response letter is adequate and directed that it be prepared in final form and mailed prior to March 23rd. Director Sutton mentioned a citizens group which has been formed to support the Nevada County groundwater ordinance, and also noted there is quite a bit of misinformation relative to this matter. Director Cooley left the meeting at this point - approximately 8:40 P.M. CONSIDERATION OF AUTHORIZING MONEY MARKET ACCOUNT WITH TRUCKEE RIVER BANK Director Hamilton moved, and Director Corbett seconded, that this matter be put over. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. Mary Chapman is obtaining information from Jim Heath of Truckee River Bank, and will also contact the Bank of America. CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE AWARD OF BIDS ON ELECTRICAL DISTRIBUTION EQUIPMENT (WIRE AND TRANSFORMERS) The Board reviewed Electrical Engineer Buckhouse's evaluation and recommendatons on the wire, cable and transformer bids received by the District. Many of the bids were qualified or did not meet the District's specifications. Director Hamilton noted that his wife, Peggy Hamilton, is a representative of Vantran Electric (who bid on two transformer schedules). Counsel Phelps suggested he abstain from voting on the award of these particular transformers. After some discussion, it was decided that award of the electrical distribution equipment bids be put over, and that Mr. Buckhouse be asked to attend the next meeting and explain his recommendations to the Board. NEW DISTRICT COMPLEX Mr. Holzmeister noted that Dale Cox, Architect for the District, reports he has received comments from the County on the site plan and is presently making the requested changes and preparing a final cost estimate. Director Maass asked if the plans and spec if ications can be ready in two weeks, and also asked if the delay has anything to do with the District's stand on the groundwater ordinance. -4- CORRESPONDENCE Director Corbett asked Mr. Holzmeister to obtain information on the NWPPA conference in Portland, Oregon having to do with alternatives to litigation. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Board, after motion duly made, seconded and approved unanimously, the meeting was adjourned at 9:09 P.M. TRUCKEE DONNER PUBLIC UTILITY DISTRICT G . J es A. Maass , President Prepar d by: Susan M. Craig, Deputy DisZrict Clerk -5-