Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout1986-04-07 Min - Board REGULAR MEETING April 7, 1986 The regular meeting of the Board of Directors of the Truckee Donner Public Utility District was called to order by President Maass at 7:02 P.M. in the TDPUD Board room. ROLL CALL: Directors Cooley, Corbett , Hamilton, Sutton and Maass were present. EMPLOYEES PRESENT: Mary Chapman, Ron Reynolds , Tom Buckhouse , Peter Holzmeister and Susan Craig. CONSULTANTS PRESENT: Counsel John M. Phelps. OTHERS PRESENT: Among those present in the audience were Dick VanLandingham, Mr. and Mrs. Karl Kuttel, Steve Pike , Eric Monson, Carol Armstrong, Rob Collins and Sean Moore. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Director Sutton moved, and Director Hamilton seconded , that the minutes of March 3. 1986 be approved as written. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. At the last regular meeting, Director Sutton asked that consideration of the February 18 , 1986 minutes be put over in order for her to check the accuracy of certain discussion relating to bid limits required by law reported in the draft minutes. She advised that she listened to the tape of that meeting and is satisfied that the minutes properly reflect the discussion. Director Sutton reminded the Board of an amendment to the draft of the February 18th minutes made previously. The minutes are to show Board consensus that the Manager pursue discussion with Sierra Pacific Power Company with respect to wheeling (Page 5, paragraph 2). Director Cooley moved, and Director Sutton seconded, that the Secretary be directed to prepare the minutes of February 18 , 1986 in final form as corrected. All Directors, aye , by voice vote. SO MOVED, STATEMENT OF GENERAL FUND AND BILLS FOR APPROVAL With respect to the Simon, Porter, Graham and Phelps bill, Director Sutton stated she does not think certain research for which the District is being charged was authorized by the Board - 1) discussions with the PUC relating to Sierra Pacific's franchise area and 2) preparation of an opinion on prescriptive rights. She asked that the bill be excluded. Director Cooley moved, and Director Corbett seconded , that the bills presented for consideration be paid with the exception of the Simon/Porter bill. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. Responding to Director Cooley, Director Sutton explained that there are -1- A^ items on the current and previous Simon/Porter bill for time spent on behalf of the District relating to inquiries made to the PUC which she believes to be related to changing the franchise area of SPPCo. Counsel Phelps stated this was done in connection with the annexation of Ponderosa Hills. The District applied to Placer County LAFCo to serve both water and electricity in the subject area. Placer County gave tentative approval subject to the necessary PUC approval. Director Sutton asked if action to pursue the application before the Public Utilities Commission was given in public session, and Counsel Phelps stated he thought it was. Manager Holzmeister reported that the matter was discussed in public session and the Board agreed to complete the annexation of Ponderosa Hills which included application to the PUC. Again, Director Sutton asked if this was stated in the minutes. Counsel noted that the matter may have been discussed in closed session because of the threat of litigation by Sierra Pacific. With respect to the opinion prepared by Counsel on prescriptive rights, Director Sutton stated she thought the Board, by consensus, indicated it didn't need an opinion. Counsel Phelps, referring to the draft minutes of March 17th, reported that the Chairman directed him to provide a legal opinion on prescriptive rights and that the matter (Kuttel request to relocate power lines) be placed on the next agenda as a New Business item. Director Sutton reminded Counsel that the minutes of March 17, 1986 are in draft form and subject to correction. Director Hamilton moved, and Director Corbett seconded , that the Porter, Simon, Graham and Phelps bill be approved for payment. ROLL CALL: Sutton, no; all other Directors, aye. SO MOVED, MANAGER'S REPORT Mr. Holzmeister noted he would report on specific agenda items rather than at this time. PUBLIC INPUT There was no public input. CORRESPONDENCE Frederic Kohler of Hilltop Correspondence was received from Mr. Kohler asking for permission to use and improve the railroad grade from Hilltop to the flats above the river for sleigh and hayrides; also, he requested the right to maintain and improve the bridge over the water pipe. He indicated they would work in cooperation with District staff to create a safe situation and would name the PUD on their liability insurance. Both Director Corbett and Manager Holzmeister expected that Mr. Kohler would be in attendance to discuss this matter, however he was not present. Discussion ensued regarding the apparent unauthorized use of this same PUD property for a ski operation. It was noted that a bridge was constructed -2- over a District water pipe without District approval. Upon discovering the bridge, the PUD Manager asked Ms. Thorwaldsen to have it removed. As yet it still remains on the property. At the start of winter, Rhondi Thorwaldsen asked permission of the PUD for the Hilltop Ski School to locate a cross country trail over its property. The Board indicated it would consider her request upon receiving a draft agreement prepared at her expense which included provisions to adequately insure the District. Such an agreement was never presented to the District. After some discussion, Director Hamilton moved that the Board authorize the Manager to have the bridge removed, post the property for no trespassing, and send a letter to all adjacent land owners advising them that the District has not given permission to anyone for access or usage; seconded by Director Sutton, All Directors, aye, with the exception of Director Cooley, who abstained. SO MOVED. COMMITTEE REPORTS Director Sutton asked that a committee meeting be scheduled to discuss a policy regarding conference and seminar expenses. Director Hamilton asked to be removed from the committee due to business commitments , and Director Cooley volunteered to take his place. ,,.., Director Sutton stated she expects anyone to be able to attend this meeting. A discussion ensued regarding attendance by the public at committee meetings and related provisions of the Brown Act. Although no date was set for a meeting to discuss the expense policy, Director Sutton ended the discussion by stating that she will presume such a meeting will be public. CONSIDERATION OF LOT LINE ADJUSTMENT POLICY Manager Holzmeister noted that the proposed policy for abandonment or relocation of unused reserved easements treats easement relocations similarly to abandonments. Formerly, there was no set District policy for relocating a lot line and easement. Mr. Holzmeister briefly reviewed the proposed procedure and, thereafter, Director Corbett moved that the Board adopt Resolution No. 8605 establishing District policy for the abandonment or relocation of unused reserved easements; seconded by Director Cooley. ROLL CALL: All Directors, aye. SO RESOLVED. STATUS REPORT ON NEW BUILDING - APPROVAL OF TEMPORARY BUILDING FOR OFFICE EMPLOYEES - APPROVAL OF CONSULTING CONTRACT FOR FURNISHING NEW COMPLEX The Manager advised that approximately 50 sets of plans and specifications have been picked up from Dale Cox - seven or eight by general contractors and the rest by various subcontractors. A great amount of interest has been expressed in the project which hopefully ,J , p y , will result in a savings to the District. -3- Office Manager Chapman noted that three decisions should be made by the Board - 1) approval of an office site; 2) selection of a site for the Board meetings; 3) approval of anticipated costs relating to the relocation. She reviewed the office relocation recommendation with the Board. Three sites were compared in her report , but the space at FHK Shopping Center has been rented so is no longer a consideration. The remaining two sites are Truckee Business Park and Pine Tree Plaza/Westgate combination. The conclusion reached by Mrs. Chapman was to lease space at Truckee Business Park. At present , it is an empty shell. There is an improvement allowance in the amount of $19,283 and improvements are estimated to stay within that allowance. The square footage is 1 ,920, and rental cost is .95 per square foot and .03 per square foot for common area maintenance. The District would pay utilities , with the exception of sewer, garbage and water (which are included in the common area maintenance fee). She noted that office staff will be in one location, parking is good , it is an easy location for customers to find, there is efficient use of office space, it is easy to move into the facility, office staff will get used to open office environment , and modifications to accommodate the computer room are included in the improvement allowance. Bad points include the crew having to travel further to work with the Manager and engineering staff, possible flooding (although this is not likely) , and it may be noisy and hectic with all the employees working in one room. President Maass thanked Mary Chapman for the excellent comparison of the ,�.•., three possible relocation sites. Counsel Phelps reported that he reviewed the lease presented by Truckee Business Park and, for a short term, thought there would be no problem. They have agreed to several changes he suggested. The Chairman requested that a summary of the major points of the lease be prepared for review by the Board , and Mrs. Chapman asked that Counsel be responsible for its preparation. There were no objections voiced by the Board. After some discussion, Director Hamilton moved that the District send a letter stating its intent to rent space in the Truckee Business Park at the rates set forth in Mrs. Chapman's report contingent upon making an award for construction of the new building and with an option to extend the lease. The motion was seconded by Director Corbett. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. The Manager noted that, with the construction of the new complex, it will be necessary to purchase some new furnishings. In order to properly specify furniture for bidding, assistance from a person who knows furniture will be required. He advised that The Works of Reno, represented by Eileen Sharp, is a firm that helps businesses acquire furnishings; Mrs. Sharp has expressed an interest in performing that service for the District. Mr. Holzmeister went on to say that the District is not planning to replace all the furniture; much of it is in good condition and will be used in the new building. However, it is necessary to furnish the Board room, lunch room and the open office area. The Board was provided with an outline of services provided by The Works -4- and a client list. Mr. Holzmeister recommended authorizing them to assist the District in drawing up furniture specifications for Board approval at a cost of not more than $5,500. After some consideration, Director Hamilton moved that the Board direct the Manager to seek additional proposals so the Board may compare the services offered prior to making a decision; seconded by Director Sutton. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTIONS IMPLEMENTING NEW POLICY FOR APPLICATION OF ELECTRIC AND STATER SERVICE FOR NEW CONSTRUCTION AND UPGRADES District Engineer Buckhouse explained to the Board how the TDPUD currently handles applications for electric and water service for new construction and upgrades , the development agreement process, and the proposed development agreement process. There were many questions posed by the Directors and Director Sutton asked that a workshop be conducted to review this matter. Director Hamilton moved that the item be put over, and that the Board be advised why the present procedure isn't working and how the problem can be solved; seconded by Director Corbett. SO MOVED by consensus. KUTTEL REQUEST FOR RELOCATION OF ELECTRICAL LINES Karl Kuttel, present in the audience, briefly outlined the events concerning the power lines under which he built his home. He mentioned that the Building Department issued him a building permit subject to the PUD agreeing to relocate the power lines, and the fact that a previous Manager, in 1982, wrote and advised him that the line would be reinstalled and rerouted in 1983. It was determined that the Board, over the years, has indicated its intention to "take care of the problem." After some discussion and Mr. Kuttel's agreement to work with the District to relocate the lines in a place satisfactory to both him and the PUD, Director Hamilton moved that the District relocate the lines in the least expensive manner. He noted that he made the motion because of Mr. Ward's letter and previous commitments made by the Board, and asked that the Board be advised of the solution. The motion was seconded by Director Corbett. Responding to President Maass' question, Counsel advised that a resolution can be drawn up stating all the facts in this instance in order not to set a precedent. ROLL CALL: all Directors , aye. SO MOVED, The Chairman directed Counsel Phelps to prepare a resolution for consideration at the next meeting. CONSIDERATION OF LETTER TO CMUA RE BID LIMITS The Board reviewed Mr. Holzmeister's draft letter to Jerry Jordan of the California Municipal Utilities Association which suggests initiating legislation to increase the bid limits and the ordinance requirement. Director Sutton voiced concern that the increase requested is too high - the bid limit from $4,000 to $50 ,000, and the ordinance limit from $100,000 to $750,000. Director Hamilton moved, and Director Corbett seconded, that the Board -5- -- forward the letter prepared by Manager Holzmeister to the CMUA. ROLL CALL: all aye. SO MOVED. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION APPROVING PLANS, SPECIFICATIONS, AND ISSUING A CALL FOR BIDS ON PHASE I OF THE SOUTH RIVER STREET WATERLINE IMPROVEMENT PROJECT District Engineer Keith Sauers explained to the Board that this project was approved and let out for bid in 1985; however, only one bid was received and it was rejected in hopes a better price would be received this year. Counsel advised that the District's standard construction contract is included in the bid documents , and it is in order. Director Sutton expressed concern that the documents do not specify the class of contractor who may bid this project. She also requested that a spread sheet be prepared showing the assessment to the involved property owners , if there is a requirement to hook up to the line and how much of the cost of the bore and jack work will be provided by the property owners. The Chairman informed her that this was data was reviewed last Fall, and asked Mr. Holzmeister to provide Director Sutton with the information. Director Sutton asked if Counsel Phelps is in a conflict situation since the brother of one of his partners owns property that will benefit from this project. (Subsequently , it was learned that Jim Porter and his brother own this property jointly. ) Mr. Phelps noted that he disclosed this fact previously, and as a consequence, Mr. McDonough prepared the agreement between the District and property owners. Mr. Phelps stated he would withdraw from any involvement in reviewing documents for construction of the water line project if any Director .felt he was in conflict; there was no request for him to withdraw. Mr. Sauers advised that he made a review of the environmental conditions relative to the project and has completed the environmental impact analysis form. It qualified for a Class I categorical exemption under Section 15301 of the CEQA guidelines , and he recommended that the Board authorize adoption of a notice of exemption acknowledging such an exemption. Director Corbett moved, and Director Hamilton seconded, that the Board declare the bore and jack pipeline casing project at South River Street a Class I categorical exemption, and that the Board adopt Resolution No. 8606 approving plans , specifications and issuing a call for bids. ROLL CALL: all Directors , aye. SO RESOLVED, CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING PRESIDENT TO EXECUTE NOTICE OF DETERMINATION ON HIRSCHDALE PROJECT Mr. Holzmeister advised that , in 1973 , a Negative Declaration on the Hirschdale project was filed with the County and State Clearinghouse, but there is no record of the Notice of Determination having been filed. After reviewing the draft, Director Corbett moved, and Director Cooley seconded, that the Board adopt Resolution No. 8607 authorizing the President to execute the Notice of Determination relative to the Hirschdale -6- water system rehabilitation project. ROLL CALL: all Directors, aye. SO RESOLVED. REVIEW AND POSSIBLE APPROVAL OF RESPONSE TO CLEAN-UP AND ABATEMENT ORDER FROM LASONTAN Manager Holzmeister noted that as part of the planning for construction of the new District complex, Kleinfelder and Associates of Reno performed a soils investigation to provide technical information for designing the building foundation. The soils investigation involved digging a series of test pits, and in one test pit an odor of hydrocarbons was encountered and a film was seen on the water in the bottom of the pit. This was noted in the report. Upon review of the Kleinfelder report by the County, a copy was sent to the SWQCB, Lahontan Region. Lahontan reacted by issuing a Cleanup and Abatement Order requiring the PUD to submit a report by April 11 , 1986. Mr. Holzmeister advised that , after meeting with Thomas Kukol of Lahonton, he drafted a report addressing Lahontan's concerns for the Board's consideration. Director Sutton expressed concern that the Lahontan order was not copied to the Board upon receipt, and also noted she thought the District should have notified the SWQCB of the Kleinfelder findings rather than waiting for the County to report the situation to them. Director Hamilton moved, and Director Corbett seconded, that the Board approve and forward the report to Lahontan on Cleanup and Abatement Order No. 86-10. ROLL CALL: all Directors, aye. SO MOVED. CONSIDERATION OF BIDS FOR LINE PRINTER AND POSSIBLE AWARD The Office Manager noted that three bids were received, all meeting the District's specifications for a line printer. She recommended that the Board award the bid to BDS Corporation, the low bidder. She also suggested the District keep the existing line printer as a back-up. Director Hamilton moved , and Director Corbett seconded, that the bid for a line printer be awarded to BDS Corporation in the amount of $8,150 plus tax. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. DISCUSSION OF TRUCKEE INCORPORATION Director Cooley stated that he talked with representatives of the California Municipal Utilities Association and the California Special District Association about incorporation. They indicated to him they have concerns about users fees and taxes being attached, and he thinks the District should take a position and keep aware of what's going on. President Maass noted that the information gathered with respect to the possible incorporation of Truckee should come out in report form prior to the matter going to vote. Counsel Phelps , a member of the Truckee Incorporation Committee, advised that an updated feasibility study will be available this week, and he will -7- provide a copy to the District. He went on to say there will be a series of LAFCo hearings at which questions will be answered. Director Sutton asked for a copy of the feasibility study, and suggested it be reviewed as it relates to the District. She also requested the names of the incorporation committee members. Counsel Phelps advised that he would copy the District with a publication that discusses the types of taxes that an incorporated city may levy. POSSIBLE AUTHORIZATION TO ATTEND APPA AND NWPPA CONFERENCES Mr. Holzmeister stated he thinks it is a good idea to have representatives of the PUD at both the American Public Power Association and Northwest Public Power Association conferences, and noted that funds for this purpose have been set aside in the budget. Interested Directors should notify Mr. Holzmeister. MISCELLANEOUS Director Sutton suggested that the Board consider applying for disaster aid because of the problems with the lines (loss of revenue and overtime due to the heavy storms) in February. Mr. Holzmeister stated he would prepare a report of storm-related costs. Director Sutton moved, and Director Cooley seconded, that the Manager determine whether or not the District has a sufficient amount of damage related to the February storm period that would justify making application for federal money that would be available to reimburse the District. ROLL CALL: Cooley and Sutton, aye; Corbett , Hamilton and Maass , no. MOTION FAILED. Director Sutton asked if staff would investigate the hydroelectric project proposed by a private individual for the Truckee River at Gray Creek, and the Chairman agreed that this matter should be looked into briefly and a report given to the Board. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Board, Director Corbett moved that the meeting be adjourned at 10:22 P.M. ; seconded by Director Hamilton. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. TRUCKEE DONNER PUBLIC UTILITY DISTRICT By J s A. Maass, President Prepared b Susan M. Craig, Deputy District Cl d5a/6 -8-