Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-10-11 BOWC MIN Stillwater, Minnesota October 11, 2018 Regular Meeting: The regular meeting of the Board of Water Commissioners was held on Thursday October 11, 2018 at 8:00 A.M. All Commissioners were present with President Speedling presiding. Also present was Jim Tibbetts, Council Member Menikheim, Jim Rolling and Shawn Racine with Safe Water Commission. On motion of President Speedling, duly seconded by Commissioner Vania, all voting "Aye", the Agenda was accepted as presented. On motion of President Speedling, duly seconded by Commissioner Vania, all voting "Aye", the minutes of the September 13, 2018 regular meeting were read and approved as written. On motion of President Speedling, duly seconded by Commissioner Vania, all voting "Aye", Resolution No.1523 was approved for payment. Manager Benson introduced Jim Rolling to the Board; Mr. Rolling attended the meeting to discuss a high water bill he received in October. He explained to the Board that he was gone on vacation and his irrigation system sprung a leak and ran all week, as soon as he returned home he immediately repaired the leak. The bill was close to $400.00 and normally his bill is around $30.00. He asked the Board if there could be some adjustment on his bill. After discussion on motion of President Speedling, duly seconded by Commissioner Vania, all voting "Aye" Mr. Rolling was given until March 12, 2019 to pay his bill without paying a penalty as the water was used and had gone thru the meter. If he is unable to pay the bill by March 12, 2019 he was instructed to call Manager Benson and workout arrangements to extend the deadline for another quarter. Jim reported to the Board that a lot of the projects are behind schedule because of the weather, they are working with contractors to shut down irrigation systems and also getting the Water Department properties ready for winter. Heritage Ridge is a new development that is off of Hazel Street, they have not broken ground but may start next year. Manager Benson provided the Board with three different options for the website that Dan Gustafson with 16 Wins presented to them at the September Board Meeting. After discussion, on motion of Commissioner Vania, duly seconded by President Speedling, all voting "Aye” the Board approved the Gold Package. This is the same package the Library is using, also Commissioner Jensen brought up pictures for the website, her niece Allie would be willing to take them; Manager Benson will talk with staff about a group picture. Shawn Racine with Safe Water Commission attended the Board Meeting to follow up on the contract proposals for the Backflow Prevention Program, after review Manager Benson stated that throughout the contract the Board of Water Commissions would be referred to as ("The Board") not ("The City"), therefore after discussion on motion of Commissioner Vania, duly seconded by President Speedling, all voting "Aye" the contract was approved provided there were no major changes needed after review by Attorney Kori Land. Manager Benson presented the Board with an annual contract from SafeAssure Consultants, Inc. for safety training, after discussion, on motion of Commissioner Vania, duly seconded by Commissioner Jensen, all voting "Aye" the contract was approved for a cost of $2,365.43. The following items were discussed, with no action taken: 1. Accounts receivable balance as of September 30, 2018 was $38,292.01with the actual amount being $79,860.01; this is $1,000.00 lower than last years. 2. President Speedling questioned the status of the new employee, Manager Benson informed the Board that Cole Ruud has accepted the offer and will be starting on Monday October 15, 2018. 3. Karen Kill with Brown’s Creek Watershed was unable to attend the Board Meeting; she plans on attending the November Meeting and updating the Board. 4. Shawn Racine from Safe Water Commission updated the Board and answered questions on the Smart Controller Program that they are working on and after discussion Shawn will plan to attend the December 2018 Board Meeting to discuss things further. 5. Commissioner Jensen informed the Board that Allie will be at the November Meeting to go over the Info graphic with the Board after the final updates have been completed, once approved by the Board they will discuss when to mail it out to the residents. Commissioner Jensen and Allie will talk with Dan from 16 Wins about the pictures for the website. 6. Manager Benson brought up information for the December Council Meeting and after discussion, here are the following items: White Bear Lake update, road construction work this year, the backflow prevention program, the smart controller program, working with Brown’s Creek and Middle St. Croix Watershed District, (this is part of our plan to meet the 10% reduction as part of our water conservation goal and is also part of the City’s Comprehensive Plan) and the new website which is like the Library’s. 7. Manager Benson update the Board on the council meeting he attended with Commissioner Vania and Commissioner Jensen about the Ice Castle for this year. He brought up the amount of water that was used last year which was 16,500,000 gallons and they want to increase the size by 20% this year. Ryan Davis with the Ice Castles commented to the council that he was surprised that they used that much water last year so they will not be increasing the size of the castle this year and would be able to keep the usage of water under 11,000,000 gallons. Manager Benson also talked about water conservation and how the City and Water Board reached a consensus in December 2016 as part of the Water Department’s Water Supply Plan to reduce per capita water usage by 10% in the next ten years. 8. Commissioner Vania brought up a feasibility study for using 550/gal/min from the Artisan Well for the Ice Castle in 2019. Manager Benson indicated the only way he would support that is if the Ice Castle was in Lowell Park, as this would not work if they used Bridge View Park at the south end of town. After discussion Manager Benson will talk with TKDA about the options. Option 1: using the Artesian Well Water or Option 2: filtering water out of the river; he will also check with City of Stillwater, City Administrator Tom McCarty about the ice castle contract. 9. Manager Benson informed the Board that he and Matt Ellingson with TKDA attended a meeting at the DNR office, they presented their new ground water model for the North East Metro, and how this would affect White Bear Lake. There was not a lot of changes to the new model and it supports what the DNR was saying from the beginning. They plan on publishing this on October 17, 2018. The pre hearing conference scheduled for October 2, 2018 was moved to November 8, 2018. 10. Council Member Menikheim informed the Board that there has been a request to run a soil sample analysis from the dog park before moving forward with a water service because the park is on top of an old dumpsite. 11. Manager Benson talked with City of Stillwater Public Works Superintendent Tim Moore about a water fountain in Brown’s Creek Park; he stated this will have to be brought up before the Parks Board. Manager Benson is working with Miller Excavating on a quote, once received he will forward this on to Commissioner Vania. George is working on this as a resident of Stillwater not as a member of the Board. He will work on funding and approval from the Parks Board. 12. Commissioner’s Vania and Jensen provided the Board with an update from the AWWA Conference they attended in Duluth. 13. Manager Benson provided the Board with a letter from Stephen & Kathleen Nelson at 7770 Minar Lane North; they are splitting their property into two lots and are currently on a private well, they are asking to have a private well drilled into the other lot. The City Council has determined that it is not feasible to install sewer and water in the subdivision so the only alternative is well and septic. Manager Benson informed them as long as water is not available they would be allowed to drill a private well. There being no further business, on motion of Commissioner Vania, duly seconded by Commissioner Jensen all voting "Aye", the meeting was adjourned.