KEN-CARYL RANCH WATER AND SANITATION DISTRICT
MINUTES
April 16, 2010:
THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS was held on April 16, 2010 at 6:30 a.m. in the Conference Room of the Ken-Caryl Ranch Water & Sanitation District, 10698 W. Centennial Road, Jefferson County, Littleton, Colorado 80127 (mailing address), pursuant to notice given to each Director and posting of notice as required by law.
The Directors in attendance were Steven D. Gustafson, Philip G. Varley, Jan E. Rousselot, Sandy L. Rinow and Amy S. Turney. Also present were District Manager Timothy R. Anderson, Assistant Secretary Lindsey C. Gibbons, and Attorney Jim Borgel. District residents, Bud Becker and Kevin Jordan also attended the meeting.
Chairman Gustafson brought the meeting to order at 6:30 a.m.
- Disclosure of Potential Conflicts.
- No new or potential conflicts, or changes inpreviously reported conflicts were reported.
- Minutes-March 19, 2010 Regular Meeting.
- Following review, Director Rousselot moved to approve the Minutes. Upon a second by Director Rinow, the motion was unanimously passed.
- Accounts Payable/Paid.
- Mr. Anderson reviewed the Accounts Payable list forMarch 2010.
- Mr. Anderson stated that check 4035 was paid to Tokay Software for yearly software maintenance for the commercial and irrigation backflow program. Mr. Anderson stated that Staff tracks backflow devices installed throughout the District in accordance with Denver Water’s requirements.
- Mr. Anderson stated that checks 4037 and 4051 were paid to Water Systems, Inc. for the purchase of four toilets and one urinal for the District office. Mr. Anderson stated that the toilets and urinal were replaced with more water efficient fixtures and the District received $425 in rebates from Denver Water for the replacements.
- Mr. Anderson stated that check 4062 was paid to Utility Technical Services for locating a waterline leak on Crestone Peak. Director Rousselot asked about check 4084 and Mr. Anderson responded that it was a withholding check for an employee garnishment.
- Mr. Anderson stated that the Intuit Payroll charge on the corporate card was for a Quickbooks payroll program upgrade. He then noted that the 60 Day and Over Receivables were higher this year compared to last year but pointed out that approximately $4,000 of the balance was due to a past due water bill for a single property on Golden Eagle Lane. Mr. Anderson explained that the water at that address was shut off after field staff located the curb stop shut-off valve. Then, Mr. Anderson passed out and reviewed a spreadsheet that listed every property with water service disconnected in the District.
Director Turney moved to approve the Accounts Payable (Paid) list as presented. Upon a second by Vice-Chairman Varley, the motion was unanimously passed. - Financial Statements.
- Mr. Anderson noted that the operating account balance at Guaranty Bank was higher than usual because Staff was waiting for the final pay request from Nelson Pipeline for the 2009 Sanitary Sewer Replacement project. Mr. Anderson also noted that a portion of the revenue in the operating account could be placed in investments which might get a somewhat higher return. Chairman Gustafson asked if any large amounts would be payable in the near future, and Mr. Anderson responded that he did not anticipate any unusually large invoices coming due in upcoming months.
- Mr. Anderson stated that March revenues and expenditures were close to budget except for interest income because of the current low interest rates. Mr. Anderson stated that he disputed a power bill received from IREA. IREA researched the bill and found that an incorrect multiplier code was being used, so IREA gave the District a credit of $7,354.37.
- Mr. Anderson stated that salaries appeared to be over budget for the month because three pay periods were reflected on the report. Next, Mr. Anderson stated that there was one T-Bill and one CD maturing prior to the next Board meeting. Ms. Gibbons stated that all CD rates obtained from banks were under 1% and Vice-Chairman Varley asked if Staff could research 10-month or 13-month and 2 year promotional PDPA CD rates to see if there were any better rates available. Director Varley stated that he spoke with Chris Brown from Bank of the West and Mr. Brown told him that Bank of the West would not require that the District’s operating account be moved to Bank of the West to implement the investment program Mr. Brown presented at last month’s Board meeting.
- The Board asked Mr. Borgel to research if public funds could be invested at credit unions and to report back his findings at the next Board meeting. Then, the Board directed Staff to invest with a bank with a greater interest rate than 1% or if that was not possible, to invest in a two-year T-Bill.
- Next, Vice-Chairman Varley moved to accept the March Financial Statements. Upon a second by Director Rousselot, the motion was unanimously passed.
- District Manager’s Report.
- Mr. Anderson reviewed the Monthly Manager’s report for March 2010 with the Board. Mr. Anderson stated that the waterlines in White Deer Valley were flushed to maintain Denver Water’s required chlorine residual levels
- Mr. Anderson explained how often the waterlines had to be flushed in White Deer, and the amount of time field staff spends up in that area.
- Mr. Anderson stated that he was researching an automated system that would flush the lines in that particular area without sending a field representative to the location but the price was around $7,000 per unit.
- Mr. Anderson noted that Black & Veatch presented another alternative that would consist of shutting valves off in certain areas. Director Turney asked Mr. Anderson if a response letter was available to send to customers that inquire why the waterlines needed to be flushed and why water was being wasted. Mr. Anderson stated that he sent a letter to the White Deer HOA and he wrote about the waterline flushing process in previous newsletters.
- The Board discussed Denver Water’s response letter regarding the Gore Range Magnetic meters. The Board asked Mr. Borgel to draft a letter stating that the magnetic meters would be replaced at Denver Water’s expense, if after testing, the magnetic meters failed to perform at the same level as a turbine meter required by Denver Water’s Engineering Standards.
- Public Comment.
- Public comment by Bud Becker and Kevin Jordan was deferred until the discussion regarding the RFP for a District rate study under Agenda item 8.
- Capital Projects.
- Mr. Anderson stated that Nelson Pipeline had not submitted their Final Pay Request for the 2009 Sanitary Sewer Replacement project and there were a few asphalt problems associated with the project that needed repair. Mr. Anderson stated that the seeding was complete at the Massey Draw Channel Restoration project.
- Next, Mr. Anderson stated that the World Headquarters Sewer Lift Station project was one month ahead of schedule and plans for the project were being reviewed by Jefferson County, the Chatfield Water Authority, and the State Health Department. Mr. Anderson stated that the engineering design work for the Flow Control Valves and Vaults project was completed and he needed to meet with the Master Association to discuss the future vault location. In addition, Mr. Anderson noted that he would work with IREA to coordinate how power would be supplied to the new vault. Mr. Anderson stated that the new valve system would be connected to the District’s SCADA system in place at the office.
- Request for Proposal for a District Rate Study.
- Chairman Gustafson stated that each company that submitted a proposal should be interviewed by the Board, and this process would likely take several meetings. Director Turney stated that the Board input was very important, especially because there will be three new Board members in May. Director Rousselot stated that she was not clear what the goal for the rate study was. Director Rousselot suggested reading the meters every month but not billing the customer so they would know what their month water usage was. Director Turney stated that she liked the idea of reducing the bi-monthly water usage allowance. Mr. Anderson stated that he spoke with StepWise, Black & Veatch, and Red Oaks prior to receiving their responses to the RFP and each firm asked him what the study’s goals were. Chairman Gustafson stated that he believed equitability between all users was the most important objective for the rate study.
- Kevin Jordan, a Ken-Caryl Ranch resident stated that the District Board was doing a great job managing the financials and providing reliable water and sewer service. Mr. Jordan stated that he did not support spending rate payer’s money on a rate study.
- Chairman Gustafson stated that he wanted to make sure that rates were equitable for both water and sewer and was concerned because most of the capital projects in recent years were sewer related expenses.
- Bud Becker, a Ken-Caryl Ranch resident, stated that there were no simple answers to setting rates but he knew of people who could perform a rate study for less than the three bids the District received. Then, Mr. Becker stated that he believed rate design and cost allocation were the primary goals for the rate study. Upon further discussion, Vice-Chairman Varley moved to table the discussion until a future Board meeting.
- Denver Water’s Payment Plan Policy.
- Mr. Anderson stated that Staff would propose a new payment plan policy because currently there is no formal policy. The Board stated that there should be a cost related to administering the payment plan and directed Staff to prepare a proposed policy for the next Board meeting. The Board asked Staff to provide a simple and straightforward payment plan policy for the Board to review.
- Open Items.
- Mr. Anderson stated that the Denver Water conservation committee meeting was next month, the distributor’s monthly meeting is next week, and the City of Littleton monthly meeting was cancelled.
- Other Matters.
- Mr. Anderson stated that the Board needed to agree on a special Board meeting date to discuss his annual review.
There being no further business the meeting adjourned at 8:15 a.m.