ISD Board Meeting December 6, 2011 Minutes

MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING
OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE
IRONHOUSE SANITARY DISTRICT

December 6, 2011

The Ironhouse Sanitary District (ISD) Board of Directors met in regular session on Tuesday, December 6, 2011.

The place of meeting was the Ironhouse Sanitary District office at 450 Walnut Meadows Drive, Oakley, California.

1. Call to Order
The meeting was called to order by President Michael Painter at 6:32 p.m.

At 6:32 p.m. the Board entered into Closed Session
2. Closed Session
Conference with District Counsel as authorized by Government code Section 54956.9(c) in regard to possible initiation of litigation.

3. Report of Action Taken in Closed Session
At 7:06 p.m., the Board reconvened from Closed Session to Open Session and President Painter, announced the Board unanimously directed staff to:
1. Hire a third party consultant to design the permanent repair for the HDPE pipe/expansion joints for Bethel Island Bridge forcemain pipe.
2. Have ISD attorney send a letter to Harrison Engineering requesting follow-up information.

4. Roll Call
Directors present: David Contreras, Doug Hardcastle, David Huerta, C. Lauritzen and Michael Painter

Directors absent: none

Staff/Consultants present: Tom Williams, General Manager
Dave Dal Porto, Reclamation, Levee and Ranch Superintendent
Jenny Skrel, District Engineer
Joe Mueller, Environmental/Process Compliance Manager
Susan Walde, District Secretary
Dominick Gardiner Maintenance Worker I
Michael Welty, Utonomy, Inc.
Fred Etzel, District Counsel

Interested Parties: Randy Pope, City of Oakley
Michael Kerns, ABA Energy Corporation
Debbie Bordeau, Oakley, CA

5. Presentation of 5 year Service Award – Dominick Gardiner
President Painter on behalf of the Board and staff thanked Mr. Gardiner for his dedication and hard work to the District on the Maintenance team.

6. Presentation of Proclamation honoring Debbie Bordeau – Teacher of the Year
Director Huerta presented a Proclamation honoring Debbie Bordeau, teacher at Oakley Elementary as the Contra Costa County Teacher of the Year.

7. Approval of the Agenda
M/S D. Huerta, D. Contreras and the Board voted to approve the agenda.

8. Approval of the Minutes of the September 6, 2011 Regular Meeting
Approval of the Minutes of the November 1, 2011 Regular Meeting
M/S D. Contreras, D. Hardcastle, with D. Huerta and M. Painter abstaining, voted to approve the minutes of the September 6, 2011 regular meeting of the Board.
M/S M. Painter, D. Huerta with C. Lauritzen abstaining, voted to approve the minutes of the November 1, 2011 regular meeting of the Board.

9. Public Comments – Communications from the public on subjects not on the agenda.
There were no comments from the public at this time.

10. CONSENT CALENDAR

A. Approval of Payment Order, Income/Expense Statement & Bank Balances.
B. Acceptance of Offer of Dedication from Discovery Builders for Tract Number 7655 – Amberwood 5/Between Live Oak & Empire (Res. No. 11-15)
Staff Report – M. Welty
Mr. Welty updated the Board that the Bank transfer form has been modified as suggested by ISD’s auditor, Mann, Urrutia & Nelson, to enhance internal control. Director Contreras asked if there could be a memo column added to the check disbursement report. Director Lauritzen asked if moving the accounting system to QuickBooks would help generate the reports requested by the Board. Mr. Welty stated that he could provide the information easily through QuickBooks.

M/S C. Lauritzen, D. Huerta and the Board voted unanimously to approve the consent calendar.

11. BUSINESS BEFORE THE BOARD

11A. CONSIDERATION OF PAYROLL SERVICES WITH ADP WORKFORCE. APPROXIMATE ANNUAL COST OF $4,837.25

Mr. Welty addressed the Board, with the recommendation of ISD’s auditor, proposing to change the current payroll system from an in-house operation to a contracted process with Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (ADP). He outlined the benefits to the District; total tax plus services, system efficiencies and system integrity and security. Staff’s recommendation is to approve the proposal by ADP and authorize ISD’s General Manager to execute the Major Accounts Agreement with ADP and other related ADP authorization forms. ADP’s annual fee estimate is $4, 837 based on 32 employees and 5 directors.
Director Lauritzen commented that his business uses ADP, believes the service to be state of the art, and highly recommends the District using their service.
M/S D. Contreras, C. Lauritzen and the Board voted unanimously to accept staff recommendation and accept the proposal by ADP authorizing the General Manager to execute the Major Accounts Agreement and other related ADP authorization forms. (B.O. 11-49)

11B. CONSIDERATION OF MODIFICATION OF ISD OIL AND GAS LEASE WITH ABA ENERGY (Res. No. 11-16)
Mr. Fred Etzel spoke to the Board regard the Modification of the ISD Oil and Gas Lease with ABA Energy. He gave a brief overview of the exiting lease and the existing wells on Jersey Island. The extension of the lease will extend the lease for three years and allow access to all the wells. He introduced Mr. Michael Kerns, Vice President of Land of ABA Energy Corp. Mr. Kerns is very pleased to be working with ISD.
Staff’s recommendation is to renew the proposed Modification of Oil and Gas Lease and the Partial Surrender of Oil and Gas Lease and recommends the Board approve Resolution No. 11-16 and Certification of Acceptance pertaining to the Partial Surrender of Oil and Gas Lease.
M/S D. Hardcastle, C. Lauritzen and the Board voted unanimously to approve the Modification of the ISD Oil and Gas Lease with ABA Energy, adopting Resolution No. 11-16 and Certification of Acceptance pertaining to the Partial Surrender of Oil and Gas Lease. (Res. No. 11-16)

11C. CONSIDERATION OF BAY AREA BIOSOLIDS RECYCLING FACILITY CONTRACT AMENDMENT.
Ms. Skrel spoke to the Board explaining that the cities of Santa Rosa and San Jose have expressed interest in joining the Bay Area Biosolids Recycling Facility coalition. Adding new members will add strength and economy to the group’s efforts. In order to add new members, a contract amendment needs to be processed. Staff’s recommendation to the Board is to approve the contract amendment and authorize the General Manager and District Council to sign the Bay Area Biosolids Recycling Facility Contract Amendment.
M/S D. Contreras, D. Hardcastle and the Board voted unanimously to approve the Contract Amendment and Authorize the General Manger and District Council to sign the Bay Area Biosolids Recycling Facility contract Amendment (B.O. 11-50)

11D. CONSIDERATION OF APPROVING THE WESTSIDE BRIDGEHEAD ROAD ANNEXATION. (Res. No. 11-17)
Ms. Skrel spoke to the Board regarding approving the Westside Bridgehead Road Annexation to include three properties in the area. These properties were not included when the DuPont property was annexed. Staff recommends the Board approve the Notice of Exemption, allowing the General Manager to sign the Notice of Exemption.
M/S D. Hardcastle, C. Lauritzen and the Board voted unanimously to approve the Notice of Exemption, authorized the General Manager to sign the Notice of Exemption directed the District Secretary to file the proper Notice with the County, and directed staff to submit the necessary application for the Annexation. (B.O. 11-51)



11E. CONSIDERATION OF PURCHASE OF SHARP BUSINESS SYSTEMS COPY MACHINE TO SUPPORT NEEDS OF NEW TREATMENT PLANT REPORTING REQUIREMENTS, COST OF NEW MACHINE NOT TO EXCEED $9,700.
Mr. Williams reported that he was approached by staff with a need for a copy machine/printer for the new Water Recycling Facility due to the lab reports and related documents they need to prepare on a regular basis. Mrs. Walde worked with Sharp, (our existing copier company) to negotiate a contract for a new machine for the office and move the existing machine to the new recycling facility. The funds would be distributed from a combination of expansion funds (approx. $6,200) and operating funds for office equipment (approx. $3,500). Staff’s recommendation is to approve the purchase proposal for a new copy machine for an amount not to exceed $9,700 and authorize the General to sign the purchase contract.
M/S D. Contreras, D. Huerta and the Board voted unanimously to approve the purchase of a new copy machine from Sharp Business Systems for an amount not to exceed $9,700., authorizing the General Manger to approve the contract.

11F. CONSIDERATION OF ATTENDANCE AT CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF SANITATION AGENCIES MID YEAR CONFERENCE (January 18-20, 2012)
Mr. Williams reported that he and Ms. Skrel will be putting together a power point presentation for their presentation on the Technological Innovation and Achievement Award ISD received. Mr. Williams asked the Board to please contact Mrs. Walde if they are interested in attending the conference.

12. Staff Reports

President Painter thanked all staff for their written staff reports. He explained it helps keep the Board informed and give them the opportunity to follow-up with staff and managers.

Director Contreras commended Dave Smith on the letter sent to property owners on the collection system repair. He asked about investigation as to who did the damage and would like staff to follow-up on the Underground Service Alert (USA) tickets, and the City/County for patch and repair to further track how the damage may have occurred, and by which agency.

Joe Mueller – Mr. Mueller reported that all staff at the treatment plant now have ipads to monitor the SCADA system. He is working on revamping the on-call system. Staff are able to see the security cameras and are fine tuning with Scheer security. Mr. Mueller gave a report on the security of the laptops with individual logins, multiple password protected layers, and tracking of individual operator adjustments.

Fred Etzel – Mr. Etzel had no further report at this time.

Jenny Skrel – Ms. Skrel reported that she met with PG&E regarding the incentive program set up during initial design of the plant. They came out to complete an evaluation of the installed equipment and possible incentives and we may be close to a $200,000 rebate. The current monthly charge is approximately $60,000 and does not include a couple pieces of equipment. Ms. Skrel anticipates the monthly charge after all equipment is online will be approximately $70,000.

Susan Walde – Mrs. Walde reported the Christmas dinner will be held on December 11th at 4:00 p.m. with approximately 65 people planning to attend. She also reported that the Board and staff managers will need to participate in ethics training during 2012.

Tom Williams - Mr. Williams reported on Reclamation District 830-Jersey Island, and how they have received approval of $2.3 million for levee work, and approval of their proposed “scope of work”. The approved scope of work will allow as much as 90% of the grant money to be advanced to the District in the near future. Construction work under this agreement should begin in the late spring of 2012. On November 30th RD 830 submitted a grant application to DWR proposing to coordinate the bulk purchase of mitigation credits, through Westervelt Ecological Services, in support of the Delta Levees Program. In return, RD 830 receives money to manage the grant over the next 4 years, which can be used to satisfy its own mitigation needs. He also reported he is still working on the $8.2 million budget for the Marsh Creek Enhancement Project grant. The enhancement project will purchase approximate 600,000 cubic yards of fill material from ISD for approximately $2.5 million. Mr. Williams will give an updated presentation to the Board in January 2012.
Mr. Williams reported he has been working with Jenny on the RD 830 pump station relocation. He attended the CC Economic Development Trade Conference with Director Hardcastle which was very interesting. He attended the CC Water Shed Symposium in Antioch with President Painter. He also reported on the opening day of Pheasant Season; approximately 40 passes written on opening day. The hunters with dogs were the most successful.
He reported that he facilitated the General Manager’s roundtable at ISD last Monday with 15 Managers attended and 9 or 10 were able to tour the new facility.
The grease collecting event day was very successful and staff were able to collect 140 gallons. There are plans to hold another event.
The strategic plan review by the Board will be delayed until sometime in January due Mr. Williams having to focus on the multiple grant applications for RD 830.
Mr. Etzel and Mr. Dave Dal Porto are working with Nate Hershey on the removal of the tanks at Jersey Island. They are waiting until the spring/summer of 2012 when the weather, groundwater and tidal conditions are better.

13. Board Member Advisory Reports

Director Contreras –Director Contreras reported on behalf of the Public Outreach Committee. They had 20 vehicles at the grease recycling event, taking in 140 gallons, which filled ½ of the container. The committee received good comments and another event is scheduled for January 7th.
The photos of the Grand Opening are up on the website, KTV News has published the event, an article was published in the ISD newsletter and also articles in the paper. The committee has been working on proposed changes to the website; less text, more graphics and more accessibility. The newsletter has been sent to CASA to be uploaded on the CASA website. It was suggested we continue to provide links to maps and graphics.

Director Hardcastle – Director Hardcastle reported he attended the East County Water Management Board meeting. They are raising the dam at Los Vaqueros and have information on their website.

Director Lauritzen – Director Lauritzen reported there is a Delta Stewardship Council meeting on Thursday at 5:30 pm and it should be a full house. He reported on the salmon population and the report of the striper bass with possibly increasing limits to protect the salmon. He reported on a fairly new invasive species of plant; the sponge plant looks like a water hyacinth and is just as prolific. There are no funds to control the weed problems in the Delta.

President Painter – President Painter reported on the Delta Science Center – Supervisor Mary Piepho had five counties of supervisors on a tour with a stop at the Delta Science Center. Mr. Williams gave a presentation on the Water Recycling Plant. President Painter reported on the building; the walls are up and the windows are in. The center is progressing along.

President Painter extended a thank you to City Council member Randy Pope for attending our meetings.

14. Adjournment

President Painter adjourned the regular meeting at 9:20 p.m. until Tuesday, January 3, 2012 at 7:00 p.m. for the next regular meeting in the Ironhouse Sanitary District offices at 450 Walnut Meadows Drive, Oakley, California.