Meeting Minutes of January 14, 2014
Chairman Joseph Burrow called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. A roll call was taken and present were; Chairman Joseph Burrow, Vice Chairman Robert Jacobini, Water Supply Operator Ron Lada, District Secretary Karen Dunn; and Trustees Jenny Anderson, Grace Brewer, Robert Hughey, and Jay Ross. Absent was Secretary/Treasurer Mike Williamsen.
Mr. Mike Twomey, Attorney with the Law Office of Barrett, Twomey, Broom, Hughes, and Hoke; Mr. Joe Boyke, Clarida & Ziegler Engineering; and Mrs. Jill Williams, prospective Trustee, were in attendance.
The Board reviewed the minutes of the December 10, 2013, regular meeting. A motion was made by Mr. Hughey to accept the minutes as presented; seconded by Ms. Anderson, and with (5) yes and (0) no votes, the minutes were approved.
Chairman Burrow next gave the floor to Mr. Joe Boyke who opened with information related to the Pump Station Rehabilitation. Bid information was presented, reviewed, and discussed. A letter was presented from the Mr. Joe Boyke’s recommendation. A motion was made by Mr. Robert Hughey to accept the bid from Engineered Solutions Midwest, Inc., as presented. Seconded by Vice Chairman Jacobini and with (5) yes and (0) no votes, the motion carried. Mr. Boyke indicated that he would have contract documents prepared for signature prior to the next meeting of the Board.
Next presented by Mr. Joe Boyke were Generator comparisons and quotes. Mr. Boyke recommended a purchase from Heartland Pump based on reputation and excellent local service. After considerable discussion, a motion was made by Vice Chairman Jacobini to accept the Heartland Pump bid as presented for the purchase of a Senet 60Hz-30W Generator. Seconded by Ms. Anderson and with (5) yes and (0) no votes, the motion carried. Discussion followed related to requirements for a concrete pad, wiring, etc., and Mr. Boyke was requested to acquire recommendations from Heartland.
Mr. Boyke prepared and presented a preliminary estimate of probable construction costs related to a proposed water service connection to Carbondale along with a Carbondale/SHWD water rate comparison. The information was discussed in great detail; however, no action was taken at this time.
Mr. Hughey reported on his visit to a recent SHWD Board Meeting. Of the topics discussed was concern related to aging infrastructure, pump stations, and towers. After discussion, no action was taken at this time.
A letter was presented from Mr. Lynn Bush, L.D. Bush Construction, explaining personal changes which ultimately lead to the termination of the service contract between L.D. Bush Construction and the Buncombe Public Water District effective January 1, 2014. Discussion followed. The Board instructed the District Secretary to contact Dean Bush related to a contract for services, but no other action was taken at this time.
Under the order of new business, information was presented detailing the legal services of Mr. Mike Twomey in 2013, followed by his request to increase his retainer from $5,000.00 to $6,000.00 for the year 2014. It was suggested by Chairman Burrows, that due to the magnitude of current expenses and instability of revenue as a result of water loss, this increase would be a burden and in need of reevaluation. After conversation, Mr. Twomey rescinded his request.
A proposed 2014 Operating Budget was prepared by the District Secretary and presented to the Board in the absence of the Secretary/Treasurer. Line items were explained and discussed. It was recommended that due to the current instability of operations, it is unknown whether or not a water rate increase is warranted. Therefore, no action related to water rate increase was taken at this time. Seconded by Mrs. Brewer and with (5) yes and (0) no votes, the Budget was approved.
No information was available related to a telemetry upgrade, and the purchase of a back-up generator was discussed earlier in the meeting. Mr. Lada noted that approximately 40 digital meters had been installed throughout the District thus far. No information was available related to insertion meters; however, it was decided to table further discussion until July 2014.
The topic of South Highway Water District was discussed previously in the meeting; however, Vice Chairman Jacobini noted that Board Members of the SHWD may be ready to discuss contract negotiations at their February 2014 meeting.
Financials for November 2013 were presented for review with brief discussion.
The Edward Jones Investment Report for December 2013 was reviewed at this time.
The Secretary/Treasurer Report and the Accounts Payable Report for January 2014 was presented by the District Secretary in the absence of the Secretary/Treasurer. After presentation and discussions, a motion was made by Mr. Hughey to pay the disbursement to Midwest Meters for 176 digital meters in the amount of $20,040.00 and the disbursement to Clarida & Ziegler for engineering services in the amount of $4,281.75 from the 1st $50,000.00 installment from First Southern Bank, and move the remaining funds of $16,678.25 from the Operations Checking Account to the Repairs Saving Account also at First Southern Bank. Seconded by Ms. Anderson and with (5) yes and (0) no votes, the motion carried. Next a motion was made by Mr. Hughey to accept the Secretary/Treasurer Report as presented and to pay the bills. Seconded by Mrs. Brewer, and with (5) yes and (0) no votes, the motion carried.
The Water Supply Operator Report was presented by Ron Lada with no discrepancies. Discussion followed related to recent water main breaks and water loss.
No additional public comments or questions were presented at this time.
There was no move for an executive session.
There being no further business, a motion was made to adjourn, seconded, and with (5) yes and (0) no votes, the meeting adjourned.