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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWater Board - Minutes - 04/26/2007Fort Collins Utilities' Water Board Minutes Thursday, April 26, 2007 Water Board Vice Chairman City Council Liaison Doug Yadon, 484-3611 David Roy Staff Liaison DeEtta Carr, 221-6702 Roll Call: Board Present: Vice Chairman Doug Yadon, Steve Balderson, Mike Connor, Eileen Domfest, Phil Phelan and Dave Pillard Board Absent: John Bartholow, Johannes Gessler, Gina Janett and Reagon Waskom Visitors: Jennifer Orgolini from New Belgium Brewery Don Shields from WG Architects Staff: Patty Bigner, Dennis Bode, Terri Bryant, DeEtta Carr, Carrie Daggett, Joyce Grenz, Susan Hayes, Jim Hibbard, Jenny Lopez Filkins, Mike Smith, Susan Smolnik, Dennis Sumner and Carol Webb Meetine Convened Vice Chairman Doug Yadon called the meeting to order at 3:07 p.m. Public Comment None Approval of Minutes — February 22 2007 Board Member Phil Phelan made a motion, seconded by Board Member Steve Balderson, to approve minutes from the February 22, 2007, meeting. The motion passed unanimously. Executive Director Update City Manager Darin Atteberry thanked the Board for letting him talk regarding the search for Executive Director of Utilities. Mr. Atteberry explained the changes in the organization. Last year, he requested a study of the organization to see if there was a way to be more efficient in the delivery of the services the City provides to the community. A Water Board Meeting Minutes April 26, 2007 Page 2 consultant group, Management Partners, evaluated and recommended ways to improve the organization. Management Partners recommended changes to organization structure and Mr. Atteberry's direct reports. One of the recommendations Mr. Atteberry did not choose to change was the reporting structure of the new Executive Director of Utilities. He felt the Utilities Department was so significant in this community that he needed the Executive Director to report to him. Another suggestion was to divide the already overloaded General Manager position. This has brought changing roles for some in the organization due to their strengths in certain areas. The revisions that have been made are being done to better serve the community of Fort Collins and help the City run more efficiently. Mr. Atteberry sees that Utility Services is now at a critical point with the Utilities moving from a more outward -growing utilities to an infill mode. We are running out of land to stretch out and Mr. Atteberry sees, for the next 3-5-20 years, that the Utilities will be moving to a more infill development mode. There are many other opportunities for utilities in the area of regional approaches, and he sees a need to collaborate while maintaining the uniqueness of Fort Collins. Mr. Atteberry is looking for an Executive Director who is experienced in this transition area that the Utilities will be experiencing, as well as with regional collaborations. The Executive Director will need to be a good fit for the future of Utilities and for Fort Collins. This person will need to believe in best practices and someone who is a very strong executive leader. Mr. Atteberry believes that past leadership in Utilities has done extremely well in exhibiting these characteristics for many decades. Mike Smith's skill set and interest is in operations and that is why he will be the new Operations Manager. Mr. Atteberry's perspective is to match skill sets with needs. For the future, he's looking for someone who believes this is a world class organization and wants to help in making it better. Mr. Atteberry shared the timeline for interviews and would like to have at least one member of the Water Board on one of the interview panels. Mike Connor volunteered to be on the interview panel. Mr. Atteberry is hoping to have the position filled by the mid to late summer. Floodplain Variance for Team Petroleum 105 East Lincoln Avenue Staff Recommendation Floodplain Administrator Susan Hayes presented the application for "Variance to Floodplain Regulations" at 105 East Lincoln Avenue. The Board asked its legal representation, Carrie Daggett, for her input. Ms. Daggett called the Board's attention to the memo they had outlining the considerations the Board needs to keep in mind in conducting this review for a variance. Staff and applicant will present information that will become the record along with any other information the Board will review. The proposed project is a 1,317 square -foot addition to an existing office and warehouse building for Team Petroleum at 105 East Lincoln Avenue. The existing structure is 9,760 Water Board Meeting Minutes April 26, 2007 Page 3 square feet, and, therefore, the addition is relatively small. The addition is located at the north end of the building and will be used for office space. The existing building and proposed addition are located in the Poudre River flood fringe. A portion of the site is in the Poudre River 0.5 foot floodway. The lowest floor elevation of the existing structure is 4,946.18 and the base flood elevation is 4944.40. The regulatory base flood elevation (RBFE) is 4946.40. The applicant would like the floor of the addition to match the elevation of the existing floor for operational purposes and is requesting a variance to the requested 2-feet freeboard. This variance request will allow the lowest floor elevation of the structure to be 0.22 feet below the RBFE. This provides 21.3 inches of freeboard. This variance request, according to City Code Sec. 10-29 (c), would not have to meet the hardship requirement of Sec. 10-29 (f) (2), [formerly Sec. 10-29 (g) (2)], because the regulation is a City regulation that is higher than FEMA. Utilities staff compiled the following variance options for the Board to consider: Option #1: Deny the variance request based on the regulation adopted in the City Code, and, thereby require the lowest floor elevation elevated to the regulatory flood protection elevation. Option #2: Grant the variance request to have the lowest floor elevation at 4946.18, which is 0.22 feet below the regulatory flood protection elevation. Staff Recommendation Utilities staff recommends approving Option #2; grant the variance to have the lowest floor elevation at 4946.18, which is 0.22 feet below the regulatory flood protection elevation based on the reasons stated in the staff memo. Applicant Request Project Manager Don Shields of WG Architects, representing Team Petroleum, stated the addition that is being proposed is about an 18 percent addition to the existing building square footage. What they want to do is to avoid a hazard of tripping and carrying things to the new addition. No additional staff will be added. The proposed facility is an established business with a steady clientele and repeat business. The construction of an addition to the existing building will mean that all grandfathered "floatable materials" must be cleaned up when an addition is proposed to the structure. For this site, the floatable materials are especially significant because the property has considerable floatable materials. Cleaning up floatable materials will be a major improvement in flood safety, as well as aesthetics, along the river corridor. The existing lowest adjacent ground surrounding the building is at an elevation of 4944.4, which is at the FEMA base flood Water Board Meeting Minutes April 26, 2007 Page 4 elevation, and, therefore, the building may be eligible for a letter of Map Amendment (LOMA) from FEMA. If they applied to FEMA, a LOMA could be granted, but it would take at least three months, and that's why they are asking the Water Board for a variance. At a later point, the applicant can apply for a LOMA, and their insurance rate will be less. A question was asked as to whether an inspection is done to ensure the floatables have been taken care of. Susan Hayes answered that the Certificate of Occupancy is held until an inspection is done to make sure all conditions of the permit are met. Water Board Recommendation With no further discussion, Board Member Mike Connor motioned to approve the request for a variance for 105 East Lincoln Avenue. Based on the record, it has been shown that 1) the variance is the minimum necessary considering the flood hazard, to afford relief, 2) there is good and sufficient cause for the variance to be granted; and 3) the granting of the variance will not result in any increased flood heights, any additional threat to public safety or to public or private property, any extraordinary public expense, any nuisance or trespass, any fraud on or victimization of the public, or any conflict with existing local laws or ordinances. Board Member Eileen Dornfest seconded the motion. The Water Board unanimously approved the variance for Option #2 for Team Petroleum. NPDES Permit Renewal Process for Water Reclamation Facilities NPDES stands for National Pollution Discharge Elimination System, a renewal process for a permit to operate the wastewater treatment plants. Regulatory and Government Affairs Manager Carol Webb presented an update on the status of the permit renewal process for the wastewater treatment plants at Mulberry and Drake. The primary goal is to have fishable/swimmable waters with no discharge of pollutants. The Clean Water Act prohibits pollution of the waters of the United States unless you have a permit and then it's under controlled circumstances. The Clean Water Act Section 402 establishes the permit and the permission to discharge. All "point" sources "discharging pollutants" into the water of the United States must obtain a NPDES Permit from the EPA or an approved state. The presentation included a summary of special studies conducted to support an application for a site specific limit for copper in the plant effluent. The site specific standard will set a limit that is fully protective of water quality in the Poudre River, the receiving stream. Without this site specific limit, the Utilities would have to attain the more restrictive "default" limit at a cost to the rate payers that would not provide a commensurate benefit. Committee Reports There were no committee reports for the following committees. Conservation and Public Education Water Board Meeting Minutes April 26, 2007 Page 5 Engineering Legislative, Finance and Liaison Issues Water Supply Staff Reports None Other Business None Future ALYenda Items The election of the Chairman and Vice Chairman was postponed because only six of the eleven Board Members were able to attend. The election will be held at the meeting on May 24, 2007. Adjournment The Board meeting adjourned at 5:43 p.m. J yce renz, Water Bo Secretary