HomeMy WebLinkAboutElectric Board - Minutes - 01/05/2011Fort Collins Utilities Electric Board Minutes
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Electric Board Chairperson City Council Liaison
Vacant Lisa Poppaw, 223-4136
Electric Board Vice Chairperson Staff Liaison
Steve Yurash, 226-4248 Brian Janonis, 221-6702
Roll Call
Board Present Vice Chairperson Steve Yurash, Board Members Tom Barn ish, John
Graham, Edward DeCourcey, John Harris, Steve Wolley, and Peggy Plate
Board Absent
Staff Present Brian Janonis, Steve Catanach, Torn Rock, John Phelan, and Robin Pierce
Guests Rick Coen
Meeting Convened
Vice Chairperson Yurash called the meeting to order at 5:32 p.m.
Public Comment
None
Approval of December 1, 2010, Minutes
Board Member Wolley moved to approve the December 1, 2010, minutes. Board
Member Graham seconded the motion. It passed unanimously.
2010 Annual Report
Motion: Board Member Graham moved to approve the 2010 Annual Report
with an edit on page 1 (last bullet, correct “me” to “be”). Board Member Wolley
seconded the motion.
There was no further discussion on the motion. Vote on the motion: It passed
unanimously.
Plan Fort Collins
The Board determined the feedback developed at the November meeting was sufficient to
represent their collective feedback for the February 4 deliverable (board
recommendation). If significant changes are made by Council, staff will bring those
changes back to the Board for additional comment. The Board will receive a table from
Chief Planner Ken Waido later this month that explains the outcome of each feedback
point to the Plan suggested by the Board.
Electric Board Meeting Minutes
January 5, 2011
Routine Updates
Platte
River
PowerAuthority
(PRPA)
(Vice
Chairperson
Yurash):
Utilities
Executive
Director
Brian
Janonis
noted
PRPA
is
currently
discussing
rates
and
future
rate
structures
as a
wholesale
rate
to
the
utilities.
The
four
partner
cities
are
not
in
agreement
yet
on
the
best
rate
structure,
so
PRPA
has
agreed
to
explore
more
rate
options. PRPA
General
Manager
Brian
Moeck
provided
an
update
at
homes
(not
just
electric
heat
homes).
These
are
not
currently
part
of
the
package
being
submitted
for
Council
consideration.
Staff
Reports
Light
and
Power
Manager
Steve
Catanach
noted
the
FortZED
RDSI
(renewable
distributed
system
integration)
kickoff
occurred
today.
Colorado
State
University
(CSU),
New
Belgium,
and the
City
of
Fort
Collins,
along
with
five
technology
partners, utilized
a
grant received
in
2008
to
develop
new
products.
Some
of
the
benefits
to the
project
include
marketing
for
economic development
and
the
ability
for
Utilities
to
gather
data
as
to
what happens
when
more
generation
is
added
onto
the
system.
Governor
Rifler
was
present
for
the
kickoff.
Tours
of
the
project
will
he
available.
Mr.
Catanach
is
happy
to
organize
a
tour
for
the
Electric
Board
of
the
project
and
the
control
center.
In
February,
we
will
begin
providing
the
Board
with
a
monthly
financial
report.
The
Electric
Utility
reports
about
twenty
metrics
annually
to
the
American Public
Power
Association
(APPA).
Data
which
goes back
to
2005
is
being
compiled
and
graphed
by
Utilities
Financial
Operations
Manager
Ellen
Switzer.
This
data
will
provide
the
opportunity
to
benchmark
against
utilities
of
similar
size
nationally
and
regionally.
Staff
will
begin
to
share
this
data
regularly
with
the
Board
in
addition
to
the
new
monthly
financial report.
Other
Business
None
Future
Agenda
Items
February:
OPower
report;
APPA
metrics; Monthly
Financial
Report; Elections;
2009
GRI
and
U21C
Reporting
March/April:
Rates
PRPA
(March);
Rates
Utilities
(April);
preliminary
results
of
smart
grid
RFP
finalists
Adjournment
The
meeting
was
adjourned
at
7:
13
p.m.
Submitted
by
Robin
Pierce,
Utilities
Administrative
Services
Supervisor
(Board
Secretary)
Fort
Collins
Utilities
Approved
by
the
Board
on
IA
,2011
Signed
fItC
/
Board
Secretary
Date
Electric
Board
Meeting
Minutes
3
January
5,
2011
the
last
PRPA
Board
meeting
from
his
recent
trip
to
Washington,
DC.
Any
legislative approach
to
carbon
or
climate
change
issue
won’t
be
occurring.
The
Environmental
Protection Agency
(EPA)
is
moving
ahead
with
a
regulatory
approach
to
it,
so
uncertainty
remains
as
to
the
potential impact
to
utilities.
Staff
will
bring
in
Customer
Service
Division
Manger
John
Bleem
to
present
rates
to
this
Board.
Council
expects
information
to
be
presented
on
our
retail rate
forms
by
May.
Tiered
rates
will
be
one
of
the
options presented,
along
with
time-of-use
and
critical
peak
rate
structures.
Customers
are
also
pushing
for
an
on-bill
financing
option
(mechanism
tied
to
a
meter
rather
than
a
person,
so
it is
transferrable
to
current occupant
of
premise. There
is
purpose
to
having
a
separate
rate
option
for
Fort
Collins
to
incentivize
us
to
do
peak
shaving.
Each
of
the
four
partners
has
different
rate
structures
at
the
retail rate level.
PRPA
must
receive
the
revenue
proportionately
from
each
city
on
the
wholesale
level.
Fort
Collins Mayor
Hutchinson
has
received over
two
hundred
letters
from
concerned
citizens expressing
preferences
on
the
future
direction
of
rate
structures.
Most
of
the
citizens
were part
of
a
group
who
favor
tiered rates
and
believe
they
could
be
implemented
immediately without
any
further investment
and
would
provide
an
immediate
carbon
reduction.
Energy
Services
Manager
John Phelan
noted
that
Council
gave
direction
to
add
the
higher insulation
requirement
in
electric
heat
properties
to
City Code.
Upon
research,
it
was
only
in
the
Code
pertaining
to
multi-family properties,
so
staff
will
recommend
a
more
rapid
implementation
schedule for
the
electric
heat
amendments
than
the
other
code
amendments.
This
change could
go
into
effect
two
weeks after
the
second reading.
Staff
will
present “green”
amendments
to
existing
building codes
to
Council
next spring.
PRPA
is
also
working
on
an
Integrated Resource
Plan
to
incorporate
their
efficiency
efforts
with
all
the
partner
cities’
combined
efforts
on
energy services
activities.
Capitol
News
(Board
Member
WoIlev):
Staff
heard
today about
600
bill
numbers,
and
several
will
be
coming
out
of
the
Smart
Grid
Task
Force
on
January
20.
The
Governor’s
Energy
Office
(GEO)
was
unable
to
discuss
any
details.
T. J.
Diora
will
replace
Tom
Plant
as
GEO Director.
Staff
is
researching
several
Public
Utilities
Commission
(PUC)
actions
about low-income
rate
setting.
The
Federal
Regulatory
Energy
Commission
(FERC)
is
proposing
rule-making
that
scheduling
be
moved
to a
fifteen minute
increment
to
better
integrate
renewable
scheduling
to
the
electric
grid.
Green Building
Program
(Board
Member
Graham):
Green
building
went
to
Council
in
December.
Another
round
of
public
outreach
to
boards
and
commissions
will
take
place
after
the
first
of
the year.
Several
measures
were
identified
as
worthy
of
further
discussion: certified
wood,
higher
performance
requirements
based
on
house
size,
a
renewable
energy
requirement,
and
higher prescriptive
insulation
requirements
for
all
Electric Board
Meeting
Minutes
2
January
5,
2011