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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWater Board - Minutes - 03/16/2017Fort Collins Utilities Water Board Minutes Thursday, March 16, 2016 Water Board Chairperson City Council Liaison Brett Bovee, 970-889-0469 Wade Troxell, 970-219-8940 Water Board Vice Chairperson Staff Liaison Kent Bruxvoort, 970-219-2832 Carol Webb, 970-221-6231 ROLL CALL Board Present: Chairperson Brett Bovee, Vice Chairperson Kent Bruxvoort, and Board Members Steve Malers, Rebecca Hill, John Primsky, Jim Kuiken, and Phyllis Ortman. Board Absent: Jason Tarry, Michael Brown, Andrew McKinley, and Lori Brunswig. OTHERS PRESENT Staff: Carol Webb, Katherine Martinez, Eric Potyondy, Travis Paige, Lisa Rosintoski, Kevin Gertig, Liesel Hans, and Renee Davis. Members of the Public: Michael Pruznick, Vera Pruznick, Don Parsons, and Jim Scavo. Meeting Convened Chairperson Bovee called the meeting to order at 5:31 p.m. Public Comment Michael Pruznick spoke about a slide he provided for a presentation at a recent public meeting showing NISP’s economic detriment that was omitted from the staff presentation on Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP) at the March 21 City Council meeting. Staff Liaison/Water Resources and Treatment Operations Manager Carol Webb stated she would ask Natural Areas Director John Stokes for the reason. Don Parsons, who stated he is a shareholder of Josh Ames water certificates, spoke about shareholders working with City staff over the past 1.5 years on the Josh Ames certificate issue, and said most shareholders are happy with the agreement; he thinks it’s a good compromise and works for everybody. Approval of February 16, 2017 Board Meeting Minutes Board Member Steve Malers moved to approve the February 16, 2017 meeting minutes. Board Member Phyllis Ortman seconded the motion. Vote on the motion: It passed unanimously 7-0. 1 Water Board Minutes March 16, 2017 Staff Reports Water Conservation Update (Attachments available upon request) Water Conservation Manager Liesel Hans summarized the Water Efficiency Plan, and showed the related website where information is listed and updates are announced: http://www.fcgov.com/utilities/residential/conserve/water-efficiency/water- efficiency-plan Five key areas of opportunity are identified for greater water efficiency. In 2004, the state required water providers who provide more than 2,000 acre-feet of water to submit a water efficiency plan. The City’s plan was updated in 2015 after public meetings and public outreach. City Council approved the plan in March 2016. Discussion Highlights Board members commented on various related topics, including gallons per capita per day information listed in the infographic compared to increased population and decreased water use; the chart showing treated water use and population, 1960-2014, on page 13 of the Water Efficiency Plan; the dry winter and good water supply, which might skew numbers; and a survey that showed residents’ awareness of water conservation opportunities. Ms. Hans and Utilities Customer Connections Manager Lisa Rosintoski answered questions and pointed out that participation in water conservation programs has increased despite a survey showing some residents have low awareness of programs; staff will analyze how to improve public outreach. Michigan Ditch Tunnel Project Update (Attachments available upon request) Water Production Manager Mark Kempton summarized the project that began in May 2015 and ended in October 2016: 8-foot tunnel drilled through rock in mountain to mitigate a slow-moving landslide that continues to occur. Tunneling operations were 7 days/week and average production was about 8 feet/day. Budget and schedule: Completed on October 30, 2016, exactly on schedule and within budget; did not spend $1 million contingency funds. Staff will begin clearing snow in April 2017 and start collecting water to fill Joe Wright Reservoir. Discussion Highlights Board members inquired about various related topics including details on the tunnel and future maintenance. Utilities Executive Director Quarterly Update (Attachments available upon request) Executive Director Kevin Gertig gave an overview of Utilities projects, mentioned resources for more details, summarized recent accomplishments, and answered questions. 2017 organizational priorities include a culture of safety, climate action planning, strategic asset management, plan for our water future (including regional water collaboration efforts), and Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI)( http://www.fcgov.com/utilities/sustainability-leadership/smart-meters). Other projects include Open Data (upcoming new website portal for the public to access City- 2 Water Board Minutes March 16, 2017 related information: http://www.fcgov.com/opendata/) and the Community Dashboard (data and metrics from the City’s ClearPoint database)(www.fcgov.com/dashboard) Discussion Highlights Board members inquired about various related topics including the broadband feasibility study (http://www.fcgov.com/broadband/), industry trends toward transparent data (Open Data), the ENV 32 metric “Annual water demand as percent of firm yield” to track how well Utilities is managing water supply and demand, and the metrics included in the Community Dashboard. Ms. Webb suggested discussing at a future Water Board Work Session which metrics board members would like to see reported on a quarterly basis. 2016 Utilities Customer Satisfaction Survey Results (Attachments available upon request) Community Engagement Manager Travis Paige summarized the survey, which is meant to help staff understand customers’ perceptions of Utilities services, and track trends; the presentation focus on survey purpose and objectives, methodology, findings and implications, customer satisfaction, service qualities, analysis, stewardship, observations and conclusions. Utilities has surveyed customers to gather opinions and satisfaction levels for services provided since 1999. Typically, staff has operated on a bi-annual basis to administer these surveys. In October 2016, Utilities administered a truncated version of the Customer Satisfaction Survey which asks only the core questions related to overall satisfaction with Utilities and the services it provides. By completing this truncated version, Utilities will be able to track and respond to changes in customer satisfaction levels more quickly. Discussion Highlights Board members commented on and inquired about various related topics, including details of the survey, customer response rate, and high reliability of water service. Josh Ames Agreement Update and Proposed City Code Changes (Attachments available upon request) Water Resources and Treatment Operations Manager Carol Webb summarized the history of the Josh Ames contract, the proposed Josh Ames agreement, proposed City Code changes regarding the acceptance of Josh Ames certificates, and options for certificate owners. Discussion Highlights Board members inquired about various related topics including details of the proposed agreement and City Code changes, hypothetical scenarios that Josh Ames shareholders may face, shareholders’ opinions of the proposed changes, and staff resources spent since 1984 (and over the past year during negotiations) working to resolve these issues. Board Member Phyllis Ortman moved that Water Board recommends City Council adopt the Resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute the proposed agreement with the Holders of Josh Ames Certificates and recommends that City Council adopt the Ordinance 3 Water Board Minutes March 16, 2017