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Water Board Minutes
October 19, 2017
Fort Collins Utilities Water Board Minutes
Thursday, October 19, 2017
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, Jim Kuiken, Phyllis Ortman, Michael Brown, John Primsky, Lori Brunswig,
Andrew McKinley.
Board Absent: Rebecca Hill, Jason Tarry.
OTHERS PRESENT
Staff: Mark Kempton, Katherine Martinez, Sean Carpenter, Matt Fater, Ken Sampley.
Members of City Council: Mayor Pro Tem Gerry Horak.
Members of the Public: Clint Fallon, Peter Lewis.
Meeting Convened
Chairperson Bovee called the meeting to order at 5:32 p.m.
Public Comment
None
Approval of September 21, 2017 Board Meeting Minutes
Board Member Michael Brown moved to approve the September 21, 2017 meeting minutes
with one minor revision.
Board Member Steve Malers seconded the motion.
Vote on the motion: It passed unanimously 8-0 with 1 abstention.
Chairperson Bovee abstained due to his absence at the September meeting.
Staff Reports
(Attachments available upon request)
No verbal reports. Information included in meeting packet only.
Boxelder Basin Regional Stormwater Authority (BBRSA) Update
(Attachments available upon request)
Mayor Pro Tem Gerry Horak summarized the history, key issues, and projects of BBRSA, which
was formed in 2008 to fund and implement regional stormwater improvements – under the
2
Water Board Minutes
October 19, 2017
Boxelder Creek Regional Stormwater Master Plan – that protect property and lives. Board
members consist of representatives from City of Fort Collins, Larimer County, and the Town of
Wellington.
Discussion Highlights
Board members commented on or inquired about various related topics including
Fort Collins’ vote on the board; how much BBRSA owes in bonds (answer: $10 million to be
paid off in 12 years or fewer); revenue; maintenance costs; whether data exists to demonstrate
the projects were successful (no; the events that the projects were built for have not occurred yet,
such as 500-year floods); and the issue of when the authority should be dissolved (answer: when
the bonds are paid off).
Climate Economy Action Plan Update
(Attachments available upon request)
Climate Economy Advisor Sean Carpenter of the Economic Health Office explained the four
focus areas of the City’s climate economy efforts: grow businesses, entrepreneurship, and
employment; access to capital for private investment; structured innovation to solve problems;
achieve Climate Action Plan goals. His role is to develop public-private partnerships and private-
sector funding to achieve goals at no cost to taxpayers.
Discussion Highlights
Board members commented on or inquired about various related topics including how the City’s
carbon emissions are calculated; air quality; programs for upgrading businesses’ energy systems
for increased efficiency; importance of the free market; need for “open data” on the City’s
website related to climate economy and other City services and goals; private sector energy
efficiency investment required to meet 2030 Climate Action Plan goals; gross metropolitan
product.
Other Business
Staff Reports Included in the Meeting Packet: Questions and Comments
A board member inquired whether the Fort Collins Floodplain Management Public
Information Committee Annual Evaluation Report is available in Spanish. Stormwater
Engineering and Development Review Manager Ken Sampley stated it was a good idea
and he would discuss it with other staff.
Another board member suggested that the City’s Open Data portal would be a good place
to share any updated, pertinent floodplain related data.
A board member inquired whether Water Resources staff is evaluating demand
projections to account for warming climate, and suggested this be included in the
monthly reports to the board during warm months, along with information about whether
storms are becoming bigger and more volatile. Water Production Manager Mark
Kempton replied that the Water Vulnerability Study, which is currently underway, may
contain this information. He will forward the request to Water Resources Manager
Donnie Dustin.