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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWater Commission - Minutes - 05/18/2023 WATER COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING May 18, 2023, 5:30-7:30 p.m. Hybrid in person at 222 LaPorte Ave and online via Zoom 05/18/2023 – MINUTES Page 1 1. CALL TO ORDER 5:32 p.m. 2. ROLL CALL • Commissioners Present (In person): Paul Herman (Vice Chairperson), James Bishop, Jason Tarry • Commissioners Present (via Zoom): Commissioners Tyler Eldridge, John Primsky, Greg Steed. Due to difficulties with meeting room audio technology, the Zoom meeting ended at 5:52 pm and the meeting proceeded in person only. • Commissioners Absent - Excused: Kent Bruxvoort, Rick Kahn, Chairperson Jordan Radin • Staff Members Present: Staff Liaison to the Water Commission Jason Graham, Katherine Martinez, Darren Parkin, Mariel Miller, Alice Conovitz, Kathryne Marko, Gregg Stonecipher • Members of the Public: Daniel Richardson 3. AGENDA REVIEW • Vice Chairperson Paul Herman briefly summarized items on the agenda 4. INTRODUCTION: Halligan Project Manager Darren Parkin Director of Water Jason Graham introduced Mr. Parkin, who shared his professional background and perspective on the Halligan Water Supply Project ( https://www.fcgov.com/halligan/ ), which has been in the permitting process since 2006. He stated he is honored to work on this multifaceted project and looks forward to the challenge. With a background in geology, he worked for the State of Wyoming for 15 years, and most recently worked for the City of Laramie for the last 10 years in the City Manager’s Office facilitating water projects and working in collaboration with multiple municipal departments and others, and working on issues involving municipal wells, endangered species introduction, industrial-scale solar farm, etc., many of which are topics that tie into a project like Halligan. He stated the City staff and consultants he’s met are top-notch and assured commissioners that they can feel confident staff and their expertise. Significant project milestones are coming up in June, July and Sept, such as the Fish and Wildlife mitigation plan, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Final Environment Impact Statement (EIS) WATER COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING 05/18/2023 – MINUTES Page 2 expected to be released in September, along with summer site work. He stated he looks forward to becoming better acquainted with the Water Commission. Commissioners welcomed Mr. Parkin. Discussion Highlights Commissioners inquired about project messaging and related challenges due to the length of the project and expressed the importance of continuing clear communication on project updates to the public. Mr. Parkin agreed and responded there are no red flags; the project is for security to maintain what Fort Collins has and the project has momentum; the project team had a reboot kick-off meeting last week. Commissioners expressed hope that this project would be completed as it holds good value environmentally and economically compared to alternative water storage options. 5. COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION • None 6. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Vice Chairperson Herman asked for comments and revisions on the April 20 draft minutes. There were none. Due to lack of quorum, commissioners agreed to reschedule this item to the June 15 meeting. 6. NEW BUSINESS a. Staff Reports (Attachments available upon request) i. Financial Monthly Report Discussion Highlights Commissioners commented on or inquired about various related topics including operating expenses exceeding revenues by $520,000 (Mr. Graham stated this is partly due to water line issues and repairs in the field, resulting in operating expenses being over budget and revenues under budget. When Halligan Water Supply Project is completed, the water utility staff will be able to make decisions about when and how to lease excess water supply. ii. Memo: Public Notice of Drinking Water Violation (no presentation/staff available to answer questions) Environmental Regulatory Affairs Manager Kathryne Marko summarized the process described in the memo and root cause analysis, and answered WATER COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING 05/18/2023 – MINUTES Page 3 commissioners’ questions along Gregg Stonecipher, Director of Plant Operations at the Water Treatment Facility. Water quality was not impacted. Discussion Highlights Commissioners commented on or inquired about various related topics including at timing of the testing (Ms. Marko and Mr. Stonecipher stated that, at heart, the violation was a paperwork error, and conversations with State of Colorado are ongoing); prior to 2016 the language was not this prescriptive, meaning these are new regulations; the City of Fort Collins hasn’t had this type of violation before; other local water providers received the same violation notification, which indicates wide-spread challenges in complying with the new regulation (commissioners suggested this fact should be included in the memo); none were failure to comply: there were legitimate reasons for not being able to test the five backflow assemblies in 2021 or within 90 days of the active date in 2022 (of 6,000 that are required to be tested); because all five were tested and passed by December 2022, the violation is considered resolved. iii. Memo: Spring 2023 Water Shortage Response Planning Water Conservation Manager Mariel Miller summarized the memo, and answered commissioners’ questions along with Water Conservation Specialist Alice Conovitz. Discussion Highlights Commissioners commented on or inquired about various related topics including snowpack; Colorado Big-Thompson Project quota and projections; well-written and organized memo; the possibility of flooding (Mr. Graham is confident in the water utility’s flood response planning and also acknowledged that an unusually hot spring and resulting runoff would result in flooding; during last week’s rain, he spoke with staff at Drake Water Reclamation Facility: heavy, long saturation rains could pose challenges for the wastewater collection system; infiltration and inflow (“I and I”)(meaning leaking into manholes, which can lead to leaking into pipes, would be a concern). iv. 2022 Water Conservation Annual Report Water Conservation Manager Mariel Miller provided an overview of the report including the goal of 130 Gallons Per Capita Per Day (GPCD) by 2030 and the five key focus areas (https://www.fcgov.com/utilities/img/site_specific/uploads/21-23060-water- conservation-annual-report-v5.pdf?1683297113 ); responded to 98 wasting WATER COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING 05/18/2023 – MINUTES Page 4 water code compliance checks, 35% increase in residential turf to xeriscape conversions completed (which is a record), more than 700 community members attended the Xeriscape Garden Party event, etc. Discussion Highlights Commissioners commented on or inquired about various related topics including turf grass restrictions (Ms. Miller replied there are no residential restrictions and are minimal for multifamily and commercial properties); rain gauge and water sensors (not required for residential; smart controllers are required); observation that Platte River Power Authority sprinklers were on during rain last week as a commissioner drove by. 7. UNFINISHED BUSINESS a. Water Efficiency Plan update: Follow-Up Discussion Water Conservation Specialist Alice Conovitz summarized information in the presentation and the engagement exercise staff conducted with commissioners at the April 6 work session designed to provide input on water conservation strategies. Discussion Highlights Commissioners commented on and inquired about various related topics including 30% turf restriction for new development and whether it can be applied to existing City facilities so that the City is modeling the behavior it requires; developments such as the planned mixed-use Bloom on Mulberry Street and Montava proposed development in the northeast Fort Collins growth management area; advanced metering infrastructure (staff wish list includes submetering for multi-family residences); outdoor water use (recent data shows indoor use for multifamily housing is more - whereas outdoor use is less - than single family residences); idea of advertising campaign to encourage residents to convert turf to xeriscaping; water efficiency plans in peer cities are moving away from GPCD and toward volume restrictions to measure progress; the new Northern Colorado Water Alliance (municipalities and water providers convened by the Community Foundation of Northern Colorado discussing topics such as water conservation and alignment between water providers in the region); Denver Metro district moving away from turf; importance of regionalization; City Plan and revisions to state requirements; different regulations that drive the water efficiency plans (state plan is not regulatory); certifications for landscaping businesses (to decrease “bad” xeriscaping); evaluating post-xeriscaping water savings (staff continuing to work with those professionals); City has a certified landscape professional list but there’s nothing in the land use code that requires certification (staff develops these relationships through an education series, meetings twice per year, incentives, etc.); desire to see City model xeriscaping; idea of community contest and tour to WATER COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING 05/18/2023 – MINUTES Page 5 motivate homeowners (judged on water savings) and suggestion to include a City building. 8. COMMISSIONER REPORTS A commissioner shared observations from attendance of the April 26 Planning and Zoning Commission meeting in which the water adequacy determination agenda item was discussed ( https://www.fcgov.com/cityclerk/boards/planning-zoning ) as well as related topics such approval required by a local water district if a new development were interested in building its own water treatment facility, such as the proposed Montava development and East Larimer County Water District (ELCO). The commission recommended Council not vote on it. City Council tabled the item indefinitely. Discussion Highlights Commissioners commented on or inquired about various related topics including surprise that Council tabled the item indefinitely; commissioners discussed the idea of potentially making a recommendation to Council and asked staff to add this topic to the June 15 regular meeting agenda under “Other Business.” 9. OTHER BUSINESS Director of Water and Staff Liaison to Water Commission Jason Graham gave a presentation to Natural Resources Advisory Board this week ( https://www.fcgov.com/cityclerk/boards/natural-resources ) at the board’s request; the presentation included information he’s presented in different forms to Water Commission, such as the Colorado River Compact. He recently asked Council for (1) approval to discuss with Northern Water the Northern Integrated Supply Project (NISP) (https://www.fcgov.com/nispreview/ ) several topics (such as stream rehabilitation) and (2) support for additional opportunities with Northern Water, such as Glade Reservoir and the idea of pursuing potential additional storage in Glade not as a NISP participant but to store water), which garnered mixed feedback from Councilmembers. Mr. Graham stated he could bring this presentation to Water Commission (which was presented to Council last Tuesday) or commissioners can watch the video of the meeting: https://www.fcgov.com/cityclerk/agendas. 10. ADJOURNMENT 7:38 p.m. These minutes were approved by the Water Commission on June 15, 2023.