CONTRA COSTA WATER
DISTRICT
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
REGULAR MEETING
February
18, 2009
REVISED
MINUTES
CALL TO ORDER
President
Campbell called to order a regular meeting of the Board of Directors of the
Contra Costa Water District at 6:30 p.m., at 1331 Concord Avenue, Concord,
the regular meeting place of the Board.
ROLL
CALL
Directors Present: Joseph
L. Campbell, President
Karl
L. Wandry, Vice President
Elizabeth
R. Anello
Bette
Boatmun
John
A. Burgh
General Manager: Walter
J. Bishop
Legal
Counsel: Robert
B. Maddow
District Secretary: Sharon L. Burris
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Director of Finance Brice Bledsoe led the pledge of allegiance.
ADOPTION OF AGENDA
Mr. Bishop reported that there were no changes to the
agenda.
PUBLIC COMMENT
President Campbell asked if there were any public
comments. There were none.
CONSENT CALENDAR
1.
Approve
Directors’ Services/Business and Travel Expenses
a.
Expenses – January
2. Approve the minutes of January 21, 2009.
3. Approve the warrant register dated February
19, 2009.
4. Authorize an agreement with Quagga
Inspection Services, LLC to provide watercraft inspection services at Contra
Loma Reservoir for March through December 2009 in an amount not to exceed
$50,000, with an option to renew for a second year in an amount not to exceed
$60,000.
5. Authorize execution of the Maintenance
Services Agreement with Central Contra Costa Sanitary District for a term of
one year with the option of one-year extensions for up to three years.
6. Authorize execution of a contract with
Norwood Construction for the construction of the Lindsey Basin Communication
Relocation Project in the amount of $105,980, with a 10% change order authority
of $10,598 for a total amount not to exceed $116,578.
7. Property
Damage and Liability Insurance Coverage
a. Authorize
renewal of the contract with Arthur J. Gallagher & Company as broker of
record/risk management consultant for an annual amount not to exceed $88,000,
with an option to renew for up to two 12-month periods based on performance for
$89,000 and $90,000 respectively; and
b. Authorize
Arthur J. Gallagher & Company to place the insurance for property and
liability coverage for the period of March 1, 2009 to March 1, 2010 in an
amount not to exceed $628,708.
MOTION: Boatmun/Burgh to
approve the consent calendar. The motion
carried by a unanimous voice vote.
ACTION
8. Review status of the District’s FY09
revenues and expenditures as of December 31, 2008, and approve internal FY09
mid-year budget adjustments totaling $165,000 with no change in the previously
approved $203.4 million FY09 budget total.
Mr. Bishop reported that the two internal budget
adjustments for Board consideration would not change the budget total adopted
by the Board. The Finance Committee met
on January 27 and concurred with the recommendation. A budget transfer in the amount of $100,000
from the Operations and Maintenance (O&M) Department capital budget to the
O&M operating budget was necessary to fund additional repairs in lieu of
larger capital equipment replacements.
The second budget transfer in the amount of $65,000 was from the General
Management (GM) operating labor budget to the GM capital labor budget. This was due to more time being spent on
capital projects than anticipated. A
portion of these funds would be reimbursed from the Department of Water
Resources.
President Campbell asked if there were any public
comments. There were none.
Responding to a question from Director Boatmun concerning when
reimbursements would be made, Mr. Bishop replied that they would be made when
the state adopted the budget.
President Campbell asked if there were any other
questions. There were no other
questions.
MOTION: Boatmun/Wandry to
approve internal FY09 mid-year budget adjustments totaling $165,000 with no
change in the previously approved $203.4 million FY09 budget total. The motion carried by a unanimous voice
vote.
9.
Adopt the Capital Improvement Program and Financial Plan
for fiscal years 2010-2019.
President
Campbell asked if there were any public comments. There were none.
Mr. Bishop reported that the Draft Capital Improvement
Program (CIP) and Financial Plan had been presented to the Board at the February
4 meeting. The CIP and Financial Plan
anticipated dry conditions and an economic recession and provided a plan to
keep rate increases consistent with Board policies. The net impact on the $1.9
billion ten-year revenue projection, after accounting for reduced water sales
and cost reductions, was approximately $100 million. Alternatives had been evaluated to bridge this
potential funding gap. Debt-funding for
the Alternative Intake Project (AIP) through the use of long-term bonds would
allow rate increases to continue below the rate of inflation. A placeholder for design and construction of
the Los Vaqueros (LV) Expansion was also included in the CIP.
President Campbell commented on a meeting he had on
February 11 with two newly-elected Clayton City Councilmembers where the
repayment of LV
debt and the proposed funding for the AIP were discussed. He noted that the District
was now 65% revenue-driven compared to 95% ten years ago.
Director Burgh complimented staff for the well thought out CIP
and Financial Plan. The capital program reflected
that the District was not ignoring systems or deferring maintenance, which would
be a benefit to the ratepayers through the years. He commented positively that productivity
would increase while additional staffing would be minimal.
President Campbell asked if there were any members of the
public who wished to comment on the matter.
There were no comments.
MOTION: Wandry/Boatmun to
adopt the Capital Improvement Program and Financial Plan for fiscal years
2010-2019. The motion carried by a
unanimous voice vote.
REPORTS FOR DISCUSSION
10. Committee Report(s)
a.
Finance Committee
Post-Meeting Report (1/27/09)
b.
Operations and
Engineering Committee Post-Meeting Report (2/5/09)
President Campbell asked if there were any comments on the committee
reports. There were none.
11. Schedule Future Meeting Dates and Times
Mr. Bishop reported
that he would be participating in an American Water Works Association (AWWA)
workshop and council meeting in Australia
during March. He would notify the Board
of the exact dates when they were confirmed.
The trip was being paid for by AWWA.
REPORTS
12. General
Manager
Mr. Bishop reported that Proposition 218 notices were
mailed to the District’s customers on February 12. The District’s webpage included information
concerning the drought and the potential impacts. The District’s conservation program was
presented to the city managers on January 26, where it was well received.
Mr. Bishop also reported that the LVE Environmental Impact
Study/Environment Impact Report (EIS/EIR) was ready to be published in the
Federal Registry. Public outreach
meetings would be held during March at different locations throughout the
area. He acknowledged Special Projects
Manager Marguerite Naillon, Assistant General Manager – Planning/ Operations
and Maintenance Jerry Brown, and Assistant General Manager – Water Resources
Greg Gartrell for their outstanding work and time commitment to this
accomplishment. He also commented positively on the 2008
Annual Report and complimented the Public Affairs Department for their work.
Mr. Bishop then commented briefly on his trip to Washington, D.C.
on February 12 where he met with legislators.
13. Legal
Counsel
Mr. Maddow noted that he would be out of the office
February 19-25.
14.
Board Members
Director Anello reported that she would be attending the Retirement
Committee meeting on February 20.
Director Wandry did not have a report.
Director Burgh reported that he would be unable to attend the Bay Area
Water Forum (BAWF) meeting on February 23 due to being out of town until February
25. He had communicated his comments concerning
grey water for the BAWF meeting to Senior Engineer Jeff Quimby. Mr. Quimby would convey his comments at the
meeting.
Director Boatmun commented positively on the size, content and diversity
of the 2008 Annual Report. Responding
to a question concerning the recent storms and how they had affected the water
supply, Mr. Bishop replied that the supply was 68% of normal for this time of
year. Current precipitation and snow that
had accumulated were still below the previous year’s results for the same time
period. Director Boatmun requested that
the Board be apprised of the impacts resulting from future storms on the water
supply. Mr. Bishop responded that
updates would be included in the weekly Board letter.
Director Boatmun referenced the Association of California Water Agencies
(ACWA) Board meeting that she attended on January 30, where a presentation was
given by representatives from State Water Contractors and National Heritage
Institute. Discussion took place on the possibility of
presentations from outside agencies at future Board meetings. It was the consensus of the Board that
briefings by outside agencies be scheduled for some time in the future.
President Campbell reported that he made a presentation to the Sons in
Retirement on February 12, in Walnut
Creek.
CLOSED SESSION
15.
Conference
with Legal Counsel – Existing Litigation as allowed under Government Code Section
54956.9(a) – Pacific Bell vs. Contra Costa Water District.
At 7:15 p.m.,
President Campbell announced that the Board would move into closed
session. There was one item before the
Board concerning litigation and did not require the announcement of additional
attendees.
RECONVENE FROM CLOSED SESSION
16.
Report
on closed session.
At 7:27 p.m.,
President Campbell reconvened the meeting and announced that the Board did not
take any action on the matter before it.
ADJOURNMENT
At 7:28 p.m., President Campbell adjourned the
meeting to the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Board of Directors
scheduled for Wednesday, March 4, commencing at 6:30 p.m.
Joseph
L. Campbell, President
ATTEST:
Sharon L. Burris
District Secretary
