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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBOARD MINUTES 11-05-09MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT HELD ON NOVEMBER 5, 2009 The Board of Directors of the Central Contra Costa Sanitary District convened in a regular meeting at its regular place of business, 5019 Imhoff Place, Martinez, County of Contra Costa, State of California, at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 5, 2009. President Pro Tem McGill called the meeting to order and requested that the Secretary call roll. 1. ROLL CALL PRESENT: Members: Hockett, Lucey, Menesini, McGill ABSENT: Members: Nejedly a. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG Board and staff joined in the Pledge of Allegiance. 2. PUBLIC COMMENTS There were no public comments. 3. CONSENT CALENDAR It was moved by Member Hockett and seconded by Member Lucey to adopt the Consent Calendar as recommended. Motion passed by the following vote of the Board: AYES: Members: Hockett, Lucey, Menesini, McGill NOES: Members: None ABSENT: Members: Nejedly a. Approve expenditures dated November 5, 2009. Reviewed by Budget and Finance Committee. b. Receive September 2009 Financial Statements. Reviewed by Budget and Finance Committee. c. Approve minutes of October 1, 2009 Board meeting. d. Accept the contract work for the South Orinda Sewer Renovations, Phase 4, District Project 5950, completed by McNamara and Smallman Construction, Inc., and authorize filing of the Notice of Completion. Book 59 -Page 119 Board Minutes of November 5, 2009 e. Adopt Resolutions of Application 2009-103 and 2009-104 requesting that Contra Costa LAFCO initiate proceedings to annex sixteen annexation areas to the District (District Annexation 173A and District Annexation 1736). Adopt Resolution 2009-105 accepting grants of easements from Derek E. and Jillian Drummond, George W. Parody, and James and Marcie Beyatte, property owners in the Moraga Del Rey Neighborhood in Orinda (District Project 5950 - Parcels 3, 5, and 25), and authorize staff to record documents with the Contra Costa County Recorder. 4. CALL FOR REQUESTS TO CONSIDER ITEMS OUT OF ORDER None. 5. REPORTS a. GENERAL MANAGER 1) Auxiliary Boiler Rebate General Manager James Kelly stated that the Plant's Auxiliary Boilers were recently upgraded with new solid state controls and other modifications to improve the reliability and efficiency of the boilers. The project will save energy, fuel, and includes a rebate from PG&E. Project Manager Craig Mizutani from the Capital Projects Division gave a presentation on the project, describing project elements and operational benefits. The PG&E rebate amounts to $15,880, and anticipated fuel and energy savings are $118,588 per year. The environmental benefits of the project include reduced CO2 to the atmosphere. 2) Right of Way Approach for Green Street, Martinez General Manager James Kelly stated that the backyard sewer in the "Green Street" neighborhood of Martinez is an ideal candidate for sewer replacement due to the number of recent sewer overflows, multiple spot repairs, and the frequent three-month cleaning schedule necessary to mitigate future overflows. Due to the steep terrain and numerous improvements near the sewer, normal maintenance operations are challenging. Instead of replacing the sewer in the same location, a new alignment was selected for construction and future maintenance reasons. Nine new easements will need to be acquired to replace the sewer. In 2008, because of the urgency to quickly replace, a "signing bonus" was offered with the caveat that all nine Book 59 -Page 120 Board Minutes of November 5, 2009 easements had to be acquired; if not, the offers would expire. Most signed, but not all did, so the site was dropped from summer 2009's construction contracts. However, this sewer still remains one of the highest priorities for replacement. Therefore, staff has added this work to the 2010 construction contracts with the knowledge that eminent domain may be necessary to acquire the remaining easements and is once again approaching the property owners. Assistant Engineer Nancy Molina presented information regarding the location and profile of the Green Street easement, which has experienced eleven overflows in the past ten years. Multiple spot repairs have been conducted and the sewer is on a three-month cleaning schedule, although it is very difficult to clean. There are existing improvements directly over the pipe, and the pipe lies under house foundations. The proposed new alignment is open and clear, which will allow for easier maintenance and cleaning. Associate Engineer Stephanie Gronlund stated that nine grants of easement are needed, but only six have been received and they have expired. The District proposes to offer to honor all expired, signed agreements and will give those property owners who have not yet signed one last opportunity to do so under the same terms and conditions. If the appropriate easements are not obtained, staff recommends initiating condemnation proceedings. Member Lucey stated that there appear to be ongoing right-of-way issues in Martinez. He recommended beginning the condemnation proceedings sooner rather than later. The first step to prepare for condemnation is to have the Board review the project and complete the CEQA approval. Staff will return at a Board meeting early in 2010 if condemnation is necessary. 3) Review Draft Pipeline General Manager James Kelly stated that, in the interests of time, the latest draft of the Pipeline is being brought directly to the Board for approval. It is hoped to have this issue printed and mailed prior to Thursday, November 26, 2009. Communication Services Manager Michael Scahill stated that the Board has received the final draft of the Pipeline newsletter, and requested comments. The Board had no proposed changes to the newsletter. 4) General Manager James Kelly announced that, as announced last year, Director of Engineering Ann Farrell was selected to be a member of the Research Council for the Water Environment Research Foundation. The Council provides technical review and direction for the major WERF technical initiatives as well as reviewing and prioritizing unsolicited research proposals. Ms. Farrell will be attending a joint meeting of the Book 59 -Page 121 Board Minutes of November 5, 2009 WERF Board and Council in Alexandria, Virginia on December 9 and 10, 2010. The initial airfare was paid through the District with all other expenses paid by the employee. All expenses will be reimbursed by WERF. 5) General Manager James Kelly announced that the Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility (HHWCF) Improvements Project, DP 8216, will remodel the HHWCF for safety and increased staffing requirements including, but not limited to, seismic retrofits to structural components, the addition of radiant heaters, expansion of the office area, and the construction of a storage mezzanine. Additionally, security cameras will be added to the HHWCF and the 4737 Imhoff Place Warehouse Building; security keycard access will be added to the HHWCF, Maintenance and Reliability Center, and the South Gate. This project also includes the remodel of an existing men's restroom into a women's locker room in the Solids Conditioning Building, the replacement of the emergency lighting panel in the Headquarters Office Building, and the replacement of the fan in the chemical storage room in the Annex. This project will be advertised on November 9 and 16, 2009. The bids will be opened on December 1, 2009. The construction cost is currently estimated at $850,000. More information will be presented when the Board is asked to approve the construction contract at the December 17, 2009 Board Meeting. 6) General Manager James Kelly announced that staff received interest from five cities (Clayton, Danville, Martinez, Moraga and Orinda) that want to become partners with the District to participate in the Pharmaceutical Collection Program as a collection site. The City of Concord intended to participate, but recently decided against it due to budget and staffing reductions. Four of the planned cities already have the program approved by their City/Town Councils. The Town of Danville is working with the DEA on their approval prior to presenting it to their Council. Four of the sites are expected to open by mid-November and Danville is expected to open in December. When these five new sites open, the District will have supported the start-up of eight collection sites in six cities. 7) General Manager James Kelly announced that, at the August 9, 2007 Board Meeting, the Board of Directors adopted a resolution updating the District's Records Retention Schedules. The resolution also established a two-year review cycle for the Retention Schedules and internal audits to be performed on a regular basis. Administrative Services Supervisor Angela Taliani has been meeting with the District's Departments/Divisions to conduct the audits. The Records Book 59 -Page 122 Board Minutes of November 5, 2009 Retention Schedule reviews and audits are complete. The audits have been very useful in verifying that the Departments/Divisions are in compliance with the Retention Schedules. Staff will be coming back to the Board for approval of minor changes to the Records Retention Schedules at a future Board meeting. 8) General Manager James Kelly announced that the Notice of Preparation/ Initial Study for District Annexation (DA) 168C, Alhambra Valley, has been distributed for public review. The Notice of Preparation is the first step in the Environmental Impact Report process which the District must complete to be allowed to annex and provide sewer service to nineteen Alhambra Valley properties outside the County's Urban Limit Line. A first phase annexation application (known as DA 168C.1) has been submitted to LAFCO. DA 168C.1 is comprised of nine properties that would be serviced off existing mains. The remaining ten properties are intended to be annexed by the District sometime in the future. To be comprehensive, however, the EIR will evaluate the environmental impacts of annexing all nineteen lots. 9) General Manager James Kelly announced that annual notices were mailed to Reimbursement Account holders (Installers) on October 21, 2009, in accordance with District Code Section 6.20.200. Installers were reminded of the need to keep the District informed of any change of address. They were also informed of the change to District Code which applies an expiration date of June 1, 2018 to all accounts adopted before June 1, 1998. Those accounts established after June 1, 1998, automatically expire on the twentieth anniversary of their acceptance. Account holders were asked to update their information in order to make it possible for the District to contact them should reimbursement fees be collected on their behalf. All notices were sent to the last known address of the account holder, and extensive research was done to locate current addresses for account holders. However, many of the reimbursement accounts were established in the 50's, 60's, 70's, and 80's, and it is expected that some of the addresses may be out of date or account holders may be deceased and their heirs may be difficult to locate. Staff will continue to make reasonable efforts to locate installers. 10) General Manager James Kelly announced that the District conducts chronic toxicity tests on its effluent every other month, as required by the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit. The permit requires the use of red abalone as the test species, and when the toxicity exceeds 10 toxicity units (TU)for athree-sample median, accelerated testing is required. Recently, the three-sample median exceeded 10 TU, and accelerated testing began. Recent tests indicate that ammonia is the cause of the increased toxicity. The drought has resulted in decreased wastewater flows into the treatment plant, which in turn, has resulted in Book 59 -Page 123 Board Minutes of November 5, 2009 higher ammonia concentrations. Apparently, a threshold concentration has been reached, which causes the increased toxicity. If the District can demonstrate to the Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB) that ammonia is the cause of increased toxicity, the RWQCB can allow future tests to be conducted after the removal of ammonia, or it can allow another species to be used in the tests. 11) General Manager James Kelly announced that staff requested proposals from seven geotechnical consulting companies to provide on-call services during design and construction of collection system projects. Six proposals were received and evaluated and staff has selected the following three firms based on experience, staff, and costs: • DCM/ GeoEngineers • Kleinfelder • URS Staff is setting up contracts with each company for $25,000 that will expire on June 30, 2012. Work assignments will be made on the basis of availability, cost, and required expertise. The use of blanket agreements has enabled staff to cost-effectively respond to CSO staff, residents, and agency requests for evaluating slides and construction issues on District projects. 12) General Manager James Kelly announced that, on October 26, 2009, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sent out Information Collection Requests (ICR) to nine sewage sludge incineration facilities located throughout the United States. The District is one of the recipients of the request and is required to submit a description of our incineration equipment, operational data, and air emissions data to the EPA. The purpose of the ICR is to develop maximum achievable control technologies (MACT) standards for sewage sludge incinerators by December 31, 2010. The District can use current air emissions data, as long as it was collected in the past five years. However, the request also includes test data that is not in our current Title V air permit. Additional air emission testing will be required. District staff will receive quotes from qualified air source testing companies in the near future, but a preliminary estimate of the cost to conduct the analysis is $100, 000 to $125, 000. The National Association of Clean Water Agencies believes that the EPA has the authority to require the source testing and has used the authority previously. Book 59 -Page 124 Board Minutes of November 5, 2009 13) General Manager James Kelly announced that the Contra Costa County Employees Retirement Association (CCCERA) requested a legal opinion from their attorneys regarding "Final Compensation and Retirement Benefits." This legal opinion addresses the "spiking" of final compensation. A copy has been provided to the Board by e-mail. The memo is also available on the CCCERA website. The Board will be provided updates as they become available. 14) General Manager James Kelly announced that the Cities of Pleasant Hill and San Ramon have decided to partner with the District by establishing pharmaceutical collection sites in their cities. Staff sent information packets to both cities including a Memorandum of Understanding, County Health Permit Application, and a sample letter requesting Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) approval of a pharmaceutical collection site. With Pleasant Hill and San Ramon, the total number of cities interested in having a pharmaceutical collection site is now seven. A position paper for the Pleasant Hill and San Ramon addition will be brought to the Board for request of approval at a future meeting. b. COUNSEL FOR THE DISTRICT District Counsel Kent Alm reported on the Matthew Parkinen Claim, stating that the demurrer hearing was held the previous week and went well. Mr. Alm distributed copies of a letter from his firm to the Roundhill Estates North Property Owners' attorney. Mr. Alm announced that he will be absent for the November 12, 2009 Board meeting and that Rich Pio Roda would attend in his place. c. SECRETARY OF THE DISTRICT Secretary of the District Elaine Boehme announced the distribution of the November 10 Real Estate Committee agenda packet. d. BOARD MEMBERS 1) Board Member reports on future meetings or conferences for which they will receive the stipend or for which the District will pay their expenses; recent meetings for which they received the stipend; and meetings or conferences for which the District paid their expenses. Book 59 -Page 125 Board Minutes of November 5, 2009 Member Hockett Member Hockett reported on her attendance at the October 19, 2009 California Special Districts Association, Contra Costa County Chapter Meeting. Members Hockett and Lucey reported on the October 20, 2009 Human Resources Committee and summarized the Action Summary. The Board received the report without comments. Member Hockett reported on her attendance at the October 27 and 28, 2009 California Association of Sanitation Agencies (CASA) Executive Board meetings. Member Lucey Member Lucey reported on the November 2, 2009 Budget and Finance Committee meeting and summarized the Action Summary. The Board received the report without comments. Member McGill Member McGill provided a written report on his attendance at meetings for which he received the stipend or for which the District paid his expenses. 2) Announcements Member Menesini announced that he attended the S.F. Estuary meeting with former District General Manager Chuck Batts. Member Menesini announced the upcoming Environmental Alliance meeting to be held on Monday, November 16, 2009. 7. SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS Member Lucey requested that a brief presentation be requested from the Contra Costa Water District and EBMUD stating their position on the recent legislation regarding the Delta and California water. Book 59 -Page 126 Board Minutes of November 5, 2009 ' 8. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the Board, President Pro Tem McGill adjourned the meeting at 2:55 p.m. ,u~r.~w G. J es A. Nejedly President of the Board of Directors, Central Contra Costa Sanitary District, County of Contra Costa, State of California ,; ,~ CUUNTtRSIGNED: 4 `4 C -~ Elame~R. Boehme Sec~etaiy_of the Central Contra Costa ,,~ . •,. Sanitary~District, County of Contra Costa, State of California 1 Book 59 -Page 127