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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBOARD MINUTES 01-14-21 (Special) = 110ENTRAL SAN CONTRACENTRA •STA SANITARY DISTRICT 5019 IMHOFF MINUTES* BOARD OF DIRECTORS: TAD J PILECKI President SPECIAL BOARD MEETING DAVID R. WILLIAMS Third Floor Executive Conference Room President Pro Tent Thursday, January 14, 2021 BARBARA D.HOCKETT 1.00m. MARIAHN LAURITZEN �' MICHAEL R.MCGILL Open Session — Third Floor Executive Conference Room (Not video recorded) NOTICE In accordance with the Governor's Executive Order N-29-20, which suspended certain requirements of the Brown Act due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, all Board Members participated in this meeting via teleconference. Members of the public were provided options to participate in the meeting as provided on the agenda. ROLL CALL A special meeting of the Board of Directors was called to order by President Pilecki at 1:00 p.m. Secretary of the District Katie Young called roll.- PRESENT oll:PRESENT(via videoconference): Members: Hockett, Lauritzen, McGill, Williams, Pilecki ABSENT. Members: None PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD District Counsel Kent Alm advised that Item 2 would be postponed to the January 21, 2021 Regular Board Meeting. Member McGill advised he most likely would be absent from that meeting. There were no comments from members of the public. BOARD WORKSHOP (Facilitated by Consultant Brent Ives, BHI Management Consulting) 1. a. Welcome Mr. Ives reviewed the PowerPoint presentation included in the agenda material. These summary minutes are supplemented by a corresponding video recording available on the District's website at centralsan.org. Book 69— Page 9 CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT January 14, 2021 Special Board Meeting Minutes—Book 69-Page 10 In response to a question from Mr. Ives about parking lot topics Board Members may want to review, Member Lauritzen stated that she would like to discuss the onboarding process for new Board Members. BOARD ACTION: Welcomed workshop participants. b. Closed Session do's and don'ts Mr. Ives reviewed the Brown Act and stressed the importance of Board Member confidentiality related to information they receive during closed sessions. He also cautioned the Board Members that sending emails or text messages during closed sessions was discouraged. BOARD ACTION: Received the information. C. Overview of a highly effective Board (Mission, Roles, Responsibilities and Communications) Mr. Ives began with a review the District's Mission, Vision and Values. General Manager Roger S. Bailey stated that the wonderful thing about the District's vision statement is that its intentions and aspirations are clearly stated. He believes that the District's aspirations should always strive to be the best and to deliver the best service possible to the customers. President Pilecki said he believes the vision statement is important; however, the Strategic Plan, produced every two years, is set up to measure the District's mission and goals and recognizes the vision and values in order to measure its success. Mr. Ives discussed the importance of proper Board dynamics, including treating one another with respect, remembering that representatives are all equal, decisions are made by the team, keeping a process that is consistent, and that conversations are open and participation is the same. Every vote is a good vote. Mr. Ives also reviewed the role of the individual Board Members, including making and respecting good policy, being a good representative of the community, being committed to teamwork, managing the General Manager well, implementing vision and direction, and providing ethical service. There was a lengthy discussion about communication between Board Members and staff. It was noted that, according to Board Policy No. 023— Board Ethics and Conduct, the General Manager may authorize the Board Members to communicate with senior staff if he is aware of the communication occurring. CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT January 14, 2021 Special Board Meeting Minutes—Book 69-Page 11 Several Board Members expressed extreme concern regarding a Board Member's direct communication with staff and a consensus that any information provided to one Board Member should be communicated to all. Mr. Bailey stated that the Board Members need to decide the optimal level of information needed to make good policy decisions. He noted that requesting technical information directly from staff should be kept to a minimum and such requests should be discussed with the General Manager. BOARD ACTION: Received the overview. The Board took a five-minute recess at 2:55 p.m. d. Discuss process options for (1) choosing Board President and President Pro Tem, and (2) appointing Board Committee Members, Board Liaisons, and Board representatives to various outside agencies Mr. Ives led the discussion on Central San's current process for choosing the Board President and President Pro Tem each year. President Pilecki stated that currently there is no written policy at the District. Member Hockett stated that the process should not be political and should preserve the dignity of every Board Member. She stated that there should be equal opportunity and a policy developed that would be non-discriminatory. Member Lauritzen opined there should be more diversity in leadership, and a policy should be written with that in mind. She believes that having a more diverse board leads to better decision making and a better perspective. Member Williams added that the role of the Board President is more of a philosophy, not a political statement, and that the role does not have a lot of delegative authority. He suggested numbering the chairs on a rotational basis. Member McGill agreed. Member Lauritzen said she believes the President has soft powers and was supportive of a rotation of the President seat and proposed that a newly elected Board Member be selected as President Pro Tem to provide training and help promote diversity. Mr. Bailey suggested numbering the chairs for now with a policy change in the future to number by divisions. President Pilecki stated that the Board needs to remain consistent with the policy. He believes seniority plays a role in the decision making, and the challenges facing the District need to be considered when making the policy. He noted that one of the most challenging tasks the Board President faces is CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT January 14, 2021 Special Board Meeting Minutes—Book 69-Page 12 creating the Standing Board Committee and agency liaison assignments. Currently, there is no guidance on how to accomplish that task. He noted that some of the committee members have been the same for many years and, in his opinion, they should be rotated annually. Member Hockett offered that a member's years of experience should not be factored into the decision because performing that role is a legitimate way to establish leadership and everyone can learn. Mr. Alm suggested staff bring a couple of options to the Board to be debated and ultimately decided upon. Secretary of the District Katie Young stated that she would present options to the Administration Committee for discussion in the near future. BOARD ACTION: Provided input to staff toward formulating written guidelines and a potential policy for selecting Board leadership roles. e. Overview of Central San Parliamentary Procedures - Board Policy No. BP 012 - Parliamentary Procedures (Rosenberg's Rules of Order, as modified) Mr. Ives provided a quick review of BP 012. The Board requested a quick reference guide be provided to all Board Members along with a pocket-sized version of the modified Rosenburg's Rules of Order. BOARD ACTION: Received the overview and requested staff provide a quick reference guide to all Board Members. f. Overview of following booklets: • Board Member Handbook 2020 • Board Briefing Book FY 20/21 BOARD ACTION: Due to time constraints, this item was deferred. g. Discuss training opportunities for Board Members The Board Members received information on training opportunities available to the them as presented by Mr. Ives. President Pilecki requested Ms. Young to provide the Board Members with a list of different training opportunities available through the California Special Districts Association (CSDA). BOARD ACTION: Received the information and requested additional training information available through the CSDA. CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT January 14, 2021 Special Board Meeting Minutes—Book 69-Page 13 h. Review list of parking lot items for future Board consideration Mr. Ives stated that an item on the parking lot, brought up by staff and some Board Members, was to facilitate a discussion as to which agenda items need to be reviewed by a Board Committee before receiving consideration of the full Board. Member Williams believes it is worth reviewing and, rather than a hard and fast rule, he thinks specific guidelines should be developed to allow staff and the General Manager to make those decisions. President Pilecki agreed with Member Williams'recommendation and suggested that the Administration Committee could provide the initial direction for guideline development. Member Hockett stated that the Board needs to be more responsible for time management and that the items going to Committees should be staff driven. The last item discussed on the Board parking lot was the onboarding of new Board Members. Member Lauritzen expressed her frustration with the recent swearing-in of the new Board Members and believes it could have been done differently. Member Hockett agreed with Member Lauritzen and suggested that the departure of outgoing Board Members be held separately from the swearing- in ceremony for incoming Board Members. President Pilecki suggested staff modify the procedures and revisit this issue in the future due to time constraints at this meeting. BOARD ACTION: Reviewed list and provided input to staff. i. Closing remarks and comments from the Board Itemized list of takeaways for staff follow-up and future discussion.- 1. iscussion.1. Draft a memorandum to the Administration Committee to review options for (1) electing the Board President and President Pro Tem; and (2) appointing Board Committee Members, Board liaisons, and Board representatives to various outside agencies. 2. Prioritize items that must first go before a Board Committee before presenting to the full Board. 3. Provide the Board Members with a list of available training opportunities offered by the CSDA. CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT January 14, 2021 Special Board Meeting Minutes—Book 69-Page 14 4. Revisit procedures for onboarding/swearing-in process of new Board Members and appropriate practices for outgoing member ceremonies. BOARD ACTION: Captured prioritized list of takeaways. OTHER BOARD ACTION ITEMS 2. Provide direction to remedy a sewer lateral disconnection at 2367 and 2369 Pacheco Boulevard in Martinez This item was deferred to a future regular Board meeting. ANNOUNCEMENTS None. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 4:02 p.m. -r4 PbAt, Tad J. Pilecki President of the Board of Directors Central Contra Costa Sanitary District County of Contra Costa, State of California COUNTERSIGNED: �A' q6" Katie Young Secretary of the District Central Contra Costa Sanitary District County of Contra Costa, State of California