HomeMy WebLinkAboutEngineering & Operations MINUTES 09-11-23 REGULAR MEETING OF THE
CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA
SANITARY DISTRICT ENGINEERING & OPERATIONS COMMITTEE MINUTES
Monday, September 11, 2023 9:00 a.m.
Committee: Chair Tad Pilecki Member Mike McGill
Staff:
Roger S. Bailey, General Manager Katie Young, CMC Secretary of the District Greg Norby, Deputy General Manager - Operations Philip Leiber, Deputy General Manager - Administration
Danea Gemmell, Planning and Development Services Division Manager
Edgar Lopez, Capital Projects Division Manager Lori Schectel, Environmental and Regulatory Compliance Division Manager (left after
Item 3.c.) Neil Meyer, Plant Maintenance Division Manager
Paul Seitz, Collection Systems Operations Division Manager (left after Item 3.c.)
Clint Shima, Senior Engineer Jason DeGroot, Senior Engineer (left after Item 3.c.) Rita Cheng, Senior Engineer (left after Item 3.c.) Russ Leavitt, Engineering Assistant III (left after Item 3.b.)
Stacey Durocher, Administrative Services Assistant
1. Call Meeting to Order Chair Pilecki called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m.
2. Public Comments
None.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS:
BARBARA D. HOCKETT President MARIAH N. LAURITZEN President Pro Tem MICHAEL R. MCGILL TAD J. PILECKI FLORENCE T. WEDINGTON
PHONE: (925) 228-9500 FAX: (925) 372-0192 www.centralsan.org
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Engineering & Operations Committee Minutes September 11, 2023 Page 2
3. Items for Committee Recommendation to Board
a. Review draft Position Paper to consider adopting (1) Resolution of Intention No. 2023-XX to initiate the formation of the Upper Cordell Drive Contractual Assessment District (CAD) No. 2023-2 for the purpose of installing sewer improvements on Cordell Drive in Danville, (2) Resolution
No. 2023-XX approving boundary for the proposed CAD; and (3) find the Project is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act
Mr. Leavitt provided an overview of the Position Paper included in the agenda materials.
The Committee had no questions for staff.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Recommended Board approval.
b. Review draft Position Paper to consider adopting (1) Resolution of Intention No. 2023-XX to initiate the formation of the Charles Hill Road Contractual Assessment District (CAD) No. 2023-1 for the purpose of installing sewer improvements on Charles Hill Road in Orinda, (2) Resolution No. 2023-XX approving boundary for the proposed CAD; and
(3) find the Project is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act
Mr. Leavitt provided an overview of the Position Paper included in the
agenda materials. He referred to Attachment 1, and explained there are three buildable parcels, excluding the pie shape parcel located between
parcels 5 and 7 which will become part of parcel 7. The owner of upper
parcel 7 intends to sell, however has requested a lateral be installed.
Chair Pilecki expressed concern about homeowners being able to have up to three Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) in addition to the primary
residence on one parcel, and that this right is not yet reflected in Central
San’s CAD program provisions. With the ability to have more than one
residence per parcel, and potentially the ability to split that parcel later into
separate parcels, he said the District CAD policy should be reviewed to reflect these provisions to avoid future problems.
Chair Pilecki asked if staff was following the rules in regard to the property
owners majority vote or will the property owner sell the upper 7 parcel
prior to the vote. Ms. Gemmell stated that the property owner won’t sell until a sewer is built because the entitlement makes it more valuable.
Chair Pilecki asked staff how financing will be created for the future owner
when a reimbursement agreement is being created with the existing owner
that owns both parcels. Mr. Leavitt stated that the existing owner will not participate in the CAD for the upper 7 parcel. Ms. Gemmell added that the
Septic-to-Sewer program pays the CAD fees, so when there is a new
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Engineering & Operations Committee Minutes September 11, 2023 Page 3
owner for that parcel, the CAD fees plus the lateral can be financed and
reimbursements for that portion go out to the owners of parcels 5 and 7.
A brief discussion ensued.
The Committee had no further questions.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Recommended Board approval. c. Review draft Position Paper to authorize the procurement of two collection system specialty vehicles totaling $900,000 under the Vehicle
Replacement Program, District Project 8517
Ms. Cheng provided an overview of the Position Paper included in the
agenda materials. She explained that replacement is for two specialty vehicles that have reached the end of their useful life.
Staff is recommending replacement of a rodding truck used to
mechanically remove roots from sewer pipelines and a sewer pipeline
repair truck known as a war wagon. Neither of these vehicles were listed in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023-24 vehicle replacement program therefore
Board authorization is required.
Mr. Bailey asked if there was a downpayment required, and if so, how that
situation would be treated for budgetary purposes. Mr. DeGroot stated there was no down payment required, only a purchase order. Chair Pilecki
inquired about an encumbrance that would exist until delivery in FY2024-
25. Mr. DeGroot confirmed.
In response to a question posed by Member McGill regarding the Budget, Mr. Bailey stated the vehicles were not included in the Budget because of
the urgency. Mr. Leiber also stated that there is a long-term (10 year) plan
that has been developed with estimated goals for vehicles. However, in
terms of funding, that plan was changed from budgeting exact costs-by-
year to being averaged over 10 years.
Ms. Cheng also mentioned the upcoming California Air Resources Board
Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) Regulation coming into effect and the long
lead times for these vehicles. Starting in January 2024, 50 percent of the
District’s new medium and heavy-duty vehicle purchases must be zero emissions. Starting in January 2027, 100 percent of the District’s new
medium and heavy-duty vehicle purchases must be zero emissions.
Mr. Lopez added the market for these electric vehicles does not currently
meet our maintenance needs and there is still a lot of uncertainty about obtaining these specialty vehicles in the future. Staff is working with the Air
Board and discussing the exemption criteria and process.
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Further discussion ensued.
Chair Pilecki asked if the cost of the war wagon included custom
configuration to fit the needs of Central San or will that be an extra cost. Mr. DeGroot stated $300,000 is the total cost.
Member McGill mentioned that the maintenance needs are stated
consistently with the upcoming regulations. COMMITTEE ACTION: Recommended Board approval.
d. Review draft Position Paper to authorize the General Manager to execute a five-year Landfill Gas Sales Agreement with Bulldog Gas & Power, LLC., (Bulldog) to supply landfill gas for the period commencing October 1, 2023 and ending on September 30, 2028 with the option to extend annually
Mr. Shima provided an overview of the Position Paper included in the
agenda materials. He stated that the Landfill Gas (LFG) supply has been
stable and Bulldog, Gas & Power, LLC (Bulldog) stated they expect supply to last for the next ten years.
Chair Pilecki asked if Bulldog would provide a study on the supply
reliability of the LFG to the District. Mr. Shima stated the last study the
District received was in 2010 and was done by Bulldog. The District’s Regulatory Group conducted a Landfill Gas Emissions Model (GEMs)
analysis, and the LFG supply was projected out to approximately year
2040.
Mr. Bailey suggested that since this item is a critical aspect of the District’s business, a formal update on the expected supply as a joint effort between
Central San and Bulldog would be desired. Mr. Shima stated that Bulldog
was approached in 2016 and was not willing to work with the District on
this issue. Member McGill recalled that one past report talked about the
quality of the gas or the energy content. Chair Pilecki recommended that staff check where the energy content is now since the last report was
done in 2010, because the alternatives Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) or
the State’s Cap-and-Trade program are not very attractive.
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Mr. Norby asked if staff has reviewed what the cost of entering Cap-and-
Trade annual cost would be for the District. Mr. Shima stated this has
been reviewed and the credits in Quarter Two of this year were $30 per
ton.
Chair Pilecki asked if the District has done a business case analysis
based on what Bulldog is asking for plus the cleanup and testing versus
what PG&E would charge. Mr. Shima responded yes.
On Slide 8 of the presentation, Chair Pilecki asked staff to label the green area as Natural gas (NG) so the other Board Members would know what
the savings between LFG and NG are.
Mr. Norby mentioned to the Committee that staff is in the early stages of a
study looking at what the District’s energy profile might look like over the next 10 to 15 years. Chair Pilecki requested including the energy profile
for today versus five years down the road.
Mr. Bailey requested that staff provide data for each of the options and
include the pros and cons of each.
A lengthy discussion ensued regarding additional information that is
needed for clarification and further discussion at a future meeting.
Chair Pilecki recommended that staff include in the Position Paper that the cost Bulldog is charging represents minimal savings to the District and
staff is going to proceed at looking at future power alternatives, other than
Bulldog.
Member McGill asked if the District would receive any regulatory benefit for using the landfill gas. Mr. Lopez stated yes and that the alternatives
presented to not use landfill gas will need to be looked at carefully, as they
impact how the plant is operated as well as system redundancy. The
alternative could also result in wasting energy.
COMMITTEE ACTION: The Committee recommended revisions to the
Position Paper, requested that staff price out the options on Slide 10 of the presentation and schedule a Special meeting on September 19, 2023 at 2:00 p.m. for further discussion. 4. Announcements
None.
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5. Suggestions for Future Agenda Items
a. Receive list of upcoming agenda items and provide suggestions for any other future agenda items
As mentioned above, the Committee recommended revisions to the
Position Paper and requested a Special Meeting on September 19, 2023
at 2:00 p.m. to discuss Item 3.d. further.
COMMITTEE ACTION: Received the list and provided input to staff.
6. Future Scheduled Meetings Tuesday, September 19, 2023 at 2:00 p.m. (Special) Monday, October 23, 2023 at 9:00 a.m. Monday, November 13, 2023 at 9:00 a.m. Monday, December 11, 2023 at 9:00 a.m.
7. Adjournment – at 10:44 a.m.
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