Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutBOARD MINUTES 09-21-23 (Special)110ENTRAL SAN MINUTES* SPECIAL BOARD MEETING Board Room Thursday, September 21, 2023 1:00 P.M. ROLL CALL BOARD OF DIRECTORS: BARBARA D. HOCK= President MARIAHN. LAURIYZEN President Pro Tem MICHAEL R. MCGILL TAD J. PILECKI FLORENCE T. WEDINGTON A special meeting of the Board of Directors was called to order by President Hockett at 1:00 p.m. in the Board Room. Secretary of the District Katie Young announced that under AB 2449, Member Wedington will be attending the meeting virtually due to just cause and has provided Ms. Young with written documentation. Because Member Wedington invoked just cause, there was no additional action needed to be taken by the Board. PRESENT.- Members: Lauritzen, McGill, Pilecki, Wedington, Hockett ABSENT. • Members: None PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Board, staff and audience joined in the Pledge of Allegiance. PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD No comments. REQUESTS TO CONSIDER MATTERS OUT OF ORDER General Manager Roger Bailey stated that there were no requests, except that the Closed Session will occur immediately as Item 1 rather than at the end of the meeting. ANNOUNCE CLOSED SESSION(pursuant to Government Code Section 54957.7 District Counsel Kent Alm announced that a closed session would be held for Item 1. President Hockett called for public comment on the closed session item. There was none. These summary minutes are supplemented by a corresponding video recording available on the District's website at centralsan.org. CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT September 21, 2023 Special Board Meeting Minutes - Book 71— Page 166 The Board, General Manager, and District Counsel adjourned from the Board Room and convened in the Caucus Room for the closed session. Closed Session — Caucus Room (Not video recorded) CLOSED SESSION 1. Conference with Legal Counsel — existing litigation pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.9(d)(1): • Robin Hayden v. Central Contra Costa Sanitary District, Contra Costa County Superior Case No. C22-00995 RECESS TO OPEN SESSION The Board recessed at 1:26 p.m. and reconvened in open session in the Board Room. Open Session — Board Room (Video recorded) REPORT OUT OF CLOSED SESSION With regard to the Closed Session, Mr. Alm reported as follows: Item 1 — The Board did meet with Special Counsel for the litigation and provided some authority with regard to mediation that is scheduled to occur next week. CONSENT CALENDAR 2. Approve the following: a. September 7, 2023 Board meeting minutes 3. Adopt updated salary schedule for all District job classifications effective September 7, 2023 4. Adopt Resolution No. 2023-029 authorizing 1) execution of Quitclaim Deed for existing easements to the Benjamin Family Trust, or the current property owners at the time of recording for 331 Laurel Drive, Danville (APN:216-042-002) and 2) staff to record documents with the Contra Costa County Clerk -Recorders Office 5. Adopt Resolution No. 2023-030 authorizing execution and recording of a Quitclaim Deed to Rescore WCMCD, LLC as related to Job 6694 in Walnut Creek 6. Adopt Resolution No.2023-031 authorizing execution and recording of a Quitclaim Deed to Toll West Coast, LLC as related to Job 6711 in San Ramon (APN: 208-880- 023 CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT September 21, 2023 Special Board Meeting Minutes - Book 71— Page 167 7. Adopt Resolution No. 2023-032 approving updates to the District's Conflict of Interest Code and directing the Secretary of the District to submit the updated 2023 Conflict of Interest Code to the Contra Coast County Board of Supervisors for approval 8. Adopt (1) Resolution of Intention No.2023-033 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- 034 approving the boundary for the proposed CAD; and (3) find the Project is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act 9. Adopt (1) Resolution of Intention No.2023-035 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.2023-036 approving the. boundary for the proposed CAD; and (3) find the Project is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act 10. Authorize the General Manager to execute an amendment to an existing professional consulting services agreement with Bienati Consulting Group, Inc. in an amount not to exceed $70,000, increasing the total cost ceiling to $272, 200 to facilitate additional organizational development work, specifically assisting the Board and District staff with the development of the Fiscal Year 2024-2026 strategic plan as well as provide assistance with additional leadership development activities 11. Authorize the procurement of two collection system specialty vehicles totaling $900,000 under the Vehicle Replacement Program, District Project 8517 BOARD ACTION: Motion was made by Member Pilecki and seconded by Member Lauritzen to adopt the Consent Calendar as recommended. Motion passed by unanimous roll call vote. PUBLIC HEARINGS 12. Conduct a public hearing to adopt Resolution No. 2023-037 establishing the appropriations limit in the amount of $141,571,444 for Fiscal Year 2023-24, in accordance with Article XIIIB of the California Constitution, using the change in the California per capita personal income percentage and change in population to calculate the appropriations limit Mr. Alm offered to provide a short explanation of what establishing the appropriations limit accomplishes, stating that establishing the limit is a legal requirement that has very little impact on the District because the limit sets how much Central San can spend based on its proceeds from taxes. Since most of Central San's revenue is produced from fees and not taxes, the amount from taxes, being twenty-three million dollars, is far below the established appropriations limit. Member Hockett opened the public hearing and with no public comments received, immediately closed the public hearing. CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT September 21, 2023 Special Board Meeting Minutes - Book 71— Page 168 BOARD ACTION: Conducted the public hearing; Motion to adopt Resolution No. 2023-037 establishing the appropriations limit in the amount of $141,571,444 for Fiscal Year 2023-24, in accordance with Article XIIIB of the California Constitution, using the change in the California per capita personal income percentage and change in population to calculate the appropriations limit made by Member Pilecki and seconded by Member Lauritzen. Motion passed by unanimous roll call vote. OTHER BOARD ACTION ITEMS 13. Authorize the General Manager to execute a professional services contract with Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP, for District Counsel services Mr. Bailey stated that there was no presentation for this item as the Board had interviewed several law firms and provided direction to staff to negotiate the contract. The contract negotiation process has been completed. Mr. Alm stated that a member of Burke, Williams & Sorensen was present in the Board Room and asked if they had any remarks. Joan Cox, on behalf of Burke, Williams & Sorensen, stated that the firm was delighted to have been chosen as District Counsel and look forward to accomplishing many good things with Central San. Deputy General Manager - Administration Phil Leiber added that staff spent several months negotiating the contract included in the agenda packet and that the firm was very responsive to the issues raised in the negotiations. He also stated that this item has been presented to the Administration Committee and that additional feedback was received at that Committee and incorporated into the proposed agreement. Member McGill asked if the indemnification language previously identified as needing attention was modified. Mr. Leiber stated that there has been a modification to the agreement that was included in the agenda packet, and it now includes more detailed language regarding indemnities. Member Pilecki stated that he noticed the new agreement reduces in -person office hours for Counsel and utilizes more teleconferencing via Zoom. He asked that if the new arrangement does not work, is there a provision to go back to more in person office hours been included in the contract. Mr. Leiber stated that Burke, Williams & Sorensen would like to use Zoom or Teams meeting options more frequently but has agreed that, for the first three months of the contract, the in-house office hours will remain at twice per week. If Central San feels that the schedule of twice per week office hours needs to continue beyond that three-month period, the arrangement can be modified, though this may have an impact on the monthly retainer amount. BOARD ACTION: Motion made by Member McGill and seconded by Member Lauritzen to authorize the General Manager to execute a professional services CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT September 21, 2023 Special Board Meeting Minutes - Book 71— Page 169 contract, as modified, with Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP, for District Counsel services. Motion passed by unanimous roll call vote. 14. Receive Update on Net Zero Evaluation Resource Recovery Program Manager Melody LaBella reviewed the presentation included in the agenda packet. Three representatives from GHD were also present and reviewed parts of the presentation. Throughout the presentation and immediately following, detailed discussion ensued regarding what is currently required of Central San regarding net zero or carbon neutral emissions and what options exist to pursue improvements in the future. Ms. LaBella noted that staff and the District's consultant team, GHD, has gathered preliminary data on our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions baseline that has been reviewed with the Real Estate, Environment and Planning (REEP) Committee, and formulated some next steps and their associated costs. The team is at the point that they request guidance from the Board if staff should continue to invest resources in furthering this work and what the next steps should be. Member Lauritzen made some observations on conceptual takeaways and encouraged the team and Central San to remain focused on eliminating all emissions and focusing on what the District can achieve, regardless of what other industries or agencies may be doing. Member Pilecki agreed with Member Lauritzen's observations and noted that because Central San has a large number of projects and other initiatives happening, he recommended a phased approach with a clear definition of associated costs and how to fit this initiative in with other future plans. Member McGill opined that it is easy to stay the course on a single approach, but that often a multi -pronged approach is what is most effective, including identifying opportunities that already exist for Central San in the area of Net Zero emissions. President Hockett asked if it was possible to capture and analyze data from multiple sources, study energy use, and then explore possible offsets in the plant. Member Wedington asked if it was possible to produce graphics to better visualize where Central San is now and how future projects will reduce emissions. She stated that to enable the Board to make better decisions, they need to understand where Central San is currently and where the District's planned projects will bring us, compared to where we may want to go. Operations Optimization Manager Nitin Goel stated that Central San is currently developing a request for proposals (RFP) to complete an energy optimization evaluation that will incorporate Net Zero as one of the criteria and will study how different District CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT September 21, 2023 Special Board Meeting Minutes - Book 71— Page 170 projects will impact energy usage and how Central San will provide the energy to meet future demands, while minimizing GHG emissions. After further discussion, Ms. LaBella identified and confirmed the next steps of the initiative as gathering and sharing more information regarding Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions and associated costs, measuring Central San's process emissions, creating and proposing a staged approach, estimate emissions produced from planned Capital projects, and incorporating the Net Zero lens in the energy management evaluation. BOARD ACTION: Received update and provided input to staff. The Board took a ten-minute recess. 15. Conduct Fiscal Years (FYs) 2024-2026 Strategic Planning Workshop, including discussion of Vision, Mission, Values, and Goals Dr. Larry Bienati reviewed the presentation included in the agenda packet and guided the discussion. The Board reviewed individual slides that captured current vision, mission, values and goals and suggested edits or improvements. Mr. Leiber acted as scribe and captured all suggested edits and comments made by the Board to incorporate into a future Strategic Plan document. It was noted that this was just the start of the two year strategic planning process, and additional check -ins would be conducted with the Administration Committee and full Board as the work progresses. BOARD ACTION: Conducted the workshop and provided direction to staff. LEGISLATIVE MATTERS 16. Receive update on pending legislative matters Communications and Government Relations Manager Emily Barnett provided the Central San Priority Legislative Tracking sheet, an informational sheet on Assembly Bill (AB) 727 and AB 266, and a letter of support for ACA 13. All materials were distributed via an email sent to the Board and staff on Wednesday, September 20 and were also made available on Central San's website. Ms. Barnett gave a brief synopsis regarding the handout materials and stated that she will provide a full report on Legislative Matters at the November 2, 2023 Board meeting. BOARD ACTION: Received the update. REPORTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS 17. General Manger — Reports a. Monthly Lab Update: Covid-19/Wastewater Epidemiology Update BOARD ACTION: Received the report. CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT September 21, 2023 Special Board Meeting Minutes - Book 71— Page 171 18. General Manager —Announcements a. Announcements — September 21, 2023 No further announcements were made during the meeting. BOARD ACTION: Received the announcements. 19. Counsel for the District Mr. Alm announced that this meeting is his last official Central San Board meeting. He will be present at the next Board meeting on October 5, 2023 to participate in the transition to a new District Counsel, and will be present on October 19 when a social gathering will be held to honor his service. He thanked the Board for the many years of Thursday afternoon meetings. 20. Secretary of the District No report. 21. Board Members - Committee Minutes a. September 5, 2023 — Administration Committee — Chair Lauritzen and Member McGill b. September 11, 2023 — Engineering & Operations Committee — Chair Pilecki and Member McGill BOARD ACTION: Received the Committee minutes. 22. Board Members - Reports and Announcements Board Member reports on recent meetings or conferences for which they received the stipend or for which the District paid their expenses. a. Member Lauritzen • September 19, 2023 —15th Annual Sustainability Awards Gala & Fundraiser, Pleasant Hill Community Center, 320 Civic Dr., Pleasant Hill, Ca 94523 Member McGill • September 19, 2023 —15th Annual Sustainability Awards Gala & Fundraiser, Pleasant Hill Community Center, 320 Civic Dr., Pleasant Hill, Ca 94523 Member McGill also provided a written report covering his announcements and other meetings. CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARYDISTRICT September 21, 2023 Special Board Meeting Minutes - Book 71— Page 172 Member Pilecki • September 13, 2023 — Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) [Stipend declined] • September 19, 2023 —15th Annual Sustainability Awards Gala & Fundraiser, Pleasant Hill Community Center, 320 Civic Dr., Pleasant Hill, Ca 94523 Member Wedin ton Member Wedington stated that due to illness, she was unable to attend the Awards Gala. Member Pilecki congratulated Environmental Compliance Program Manager Colleen Henry on her presentation at the Sustainability Awards Gala and stated that Communications Division staff did a great job promoting Central San at the same event. President Hockett • September 19, 2023 —15th Annual Sustainability Awards Gala & Fundraiser, Pleasant Hill Community Center, 320 Civic Dr., Pleasant Hill, Ca 94523 23. Board Members - Requests for Sti[)end/Reimbursement or Conference Attendance Authorization to receive a stipend for meeting attendance or expense reimbursement not specifically addressed in the current Board Compensation Policy, or authorization for conference attendance not previously approved by the Board. No requests. EMERGENCY SITUATIONS None. REQUESTS FOR FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS None. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 4:26 p.m. 1 Barbara D. Hockett President of the Board of Directors Central Contra Costa Sanitary District County of Contra Costa, State of California CENTRAL CONTRA COSTA SANITARY DISTRICT September 21, 2023 Special Board Meeting Minutes - Book 71— Page 173 COUNTERSIGNED: Katie; You g, CP , pc Secretary of the i tri Central Contra Costa Sanitary District County of Contra Costa, State of California