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08/11/1992 - Minutes TIGARD WATER DISTRICT 8777 S.W. BURNHAM ST. .44111 P.O. BOX 230000 TIGARD,OREGON 97223-9917 PHONE(503)639-1554 TIGARD WATER DISTRICT BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS August 11, 1992 Minutes of Regular Meeting PRESENT: Board of Commissioners: Audrey Castile, Chair Clarence Nicoli Jon Kvistad, Secretary Bob Wyffels Staff: Jeri Chenelle, Administrative Director Randy Volk, Superintendent Lorry Christian, Administrative Assistant Mike Miller, Engineering Technician III Visitors: Bonnie Turner, Trish Toedtemeier, Brian Clancy, Sam Morrison, Rusty Thomas, all TWD employees; Gina Maloney, TWD consultant; August Erdman, Ben & Helen Castile, Trent Irwin, Frank Knight, Jack Brown, Phil Crum, John Haunsperger, Joe Jesenik, Betty N. Carolson, Rod Kvistad, Ken Christopherson, Don Brewer, Will Alexander, Charles O'Malley, Bill Ryan, J. Trykan, Steve Trykar, Helen Inglis, Linda Whalen, James Whalen, Janet B. Goddard, Robin Franzen, The Oregonian, Donna Schmidt, Tigard Times, Gary Beck, Channel 6 TV, Camerman and reporter from Channel 8 TV. Call to Order at 7:30 p.m. 1. Visitors. Chair Castile welcomed the visitors and thanked them for coming and for their participation, and asked them to sign the sheet for visitors and write"yes" if they wished to address the Board, asking speakers to limit their comments to 3 minutes. 2. Resolution to approve minutes of the July 14 Board meeting. A motion was made by Commissioner Jon Kvistad and seconded by Commissioner Clarence Nicoli to approve the minutes of the July 14 meeting. There was no discussion and a voice vote was called. The motion was approved unanimously. 3. Resolution to approve payment of vouchers. A motion was made by Commissioner Nicoli and seconded by Commissioner Kvistad to approve payment of the vouchers. Commissioner Kvistad asked about M &I Inc.: Superintendent Randy Volk said it was an equipment supplier. Commissioner Robert Wyffels asked about the following (Superintendent Randy 'r.me Volk answered): (1)Water Food&Research Labs Inc.--(that's where we take our routine samples of 8/11/92 Minutes, Regular Meeting, Board of Commissioners water, and water samples for analysis of lead and copper content); (2) Legacy Laboratory- (that's where employees have their new employee physicals); (3) Frahler Electric- (they did the electrical work for the new pump station at the 10 MG reservoir); and(4) One Call Concepts- (this is a monthly charge for a service that takes information from callers who want utility lines located before construction and notifies the affected utility organization). Hearing no more questions, a voice vote was called. The motion passed unanimously. 4a. Ordinance 1-92: An ordinance finding that a water shortage exists, adopting rules to restrict water usage, and providing for enforcement of violations, and declaring an emergency. A motion was made by Commissioner Kvistad and seconded by Commissioner Wyffels to approve Ordinance 1-92. Administrative Director Jeri L. Chenelle was asked to give an overview of the ordinance. She said a draft of this ordinance was presented at the July Board meeting, but the Board decided to wait until Portland adopted their enforcement mechanism, which has now happened. Ms. Chenelle's recommendation was that the Board adopt the same penalties and fines as Portland, for consistency sake. Most of the other 22 water providers using Bull Run water are doing the same. Many TWD customers called the District asking for some kind of enforcement for the violators, because most people are doing a good job of conserving, and its unfair for the violators to not be penalized. The ordinance sets up the procedure and describes the water restriction measures, with an accompanying resolution declaring an emergency and enacting the ordinance. When the emergency is over, another resolution can be approved rescinding the restrictions, yet there will still be an official record of the water restrictions, if they are needed again. Commissioner Kvistad asked if TWD was required to match the fines imposed by Portland, or if TWD could just implement a structure. Ms. Chenelle said TWD doesn't have to match the fines, but Portland asked that we do have the same kind of restrictions. Chair Castile asked that the word "extreme"be deleted from the title. Ms. Chenelle said that was an oversight--it should have been deleted. 4400, Chair Castile asked the other Commissioners for their input about adopting this ordinance which imposes penalties to violators of the water restrictions. She said she knows the TWD Staff has talked to many people, respects the Staff recommendation, and favors the fines because of the consistency issue, however, she also knows there are many people who want to continue without fines. Commissioner Kvistad said he doesn't like Portland's fee schedule, and wanted to know whether TWD patrons have been complying with the restrictions. Ms. Chenelle said yes, TWD water usage is down, and there are just a few violators who repeatedly violate the restrictions by watering their lawns. The present computer utility billing system doesn't allow us to track water usage--it would need to be done manually. Commissioner Kvistad said he wants another option, besides fines, for violators. Ms. Chenelle said the fine structure can be changed to different amounts, and even if flow restrictors were used, they would restrict the flow of water so severely that violators might not prefer them to a fine, and warnings and policing would still be required. Commissioner Kvistad asked how many violators would be fined today because of violations. Ms. Chenelle said there are about 25 people for whom 2 complaints have been received, and approximately 6 who have been turned in 3 times. The Staff believes that if penalties were in place, most of that would stop. Commissioner Nicoli said he previously was opposed to fines, but after attending a TWD employee meeting this morning, he understands the lack of fines would create a situation where TWD employees would be wasting their time. He heard a news report from Seattle saying that Seattle has collected fines from only 3 or 4, and now he thinks that fines are effective as a deterrent. Commissioner Nicoli referred to the notebook with approximately 200 sheets, each a complaint about a violation of water restrictions. A TWD employee has made a special visit for each complaint,to remind patrons about the water restrictions. Chair Castile said she doesn't like to impose any punitive measures,thinks it is important to have N"'' consistency and also to have a follow up program, and after talking with Staff, she agrees with imposing 2 8/11/92 Minutes, Regular Meeting, Board of Commissioners fines. Commissioner Wyffels said he thinks the penalties would be adequate, and the potential publicity about the violations would help stop the violations. He favors the fines. Chair Castile repeated that the reason for the contract with the Portland Water Bureau is to provide a back up water supply as a protection for TWD customers, and while we may not like it,the contract obligates TWD to be consistent�witthPortland. ktau-4e2 "t ,Aly t`17/ Chair C.ap e invited visitors to speak to the Board about this issue: John H"unsperger said he thinks that in addition to fines, he wants there to be higher water rates for higher usage of water. Chair Castile said that isn't possible with the present computer system, but is something they will look into with the new computer system. Don Brewer said his original purpose was to try to persuade the Board to not do any rationing, but as long as they were seriously considering imposing fines, he wanted to make sure there is consistency in interpretation by those enforcing regulations. Ken Christopherson represented a Portland landscaper, and was against fining home owners for water use because the restrictions are unfair, because it's an attack on the landscaping industry. He favored a system of water allotment, with people deciding for themselves how they will use the water. He also favored educating people about conserving water inside their homes. Charles O'Malley said he was concerned about the new growth which will be lost, for 124 new home owners. These owners have been in their homes 1-2 years, are replacing shrubs and some lawns, and are concerned about the loss of that investment. Commissioner Wyffels said they can water the shrubs. Ben Castile brought copies of a map of the King City Highlands area Mr. O'Malley referred to. New lawns and trees were planted, and these are used to produce oxygen. Mr. Castile is concerned that the brown, withered, unwatered lawn and unwatered young trees make a health hazard because they *ow don't produce oxygen, and he is trying to get a doctor's opinion saying whether or not this is a healthy place to live. Mr. Castile says this isn't a healthy place. When the wind blows, it blows oxygen around, but during times when there isn't wind,there isn't enough oxygen. He asked to be able to water lawns for 3 minutes a day to keep the grass healthy. Chair Castile asked if we had received any response from Oregon State University about oxygen content. Administrative Director Chenelle said no, she sent a fax to a horticultural turf specialist at OSU, but as yet hadn't received a response. Ms. Chenelle recommended that if someone brought a doctor's opinion saying that not watering their lawn is a health hazard for them,they receive an exception, but it would have to be decided on a case by case basis. Regarding watering lawns, she said she is going by Portland's guidelines which say that lawns seeded or sodded before March 1, 1992, are supposed to be sufficiently established and able to survive. Commissioner Wyffels reminded everyone that shrubs and trees can be watered between 6 pm and 10 am. Chair Castile confirmed that if Mr. Castile brought a doctor's opinion saying that not watering a lawn created a health hazard, the Board would look carefully at allowing an exception. Chair Castile read an article about a University of California study saying that(1)less than 4%of California's developed water system is used for watering of landscaping homes, businesses, parks, golf courses, and roadways; (2) a green lawn is the second largest producer of oxygen next to fir trees; and(3) a green lawn has a cooling effect of 10 tons of air conditioning, while absorbing air pollution. She said the water shortage is a problem that we must deal with because it is a life sustaining substance that we need. Chair Castile asked again that people talk with her after the meeting or write their suggestions for water conservation. Helen Inglis reseeded her lawn and said as a result of not being able to water it, she will lose her lawn and investment, and will need to pay$500 to reseed it next year. Administrative Director Chenelle clarified that if the area had been bare ground before, Ms. Inglis would be able to water. Ms. Inglis said it was sod which was reseeded. Ms. Inglis doesn't like watching neighbors watering shrubs, which is OK, but not being able to water her lawn. 3 8/11/92 Minutes, Regular Meeting, Board of Commissioners Unidentified Speaker talked about the newspaper article quoting the Mayor of Tigard saying that Tigard doesn't have a water shortage and shouldn't have water restrictions, and that the contract with Portland should be renegotiated. Chair Castile said she was at the workshop meeting where Mayor Edwards comments were taken out of context, didn't have consensus agreement, and the issue didn't come up in the regular council meeting. The speaker said it's confusing to read conflicting information. He was in favor of allocating water and letting people use the water as they wish. Commissioner Kvistad reminded everyone that using Bull Run water is a protection for the TWD community, and it isn't feasible to renegotiate the contract at this time. Commissioner Wyffels said TWD patrons are to be commended--they have taken the water restrictions seriously, and per person, they are doing a better job of conserving water than people in Portland. He said he wanted to comment on the statement that there is lots of water in the Clackamas River--he was in that area today, and he could walk across it--there isn't the abundance of water there that we've been led to believe. Every source of water in the area is being tapped. Chair Castile talked about the study being done to search for long term source of water. Commissioner Kvistad asked Administrative Director Chenelle if Ordinance 1-92 was adopted without adopting Resolution 12-92, would TWD be in legal,contractual compliance with the City of Portland without obligating us to implement fines. Ms. Chenelle said no, it wouldn't--if the Board doesn't chose to do penalties, they can be removed from the Ordinance, but we would still need to have something saying we are adopting these restrictions. Resolution 12-92 is the enabling document which puts TWD in compliance with the City of Portland. Sam Morrison, TWD employee, said not only is there not much water in the Clackamas River, but there isn't any snow pack in the mountains, and it will take more than one winter to put back the water supply, so if the Board doesn't adopt the restrictions and fines this year, they might have to do it next year. Unidentified Speaker said he was in favor of allocating water. Administrative Director Chenelle said again it 444109 isn't possible to do that this year, but it will take a new computer and about a year to get information and the system to do that. Commissioner Kvistad asked Ms. Chenelle to clarify that even if the Board implemented the ordinance, they wouldn't have to levy penalties. Ms. Chenelle said if there is a fine structure included in the ordinance, fines should be levied--we shouldn't have fines in the ordinance that we aren't going to enforce. Bill Ryan said his lawn has turned to hay. He called the Portland Water Bureau, and was told that if he could prove that by complying with the no-lawn-watering restrictions his lawn would die, then he could have an exception and could water his lawn. In talking with a major landscaper, he was told the rain on July 5 saved the lawn--that if you lose the crown on a rye grass lawn,the lawn dies, and without watering, 25%to 50%of the lawn might be lost. Mr. Ryan next called the radio show Lawn&Garden. Gary Willis was a guest on last Saturday's show responding to the issue. Gary Willis said he might lose 30%of his lawn due to not watering. Mr. Ryan has only 300 sq. feet of lawn, and could keep it watered with the over-spray from watering his shrubs and plants. Mr. Ryan is bothered by seeing other lawns which are green, and there isn't anything in place to stop them from watering, but he still feels he shouldn't water his lawn. This afternoon Mr. Ryan called the Portland Water Bureau and asked how many tickets had been issued involving a fine, and was told there had been none. Chair Castile and Administrative Director Chenelle said Portland's warning/fine structure hasn't been in place long enough for the second violation (carrying a fine)to be issued, and people have stopped violating the restrictions when the fines were established--that the fine structure is acting as a deterrent. Chair Castile said she appreciated the comments, and needed to continue on with the agenda. She said she had heard from the public, at this meeting, that they are upset about lawns not being able to be watered, when shrubs and other areas can be. She said she believes that if the Board says there aren't any penalties involved, that people will begin to water and there will be more problems. People who came 4 8/11/92 Minutes, Regular Meeting, Board of Commissioners to speak are the ones who care, and they aren't the ones who will violate the restrictions. As a responsible Board, if they chose to not impose fines because of the comments of the speakers tonight, many TWD v..- patrons will begin watering again. Commissioner Kvistad says he still favors not being punitive by imposing the fines. Chair Castile suggested that the matter be tabled for another month. Administrative Director Chenelle asked that it not be continued•the TWD Staff needs to have direction in this issue. They have been dealing with numerous calls from the public, ranging from the initial calls of"what are the rules", to complaints and comments of"what are you going to do about the guy down the street", and "if your Board doesn't adopt penalties tonight so you can do something about the guy down the street who is watering, then I'm going to start watering tomorrow." Ms. Chenelle said she is very concerned that more people will start watering, and we will increase our water usage such that TWD needs to use Bull Run water, which is getting lower and lower. She asked that the Board not continue the issue another month. Commissioner Kvistad asked that if the ordinance is implemented, that the Staff work toward developing options. Ms. Chenelle said yes, Staff is aware that getting the new computer system is the first step, and the necessary research can be done also. Commissioner Nicoli said he still favors the Staff recommendation of adopting and imposing fines to act as a deterrent. Chair Castile reread Ordinance 1-92, and called for a voice vote. The motion passed unanimously. 4b. Resolution 12-92: A resolution declaring an emergency and authorizing enactment of water restrictions and enforcement measures. A motion was made by Commissioner Wyffels and seconded by Commissioner Nicoli to adopt Resolution '44.w 12-92. Discussion was called for. Hearing no discussion, a voice vote was called. The vote was as follows: Commissioners Yes No Abstain Audrey Castile X Jon Kvistad X Clarence Nicoli X Bob Wyffels X Resolution 12-92 was approved with a vote of 3:1. A motion was made by Commissioner Kvistad to direct TWD Staff to begin implementation of a revised billing structure which monitors daily and monthly water usage for all patrons. There was a brief discussion. There was no second, and the motion died. A motion was made by Commissioner Wyffels that TWD create a graduated rate structure plan, similar to what other utilities use, with a flat rate for a base amount, with an increased rate for water used over the base amount. There was a discussion. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Kvistad. The discussion continued. Administrative Director Chenelle offered to develop a report which would give the steps necessary to implement a graduated rate structure. The Commissioners agreed, and the motion and second were withdrawn. Chair Castile called for a 5 minute break. When the meeting reconvened, Administrative Director Chenelle acknowledged the Board for making the difficult decision about imposing fines for violators of water restrictions. Ms. Chenelle introduced Gina iwri"` Maloney, consultant, who wrote the report comparing other water districts'conservation and curtailment 5 8/11/92 Minutes, Regular Meeting, Board of Commissioners plans. Ms. Maloney will coordinate the enforcement process, developing the procedures and guidelines. The Commissioners thanked Ms. Maloney for the excellent report. 5. 190 Agreements between TWD and City of Tigard. Administrative Director Chenelle suggested the Board might want to discuss the 190 agreements in Executive Session. Commissioner Nicoli said he wanted TWD to initiate a proposal with the specifics needed for TWD, not accept a resolution written by the City of Tigard. A motion was made by Commissioner Kvistad and seconded by Commissioner Nicoll to reschedule this item for the September or October meeting when there will be a fifth Commissioner appointed to the Board, and after they get a legal opinion of the resolution. There was a discussion. Chair Castile said she wished other Board members had attended other TWD Advisory Group meetings--it would have been helpful if they all had been part of the discussions. She had said the City of Tigard has the option of moving forward at any time, and intends to do that, if we stop the cooperative process. The resolution isn't a commitment to a 190 agreement, its a commitment to go forward. Commissioner Wyffels said the meeting the previous day had been "spirited", and the resolution, as it appeared now, was more generic than had previously been written. He said the resolution assures the cities that TWD wants to continue the discussion and the process will be evolving. Commissioner Kvistad objected to the completion date of June 30, 1993, and to the dissolution of the District until some of his questions have been answered. Chair Castile said that the resolution says that TWD is willing to be part of a cooperative agreement to look into a joint water agency. We can, at any point, disagree with what is happening and drop out of the discussions. The City of Tigard would still have the option of taking other action. Discussion continued. Chair Castile said that a week ago, when City Council met, the Mayor of Tigard told her he had consensus ',oft.- of the City Council to present a resolution to take over the Water District. Chair Castile asked him if he would allow the process to happen through the TWD Advisory Group. The Council agreed, wanting the Mayor to go through the Advisory Group process, and decided to write what they had heard to date, to include: (1)TWD would stay intact; (2)the employees wouldn't be jeopardized; and (3)TWD would have representation on a new Board. At the Advisory Group meeting yesterday, it was decided that those were things which needed more time to be looked at with legal counsel, and to have time for negotiations. When those things were taken out of the resolution, the things that were left were the items which were in the resolution presented. The resolution, to Ms. Castile, seemed to be non-threatening to the TWD Board except for the June 30, 1993 date, and that was put in just to assure them that we were moving in a forward direction, which is why they added"or as soon as the process allows." Commissioner Kvistad said he would be in favor of a resolution with a starting date for us getting involved in a process for discussing 190 agreements in good faith, but wouldn't vote for an agreement with a completion date of"June 30, 1993, or as soon as the process allows." The discussion continued. Commissioner Nicoli said he thought the June 30, 1993 date was like a threat, and he didn't like it. Administrative Director Chenelle suggested that the June 30 day be deleted, with the understanding that we are all working toward that--the concern is that we might not make it,that issues may come up and we want the opportunity to fully discuss our concerns. She said she thought it wouldn't be a major problem, as long as we were making a good faith effort, but the cities wouldn't want the June 30 date to stop the process. Chair Castile mentioned Exhibit B as a partial list of issues to be discussed. Hearing no more disucssion, a voice vote was called on the resolution to reschedule this item for the September or October meeting when there will be a fifth Commissioner appointed to the Board, and after the get a legal opinion of the resolution. 6 8/11/92 Minutes, Regular Meeting, Board of Commissioners Commissioners Yes No Abstain Audrey Castile X Jon Kvistad X Clarence Nicoli X Bob Wyffels X Without a majority vote, the resolution failed. A motion was made by Chair Castile to present the resolution as corrected, with the dates deleted, and (Exhibit A)from Section 4 be deleted. Commissioner Kvistad said he wants legal counsel to review the resolution. There was no second, and the motion died. A motion was made by Commissioner Kvistad to send the resolution for legal counsel review and schedule a vote on the resolution at the September or October meeting, whichever meeting has a fifth Commissioner. There was no second, and the motion died. The Board decided to continue discussing Item 5 in Executive Session, following the rest of the agenda. 6. Chair's Comments. A. Chair Castile asked about the budgetary impact of the effect of water restrictions. Administrative Director Chenelle said Staff hasn't yet projected costs or revenues, but just got usage figures for July. Staff has done some prioritization of present projects, and will present a report to the Board at its next meeting. B. With Metro,the subcommittee found that water is a regional issue and needed to be on the agenda. C. She understands the TWD picnic was a success. 7. Commissioners' Comments. A. Commissioner Kvistad commented on the quotes from Mayor Jerry Edwards in Robin Franzen's 8/2/92 article in The Oregonian. B. Commissioner Wyffels commented on the representation of the entire District on the Board-- that is hasn't been dominated by any one area. The Board is now actively seeking an applicant for Commissioner for the Board from Durham or King City. C. Commissioner Wyffels also thanked the TWD employees on their work during the stressful time of water restrictions. The Board supports them, and needs to make sure the Board's policy and direction are clear so it can be communicated to District patrons. D. The Commissioners praised the TWD mailer about water restrictions, saying they had heard many positive comments about it. Thanks went to Administrative Assistant Lorry Christian for coordinating the production and mailing. E. Chair Castile said she appreciates that every time she calls the Water District,the answering voices are cheery and pleasant. 8. Administrative Director's Report A. The Goldschmidt subcommittee on water and fire have made a preliminary recommendations *'w which will be finalized at a meeting on Wednesday. Recommendations include: 7 8/11/92 Minutes, Regular Meeting, Board of Commissioners (1) Consolidation: not a blanket decision to consolidate water services by county--that consolidations are occurring naturally, with regional water providers working together; and (2)Control: only the sourcing part of water should be decided regionally, that the retail sales part should be done locally. Commissioner Kvistad said he had attended 2 meetings recently with regional people thinking that planning and sourcing of water should be a Metro concern, and service should be done locally. B. TWD mailer on water restrictions was mailed recently. C. Status of Lake Oswego proposal--still nothing to report on our proposal, Lake Oswego hasn't responded. D. Board vacancy--we sent notices to the cities and the library. We have received two applications, and have the name of a third. Commissioner Kvistad suggested a subcommittee of 2 commissioners plus Administrative Director Chenelle to screen the applications. Chair Castile asked Commissioner Kvistad to chair the subcommittee, and Commissioner Nicoli said he would like to serve on the subcommittee also. The Commissioners agreed to have a special Board meeting on Tuesday, September 1 to select a Commissioner, and discuss the 190 Agreement. E. The State of Oregon has mandated that all water agencies serving more than 10,000 population prepare a water curtailment plan within 30 days, dealing with the current water situation, and other potential crisis situations. Mr. Miller is working on the plan, which will need to be coordinated with Lake Oswego's and Portland's. It will be ready to be presented to the Board itimpe to adopt at the September Board meeting. It will need to be revised as changes occur in the future. 9. Other Business John Haunsperger asked about landscaping for the High Tor reservoir site on the top of Bull Mountain. Superintendent Volk said landscaping was planned at that site for this fall along with the landscaping of the 10 MG reservoir site(after the construction of the new pumping station), but will make sure it is taken care of within a week or so. 10. At 9:50 p.m., Chair Castile adjourned the regular meeting and the Board, with Administrative Director Chenelle, went into executive session under the provisions of ORS 192.660 (1)(a), (e), and (h)to discuss employment of public officers and employees, real property transactions, and possible litigation. At 10:11 p.m., the Board came out of executive session and reconvened the regular meeting at 10:12 p.m. A motion was made by Commissioner Kvistad and seconded by Commissioner Wyffels to: (1)forward the resolution (regarding the 190 agreement)to legal counsel for an opinion; (2) then have the resolution be presented at the special Board meeting(prior to the regular Board meeting on September 8) for discussion; (3) so the resolution can be voted on at the September 8 Board meeting, when there will be a fifth Board member. Hearing no discussion, a voice vote was taken. The motion passed unanimously. Hearing no further business, the meeting adjourned at 10:14 p.m. 8