minutes

Regular Meeting

Governing Board of Sweetwater Authority

March 9, 2005

The Governing Board of Sweetwater Authority held a regular meeting on Wednesday, March 9, 2005, at the Sweetwater Authority Administrative Office, 505 Garrett Avenue, Chula Vista, California. Chair Pocklington called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.

ROLL CALL

Directors Present: Alkire, Beauchamp, Doud, Inzunza, Pocklington, Salas and Welsh.

Directors Absent: None.

Others Present: General Manager Bostad, Operations Manager Rogers, Legal Counsel Cowett, Treasurer Avery, and Board Secretary Farpón. Staff members, Debra Farrow, Hank Gaus, Bill Olson, George Silva, Jim Smyth, Don Thomson, and Tom Woodrum.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG

Director Beauchamp conducted the pledge of allegiance to the flag.

OPPORTUNITY FOR PUBLIC COMMENT (Government Code Section (54954.3)

There were no members of the public present for comment.

CHAIR ’S PRESENTATION

There was none.

ACTION CALENDAR ITEMS

ITEMS TO BE ADDED, WITHDRAWN, OR REORDERED IN THE AGENDA

Director Welsh made a motion, seconded by Director Doud, that a request for attendance approval at the Chula Vista Citizens Advisory Committee meeting for the Chula Vista Bayfront on March 10, 2005, be added to the agenda as item 8.C. The motion carried.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Director Alkire made a motion, seconded by Director Salas, that the Board approve the minutes of February 23, 2005. The motion carried with Director Beauchamp abstaining due to his absence from that meeting.

APPROVAL OF DEMANDS AND WARRANTS

Director Doud made a motion, seconded by Director Beauchamp, that the Governing Board approve Warrants 98856 through 99100 including all voided checks. The motion carried.

COMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE (Meeting of February 28, 2005)

Discussion and review of new customer bill draft. This was an information item and no action was required by the Governing Board.

Follow-up discussion and review of proposed 2005 fleet sign campaign ads. This was an information item and no action was required by the Governing Board.

Discussion regarding additional street signs at Garrett Avenue location. This was an information item and no action was required by the Governing Board.

Information Items, update on the Leader Tours, habitat conservation ad, landscape contest information, other items prepared for public information distribution, and update on major projects. This was an information item and no action was required by the Governing Board.

OPERATIONS COMMITTEE (Meeting of March 2, 2005)

Director Doud made a motion, seconded by Director Inzunza, that the Governing Board direct staff to review the Vulnerability Assessment Report and bring this item back to a future Operations Committee meeting for further discussion. The motion carried.

Director Doud made a motion, seconded by Director Pocklington, that the Governing Board approve the abandonment of the Powder Building, since any effort at this point is futile. Staff will determine if railroad rails have any significant historical value to the City and the Bonita Historical Museum. The motion carried.

Discussion of field trip for Comisión Estatal de Servicios Públicos de Tijuana. This was an information item and no action was required by the Governing Board.

FINANCE AND PERSONNEL COMMITTEE (Meeting of March 7, 2005)

Proposed intern program partnership with Sweetwater Union High School District Alternative Education – Presentation by Tony McIntosh, President, RAM Consulting. This was an information item and no action was required by the Governing Board.

Director Alkire made a motion, seconded by Director Doud, that the Governing Board approve the upgrade of the Jr. Accountant position to Jr. Accountant/Purchasing by adding supervisory duties and adjusting the salary range from 15.0 to 16.5 with a fiscal impact of $1,722.The motion carried.

Credit Card Bill Payments: After a motion by Director Alkire, seconded by Director Beauchamp, to approve the credit card bill payments offer to ratepayers by partnering with Official Payments Corporation at no cost to Sweetwater Authority, the members of the Board engaged in a discussion. Director Salas asked if this is a U.S. based company and/or if it utilizes offshore workforce. Staff will enquire further and bring this item back to the Finance Committee for a final decision. The motion was withdrawn.

Director Alkire made a motion, seconded by Director Doud, that the Governing Board authorize the purchase of Software Assurance for a three-year period with three annual payments of $13,890, and that funding in the amount of $11,890 be made available from the Unallocated Reserve Fund to cover the budget shortfall for the current year. The motion carried.

ADOPTION OF RESOLUTIONS

Upon a motion made by Director Welsh, seconded by Director Doud, the following Resolutions:

RESOLUTION 05-02

CONCURRING IN THE NOMINATION OF CHARLES MUSE TO THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE ASSOCIATION OF CALIFORNIA WATER AGENCIES JOINT POWERS INSURANCE AUTHORITY (”ACWA/JPIA”)

RESOLUTION 05-03

CONCURRING IN THE NOMINATION OF MARY GIBSON TO THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE ASSOCIATION OF CALIFORNIA WATER AGENCIES JOINT POWERS INSURANCE AUTHORITY (”ACWA/JPIA”)

were passed and adopted by the following vote, to wit:

Ayes: Directors Alkire, Beauchamp, Doud, Inzunza, Pocklington, Salas and Welsh
Noes: None
Absent: None
Abstain: None

APPROVAL OF DIRECTORS’ ATTENDANCE AT MEETINGS AND FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS

Council of Water Utilities – San Diego County Meeting at StoneRidge Country Club – Tuesday, March 15, 2005 – 7:15 – 8:45 a.m. All directors with the exception of directors Pocklington and Salas will attend this pre-approved event. No action was required by the Governing Board.

Request for approval of accommodation expenses for Director Doud exceeding the limit authorized by Board Policy 510 – Per Diem and Reimbursement, to attend the ACWA Legislative Symposium on March 29, 2005:

Staff reported that the block of rooms reserved at the Hyatt Regency for the ACWA event had been booked since the beginning of the month, and the regular rate for a room is $267. Staff presented an alternative of staying at another hotel, the Best Western Sutter House, at the rate of $127.50. It was agreed that Director Doud would stay at the Best Western Sutter House the night of March 28th.

Citizens Advisory Committee Meeting on Chula Vista Bay Front – March 10, 2005 – 4:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. Director Welsh made a motion, seconded by Director Alkire, that the Governing Board approve per diem for directors who wish to attend this event. The motion carried.

REPORT OF TREASURER – WANDA AVERY

Ms. Avery reported that the interest rate at the Local Agency Investment Fund (LAIF) is 2.53 percent.

BUDGET REPORT – DIRECTOR OF FINANCE GAUS
Report as of January 31, 2005

Mr. Gaus reported that the Water Sales are down by $867,000 in part due to the recent rains. Other Income is under budget by $144,000. Mr. Gaus stated that he is not concerned about this shortfall at this time since we will be getting funds for storage assessment and runoff protection fees. The Interest Income is $142,935 above the projections, due to the interest rate being 2.3 percent instead of the estimated one percent. Net Income is $200,000 over budget year to date. The Capital Projects are $400,000 less than what was projected because we estimated an expense of 50 percent for Capital Projects at this time, and we have spent 31 percent.

MANAGEMENT REPORT

Report of Operations Manager Rogers: Operations Manager Rogers gave a brief update on the reservoir conditions. Loveland Reservoir is at 88.4 percent capacity and Sweetwater Reservoir is at 83 percent. The difference between the current level at Loveland Reservoir and the total capacity is about 2,900 acre-feet. We released 3,625 acre feet out of Loveland during an eight-day period, which means Loveland Reservoir would have spilled if we had not released the water. Water is still coming in through Descanso at about 50 cubic feet per second. That puts about 200 acre-feet of water into the reservoir every day. The most recent weather report forecasts some storms on Tuesday and Wednesday. If these storms drop about three-quarters of an inch, like the last storm did, the reservoirs could get about another 1,000 acre-feet.

Mr. Rogers briefly reported about an incident last night regarding the searching for a man who had disappeared from a retirement home around Sweetwater Reservoir on the 24th. Last night at about 6:00 p.m., Director of Water Quality Thomson informed him that the body had been found on adjacent Caltrans property, and the authorities were on Sweetwater property for about three hours.

Report of General Manager Bostad: Mr. Bostad advised the board that he is working with staff on a technical advisory committee at the CWA for drought allocation planning. He believes this is an important effort and he will report back to the board on the progress.

He informed the Board that he will be in Florida for one week as of tomorrow and asked them to contact Operations Manager Rogers if anything is needed.

DIRECTORS’ COMMENTS

Director Beauchamp commented that he was absent the last meeting because he was in Albuquerque attending the WESTCAS Winter conference. He said that Senator Pete Domenici was there. Senator Domenici has a couple of bills in Sacramento regarding trans-border aquifers. Director Beauchamp thinks Domenici is well informed but will not make another term because of his health. He also commented on arsenic rules and some new rules on selenium. He brought a DVD provided by the Los Alamos Lab that he said has excellent graphics and shows a visualization of groundwater. It has an actual recording of a camera going down a well borehole and getting in and underneath the water. He added that it was a very interesting conference.

Director Beauchamp also talked about an endangered species of fish called the silvery minnow. There used to be five species in the Rio Grande and now there is only one left. They are trying to keep the water flowing in the river so this endangered species can have a habitat. There is a facility where they raise them, tag them, and then release them in the river where they live for two or three years. This is a two or three million dollar a year project.

Director Salas said that she made an announcement Friday morning at the First Friday Breakfast that she will run for the 79th Assembly District and, so far as she knows, there are no other candidates who have announced their intentions to run. She assured everyone that for so long as she is here, she will continue to dedicate all her time and commitment to the service of the Sweetwater Authority and South Bay Irrigation District. She wanted to assure staff and her fellow board members that she has campaigned in the past and she will make sure that whatever campaigning there is that it stays outside the Sweetwater Authority door. She said she will be here at least until the end of 2006. She wanted to assure everyone that her commitment to this board is strong. She added that when the Board interviewed her during the appointment process, this was one of the questions asked and she answered truthfully at that time that she didn’t know what her plans were. She appreciates the vote of the board to appoint her, knowing that she might decide to run for election office, and she will continue to serve with her talents and time.

Director Alkire said he had breakfast with former Director Reynolds Sunday. He had been in the emergency room with what they thought to be a heart problem. Fortunately, it was only a bad cold that caused chest pain when he coughed.

Director Pocklington announced that the South Bay Irrigation District Board meeting on the 21st would be at 3:00 p.m., instead of 3:30 p.m.

CLOSED SESSION

There was no need for one.

ADJOURNMENT

With no further business before the Board, Chair Pocklington adjourned the meeting at 6:51 p.m., to the hour of 3:30 p.m. on March 23, 2005.