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4.2. SR 06-15-1998)ty of River TO: FROM: DATE: SUBJECT: Item #4.2. MEMORANDUM Mayor & City Council Pat Klaers, City Admi4~or June 15, 1998 Utilities Commission Update Councilmember John Dietz is our city representative on the Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission. At this June 15, 1998, City Council meeting, John is scheduled to provide the Council with an update on May and June Utilities activities. Attached for your review are the minutes from the May 19 and May 26, 1998, Utilities Commission meeting, a memo on underground versus overhead line construction, and the agenda from the June 9, 1998, Commission meeting (minutes from this meeting were not yet available). The next regular Commission meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, July 14, 1998, at 4:00 p.m. at the Utilities office. 13065 Orono Parkway · P.O. Box 490 · Elk River, MN 55330 · TDD & Phone: (612) 441-7420 · Fax: (612) 441-7425 ELK RIVER MUNCIPAL UTILITIES REGULAR MEETING OF THE ELK RIVER UTILITIES COMMISSION HELD AT THE ELK RIVER MUNICIPAL UTILITIES OFFICE MAY 19, 1998 Members Present: President, George Zabee; John Dietz, Trustee Members Absent: James Tralle, Vice Chairman Staff Present: Bryan Adams, General Manager; Glenn Sundeen, Line Superintendent; Robert McCartney, Water Superintendent; Patricia Hemza, Office Manager Others Present: Wade Lovelette, Line Foreman; Mark Fuchs, Lead Lineman 1. Call meeting to order at 4:00 P,M,, May 19. 1998 2. Consider Utilities Agenda John Dietz moved to approve the Utilities Agenda as presented, with the exception of Item 5.1, to be tabled until the June 9, 1998 meeting. The item is to Review and consider 1998/1999 Employee Wage & Benefit Requests. George Zabee seconded the motion. Motion carried 2-0. 3. *Consider Consent Agenda John Dietz moved to approve the Consent Agenda as follows: 4-14-98 Minutes 5-11-98 Joint City/Utility Meeting Minutes April Check Register Financials 5.2 Review and award contract to construct Well #6 Bids for the construction of Well #6 were received at 2:00 P.M., Friday, May 15, 1998. Results were presented to the Commission and discussed. John Dietz moved to accept the low bid from Alberg Water Services for the construction of Well #6, in the amount of $136,541.00. George Zabee seconded the motion. Motion carried 2-0. 5.3 Update Landfill Gas Generation Pro_iect and Otsego Substation Agreement Bryan Adams advised the Commission of the receipt of a proposed power purchase agreement from Power Strategies concerning the landfill gas generation project. The agreement is presently being reviewed by Ron Black. Page 2 Regular meeting of the Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission May 19, 1998 The final draft agreement between UPA/Wright-Hennepin/ERMU, concerning shared substation rights at the Otsego substation will be presented at the next ERMU meeting. The reasons for the agreement were discussed. 5.4 Up-date Power Ouality Program Bryan Adams presented devices manufactured by Leviton, through Border States for surge protection, along with brochures we can use to promote the products. Questions were asked and responded to concerning the operation of the devices, the reasons for the use and the marketing of them. George Zabee moved to offer the Power Quality and Surge Protection Program to our customers, and to order the brochures as presented. John Dietz seconded the motion. Motion carried 2-0. 5.5 Review Sprinkling Restrictions The present Water Sprinkling Restriction was discussed regarding the.necessity and reasons for the ban. Bryan Adams advised the Commission of the number of calls by ERMU customers. Most calls are from customers who understand the reasons for the restrictions, but are upset because it is not enforced. It was emphasized that this is a voluntary program, and emphasis is on education. Bryan Adams suggests that we design a door hanger to put on violator's homes to remind them of the restrictions. Staff also recommends that the sprinkling hours be changed to 10:00 A.M., rather than the present 8:00 A.M. This would give customers two more hours in the morning to water, yet still accomplish the desire to reduce peak day pumpage. John Dietz moved to extend the sprinkling hours from 8:00 A.M. to 10:00 A.M. George Zabee seconded the motion. Motion carried 2-0. 5.6 Items from Joint City-Utility_ meeting on 5-11-98 The Agenda from the joint meeting was discussed, with detail to Items 6 and 7. George Zabee moved to continue the current policy of transferring to the City, 3% of the gross Elk River Electric Sales. John Dietz seconded the motion. Motion carried 2-0. The Utility contribution to Watermain Lateral Projects was discussed. It is generally felt by Staff and the Commission that we should be funding some of these projects. It was noted that the extensions are not only to service customers applying for service, but also to loop watermains to improve water quality and improve fire flow. Page 3 Regular meeting of the Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission May 19, 1998 John Dietz moved to use Municipal Utility funds to finance the remainder of costs, not covered by assessments, for the construction ofwatermain for the Orono Lake Development. George Zabee seconded the motion. Motion carried 2-0. 6.1 Review and adopt side lot easement requirement The Water Department has a requirement to loop watermains, to ensure good water water quality and increase fire flow. Many new developments utilize cul-de-sacs, requiring the looped water mains to be located in side lot easements. Current set- back requirements are 5' feet from property line on garage side and 10' feet from property line on house side. These requirements do not allow enough distance between the water main and the house if a main should break. The result would be substantial damage to the house or structure. George Zabee moved to adopt a 40' easement, to ensure that no structure would be built closer than 20' from the water main. John Dietz seconded the motion. Motion carried 2-0. Staff is directed to write a memo to City Council advising the change. 6.2 Review Inspection Report for Freeport Water Tower The report of inspection of the Freeport Water Tower by KLM Engineering, Inc. was reviewed and discussed. Time frames for repairs and maintenance to the Tower were analyzed. Bryan Adams advised that it would take approximately ten weeks to do the job, with these repairs lasting approximately fifteen years. Specifications will be written this fall, for work to be done in the spring of 1999. John Dietz moved to receive and file the inspection report. George Zabee seconded the motion. Motion carried 2-0. Further discussion took place regarding the need for inspection of the Gary Street Tower. Qthcr Business John Dietz questioned the necessity of starting the re-locating of poles on School Street before the City has the easements from the School District. Staff is directed to check with the City and the City Engineer before moving poles. Page 4 Regular meeting of the Elk River Municipal Utility Commission May 19, 1998 Glenn Sundeen reported on the storm damage that occurred Friday evening, May 15, 1998. He reported that all services were on by 5:00 A.M., May 16, 1998, and that after a brief rest, our line crews reported to AEC to assist in their efforts to restore power. Glenn noted the eagerness with which our linemen responded to the outage. John Dietz moved to adjourn the May 19, 1998 meeting of the Elk River Utilities Commission. George Zabee seconded the motion. Motion carded 2-0. The May 19, 1998 meeting of the Elk River Utilities Commission adjourned at 5:35 P.M. The next regular scheduled meeting of the Elk River Utilities Commission will be on June 9, 1998 at 4:00 P.M. Respectfully submitted, Patricia Hemza Office Manager SPECIAL MEETING OF THE ELK RIVER MUNICIPAL UTILITIES COMMISSION HELD AT THE ELK RIVER MUNICIPAL UTILITIES OFFICES MAY 26, 1998 Members Present: President, George Zabee; Vice Chair, James Tralle; Trustee, John Dietz Others Present: Bryan Adams, General Manager; Glenn Sundeen, Line Superintendent, Patricia Hemza, Office Manager Call meeting to order at 4:00 P,M. May 26, 1998 The Special Meeting of the Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission was called to order at 4:00 P.M. for the purpose of executing documents concerning the Otsego sub- station. John Dietz moved to approve the Agenda. James Tralle seconded the motion. Motion carried 3-0. Details of the Distribution Interconnection Agreement were discussed, with response by Bryan Adams to a question by George Zabee. James Tralle moved approval of the Distribution Interconnection Agreement by and among Elk River Municipal Utilities and Wright-Hennepin Cooperative Electric Association and United Power Association. John Dietz seconded the motion. Motion passed 3-0. John Dietz moved approval of Supplement No. 3 to the Interconnection Agreement between Elk River Municipal Utilities and United Power Association. James Tralle seconded the motion. Motion carried 3-0. John Dietz moved to adjourn the Special Meeting of the Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission. James Tralle seconded the motion. Motion carried 3-0. The Special Meeting of the Elk River Municipal Utilities adjourned at 4:10 P.M. Respectfully submitted, Patricia Hemza Office Manager ELK RIVER MUNICIPAL UTILITIES 322 King Avenue Elk River, Minnesota 55330 Phone (612) 441-2020 Fax (612) 441-8099 To: Pat Klaers Elk River City Administrator June 4,1998 From: Bryan C. Adams General Manager, Elk River Municipal Utilities Subject: Underground vs. Overhead Electric Line Construction Pat, you asked about advantages/disadvantages of underground vs. overhead electric line construction. This was a general question in nature but asked in light of the pending School Street project. Elk River Municipal Utilities' unwritten policy is currently to construct all major electrical feeder overhead. Single or three phase taps off this major feeder will be constructed underground, where practical. This policy is not unlike many other utilities. The League of Minnesota Cities in their right-of- way model ordinance, recommend all utilities be placed underground. The advantage of underground electric line construction generally falls into three areas of aesthetics, minimizing damage from Ice, wind and tree trimming. The last two areas are highly related. Aesthetics are becoming more and more of an issue in all communities. Most people do not have the same affinity for overhead electric wires as us in the electric field. The out of sight out of mind mentality is becoming more popular that is understandable. Underground utility lines are less susceptible to damage from wind and ice storms, as we experienced in July 1997 and last week in the South Metro area. This causes a major inconvenience to businesses and resident until power is restored. The electric utilities response to preventing damage to overhead lines from wind and ice storms is to do a better job of trimming nearby trees. Tree trimming is an ongoing expense and often tends to irritate the property owner's whose trees are being trimmed. For your information, enclosed is a door hanger we give to customers before we start trimming trees in their area. This has greatly minimized the customer complaints. The advantages of overhead feeder construction fall into the areas of cost, ease of repair, timing of repairs, better sectionalizing capabilities and street lights. For major feeder lines it costs approximately 3 times as much (approximately $15/Ift for O.H. to $45/Ift for U.G.) to construct underground rather than overhead. The life of underground cable is 20 to 25 years where overhead life is approximately twice as long. It is much more difficult to repair underground cable. With overhead, you can generally see the problem. With underground, it is much more difficult to locate, dig it up and make repairs. Four months of the year, the ground is frozen and difficult to dig especially with other utilities (gas, telephone, cable TV) close by. Often with failed cable in the winter, a temporary overhead line is constructed or cable is temporarily laid on top of the frozen ground. What could be a 15 minute power outage in an overhead system can become a 2 to 3 day affair in an underground system. What causes underground cable to fail ? Nicked conductor from sharp rocks, gophers, installation equipment, third party dig-ins, over voltage stress from lightening, or breakdown of cable insulation or jacket. Gopher State One Calls helps prevent third party dig-ins, but it still happens too often. Mishandling of cable during installation from bending cable too much, stretching or nicking from dragging on street or over rough ground. Underground splices become critical. Any moistures permeating into the cable causes cable failures. Fusing electrical systems or sectionalizing is done to minimize the areas that are effected during a power outage and also identifies more accurately geographically where the trouble may be. Sectionalizing an underground system is much more difficult and much more expensive to do. ($50 for O.H. to $5,000 for U.G.) The fuse coordination is also more difficult. Underground systems will have more customers without power for longer periods of time. Problem from animal interference is about a toss-up. Gophers cause problems for underground systems as where raccoons, squirrels and large birds cause problems for overhead systems. Underground systems do not solve the entire aesthetic problem. Customers do not like transformers, junction boxes or fuse cabinets in the front yards or boulevards. Overhead electrical systems provide poles to attach Street Lights. Underground systems must use additional street light standards. A good case can be made that overhead systems are safer than underground systems. In overhead systems, the conductor and equipment are high in the air and are inaccessible. If a vehicle hits a pole and breaks it off, the fuses should de-energize the line in a matter of milliseconds. With an underground system, the equipment is more accessible to the public because it is on the ground and the fusing is not as good if a car runs into a transformer, junction box or fuse cabinet. Single phase or three phase taps of the main feeder line are generally buried. The cost disparity between underground and overhead decreases and approaches zero. The sectionalization problems are also minimized with an overhead fuse at the tap. The other arguments still apply. In general, overhead lines are less aesthetic, less costly, and more easily maintained and quicker to repair. In the case of School Street, this is a main feeder. If this line were to be put underground, all of the above arguments would apply. From an engineering perspective, it is not desirable to bury an electrical line with an overhead line attached on each side. Installation of lightening arrestors then becomes critical. Generally the cable will fail prematurely due to voltage stress from lightening. Sorry To Have Missed You- Your Trees Could Cause A Power Outage Dear Customer: During the past years, many of the electrical outages in the Elk River area have been attributed to interference between electrical distribution lines and the trees around them. These electrical outages can(~'~.e very disturbing to our cus- tomers as some of you may have experienced. Many of these electrical outages can be avoided if the trees around these elec- trical lines are properly trimmed. The Elk River Municipal Utilities or our contractors will be doing tree trimming at no cost to you, around these electrical lines. They are instructed to remove all limbs and brush within six feet of the wires and stay within the easement area. In a case where the branch that must be trimmed starts from another branch or tree trunk outside the easement line, the tree trimmers must trim this branch within the easement area unless hetshe has prior approval from you, the land owner. They are only authorized to trim the branches that could intedere with the elec- trical lines. Your trees may be trimmed in one of four ways, as shown ~elow. Top Side Trim V-out Remove We apologize for any inconvenience this tree trimming may cause you, as we are just trying to minimize the electrical outages to our customers. If you desire to have the logs from your tree, let the tree trimmers know and they will leave them for you. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact the tree trimming contrac- tor or the Elk River Municipal Utilities at 441-2020 by Contractor Name ITEM NUMBER ELK RIVER MUNICIPAL UTILITIES REGULAR MEETING OF THE UTILITIES COMMISSION AGENDA JUNE 9, 1998 Elk River Utilities Offices ACTION TAKEN 1. Call meeting to order at 3:00 P.M., June 9, 1998 2. Consider Utilities Agenda 3. *Approval of previous meeting minutes 4. *Check Register OLD BUSINESS 5.1 Review and consider 1998/1999 Employee Wage & Benefit Request (tabled from May 19, 1998 meeting) 5.2 Review Street Light Committee Recommendation NEW BUSINESS *Financials Other Business *Consent Agenda items are considered to be routine and will be approved by one motion.