INFORMATION #1 04-07-2008ELK RIVER MUNICIPAL UTILITIES
REGULAR MEETING OF THE
UTILITIES COMMISSION
HELD AT UTILITIES CONFERENCE ROOM
March 11, 2008
Members Present: Terry Takle, President; John Dietz, Vice Chair; Jerry Gumphrey, Trustee
Staff Present: Bryan Adams, General Manager; Glenn Sundeen, Line Superintendent;
David Berg, Water Superintendent;
Theresa Slominski, Finance Director/Office Manager;
Troy Adams, Engineering Manager; Judy McSpadden, Recording Clerk
1. Call meeting to order March 11, 2008
President Jerry Takle called the March 11, 2008, meeting to order.
2. Consider Ufilities Agenda
Bryan Adams added an item to discuss under Other Business. John Dietz moved to approve the
March 11, 2008, Utilities Agenda. Jerry Gumphrey seconded the motion.
Motion carried 3-0.
2a. Election of OfScers for 2008
At the March 3, 2008, City of Elk River Council meeting, john Dietz was appointed to replace
James Tralle. John Dietz moved to nominate Jerry Takle, President; Jeny Gumphrey moved to
nominate John Dietz, Vice Chair. Jerry Takle seconded the motion.
Motion carried 3-0.
3. Consider Consent Agenda
John Dietz had some questions on the financials and also questioned what the percentage was for
the CII' fund spending requirement. Staff responded at this time it is 1.5% of gross revenue. Jerry
Gumphrey moved to approve the Consent Agenda as follows:
February Check Register
February 12, 2008, Minutes
Financial Reports
John Dietz seconded the motion. Motion carved 3-0.
5.1 Staff Up-dates
Bryan Adams reported of the joint venture with Connexus to test a new LED street light. One
will be installed on the Orono dam bridge. At the recent MN Rural Water Association meetings,
water contamination in the flooded Rushford, MN area was discussed. It was discovered that several
abandoned wells were not sealed. Jerry Gumphrey asked why the water and electric usage is up.
Staff responded it was due to the Data Centers coming on line.
Theresa Slominski informed Commissioners that bill processing is now being done in house. A
new stuffing machine should be arriving soon along with a new printer capable of
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Regular meeting of the Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission
March 11, 2008
printing the numerous bills. John Dietz asked of the cost associated with purchasing new machines
and bringing the bills in house versus having them out-sourced. Staff responded. John Dietz also
asked if there were many bank pay customers and if thought was ever given to offer an incentive for
customers to sign up. Jerry Takle asked the status of the final bill from Billflash. Staff responded that
fmal payment has not been made. The barcode on the payment stub is still in the testing stages but
seems to be working well. Anew part time accountant started Monday and will be a great asset to the
Utilities.
David Berg informed of the progress of Well #9. A pumping test will be performed this week
and. the building contractor should be on site next week. Staff is checking irrigation meters prior to
them being installed this spring. John Dietz questioned the status of the customers who have not
hooked up to the Municipal water supply. Bryan Adams responded a list will be compiled and it will
be noted on the abstract of the property with the County. Prior to the property selling, the owner
would have to connect to the municipal water supply.
Troy Adams reported 13 security system sales for the month of February. Staff is converting
meters in apartment buildings to radio read. Water tie cards that diagram the water line to the
customers building in the past have been documented on a recipe card and put in a file. They will
now be scanned and documented on the computer for future use. Anew handheld reader was recently
purchased to cover an area that has had problems in the past with radio reads. The new handheld can
read this area without problems. John Dietz asked why security system sales are down. Troy
responded a lot of the systems are installed during home construction through another company in
joint venture with the builder. The monitoring fees of the other companies are higher. With the
advertising that is being done, more customers are transferring over to our services after their
monitoring contract runs out.
Glenn Sundeen said crews continue to trim trees along with addressing maintenance issues that
arise. USG recently performed an infrared study on our electrical lines and equipment. Some pictures
of their findings were reviewed. John Dietz asked how often this service is performed. Glenn
responded every three years. John Dietz also asked about the status of the street lights on the Hwy 10
corridor downtown. Staff responded they are scheduled to be installed by a contractor this year, and
the utility would change bulbs when needed.
Jerry Takle recently met with Steve McDonald, auditor for Abdo Eick & Meyers, LLP. A list of
information was shared with the commissioners.
5.2 Review Arc Flash Requirements
Approximately 20 years ago OSHA adopted 1910.269 which states clothes wom by linepersons
cannot make the injuries worse from arc flash. Arc flash is the light and heat energy given off in an
unintentional electrical contact between two energized conductors or an energized conductor and
ground.
Secfion 410 of the National Electric Safety Code (NESC) requires employers to do an arc flash
assessment by January 1, 2009. The employer shall require employees to wear clothing or a clothing
system that has an effective arc rating not less than the anticipated level of energy. NESC is more
focused on the primary electrical current, however, most incidents occur with the
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Regular meeting of the Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission
March 11, 2008
secondary current. John Dietz asked how often the arc flash incidents occur, Glenn responded, not
very often. Staff is in the process of compiling an arc flash assessment analysis.
6.1 Review Electric & Water System Mapping
Elk River Municipal Utilities water distribution system is below ground and approximately 70%
of the electric system is below ground also. Accurate mapping of the electric and water distribution
systems for operations and maintenance is critical. Abandoned electric and water lines will also have
to be located. Previously United Services Group documented and maintained our distribution maps.
Troy Adams has since brought the mapping in-house. Troy Adams presented the map books for the
electric and water distribution systems. Map books are currently printed for the crews to have with
them in the field. The future to mapping is in the Arcview and GPS programs via laptop computers.
The City of Ells River is currently utilizing this method. This method is costly but can be updated
daily on the laptops versus updating map books periodically.
6.2 Employee Compensation Survey
In April, employees typically make their compensation increase request. In preparation of this,
staff has surveyed the seven comparable adjoining electric utilities for position salaries. Does the
Commission have any other issues they would want surveyed? John Dietz requested a survey on the
health insurance percentage paid.
6.3 Review Options for Jackson Street Water Tower
The 2008 budget for the water department contains a $40,000 item to demolish the Jackson Street
tower. This same issue was discussed in 2002. The Heritage Preservation Commission appeared
before the Commission at that time to request a delay. The possibility of utilizing the tower for digital
communication to help pay for maintaining the tower delayed the need for demolition. Minor repairs
were done on this tower in 2003. In approximately 2004, communication antennas were placed on
this tower but the communication company folded and the final lease payments were never made.
Staffhas been marketing antenna placement but has been unsuccessful due to tower location and not
being tall enough. The deterioration of this tower is now an issue. The repairs would cost an
estimated $55,000 to $60,000 whereas the demolition would cost approximately $35,000. John Dietz
asked if the Historical Society has been notified of this, and if would they want to share in the
preservation costs. Staffresponded they have not contacted them as of yet, but will ask. Jerry
Gumphrey will address this at the next City Council workshop. Consensus is it would be too costly
for the Utilities to solely assume repairs and liability. If other contributors are willing to help, the
tower could be saved.
Other Business
Vivian Schmidt, a long time employee of 30 years, will be retiring the end of May 2008. Staff is in
the process of finding a replacement for this position. There will be promotions within the office
which will open up a position for clerk/receptionist. This hiring process will be started
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Regular meeting of the Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission
March 11, 2008
next week. John Dietz asked if the staff would be having retirement party in recognition of her years
of service. Staff responded, definitely.
The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission will be
Thursday, April 17, 2008.
President Terry Takle adjourned the regulaz meeting of the Elk River Municipal Utilities
Commission at 5:35 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Judy McSpadden
Recording Clerk
Bryan Adams
General Manager