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ERMUSR Misc Issues 07-11-2006~j Elk River ---~ Municip al Utilitie s 13069 Orono Parkway Elk River, MN 55330 July 6, 2006 To: Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission Jerry Takle Jim Tralle John Dietz From: Bryan Adams Subject: Miscellaneous Issues phone: 763.441.2020 Fax: 763.991.8099 Enclosed is the packet for the Tuesday. July 11, 2006 commission meeting at 4:OOpm. Our large electric projects continue to go well. Still a large concern is timing on energizing the Otsego Substation and Station 14 Substation by GRE. I will update you on this issue at our meeting. To date, the electric and water usages is up by 7.13% and 24.63% respectively. Staff has counted 17 commercial/industrial building or building additions under construction that are not yet taking power or water. The Target Data Center is in addition to this 17. Next year looks like another high growth year. Attached is the agenda for MMUA's annual meeting on August 14-16 at Arrovvwood Resort. I plan to attend unless this board desires otherwise. This is my last meeting as a board member of MMUA. Also Steve McDonald and I will be giving a presentation on embezzlement at your utility. As a final note, attached is a notification that the drinking water service connection fee is increasing from $5.21 to $6.36 annually. The electric rate study with R.W. Beck is well underway. We are scheduling a final report to this commission at the September meeting. We are also currently out for bids on two electric conductor projects in Otsego. They are the Co Rd 42 realignment and Great River Center of Otsego to accommodate Super Target and associate commercial development. These two projects will be awarded at the August meeting. /I/1/I/1/~.~~ MINNESOTA MUN/C/PAL 74TH ANNUAL SUMMER MEETING August 14-16, 2006 Arrowwood Resort & Conference Center Alexandria, Minnesota Mark your calendars for August 14-16, 2006! MMUAs 74th Annual Summer Meeting will be held at Arrowwood Resort & Conference Center in Alexandria, Minnesota. We will continue to follow the same format as the last few years. This year we will be having a bike ride as well as the golf tournament on Monday afternoon before the start of the meeting. You will have the option of coming in early to play golf or take a bike ride on the Central Lakes Trail before enjoying the evening BBQ. At the BBQ we will have musical entertainment by the Peter & Paul Wendinger Band from New Ulm, MN. Please take time to review all the information in this brochure. It contains everything you need to register with MMUA and Arrowwood Resort for the meeting and all of the activities. Arrowwood now has the "Big Splash Water Park". lour lodg- ing packet with Arrowwood contains 4 passes to the water park. Your kids will love it! We will have programs scheduled all da~~ on Tuesday and ~~ednesday morning. This year we are starting off Tuesday morning with our keynote speaker, Alan Richardson, President and CEO of American Public Power Association. Please refer to the program for our full slate of interesting speakers and topics. Specific questions or concerns regarding the Arrowwood room accommodations or packages, golf, bike ride or MMUA regis- trations should be directed to Bonnie at MMUA. Call I- 800-422-OI I9 (MN only or her direct dial number of 763- 746-0707. Please take special note of the deadlines. It is important to get your registrations sent in as soon as possible. Join us in Alexandria to help celebrate MMUA's 75th Anniversary. _ +~ t_ ~~ ;~ ~ ;~ r l p~ 4"LEA ~ `, ) ~`,Y t ~ 4 ~~ - _ ,~. _.... ,:fi:, Registration Form MMUA 74th Annual Summer Meeting August 14-16, 2006 Arrowwood Resort & Conference Center, Alexandria, MN Return completed registration form by July 28 to: MMUA Office 3025 Harbor Lane North, Suite 400 Plymouth, MN .55447-5142 Or fax to: 763-551-0459 Registration Fees: $195.00 Advance Registration fee on or before July 28 $230.00 Registration fee after July 28 and at the door Register the following person(s) for the 2006 MMUA Annual Summer Meeting: Name (as you'd like it on badge) Spouse's Name Name of Utility/Company Billing Address City State Zip Refund: A full refund (minus $25.00 processing fee) will be given on advance registrations if the MMUA office is notified by 4:30 p.m. on August 7. Enclosed/bill $ to cover Registrations at $195.00 each. (on or before July 28) Enclosed/bill $ to cover Registrations at $230.00 each. (after July 28) Bill Me Bill Utility/Company P. O. # Please register the following as individuals or as a scramble team. Incomplete foursomes will be filled in. Name/City/Co Name/City/Co 1 would like to golf with: Name/City/Co. Name/City/Co Please register the following individuals for one of the bike rides. Indicate if you will need a bike rental. Name/City/ Co. Name/City/ Co, Shorter/slower ride Shorter/slower ride Longer/faster ride Longer/faster ride Name/City/ Co. Shorter/slower ride Longer/faster ride Bike rental: Yes No Bike rental: Yes No Bike rental: Yes No 2006 MMUA Golf Tournament Date: Monday, August. I4 Location: Alexandria Golf Club 2300 N. Nokomis Street, Alexandria, MN Rc~istration: I2:00 to I:IS p.m. at MMUA table in Alexandria Golf Club Start time: L•30 p.m. (shot-bun startl Format: L3est Ba11 Scrarnble -Iournameut For people staying at Arrowwood: The cost of this tournament is included as part of your lodging package with Arrowwood. The golf cart fee will be added to your room charge if you play in the tournament. The last thing you must do is register yourself and~ot team on the MMUA registration form. hot people driving in for the tournament and not staying overnight. If you are not staying at Arrowwood, you will need to register for the "BBQ & Golf Package" section of the Arrowwood regis- tration form. The commuter cost for green fees, cart and BBQ will be $68.I7 per player. We ask that you register by July 28, 2006. Everyone will need to register as an individual or as a scramble team with MMUA on the MMUA registration form. You will also need to be registered for a lodging package or as a BBQ & golf package with Arrowwood on their registration form. Arrowwood will not allow walk-ins. You must be pre-registered! you do not need to attend the meeting in order to play in the tournament. The individual players you register will be assigned to a team. If you have someone you would like to play with, please note it on the reg- istration form and we will try to accommodate you. If you register yourself on a team be sure to talk with those people in advance to make sure they are not already registered on another team. Prizes will be awarded. Driving directions to the golf course are included in this packet. Please address any golf questions to Bonnie at I-800-422-OI I9 or 763-746-0707. MMUA Summer Meeting Bike Ride Date: Monday, August I4 Starting Location: Arrowwood west parking lot Registration: I2:00 to I:IS p.m. at MMUA table in Arrowwood lobby Start time: 1:30 p.m. We will be having two groups of riders. Group A will be led by AI Crowser, GM of Alexandria Utilities. His group will ride IO to IS miles and will be a nice easy ride. Group B will be lead by Scott Dietz, Planning & Operations Manager of Alexandria Utilities. His group will ride 20 to 25 miles and at a faster pace of I4 to I S miles per hour. You get to choose which ride fits you best. you will ride on the I4 foot wide, black topped, Central Lakes Trail which runs from Osakis to Fergus Falls. We will have bikes (with hehnets~ available for you to rent for $ I 5, or bring your own along. Please register in advance for the ride indicating which group and if you need a rental bike. We will have the rental bikes in t?~e west parking lot when you arrive for the ride. Please pay at registration for the bike rental. Tentative Pro ram August , 4-, 6, 2006 g Arrowwood Resort & Minnesota Municipal Utilities Association Conference Center 74th Annual Summer Meeting Alexandria, MN MONDAY, AUGUST 14 2:15-3:00 Pignon, Haiti Power Project Mike Callies, Heartland Engineering 9:00-12:30 Board of Directors Meeting 2:15-3:00 Embezzlement at your Utility? 12:00-1:15 Check-in at Alexandria Golf Club for Steven McDonald, Abdo, Eick & Meyers, LLP golf tournament 3:00-3:30 Refreshment Break 12:00-1:15 Check-in for Bike Ride at Arrowwood lobby 3:30-4:15 OO Plus Record Keeping System 1:30 Golf "Best Ball Scramble" Tournament Patrick Van Beek, Midwest Energy Association (Shot-gun Start) Alexandria Golf Club 3:30-4:15 State Tax Issues Affecting Municipal Utilities 1:30 Bike ride on Central Lakes Trail A representative from Eide Bailey (Meet at west parking lot) 4:15-5:00 Natural Gas Up-date and Roundtable 3:00-6:15 Registration Desk Open for Troy Dahlen, MMUA Conference Registration 4:15-5:00 Observations in Utility Governance 4:00 Hotel Check-in Don Habicht, Worthington Municipal Utilities 6:30-7:30 Welcome Reception -Front Lawn 6:30-7:30 Reception 7:30-9:00 Outdoor Bar-B-Due -Entertainment by 7:30-10:00 Banquet Peter & Paul Wendinger Band Entertainment -Mary Bowles, Comedian TUESDAY, AUGUST 15 WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 16 6:30-10:30 Breakfast served -Lake Cafe 6:30-10:30 Breakfast Served -Lake Cafe 7:45-5:00 Registration Desk Open (Regular & Affiliate Members only) 8:00-9:00 NIMS Training 8:00-8:15 Welcome and Opening Remarks Mike Willetts, MMUA Job Training & Safety Dir. 8:15-9:00 Public Power: Celebrating our History, 9:00-9:30 Legal & Regulatory Issues Preparing for our Future Kathleen Brennan, McGrann Shea Anderson Alan Richardson, President & CEO, Carnival Straughn & Lamb American Public Power Assoc. 9:30-10:00 Analysis & Recommendations Regarding 9:00-9:45 The National Scene Municipal CIP Projects Michael Nolan, MJN Consulting, Christie Brusven, MN Department of MMUA Washington Representative Commerce 9:45-10:15 Refreshment Break 10:00-10:30 Refreshment Break 10:15-11:00 Wholesale Market Changes and the Impact on Retail Rates, Dave Berg, Principal and Senior Director, R. W. Beck 11:15-12:00 Upper Midwest Hydrogen Initiative Rolf Nordstrom, Director, Upper Midwest Hydrogen Initiative, Great Plains Institute 12:00 Luncheon 1:30-2:15 Arc Flash Accidents Mike Willetts, Job Training & Safety Dir., MMUA 1:30-2:15 New Technologies for Municipal Utilities Dan Sturm, Rochester Public Utility Dan Pecarina, HBC 10:30-11:00 Issues Round-up Jack Kegel, MMUA Executive Director 11:00-11:30 State & Federal Legislative Developments Brad Roos, Govt. Relations Committee Chairman Greg Oxley, MMUA GovU Relations Director Bill Black, MMUA Government Relations Rep. Doug Carnival, Legislative Representative 11:30-12:00 Business Meeting 12:00 Hotel Check-out Congressman Mark Kennedy and Senate candidate Amy Klobuchar have both been invited to speak at this confer- ence. We are waiting for their response to our invitation. Do You Have E-mail/On-Line Access? If Not, We Need to Know The Minnesota Department of Health has mandated that newsletters can no longer be printed and mailed. However, exceptions may be made, and we need to hear from people who do not have this access and will continue to need a paper copy mailed to them.. We have also been making the Waterline available on-line and providing e-mail notification when a new issue is posted. Please fill this out and return to the address listed below. __ I do not have access to the on-line version of the Waterline and need a printed copy mailed to me. I would like to receive e-mail notification each time a new issue is put on line and would like to be taken off the mailing list for printed copies. _ I would like to receive e-mail notification each time a new issue is put on line but would like to remain on the mailing list for printed copies. E-mail address: Please print the name and address as it appears on the mailing label on your newsletter: Exam Refresher Format Is Changing By Cindy Cook and Mark Sloan MDH Certification Officers Effective immediately, we are changing the style of the classroom-style examination preparations. For the past several years, we have been teaching material out of the Study Guide to help prepare operators to take the exam. Often, operators have shown up at these sessions without any prior preparation or studying. It is expected that operators should be working toward their certification in advance of the exam. This will include studying and taking advantage of a multitude of exam-prep materials in the form of videos, CD-ROMs, online classes, and other trainers. Additionally, we have two training centers and remote exam sites at Ely and St. Cloud that have excellent teachers and programs. Exam schedules will not be reduced. However, different people may be doing the refresher sessions, which will be in a different format. The operators will be offered training but the new format will require the operator to be more responsible, more self-reliant, and it will instill in operators a sense of professionalism, thus making them better operators, people, and better able to protect public health and save the world! If anyone has questions, feel free to call or e-mail Cindy at 651-201-4696, Cindy.cook@health.state.rrul.us, or Mark Sloan at 651-201-4652, mark.sloan@health.state.mn.us. Survey Reveals Training Needs You may also clip or copy the mailing label and include it Return to: Stew Thornley Minnesota Department of Health P. O. Box 64975 St. Paul, Minnesota 55164-0975. $5.21 Fee to Become $6.36 Fee The Minnesota Legislature has approved an increase in the drinking water service connection fee from $5.21 to $6.36, effective July 1, 2006. The drinking water service connection fee was established in 1993 to help fund program activities related to compliance with the federal Safe Drinking Water Act. These activities include sanitary surveys, sample collection and analysis, compliance determination, wellhead protection, enforcement, and various technical assistance services. The fee had not changed since it was established in 1993; however, new federal Safe Drinking Water regulations have continued to be implemented. Program expenses were exceeding the revenue generated by the fee, and in order to continue providing the services necessary to help water utilities remain in compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act, an increase in the fee was needed. Utilities are advised to inform the people that handle their customer billing about this change. Those with questions may contact Doug Mandy at the Minnesota Department of Health at 651-201-4647. Minnesota American Water Works Association (AWWA) conducted a training needs survey this past summer. Surveys were sent to 731 superintendents of municipal water systems in the state; 215 were filled out and returned (better than a 25 percent return rate, which is very good). From the survey, the section learned that there is a desire for more training, including stand-alone workshops (apart from the normal district schools held within the section each year), with the most sought-after topics being basic water treatment, wells, filters, hydrants, sampling/testing, pumps, OSHA regulations, and maps and records. The Minnesota Section Education Committee discussed this in October, and it will be brought up at the next meeting of the Minnesota Training Coalition. Meanwhile, individual districts within Minnesota AWWA are using the survey to help plan their schools. Here are the upcoming Minnesota AWWA schools for the spring of 2006: • Southeast School, Ramada Hotel and Conference Center, Rochester, March 29-31. • Southwest School, Wells, April 4. • Metro School, Ramada Inn and Thunderbird Convention Center, Bloomington, Apri15-7. • Northeast School, Ruttger's Sugar Lake Lodge, Grand Rapids, April 26-28. • Central School, Ruttger's Bay Lake Lodge, Deerwood, June 6-9.