CRANE LAKE WATER & SANITARY DISTRICT (CLWSD)

BOARD OF MANAGERS’ REGULAR MEETING

October 4, 2006 – 7:30 P.M.

CRANE LAKE CHAPEL FELLOWSHIP HALL

The meeting was called to order by Vice-Chairman Darrell Scott at 7:30P.M.

Members present:  Managers Dave Adams, Harvey Parvi, and Darrell Scott.

Members absent:  Bill Congdon and Rob Scott

Also present: John Jamnick of RLK-Kuusisto, Ken Winkler and Jim Pohlman of NTS, Laurie Brown of the U of M Extension Service, Clerk/Treasurer Jo Ann Pohlman, reporters from the Cook News-Herald, Timberjay and Voyageur Sentinel, and 10 members of the community.

BUSINESS:

A motion was made by H. Parvi, supported by D. Adams, to approve the minutes of the Regular Meeting of August 2, 2006. All voted in favor and the motion carried.

The correspondence was presented to the Board.

Clerk/Treasurer J. Pohlman presented the Financial Statements for July and August 2006 as reviewed by the Glorvigen Accounting Firm.  Glorvigen hopes to complete the audit by the next meeting.  Audits will be required by Rural Development until the debt is retired; audit requirements will decrease when the debt is below $1,000,000.  Expected expense for the audits will be $5,000 per year; $1,000 for Operations and $4,000 for the District. That rate is a decrease from $7,500 for the past two years.  There was a request for more extensive financial reports at each meeting.  The Accounting Firm felt the reports presented were adequate.  Additional reports could be requested at 25 cents per copy plus the clerk’s time to compile the information and the accountant’s time to review. No action was taken by the Board to change the reports presented at each meeting. The following items were pointed out on the July-August Financial Statements: Balance Sheet – Accounts Payable is high due to an invoice submitted to the insurance adjuster. P & L – $3,500 audit fee was reclassified as an Operations expense rather than Admin; a class will be created to track ESA expenses; clerical services will be divided between Admin. and Operating expenses. Invoices on Hand were presented for payment as follows: Administrative: Quill – $107.49; Midwest Captions – $170.00; Glorvigen – $1,900.00; Fryberger – $1,272.69; LMCIT – $1,544.00; and League of MN Cities – $1,306.00  Plant Operations:  Lake Country Power – $38.50, $346.69, $256.38 & $40.74; Hawkins – $1,635.26 & $1,063.02; NTS – $4,219.75 & $3,581.75; MNCIT – $1,755.00; Quality Flow – $510.00; and Anderson Outfitters – $8.98 & $605.00. Flood:  NTS – $4,035.00 and Nelson-Collie Electric – $78,761.00.  Gold Coast Project:  RLK – $4,355.00 & $3,497.50; and Nelson-Collie Electric – $12,719.00. A motion was made by D. Adams, supported by H. Parvi, to approve the Treasurer’s Report as presented and the payment of bills minus the Midwest Captions bill for $170.00.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.

Budget/Levy:  A motion was made by H. Parvi, supported by D. Adams, to approve the levy amount of $56,000 for the year 2006, payable 2007 to be sent to the St. Louis County Auditor on October 5, 2006.  All voted in favor and the motion carried. It was noted that the levy amount may be increased or decreased prior to December 15, 2006.

Administration

• I.S.T.S. Grant:  D. Adams reported that he was currently working on the issue with Jim Anderson of the MPCA.  Mr. Anderson is looking into the recent request for reimbursement by Jerry Esget for his portion of a cluster system recently constructed near the Crane LakeNarrows.
• Emergency Response Plan:  R. Scott has reviewed the Plan and will complete the final review with the assistance of NTS and RLK before submittal.
• Insurance Coverage:

Liability Coverage Waiver Form: A motion was made by H. Parvi, supported by D. Adams, to approve signature of the  LMCIT liability       coverage waiver form stating the District does not waive the monetary limits on municipal tort liability established by Minnesota Statutes 466.04 as recommended by Fryberger law firm.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.

Liability Insurance Increase:  A motion was made by D. Adams, supported by H. Parvi, to increase the District’s liability coverage by $1,000,000 as the District is liable for double the statutory limits of damage because it handles hazardous wastes, as recommended by Fryberger law firm.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.  This will be an increased Operating expense of $1,500.00.

CLWSD Meeting Minutes – October 4, 2006

Administration (cont.)

• Clean Air Act Grant:  J. Jamnick explained that the application submitted by the District was acknowledged by the MPCA.  Word was received from the MPCA that the ‘new project’ applications (priority) would be using all the appropriated funds, leaving none for the ‘reimbursement’ type projects.  A motion was made by H. Parvi, supported by D. Adams, to approve Rob Scott drafting a letter to MN Rep. Dill and Senator Bakk, and U.S. Rep. Oberstar requesting their assistance in appropriating additional money for the grant fund.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.
• Accounting Procedures:  The Board discussed late payment fees and requested that the Clerk research flat fee versus percentage options.  A motion was made by D. Adams, supported by H. Parvi, to approve the procedure presented by Fryberger law firm to send a letter to accounts with past due balances of six months  The letter would serve notice of over due amount, advising of their right to contest the determination of the over due account, and the District’s certification of any unpaid charges and related expenses to the St. Louis County Auditor to be added to taxes against that property to be collected as other taxes are collected. An annual 6% interest rate may be added by the District to unpaid balances.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.  A motion was made by H. Parvi, supported by D. Adams, to send a ‘Delinquent Sewer Service Payment letter’ to Voyageur Lakes Development.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.
• Bank Signature Approval:  Tabled until next meeting as two Board members present would need to abstain from voting.
• Web Host:  A motion was made by H. Parvi, supported by D. Adams, to award web hosting to Lutefisk Technologies.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.
• Capital Asset Plan:  The Glorvigen accounting firm is currently reviewing the plan and will submit with the completed 2005 audit.
• Nov. Meeting Date:  A motion was made by H. Parvi, supported by D. Adams, to move the November meeting date from November 1 to November 8, 2006.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.

Ordinance Changes

• All ordinance issues were tabled until the November meeting.

Eastern Service Area

• Advisory Committee Report:  Jim Bonner spoke on behalf of the Committee, presenting an Activity Report and Recommendation letter to the Board.  Jim recognized all the volunteers; Steve Hutt, Bob Kaiser, Harvey Parvi, Nancy Parvi, Bill Paulsen, Jeff Sanborn, and himself; and U of M. Extension Service Representative Laurie Brown, thanking them for their work. Mr. Bonner explained that the letter was two-part. Phase one was gathering information, which included committee meetings, meetings with area associations, a meeting with St. Louis County representatives, a meeting with USFS representatives, distribution of a survey letter, and visiting sites to observe the various systems.  Phase two was the final summary recommendation, which included on-site treatment should be the primary plan for the ESA with a combination of ISTS and cluster systems; all existing ISTS would be compliant as defined by St. Louis County Ordinance 55 or a CLWSD Management Ordinance by 2010; a maintenance plan would be submitted by each property owner; the CLWSD would monitor all ESA maintenance plans for compliance; individual property owners would be responsible to perform activities outlined in their maintenance plans; fees would be established for CLWSD maintenance plan record keeping or performance of maintenance; the CLWSD should establish a written agreement with the USFS defining roles and responsibilities; additional committee work would be required for fee structure, non-compliance, etc.; holding tanks and barging should be considered where property restrictions warrant; the CLWSD should consider contract bids for certification services, barging, additional plant improvements if necessary; adopt fee structures as soon as possible; and develop a program to educate and communicate with the ESA regarding these recommendations.  The Board thanked Mr. Bonner for his presentation and thanked the Committee for their hard work and for producing all the information for the Board’s consideration.  It was pointed out that the East Bay area of the ESA was under a time constraint for compliance.
• Laurie Brown stated that the Committee was a great group to work with and hoped that the Board would consider their recommendations.  She stated that the basic premise of their recommendation was on-site systems with a management component.  She mentioned that there was still a considerable amount of work to be done and recommended that the same committee group be considered.
• A question of cost was raised.  The recommendations reflect what the committee believes is the most cost effective solution for the Easter Service Area.

 CLWSD Meeting Minutes – October 4, 2006

RLK/NTS – Treatment Plant Update and Corrective Actions

·         Corrective action and improvements were completed in August.

• Two items need minor correction; the heaters and the floor valve that senses when water is present.

·         RLK & NTS have tested the new equipment and advise that the plant is in automatic operation.

RLK-Project Close-out

• Punch List Items: Establishment of turf growth and placement of a property pin remain on the punch list. Other items added after the punch list was established will not be considered by Wagner.  Payment to Wagner will be reduced to accommodate the remaining punch list items.  Dave Beckman submitted a letter to the Board regarding a watershed problem on Bayside Drive that has been occurring since the placement of the grinder station on the Lutz property.  Board Manager David Adams will correct the existing problem.
• Wagner Final Pay Estimate:  A motion was made by D. Adams, supported by D. Scott, to approve Rob Scott’s signing of Final Payment Estimate No. 17 for the Wastewater Collection System in the amount of $78,583.13 to Wagner Construction.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.
• Change Order:  A motion was made by H. Parvi, supported by D. Adams, to approve Rob Scott’s signing of Change Order No. 7, a compensating change order which is an adjustment to the final quantities installed in the field decreasing the contract amount by $226,103.01 for the Wastewater Collection System.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.
• Certificate of Final Approval:  A motion was made by H. Parvi, supported by D. Adams, to approve Rob Scott’s signing of the USDA-Rural Development 1780, Guide 8 – Certificate of Final Approval for the Wastewater Collection System.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.
• Rural Development Inspection Report: A motion was made by H. Parvi, supported by D. Scott, to sign the Rural Development Inspection Report.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.
• Estimate of Funds Needed:  A motion was made by D. Adams, supported by H. Parvi, to approve Rob Scott’s signing of Form FmHA 440-11 Estimate of Funds Needed amounting to $88,149.91.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.
• Finance Meeting Report:  A finance meeting was held on August 22, 2006 at the Fellowship Hall to discuss the WSA project finances.  John Jamnick requested that another finance meeting be scheduled. No date was set.
• Final Close-out:  J. Jamnick stated that there are some final items that need to be completed before the final closeout of the project.  One item is the O & M Manual that needs to be adjusted to include the recent plant modifications and approved by the MPCA.

RLK – Ongoing System Modifications

• John Bjorlin:  Mr. Bjorlin sent photographs of his connections to RLK for approval prior to backfilling.   RLK approved the connections.
• Voyageur Lakes Development/Lake Shore Estates:  J. Jamnick met with the contractor/developer on site two months ago. Mr. Jamnick requested that a wastewater plan be submitted. No response has been received.  There will be no hookups to the system until after the requested communication is received and resolved.

NTS Status Report

• K. Winkler reported that the plant was operated throughout September in automatic mode. Effluent quality steadily improved with all effluent samples meeting effluent standards including total phosphorus in September.  Transfer of sludge and biosolids to the Virginia Wastewater Treatment Plant began at the end of September. Some ponding in the sand filter was experienced in late August.  Work to flush the distribution laterals was started in September and will be completed in October.  Pump down and cleaning of the recirculation dosing tank of sludge buildup from manual operation will be done.
• Elevated IPS Pump Readings:  A crack was discovered in the basin at the DeFries property.
• MPCA Required Operations & Maintenance Manual: The Preliminary O&M Manual has been submitted to the MPCA for review.  NTS is reviewing the manual and will submit comments to RLK. The revised final O&M Manual will include the treatment plant upgrades.
• Treatment Plant Storage Requirements:  K. Winkler and J. Pohlman expressed the need for a storage building near the plant for chemicals and equipment.  The Board will consider potential solutions in the spring.
• GPS Unit & Suction Hose:  NTS requested a GPS Unit to locate manholes, curb stops, and pump stations in the winter. They also requested a new suction hose.  A motion was made by D. Adams, supported by H. Parvi to approve purchase of both a GPS Unit and a suction hose for an amount up to $400.  All approved and the motion carried.

CLWSD Meeting Minutes – October 4, 2006

NTS Status Report (Cont.)

• Winterizations:  The plant is being winterized.  A motion was made by H. Parvi, supported by D. Adams, that a letter be sent with the next billing reminding everyone of winterization procedure for the individual grinder pumps and suggesting that Jim could be contacted for help at a fee of $50.  NTS provided this service the first year.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.

EFG – Report

• Stahnke/Eggen Service Connection:  A letter was sent on 8/26/06 requesting a response as to the intention to abandon and connect.  No response has been received.  Phone calls will be made by the Clerk.
• Special Assessment Adjustments:

Stahnke/Eggen:  EFG has been contacted to look into this Assessment.  A response has been received but no action has been taken.

A. McKie:  Mr. McKie’s property was not included in the original assessments and therefore must be added.  A motion was made by D.     Adams, supported by H. Parvi, to adopt Resolution No. 2006-0 accepting a special assessment on Parcel No. 308-0030-03537 in the amount of $6,316.83 to be paid in equal annual installments over a period of 27 years, or paid in full prior to November 15^th of any given year.  All voted in favor and the motion carried.  Chairman Scott will write a letter to Mr. McKie explaining this procedure.

R. Scott:  A motion was made by H. Parvi, supported by D. Adams, to reimburse Rob Scott for taxes paid in the amount of $415.20 in 2004 on a special assessment that was removed from Parcel No. 308-00150- 00163. All voted in favor and the motion carried.

PUBLIC COMMENT (5 Minute Limit)

Mike White referred to the close out of the project stating that the Chapel had freezing problems in 05 and 06 and there is a good chance that will continue.

Paul Hamblin stated that he thought late fees had been approved at the previous meeting.  Paul also stated that the Board had provided more extensive financial statements at each meeting in the past; further stating that a budget comparison is a good working tool for the Board.  Paul also stated his concern regarding the Lake Shore Development property as they have placed sewer pipes in the ground, which could relate to gravity flow rather than the current low-pressure installations.  J. Jamnick responded that he had not seen their plans, which have been requested.

The meeting was adjourned at 10:00PM

J. Pohlman, Clerk

NEXT MEETING:  REGULAR MEETING, NOVEMER 8, 2006, 7:30PM, CRANE LAKE CHAPEL FELLOWSHIP HALL

This draft of the CLWSD minutes has been posted solely for preliminary informational purposes.  Minutes are unofficial and subject to change until they have been approved by the CLWSD Board of Managers.