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09012010CouncilMinutes-SPECIAL WS IBSD DRAFT CITY OF AMMON AND IONA BONNEVILLE SEWER DISTRICT (IBSD) SPECIAL BOARD MEETING SEPTEMBER 1, 2010 AGENDA: CITY OF AMMON AND IONA BONNEVILLE SEWER DISTRICT (IBSD) SPECIAL BOARD MEETING 3395 East Leihm Lane, Idaho Falls, Idaho Wednesday, September 1, 2010 SPECIAL MEETING 1. Work meeting with City of Ammon – IBSD/Ammon Separation 2. Adjournment MINUTES The meeting was called to order by IBSD Chairman John Price at 4:30 p.m. at IBSD headquarters located on Leihm Lane. City Officials Present: Mayor Steve Fuhriman Councilmember Dana Kirkham Councilmember Lee Bean Councilmember Rex Thompson Councilmember Brian Powell Councilmember Sean Coletti Councilmember Russell Slack City Clerk Leslie Folsom City Engineer Lance Bates Board Members Present: Chairman John Price Mike Klingler Jason Blundell Glen Clark Kelly Howell Cindy Wellman, Manager IBSD Attorney Tony Sasser Public Present : Kevin Harris, Forsgren and Associates Les Grigg, Merrill Lynch Robert Esplin, IBSD patron Ray Ellis, Ammon patron Meeting minutes: For additional information, please reference the meeting recording. AGENDA ITEMS: 1. WORK MEETING WITH CITY OF AMMON – IBSD/AMMON SEPARATION: Mr. Price called the meeting to order by stating the IBSD Board had a quorum, but would not be making any decisions as this is a work meeting. The City of Ammon was invited to address the separation at Ross Avenue where the lines overlap & intertwine and see how this can be handled. Mr. Bates has met previously with IBSD to present ideas for separation, as did Forsgren Engineering who has reported what is physically required to separate and presented several options. Mr. Price would like to find an equitable way to separate the IBSD patrons now feeding into Ammon’s lines. He suggested attendees brainstorm to come up with ideas. City of Ammon/IBSD Special Board Meeting 09-01-2010 Page 1 of 3 DRAFT Councilmember Kirkham asked if Mr. Price had a proposal. He stated he preferred swapping those patrons with Ammon that will suit each party’s needs, handle the flows and make it easier and simpler for both entities. Councilmember Kirkham stated we are a municipality and when a property annexes in, that property receives our services. You are a District, so if we were to swap patrons, what would an IBSD customer need to do to de-annex and become an Ammon customer? Mr. Price stated his understanding is that to de-annex, you would need a passing vote of the supermajority. Councilmember Kirkham asked if IBSD is willing to pay the expense for an election. He would like to come up with a plan that makes it attractive to patrons to switch. Mr. Clark noted the cost could exceed $1.5 million to retain customers and this would be passed to patrons, if they elected to stay with IBSD. Councilmember Thompson asked if that would be shared with everyone in the district. Mr. Clark said no. Mr. Price stated another option would be to create a Limited Improvement District (LID) to pay the expense over a period of time. Mr. Klingler stated another option is to not swap or physically separate, but adjust the fee structure to Ammon’s rate plus IBSD’s administrative fee and continue to pay Ammon. It may be the cost to patrons is more than Ammon’s fee, so Patrons might as well go with Ammon. Mr. Harris referred to the System Separation Option Report, noting the areas affected, and the options for each area. His report included per user costs, so patrons can see the expense, if they elect to stay with IBSD. There may be savings on monthly fees, but additional costs for added infrastructure will be incurred. The report considered several options for each area, even including options that are not feasible. Gravity flow is the least expensive and most desirable option. Mr. Klingler questioned if errors have been made at the State level in the boundaries and if there was a way to redraw boundaries, based on where and into whose lines the flow entered. There are areas where the map says the flows go one direction and when checked they flow the opposite direction. Councilmember Bean stated the boundary lines are correct. This situation resulted from a builder long ago who constructed the lines and connected incorrectly. Mountain River Engineering conducted a study for us to determine whose lines were whose. The lines have been interchanged for so long it’s hard to determine how this situation occurred. Mr. Klingler stated it does not make sense to spend millions of dollars for infrastructure to maintain patrons. He believes it should remain as is with all flow going to Ammon. He would like to pursue getting the boundary lines redrawn. Mr. Klingler proposed the IBSD Board pass a policy that if a patron is an IBSD customer, but feeding into Ammon’s lines, IBSD will bill them as if they are Ammon’s customers. The customers will remain IBSD’s, but be billed as if they are Ammon’s customers. This will remove the need to change boundaries. Councilmember Bean asked what is precipitating the need to separate the lines. He proposed not installing a new interceptor line, but adding more metering stations to measure flow and a splitter box. This would have to be agreeable to Idaho Falls and there are concerns about tracing the source in the event of contamination. This option has already been determined to not work. Mr. Clark stated even though this is a cheaper option there is too much room for error. Idaho Falls has indicated they do not want flow from non-customers. Councilmember Powell stated they owe it to constituents to pursue cheaper options before spending millions on the new interceptor. The changing of boundaries was discussed further. Councilmember Bean suggested having Mr. Sasser come back with what needs to be done to change the boundaries and if areas can be excluded. The question was discussed of who would own and maintain the lines, if IBSD paid Ammon each month for the customers flowing into Ammon’s lines. Councilmember Kirkham asked if Ammon would be expected to buy lines and the lift station currently owned by IBSD. Mr. Klingler stated this could be worked out later. Councilmember Bean referred to IBSD’s request for a proposal from the EIRWWA. He asked if the separation could be postponed, until IBSD made a decision. Mr. Price stated that the request for proposal was made as a way to explore options and find out what it would cost to join EIRWWA or stay with City of Idaho Falls. Mr. Klingler stated that he believes the issue of separation should still be dealt with, since it’s been a problem for a long time. Mr. Sasser stated it sounds like the City of Idaho Falls should be brought into the discussion of whether an interceptor line is required. Councilmember Bean stated the Council should go back and try to make a decision as to what they want to do and not do. City of Ammon/IBSD Special Board Meeting 09-01-2010 Page 2 of 3 DRAFT Ms. Wellman mentioned the option of transferring to Ammon as home ownership changed. This would have to be figured out legally and if it could even be done. Councilmember Slack inquired if he was looking at the map correctly. He doesn’t see any Ammon customers that could be transferred to IBSD, all the flow ends up in Ammon’s system. Mr. Howell suggested the area near Hitt Road and Lincoln Road, that is part of Ammon, could be annexed into IBSD boundaries. The agreement with Idaho Falls states IBSD cannot connect additional services onto the line on Lincoln Road. The City of Idaho Falls would have to grant permission. Councilmember Kirkham stated money has been spent on designs for the interceptor. She would like a resolution to these issues, before more money is spent. Councilmember Slack would like an acknowledgment from IBSD there are issues being worked out, since there are court stipulated deadlines for the interceptor lines. Mr. Sasser will contact Ammon’s attorney to clarify this. There is a scheduled meeting with the School District to discuss easements on th September 29. Councilmember Powell stated he doesn’t want to waste money on a line that isn’t necessary. He doesn’t want future leaders to question why two lines were installed. He would like to make the best decision now. Mr. Klingler stated he doesn’t think the new line is a waste, no matter where IBSD chooses to go. Ammon and IBSD are two separate entities and the flows should be separated. Mr. Clark agreed it’s time to separate. Councilmember Bean stated the line being installed to Shelley is big enough to handle IBSD’s capacity. The other consideration is the new interceptor will not have sufficient velocity, so a flushing will be required a minimum of once a year as required by DEQ. Mr. Bates stated it might have to be done more frequently. A flushing requires 100,000 gallons of water per flush. Mr. Price asked for additional comments. He believes the meeting was productive and cooperative. He thinks additional homework needs to be done to include options of boundary realignment, paying of Ammon for IBSD customers, and the cost of a splitter box. Councilmember Bean also suggested inviting Chad Stanger, Idaho Falls’ Mayor and perhaps Idaho Falls’ Councilmembers. Mr. Bates suggested having an IBSD representative attend the meeting with the School Board to discuss easements. He has concerns the School Board will not approve the easement and thus put a stop to th the project. This meeting is in the library at Hillcrest High at 1:00 p.m. on September 29. Councilmember Kirkham thanked IBSD for hosting the meeting. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting adjourned at 5:50 p.m. ____________________________________ Steve Fuhriman, Mayor __________________________________ Leslie Folsom, City Clerk City of Ammon/IBSD Special Board Meeting 09-01-2010 Page 3 of 3