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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005-11-07 - MinutesMayor Dan Coody City Attomey Kit Williams City Clerk Sondra Smith City Council Water & Sewer Meeting Minutes Nov. 7, 2005 Page 1 of 5 Member Aldermen aye evi le AR KA N SA 5 City of Fayetteville Arkansas City Council Water & Sewer Committee Meeting Minutes November 7, 2005 Ward 1 Position 1 - Robert Reynolds Ward 2 Position 1 - Kyle B. Cook Ward 3 Position 2 — Robert Ferrell Ward 4 Position 2 - Lioneld Jordan A meeting of the Fayetteville City Council Water & Sewer Committee was held on November 7, at 5:30 p.m. in Room 326 of the City Administration Building located at 113 West Mountain Street, Fayetteville, Arkansas. MEMBERS PRESENT: Chairman Kyle Cook, Alderman Robert Reynolds, Alderman Robert Ferrell Staff Present: Steve Davis, Gary Dumas, David Jurgens, and Ron Petrie Chairman Kyle Cook called the meeting to order. Item 1. Approval of the Minutes of September 29th & October l91 Water/Sewer Committee Meetings Minutes of the previous meetings were approved. Item 2. Wastewater Improvement Program Update a. Results of Hamestring to WWTP Force Main Bid Dave Jurgens stated that project bids were received from four very good contractors. The lowest bid ($4,582,536.60) was submitted by Garney Construction. He stated that the engineer is evaluating the bids to ensure that there are no apparent errors. If none are found, staff requests approval to forward the bid simultaneously to the Department of Natural Resources and to the full City Council for review and approval in December. Mr. Jurgens stated that Garrey is an excellent contractor and they are very pleased with this bid. He said the company has constructed several projects for the City and for the Beaver Water District and is one of the five companies that passed the vetting process and were interviewed for the West Side WWTP construction. Alderman Ferrell made a motion that, barring any mistakes found by the Engineer, the Committee accept the bid from Garney Construction. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously. b. Construction Cost and Time Line Summary 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Water & Sewer Meeting Minutes Nov. 7, 2005 Page 2 of 5 Dave Jurgens handed out a copy of the construction cost and time line summary which was reviewed and discussed by the Committee. Mr. Jurgens stated that Staff would present an updated summary every quarter. There was also discussion concerning which lift stations would be eliminated by this project and the overall funding for the project. c. Easement Status Update Dave Jurgens handed out a copy of the WSIP Right of Way, Property Purchase and Easement Status, and reviewed this update with the Committee. Alderman Ferrell asked for the deadline on the easements. Dave Jurgens said that the end of November is a firm deadline on the west side. If there is not a signed easement by then, it will be referred to the City Attorney. He stated that focus would not be placed on the east side until the west side easement acquisition is completed. He said that it would probably be another six months before all the easements are obtained on the east side. d. West Side WWTP Status Dave Jurgens stated that the Notice to Proceed was issued to Brasfield & Gorrie on Nov. 4, 2005 and that the pre -construction conference took place Nov. 7, 2005. He stated that Brasfield & Gorrie planned to start issuing purchase orders the next day and planned to have crews onsite by the end of January. 3. Designated Management Agency Dave Jurgens stated that in order to obtain Revolving Loan Funding, the City Council is required to adopt a resolution formally recognizing Fayetteville as a Designated Management Agency for Wastewater Collection and Treatment of Domestic Wastewater for the City of Fayetteville and the areas we serve. The EPA requires the resolution and also requires that the Designated Management Agency execute an annual plan update. The City's Capital Improvement Plan, wastewater system master plan, and annual budget meet the requirements of the annual plan update. If this resolution is not adopted, the City will be unable to obtain RLF funding. There followed some discussion concerning how the RLF funding would be used. A motion was made to send a resolution designating the City of Fayetteville as a Designated Management Agency to the full City Council The motion was seconded and passed unanimously. 4. Capital Improvements Program Dave Jurgens stated that there was nothing new to present to the Committee, since the project list was reviewed at the previous Water/Sewer Committee meeting. Steve Davis said that over the next month or so, Staff will be reviewing all of the Capital Projects and the W/S project program. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Water & Sewer Meeting Minutes Nov. 7, 2005 Page 3 of 5 5. Water Line Cost Share Ron Petrie stated that they have been working with the Fayetteville School system concerning the school being built at the corner of Rupple and Persimmon. There is a proposed cost share with the Fayetteville School system to increase the size of the water main on Rupple Road south of Persimmon from 8" to 12" in diameter. Mr. Petrie stated that the City's share of the cost is approximately $45,000.00 for a quarter mile of waterline. If the Committee finds this acceptable, Staff will prepare the paperwork to be taken to the City Council. A motion was made to forward the proposal on to the full Council. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously. 6. 24" Water Line, Custer Dave Jurgens stated that McGoodwin, Williams and Yates had submitted 90% of the plans for the 24" water line replacement project on Custer south of 18th Street. He stated that this was an informational item for the Committee, so that they would be aware of how the project is proceeding. 7. Elkins Contract Review Steve Davis stated that the contract with Elkins was ratified at the October 13th meeting of the Water/Sewer Committee. Elkins has approved the contract and Mr. Davis requested that the Committee authorize sending it forward to be placed on the City Council's agenda for November 15th. There followed some discussion concerning the particulars of the contract. A motion was made that the contract be sent on to the full City Council, and being seconded, passed unanimously. 8. Farmington Contract Update Steve Davis stated that it was apparent during the City Council meeting that growth management for utilization of the West Plant is an important issue. He stated that one of the strategies for dealing with that growth is to use the Master Facility Plan from July 2001 as a guide. He stated that the facility plan shows that the population of Fayetteville in 2020 is projected to be 85,000, while Farmington's population is projected to be 5000. Mr. Davis asked the Committee for approval to use these numbers as a starting point in the discussion with Farmington. Some discussion followed concerning the Farmington growth issue, including impact fees and the need for lift stations and interceptors. Alderman Ferrell stated that he was concerned with how much the growth of the City of Farmington would accelerate the need for the City of Fayetteville to either expand the existing system or add a new plant. Mr. Davis responded that Farmington has agreed, as future capacity enhancements are required, they are willing to participate in meeting those needs. He stated that if Fayetteville decides to use millage or sales tax to pay for improvements, Farmington understands they will either have to do the same or that their rates will have to go up. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Water & Sewer Meeting Minutes Nov. 7, 2005 Page 4 of 5 Gary Dumas stated that there is a two-stage impact fee; stage one is to handle the growth needs inside their city, and stage two is the Fayetteville portion of an impact fee for transportation from Farmington to the treatment plant. He stated that, theoretically, that impact fee would pay for the future capacity needs. The Committee gave Staff approval to use the Master Facility Plan from July 2001 as a guide in developing a strategy for dealing with growth in the Farmington area. 9. Consideration of Postponement of the Next Sewer Rate Increase Steve Davis stated that Mayor Coody has requested this item be added to the agenda. He stated that there are a number of unknowns about where the WSIP is going and that the City's rates (approved at the end of 2003) were programmed to add 9% per year for 2004, 2005, and 2006. He stated that with the increase in heating and gasoline costs, Staff is asking that the City postpone the last rate increase until the financing plan is completed. There was discussion of whether this action would need to go to the Ordinance Review Committee for review or if it could go straight to the City Council for consideration. Mr. Davis stated that, because it is a sewer rate change, there is a requirement for a 10 day window for public hearings on the matter. Chairman Cook asked what benefits would be gained by the postponement and Mr. Davis responded that the benefit was for the rate payers, in that it would postpone the 9% increase in rates until after the winter. When asked when the postponement would end, Mr. Davis replied that he would like to set that for April 30th, when the new sewer averaging goes into effect. Alderman Reynolds asked what the downside to the postponement would be. Mr. Davis responded that there would be some lost revenue, estimating it to be around $350,000.00 to $400,000.00, and that it would affect approximately 30,000 rate payers. Staff stated that, although the City would miss out on some revenue by doing this, it would help offset the 30% hike in natural gas prices that are expected this winter. It was decided to table a decision on this matter until the first meeting in December to give Staff time to present the Committee with firm numbers. 10. Consideration of Implementing a CPI Indexed Water Rate Adjustment Steve Davis stated that the City Council had recently approved a CPI indexed residential solid waste rate adjustment. He stated that Staff would propose the same thing for the water utility. He stated that this would prevent the City from falling so far behind on costs that it would require a substantial increase at some point in the future. Considerable discussion was held concerning how this would be implemented, the impact on the rate payers, and the impact on the rate studies. It was decided that further study of the idea was needed and the item was tabled. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Water & Sewer Meeting Minutes Nov. 7, 2005 Page 5 of 5 11. Scheduling the Next Water/Sewer Committee Meeting The next Water and Sewer Committee was tentatively scheduled for November 29 at 5:30 p.m. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org