Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutCouncil Workshop Minutes 11.24.2015 MINUTES COUNCIL WORKSHOP NOVEMBER 24, 2015 6:30 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBERS A Council Workshop was held in the Council Chambers and called to order by Mayor Mark Mace at 6:30 p.m. on November 24, 2015. COUNCIL MEMBERS PRESENT: x Emelie Eaton _x_Doug Poehls x Bruce McGee _x Richard Herr Chuck Dickerson _x_Scot Stokes x Tom Nelson _x Bill Mountsier OTHERS PRESENT: Heidi Jensen, CAO Sam Painter, Civil City Attorney Kurt Markegard, Public Works Director Chad Hanson, Great West Engineering Brent Peters, Fire Chief Kara Hergenrider, Acting Ambulance Director Tim Reiter, Utility Plants Superintendent Bill Kennedy, Yellowstone County Commissioner Pat Kimmet, CHS Refinery Public Input (three-minute limit): There was no public input. General items • Request from Laurel Rod and Gun Club for four turkey shoots in 2016 Iry Wilke, 1017, 7th Avenue, explained the Rod and Gun Club's request to hold a turkey shoot on December 13, 2015 to replace the February event that was cancelled due to weather. The 2016 turkey shoot dates requested are for January 10`h, February 7th, March 6th and the membership party on May 215`. Executive Review • Resolution- Accept bid for temporary weir in river Heidi stated that the resolution to accept the bid for the temporary weir in the Yellowstone River is also the item for tonight's special city council meeting. The second resolution is to accept the DNRC Grant for the Water System Improvements, and the resolutions are tied together. Heidi explained that the special council meeting to consider the temporary weir is necessary because the city is already experiencing low water events at the water treatment plant. Heidi stated that the weir is tied directly to the council's acceptance of the loan from DNRC. The permit with the Army Corps specifically states that the new water intake must be constructed. If the council approves the weir, the city must move forward with the construction of the intake. The city is in a dire situation. Council Workshop Minutes of November 24,2015 Heidi asked the public works director and the city engineer to provide more detail about what is currently happening at the water intake. Kurt Markegard stated that the plant superintendent was called down to the water treatment plant last Friday night, as there was a loss of service to the pumps due to frazzle ice. The operators shut down the pumps to the city,backwashed the air, and got it cleared out and going again. There was no further loss of service, but this is the fourth winter since the flooding of 2011 and staff cannot guarantee that the 2003 intake will function. Kurt spoke about some pictures that were distributed to the council. A copy of the pictures is attached to the original council workshop minutes. The city received a continuance for an existing permit from last year to put a bypass pump in if the intake should be offline for a specific amount of time. The city could run with a backup pump for a few days, but staff cannot guarantee that the backup pump will actually run. If frazzle ice affects one intake structure, it could affect the backup pump intake as well. The plan is to put a pump into the old intake, fill the old intake, and pump the water into the plant like normal. There is not currently enough elevation to get a reliable water supply to the old intake by building a channel. The option, which was previously done after the winter of 2011, is to put a temporary weir into the river. The city needed approval from the Army Corps of Engineers in order to move forward and to get funds reimbursed through the FEMA Grant. The city has received a permit for the temporary weir and the funds will be eligible for reimbursement through the FEMA Grant, with the city being responsible for 25 percent of the cost. Kurt asked the council to consider the temporary weir at tonight's special council meeting, as cold weather is predicted and slush in the river and frazzle ice are expected. Heidi asked Kurt to explain what the pictures mean with the temperature guns and how that tied into the sump. Kurt explained the need to increase the temperature in the building where the compressor sits in order to inject hotter air out to the intake. They also got some block heaters to put on the air tank. When the chief operator checked the temperature on the tank today, it was 108 degrees. Staff hopes that the 110 degree heat going out to the intake will continue to melt the frazzle ice. The only way to fight frazzle ice is with air and heat, so it could be done with a boiler or with hot air. Other pictures showed that the intake is on the verge of being submerged but it is not. The bolts were actually sticking up yesterday. As soon as it starts freezing, spring waters and springs that feed the Yellowstone freeze up and the river drops. The river is currently sitting right at the top of the lids. Kurt does not want to see the intake lids exposed. Once the lids are exposed, ice can start building underneath. If the concrete is 14 degrees, ice will start to collect underneath it and start building up, so the intake needs to be submerged. Kurt spoke regarding the permit for the temporary rock weir and the city's lack of a permit in 2011. The city has now received a conditional permit to put a rock weir in as long as the water intake is completed for a final solution, at which time the temporary weir must be removed. The violations from the 2011 permit have been rectified. Chad explained that it was anticipated that the temporary weir would cost less than $80,000. Because of the permitting requirements the Corps put on the construction, the only way the contractors can build it is to put in the weir, build it up higher than is permitted as they work out so that their excavator 2 Council Workshop Minutes of November 24,2015 is up, and then peel the extra rock back as they come out. This more than doubled the amount of rock, which drove the cost up. Nick Wilson, the low bidder, is working with staff and the Corps. If the Corps will let him mine some of the material on the island and use it to build up on top of the dike and peel that back, he hopes to save a ton of cost on the extra rock and hauling it down. However, he had to bid it in the worst case scenario. Chad will work with the Corps to get the permit finalized, as work cannot start on the weir until the Corps sees a construction plan and gives final permission. The low bid is $150,000, and Chad hopes there will be a credit if the contractor does not have to haul the rock up from Warren. Kurt stated that the contractor will reuse the rock that was previously put in the river and then retrieved. Chad stated that there is not enough rock. Bill asked for an explanation of frazzle ice. Chad explained that it is a form of ice with which the City of Laurel and one place in North Carolina deal. All elements have to come together and it starts forming on the screens and crystalizing and then it builds up and actually plugs the screens. It is not ice that is floating in the water that sucks in, but it actually builds up on the screens. It is not typically seen until January or February, but it happened early this year. The frazzle ice is usually in the top two to three feet of water. Instead of chunks of ice, it actually builds out and crystallizes really fast and plugs the metal screens, which must then be blown out. Kurt explained that frazzle ice is needle like, instead of a crystal snowflake that builds out. The intake screens are very small and the needles come in and start laying across the openings. Once they start laying on the screen, they collect on each other and start building. The operator has to blow them off with air, starting at the front of the intake and continuing down the eight lines. Frazzle ice forms on open, clear nights with cold temperatures and shallow water. There was discussion regarding how much the weir would raise the river level and frazzle ice versus slush ice. Doug stated that authorizing the weir basically authorizes the new intake, because the Army Corps has them tied together. Heidi explained that, if the council approves the weir and does not approve the intake, the city will lose the Army Corps permit and the funding for the intake. The city would then be at the same situation it was in 2011 with a violation for the weir in the river and would lose the 75 percent from the Feds. Doug questioned how long the city could leave the weir in, and strongly stated that it should not be removed until the new water intake is complete. After an intense discussion, Chad stated that it was a moot point, as the permits say that the weir must be removed once the new intake is constructed and operable. Tom asked regarding maintenance of the weir if further runoff lowers the water and causes issues next fall before the water intake is completed. 3 Council Workshop Minutes of November 24,2015 Chad stated that the maintenance of the weir is the city's responsibility. If it blows out, the city is technically responsible to fix it, as the city must either keep it operable or take it completely out. • Resolution- Accept DNRC Grant for Water System Improvements The resolution is to accept the DNRC Grant for the sedimentation basins in the Water System Improvements Project. The paperwork that DNRC needs has been turned in and the council needs to move forward to accept the loan to get the sed basins completed. Heidi stated that, as of today, the city is still working on the easements for the pipeline for the new intake. The Army Corps permit is almost finished, so the city is close to going out for bids to start construction this winter. Doug spoke regarding the lack of a response to his letter to the Governor's Office. He stated that the only reason he would vote for this is because the citizens need it. For the record, he stated that the citizens are paying this $2.7 million under protest and expect reimbursement at the next legislative session for the money the city is spending, because the city is spending its money twice. The city put money into the reserves and is now putting an equal amount of money into the DNRC loan. Pat Kimmet, 2130 Saddleback Drive, thanked the Mayor and council for all that they go through every time they meet. He knows there are a lot of issues and water is a big one. He attended the meeting on behalf of the CHS Refinery. Mr. Kimmet complimented the city staff for doing a good job of putting together a plan that will deal with the water problem long term. He also complimented the staff for the work done to get funding at the last legislature. He stated that the staff was passionate and did absolutely everything they could. He has to believe that, except for one vote, the city would have the funding. He knows it is really frustrating and has heard that there will be an effort to get the money. There is no guarantee at the next session, but he knows the staff will try really hard to make that happen again. Unfortunately, it did not happen before and everyone knows how important a secure water supply is. Mr. Kimmet stated that this project is absolutely necessary and important to everyone and the only way to move forward in a timely fashion is the funding mechanism that is in front of the council. He asked the council to approve the proposal. Commission Bill Kennedy urged the council not to wait, as the low interest rates will not continue. The city has been dealing with this for more than four years. He stated that everything possible was done to get a piece of legislation through the last legislative session and there is enough blame to go around for a lot of people. He stated that people understand one thing, which is that the people in Laurel need to have the water. The people at the refinery need to have the water. Commissioner Kennedy stated that the council should move forward on this today because of the low interest rates. The city will keep the same base pay to the ratepayer over a period of time until we get to the next legislative session to try to get some of the dollars back to repay it. All in all, he thinks the decision to move forward is the right decision and then everyone needs to work forward with the legislators to put the bill forward. He will work on the Governor and everyone else to make sure that everybody signs off on it. If the council does not approve it, it will be two years of water shortages for the people in Laurel and at the refinery. He asked the council to bring this to some closure and then he will work with the city and the legislators in the next session. • Council Issues: o Discussion regarding the failed safety mill levy(Bruce McGee) Bruce deferred to the chairman of the Emergency Services Committee to address the issue. 4 Council Workshop Minutes of November 24,2015 Doug stated that the Emergency Services Committee discussed where to go with the safety mill levy. The voters made a decision not to have a safety mill levy, and one committee member doubted if the citizens would be willing to pay for half or even one-third of the mill levy amount. The committee discussed the possibilities and decided to look at other funding options, as well as grants and programs that have been tried in other cities of similar size. Doug stated that the citizens have to understand that the city will have to ask for more funding at some point. Bruce stated the need to have the discussion continue in the near future in order to establish timelines to find actual solutions to improve the emergency services for a growing community. o City's response to articles published in the Laurel Outlook(Chuck Dickerson) There was no discussion, as Chuck Dickerson was not in attendance. o Update regarding fire/ambulance director(Emelie Eaton) Emelie stated that the memo that the council received answered a lot of questions. She thought it had been shared with the fire and ambulance departments, so she had nothing more. Heidi stated that the fire and ambulance departments had not yet received the memo, but they will receive a copy. The information in the memo is exactly what they have been discussing in emails. Jean Kerr, 1128 9th Avenue, questioned the timeline for the change, the possibility of changing the population requirement by resolution, her calculation that there would be seven years to plan and 8.6 years until the requirement for a partially-paid fire department has to be enforced, and the need for a plan. Sam asked Heidi to read the memo, which outlines the plan and the work needed to accomplish it. Heidi read some of the memo: "It is in the best interest of the City obviously to transition to a combined service (ambulance/fire) department. The city's current Fire Chief and Acting Ambulance Director have been working with us on that plan. In addition, the Administration's intent is eventually to hire a Fire/EMS Director who will be a full-time paid Director responsible for operating the combined department. The Administration realizes that a position description must be first created and acknowledges funding is not currently available for a newly created director position. As a consequence, based on the recommendations of the Fire Chief and Acting Ambulance Director, the Administration decided to move forward with the reorganization and combining of departments utilizing the existing staff in both departments. We intend to work with the Fire Chief and Acting Ambulance Director to create a transition and implementation plan for a combined department without interrupting the provision of services. At this time there is no plan to change the stipends paid to any of the fire/ambulance staff. However, at the same time there will be no increased spending for a combined department since no new positions will be created at this time. The goal of the Administration is to prepare a comprehensive transition and implementation plan with the Fire Chief and Acting Ambulance Director within the next thirty days. We will update the City Council on the progress of the effort as we move forward." 5 Council Workshop Minutes of November 24,2015 Tom stated his understanding that the City of Laurel into Class 2 at 5,000 when the city was incorporated with its own charter, which allowed the city to push the population level to 7,501 before becoming a Class 2 city and needing a paid fire department. Fire Chief Brent Peters, 1995 Saddleback, explained that, according to Montana Code Annotated, a Class 2 city has a population between 5,000 and 10,000 people. Once a city reaches 5,000, it becomes a Class 2 city. By resolution, which Laurel did several years ago, a city can move the number to 7,500 before it must become a Class 2 city. The State of Montana requires a Class 2 city to have a partial- paid fire department, but it does not define what partial paid means. It could be a paid fire chief, paid fire administrator, or a partial-paid department itself. Brent stated that the stipends that the fire officers currently receive as part-time employees of the city constitutes a partial-paid fire department. In 2000, when Fire Chief Jim Stevens was hired as the code enforcement official and was on the fire department, it constituted a partial-paid department. When Jim Stevens left the City of Laurel, Gary Colley,who was the Fire Marshal for the department, took over as code enforcement and continued on the status of a partial paid department. Gary Colley has since retired from the fire department. The city can go to 7,500 people and still honor the State's code as partial paid with the stipends the fire officers receive. According to the Department of Labor, any stipend over $500 a year constitutes as a part-time employee of the city. Brent stated that the city is exempt up to 7,500 people and the 2020 census will determine the official population. o Update on 2011 Yellowstone River flooding event There was no further discussion. • Lease Agreements There was no discussion. Other items There were none. Review of draft council agenda for December 1, 2015 There was no discussion. Attendance at the December 1, 2015 council meeting All council members present will attend. Announcements There were no announcements. The council workshop adjourned at 7:17 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Cindy Allen Council Secretary NOTE: This meeting is open to the public. This meeting is for information and discussion of the Council for the listed workshop agenda items. 6 „t , ; ',', -4;,;At ;' ; I :,' '-r; ,..''' ',. ; 1 i ''-,,; .'-.4-- ' 1, , ,, ii t if i l 4• ', 1 ,f ',,j)f. ti'-`, •' &3 4ril *4 „ P ' C.3 •=,-$'=,-' GI Cif) 11=1 4 ,o':': Cli . . I 4,. ''' A8:14J I 4 .t. • ifillithwtow o,.., ; • ,z. --:' 1 -,02:::4,i• . ...,„- = — „., ..10-- .. ,, .. t '' el f•--,* i”'14 e- ,,' - i , ,, .. , , ,„„ ... , . , . .•,,,, , - , A , • ... _ ., . a '-- - ,, .. .,. . , ......,... ,,. .....00 , .„. , :., .,- , . / ' 1 , v..71. o , . 1 ' - , I, i Q... Coz; Co? .,.' 1 i 1 ..t3; I•Z i - ----- , , .., 1 _ . . , ' - --k;'- II--' - k -A " \ik - , - - , - ‘, A „.. -.-, vu ,ao i -,t �� � . ` { ; t ,'s irk x,dye .`2t 11 '� + 1 t ,'. ��'-',,•:.k: 3��g{t ' t �� Tj,. .,i'',.--7:4',',1'.7..,i4.--i.:: ` 1+ 9 } 7' 1' j,'•. t� ? r is �� rit .-4,w � �,efa� �' t t + I � � i.',,,'1•1,,.."4:',,,I,,t j:;,,..t .1?!.;' '. Jfir:}1.;At'.‘.,:ii.,.`"".,.5.--. . '.,', ''.''';,;. !'tJ � le{ft//✓�`y/— raj:, j � �'; �S Fy..y •�y f'�^,� o- .r, .y s �'.4--,,,. F, J ,' �i-,-LV`f Y.r , aF f r !� , F F 7 1 ''''''-'1,.;' 1J�,l ';.'.-!,-.,:;,'.'','',.-",-'1,'--'''i f F ' § 1 r �',.,':=';',' ,, F i ', a ( dr ' 4f iy71:1k? ¢ ; r � �yy �Y 't Y3a n r f ; � '�',� ' s ,,�' ''J 4 ' .`3 �"'t,L� ' r 13 ,�r] r { & 4 r � a,� ::ii q ft...,„„.,,..„.;,,,,,, Y,�i"n j1..q...-,1?,:.`; ) &j21� .`� t#;-',1,-.'.'aN`i s y .'-�'1 f ! k fe }[ { �' i. j'. 1-. T y`�+' 1 . • �y � � `S(e. d � ,,::::r..: �YYYY ti�'xJ irA;4,�i A,"'�r�. e 41. .s . �t , �,. �'� e � 1 . r'''.:-''.. W � c ' �„ �` ,e�k s �y iii s�::i. ��y�t+ 14 et �. ; E 3 r. i s eJ� �+ r a, .ji 'a!i ..il `'. "''""a '' '� ! z ��{'_ 4 t {;s 3 74 }���Y t.�`r.:+ '.1.;4.,..r`. • z; .�{ tet- t a -� .(i �'A'+r ,.,,,',,,,,,i-,;,,,,.!� ` F � rF i � h �qk'�` 4�'1 � . _ sem' ,,,,y- ,,....fo.„-e: ,c„,. •j t $f + 2 i? ,V ®tip L• u 6 a t i' 7 x if.. >�i q ? t 3 , t' t 7v,,,r✓J iii :!.",,4:44.-';;, 4 tr: E� '14.14',14:;; ""7.qit'Y.i.,,, SIP,'-'-.: -- fit .*:-,:-.:".,-;',:,:,4,;1.4,4 i'''',:',,„ tom` '�; f :7,'';',''''' ' ' . '''.1.1,44 ',,q : Illift- . . '- t t ' ' t f.---- $( �^ ua '2 3 ,f, r c z , 3,,:,, . 74 • �wf r ....fii...4.,,, ',1,4AP 6,--, f --. ' - , .„ ,., ,,,, , , _ > : 1/ F`. of ., ,,,,,,, „ i,--:., -.- ..,,-.., iii/ i. ,,,,,..,i, ..,,,,..),;..„,:„,,,, .„,..,..., , sir . ,,f� � '"GI r ,(yy r,, i`.'* k Nt,,,,,,I....-- '�'4Zvs 4.. £.,. ,:,t'''''art-i,',),-,4 'fir^ tj{f ' J=> ,