DeKalb Sanitary District Board Meeting Minutes
DeKalb Sanitary District
February 22, 2006
Minutes
Approved March 15, 2006
The February meeting of the DeKalb Sanitary District Board of Trustees was held at the office of the District at noon on February 22, 2006. In attendance were Trustees Dennis Collins, Tim Struthers and Carol Zar and Attorney for the District Keith Foster and District Treasurer Richard Stokke. Michael Zima, District Manager; Janice Tripp, Assistant Manager Administration; Steve Olsen, Plant Foreman; and Betty Jones, Secretary were present. Scott Trotter, P.E., Mark Bushnell, P.E. and Mark Eddington, P.E. of Trotter & Associates attended.
President of the Board Collins called the meeting to order.
Trustee Struthers moved and Trustee Zar seconded approval of the February agenda. Motion carried.
Trustee Collins moved approval of the January minutes. Trustee Struthers seconded. Motion carried.
Trustee Collins moved to approve the transfer of $150,000.00 from the Revenue Fund to the O & M Fund, $14,892.63 from the Dedicated Tax F.I.C.A. Fund to the O & M Fund and $20,395.14 from the Dedicated Tax I.M.R.F. Fund to the O & M Fund. Trustee Zar seconded. Motion carried.
Trustee Struthers moved to pay bills as presented. Trustee Zar seconded. Motion carried.
No one was present wishing to give public input.
Treasurer Stokke gave the Treasurer’s Report and discussed investments made this month and investment strategies with the Trustees.
The Trustees reviewed the 2640 Greenwood Acres Drive sewer backup discussed last month. Attorney Foster affirmed that putting grease into the public system violates both District Ordinance and state law. Investigation by District administrative staff and the District’s insurer has found that DSD personnel acted promptly and correctly given the circumstances.
Mike Zima presented information on the grease excursion caused by an inadequate or malfunctioning grease trap at Lukulo’s Restaurant. The Trustees agreed to fines and to requiring the installation of a properly sized external grease trap.
The Board instructed that the information about commercial kitchen’s responsibilities to prevent grease entering the public system, and the fines for failing to do so be distributed to all current licensees within the District.
Trustee Collins moved and Trustee Zar seconded reimbursement to Vic Reed, owner of 530 Culver, for costs incurred when the District’s contractor failed to reinstate his lateral. Motion carried.
The City and the District will share costs to have a willow tree removed from a South 2nd Street alley in hopes of preventing further damage to infrastructure there.
Janice Tripp will oversee the verification of Southmoor’s compliance with the District’s tree removal requests.
A proposed ordinance establishing fees for engineering plan review and construction inspection was reviewed and will be voted upon next month.
Mark Eddington updated the Board on the status of the District’s Facilities Planning Area extension. He is working with City of DeKalb Engineers to get population estimates for the areas to be added.
Mike Zima reviewed a proposed plan for development northwest of DeKalb and discussed the ramifications of such a development on the District with the probable need for a main interceptor extension and an additional lift station.
Scott Trotter gave the Trustees the Executive Summary of the Facilities Plan Update that they had requested and discussed with them his working assumptions. They will review the material and next month they will schedule a workshop on it.
Mark Eddington says that because some more sewer segments will be added to the 2006 Lining Project there may need to be a delay on the bid date.
Trustee Struthers moved and Trustee Collins seconded approval of an engineering contract with Trotter & Associates for the Lions Park Lift Station Improvements Study Phase at a cost not to exceed $9,000. Motion carried.
Discussion of the storm water improvements and wetland mitigation was deferred until the end of the meeting.
Mark Eddington presented Trustee Struthers with the financial reports of six comparable sanitary districts as requested at a previous meeting.
Mike Zima reported on the Cavel International problems meeting their discharge permit limits. He clarified that their excursions do not create any problem for the District because they consist of organic elements present in all domestic sewage. However, because of the chronicity of Cavel’s violations, he suggested a compliance commitment agreement with them. The Trustees were concerned to make the consequences of their violations severe enough to motivate them to come into compliance and instructed Mike to stress that in dealing with Cavel.
Trustee Struthers moved and Trustee Collins seconded contracting with the firm of Sikich Gardner & Company, LLP for the 2005-2006 Fiscal Year Audit. Motion carried.
There had been no requests for catastrophic water loss relief.
In New Business, Mike told the Trustees about the City of DeKalb’s request for renegotiation of the intergovernmental agreement concerning the District’s payments to the City for billing. This will be an agenda item at the March 2006 meeting.
Mike informed the Trustees of anticipated increases in the cost of electricity after deregulation.
Mark Bushnell, Scott Trotter and Mark Eddington gave a presentation on the scope of the work needed to recover and do wetlands mitigation on the District’s drainage ditch. Army Corps of Engineers requirements make this a much more complex project than it would have appeared.
Trustee Struthers moved and Trustee Collins seconded a motion to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried. Trustee Collins adjourned the meeting.
Dennis J. Collins, President