HomeMy Public PortalAbout2015.02.27 Special MinutesMINUTES
McCall City Council
Special Meeting
Legion Hall - McCall City Hall (Lower Level)
February 27, 2015
Agenda
Call to Order
Work Session
Adjournment
CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL
Mayor Aymon called the Special meeting of the McCall City Council to order at 9:05 a.m.
Mayor Aymon, Councilor Giles, and Councilor Swanson were present. Councilor Scott and
Councilor Witte were absent.
City Staff present were Gene Drabinski, City Manager; Peter Borner, Public Works Director;
Erin Roper, Communications Coordinator; Nathan Coyle, Airport/Special Projects Manager; and
BessieJo Wagner, City Clerk.
WORK SESSION
City Clerk Annual Department Report
BessieJo, City Clerk, presented the City Clerk Annual Report to Council. She covered the main
points of the operations of the Clerk's Department and challenges. The Clerk's office is
primarily service driven and does not generate much revenue It is an ongoing challenge to justify
having 3 full time employees (FTE). With the added funds from the Local Option Tax a portion
of the cost of one FTE is supplemented. Having this full time position as opposed to the previous
half time position has created more time for the City Clerk to work on other projects such as
code amendments and contract development.
As the Clerk's Department looks toward the future, there will be continued focus on inventory
and destruction of files. The Clerk's office plans to complete the rewrite of McCall City Code
Title 4 — Business Regulations. As the ADA Coordinator, the City Clerk will look for additional
training as it relates to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title II (State and Local
Government Services) of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Clerk's office continues to
work with all departments in the City to ensure positive working relationships and continues to
be a resource for people within and outside the organization.
Local Option Tax Annual Department Report
BessieJo, City Clerk, presented the Local Option Tax Annual Report to Council. She covered the
main points of what the Local Option Tax is and how it is used throughout the community. Fiscal
Year 14 had the largest LOT revenue since the tax was approved by voters in 2005. The revenue
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was more than 18% above the prior 5 year average. For Fiscal Year 14, the Clerks' office
received 35 LOT fund applications requesting a total of $567,646 of the LOT funds. Of the 35,
23 received priority budgeting, 8 projects were on the contingency list, and 9 projects were
eliminated.
Based on the successful FY14 LOT revenue, the FY15 budget was set at $279,620, which was
$23,754 higher than the previous year. Contingency projects were set at $61,315. Council
approved the LOT Commission's project recommendations with few changes.
The Local Option Tax has gone through much scrutiny during FY14. The Council will give
direction to the LOT Commission on the direction they would like for LOT to fund going
forward. The LOT Funding Applications are due by 5:00 p.m. on April 30, 2015. The LOT
Commission will receive direction from the Council in May and then in June the Commission
will hear from each of the LOT Applicants. The Commission will then present their
recommendation to Council in June.
Public Works Annual Department Reports for:
Streets Department
Peter Borner, Public Works Director, presented the Streets Department Annual report to Council.
He covered the operations and accomplishments of the Streets Department. He covered the
following points for Maintaining & Improving City Streets:
Street & ROW Maintenance: Street and Right -of -Way maintenance is the primary function of
the Public Works Department. Public Works crews maintain over 50 miles of asphalt and gravel
streets all year long. During the winter the primary activity is snow removal. When it isn't
snowing, crews cut snow floors and widen roads. During the spring, crews make sure drains are
working properly and repair roads damaged by spring breakup. During the busy summer season,
crews paint traffic lines and crosswalks, repair or chip -seal streets, grade and apply dust control
oil to gravel streets. In the fall, crews are preparing for snow operations.
Snow Removal: The City of McCall utilizes loaders, graders and a plow truck for snow removal
within the City. Public Works has also implemented the use of "snow -gates". The snow -gates
work well under most snowfall conditions. However, during large storms their effectiveness is
limited and the snow -gates only reduce the severity of snow berms, not eliminate them.
Pavement Management System: Pavement Management is a program for improving the quality
and performance of pavements and minimizing costs through good management practices. The
City of McCall completed its first complete condition assessment of all asphalt and gravel streets
in 2011. In 2013 a complete reevaluation was performed on all of the asphalt and gravel streets.
In two years the average Remaining Service Life dropped by 2.5 years. For every dollar of
preventative maintenance that is not done, eventually costs the City an additional $8 to $9 in
street reconstruction.
Sign Inventory: The City of McCall has completed a sign inventory of all regulatory, street, and
informational signs within the City. All regulatory signs are required to maintain a minimum
reflectivity standard. Those signs that do not meet those standards are required to be replaced.
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Street signs are now required to meet new standards for uniform type, size, and style of lettering
to make them more visible and easier to read.
Fleet Management: The City of McCall has implemented a fleet management system to assure
that all City vehicles and equipment receive the proper maintenance in a timely manner. All
maintenance, repair, and fuel usage costs for each vehicle or piece of equipment are tracked. The
fleet management system is used to maintain and keep reliable the City's fleet of vehicles and
equipment in a cost-efficient manner.
Asset Management: Is the practice of managing the entire life cycle (design, construction,
operating, maintaining, repairing, modifying, and replacing) of physical and infrastructure assets
such as buildings, water and waste treatment facilities, water distribution and wastewater
collection networks, street systems, fleet, and other physical assets. In the fall, the City
purchased the "Elements" Asset Management software from Novotx, LLC. Implementation
occurred in April of 2014 and has been in use regularly since that time
Water Department
Peter Borner, Public Works Director, presented the Water Department Annual report to Council.
He covered the operations and accomplishments of the Water Department. He covered the
following points for improving the City Water System:
Water Master Plan Update: It has been five (5) years since the Water Master Plan was updated.
Much has happened since 2008 and a number of improvements have been made to the City's
water system and the growth rate has slowed considerably. These improvements are also
necessary to meet state and federal regulatory requirements. The purpose of updating the Water
Master Plan is to determine if the planned improvements are still necessary and are those
improvements in the right order. He also expressed the importance of updating the engineering
and construction costs associated with each of the identified improvements to appropriately plan
future budget needs. With these considerations in mind, Public Works undertook an update to the
Water Master Plan. That update is in the process of being finalized, with input from IDEQ being
required.
Water Model: The City of McCall's Water Model is a computerized analysis of the entire city
water system. It is used to identify deficiencies where volume or pressure improvements are
warranted. These improvements can be as simple as modifying pressure settings at the City's
Pressure Reducing Valve (PRV) stations or as complex as installing new water mains, water
tanks, and booster pump stations. The Water Model was updated as part of the Water Master
Plan update. New deficiencies were located in several areas of the city. These deficiencies are
addressed in the Water Master Plan Update.
Pumping Station Relocation: The City of McCall currently utilizes two locations for pumping of
raw water to the Water Treatment Plant. These are at Legacy Park and Davis Beach. The Legacy
Park pump station is in dire need of an upgrade. The Davis Beach pump station is problematic in
that the site is difficult to access during the winter and there is no backup power to utilize the
newer pumps located within the building. Public Works will again look at relocating both of
these pump stations to one location to consolidate pumps and to cleanup both locations.
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Water Line/Hydrant Replacement: The City continues with its systematic line replacement
program to replace aging cast iron water mains (also lead -jointed pipe and asbestos cement pipe)
and old fire hydrants within the City. Allowing these pipes and hydrants to remain in the system
will lead to potential catastrophic failures. A full inventory of fire hydrants will take place in the
summer of 2015.
Utility Rate Study: A utility rate study is in progress to review existing water rates. The last rate
study conducted was in 2006. An analysis of existing rates is needed to determine the impact to
continuing deferred capital and maintenance needs.
Water Valve Exercise: Exercising water valves is an important operations and maintenance
function. First, it is important that all water valves work. In the case of an emergency such as a
water main break, being able to isolate the problem to the smallest possible area is important to
minimize the disruption of water service to those not affected by the break. Second, water valves
are contained within a valve box from 4 to 6 feet below the road surface. These boxes become
filled with debris and need to be cleaned.
Wastewater Department
Peter Borner, Public Works Director, presented the Wastewater Department Annual report to
Council. He covered the operations and accomplishments of the Wastewater Department. He
covered the following points for Improving the City Sewer Collection & Treatment System:
Inflow & Infiltration Study: The City of McCall completed an Inflow & Infiltration (I&I) Study
in 2012. A number of suggested improvements have been made each year such as the Park Street
Sewer Main Replacement. Even with the repairs, I&I continues to be a significant issue that
leads to increased treatment and power costs, shortened pump life, and increased flow to the
Winter Storage Pond. Several variants of manhole inserts will also be placed on a number of
manholes to reduce the amount of I&I that enters the sewer system.
Lift Stations: The City has many lift stations that are reaching the end of their life. All lift
stations should be evaluated to determine their current life expectancy, probable replacement
cost and to determine if any of these lift stations can return to a gravity sewer system. The
construction of Lift Station 7 started in the fall of 2014 and it is expected that construction will
be substantially complete by the end of March 2015 and online in April.
Wastewater Collection System: A capacity and pipe rating study needs to be performed on the
City's entire wastewater collection system to determine long term planning horizons for
improvements. It is impossible to determine the overall health of the collection system without
these two items being performed. Some sewer mains may need to be replaced due to age or
conditions. Some sewer mains may need to be increased in size to handle increased flows.
Wastewater Treatment Plant: There are a number of needs at the Waste Water Treatment Plant.
First and foremost, each lagoon needs to have the sludge removed and the aeration equipment
replaced. The lagoons may need to have synthetic liners installed due to the possibility of the
clay liner failing after sludge removal. A proper head -works building needs to be constructed
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where adequate screening can take place prior to effluent entering the treatment lagoons. The
entire facility should be fenced to provide proper security. The Winter Storage Pond also has
leaking issues that need to be addressed by Groundwater Monitoring and Analysis.
Reuse Permit: The City and the PLRWSD agreed on a Memorandum of Understanding on the
development of a contract for disposal of recycled water. That contract is expected to be
complete in early 2015. The PLRWSD received in 2014 a "pre -draft" Reuse Permit to be able to
work with the irrigators/farmers and the City on the contents of the potential Reuse Permit. Once
a contract for disposal services between the City and the PLRWSD is approved and the contracts
between the District and the irrigators are approved, the Reuse Permit can be finalized. The
largest issue looming for the City is the possible relocation of the mixing station.
ADJOURNMENT
Without further business, Mayor Aymon adjourned the meeting at 10:53 a.m.
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