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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 02/09/1998 UTILITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE Port Angeles, Washington February 9, 1998 I. Call to Order: Vice Chairman Doyle called the meeting to order at 3:00 p.m. II. Roll Call: Members Present: Councilmen Campbell, Doyle, and Williams, Bill Myers and Joe Michalczik. Members Absent: None. Staff Present: J. Pittis, B. Titus, S. McLain, G. McLain, C. Rinehart, C. Knutson, and C. Hagar. Others Present: Councilmember McKeown, Pam Tietz. III. Approval of Minutes: Joe Michalczik moved to approve the minutes of the January 12, 1998, meeting. Bill Myers seconded the motion, which carried by a ml\iority vote with Councilman Williams abstaining due to his absence from that meeting. IV. Discussion Items: A. Election of New Chair and Vice Chair Councilman Campbell moved to nominate Councilman Doyle as Chairman. Bill Myers seconded the motion. There being no further nominations, a vote was taken on the motion, which carried unanimously. Joe Michalczik moved to nominate Councilman Campbell as Vice Chair. Councilman Wi1Iiam~ seconded the motion. There being no further nominations, a vote was taken on the motion, which carried unanimously. As Pam Tietz from the Housing Authority was present to speak to the issue of reduced utility services, this item was moved up on the agenda. - 1 - Utility Advisory Committee February 9, 1998 D. Request for Reduced Utility Service Chairman Doyle asked Councilmember McKeown if she should like to give a review of this issue. Council member McKeown stated she was a member of the Human Services Committee, and the Boys and Girls Club has approached the City for assistance on this issue. Councilmember McKeown stated there is a west side Boys and Girls Club already in place. However, one was necessary for the east side as well. There is a potential of 125 children from within the Housing Authority that could utilize a Boys and Girls Club east facility. The Housing Authority has a meeting place allocated and the School District is donating five computers; however, there is a shortage of operating funds for this project. Currently, the Housing Authority pays approximately $70,000 per year for garbage service. If the City reduced this fee by 50%, the money could be used to open the doors for the new Boys and Girls Club. Council member McKeown stated this Club would service children that are potentially at risk. She asked Pam Tietz if she had further input on the matter. Pam Tietz, Executive Director of the Housing Authority of Clallam County, stated she has tried without success to obtain a grant to fund this children's program. She stated the children that would be involved in the Club are high risk children. It has been proven that Boys and Girls Clubs formed in public housing results in a 13 % reduction in drug-related incidents, 25 % reduction in cocaine related incidents, and a 15 % reduction in the general crime rate. Ms. Tietz asked the Committee to recommend reduction of refuse costs, as it will result in a direct benefit to the City. Discussion followed, and Ms. Tietz and Councilmember McKeown responded to questions and provided clarification on the issue, and Council member McKeown reminded the Committee that the Salvation Army and other thrift shops had been granted a reduction in solid waste fees so there is a precedent for this type of thing. Concern was expressed over how the City would recoup the $30,000 in fees. Public Works Director Pittis explained the rest of the citizens would have to make up this difference in the rates they will pay in the future. Director Pittis felt an interlocal agreement, as suggested by Ms. Tietz, would be the best way to handle this matter. Discussion followed regarding the state statute which allows the City to make this allowance for the Housing Authority. Attorney Knutson felt research was needed to ensure that public monies can be used for this purpose. Councilman Doyle asked how many children were being served by the existing Boys and Girls Club, as the City donated $10.000 via Human Services allocations to the west side Club, and he felt there should be a balance in the donation figures. Councilman Campbell reminded the Committee the utility must generate sufficient revenues by - 2 - Utility Advisory Committee February 9, 1998 the year 2000 to pay for closure and post closure landfill costs. Council member McKeown stated the Housing Authority was not asking for a permanent fee reduction, but rather for one year. Ms. Tietz said this could be revisited annually as the need arose. Joe Michalczik felt that, in the future, this type of funding request should be routed through Human Services. Councilman Williams suggested recycling be encouraged in the public housing, to help relieve the refuse volume. Councilman Campbell felt this request should be considered; however, more information was needed due to the concern of funding the landfill closure. After further discussion, it was decided to hold a special UAC meeting on Tuesday, February 24, 1998, at 3:00 p.m., to give staff time to research legal issues, and how landfill closure funding would be impacted by this fee reduction. Ms. Pam Tietz was asked to put together information regarding how the funds would be utilized by the Boys and Girls Club. B. Choose Date for September 1998 UAC Meeting Deputy Clerk Hagar advised the Committee that the regular meeting date for September falls on Labor Day; therefore a different date needs to be chosen. After limited discussion, the Committee chose Monday, August 31, 1998, at 3:00 p.m. C. City Light Strategic Plan Update Public Works Director Pittis reviewed the information contained in the packet and asked Deputy Director Titus to give the background on this issue. Deputy Director Titus reminded the Committee that it had asked for updated information regarding the proposed Scope of Service prior to this item being presented to the Council. The Committee felt there were areas for cost savings and areas which needed clarification. The working committee on this project met with Gary Saleba from EES Consulting, the firm chosen for this project, who provided information and responded to questions regarding the proposal. Mr. Saleba felt modifications to the Scope of Service could be made without jeopardizing the integrity of the Project, reducing costs by approximately $7,000. Mr. Saleba was instructed to put the changes in writing and provide a detailed cost break down. This information is contained in the packet distributed to UAC members on Friday. Mr. Saleba was unavailable to attend today's meeting; however, he is available by phone and should the Committee have questions for him, a conference call can be initiated. Mr. Titus reviewed the breakout of the labor budget by subtask and illustrated what cost reduction changes had been made and why these changes were appropriate. Mr. Titus then distributed a Report on Financial and Operating Ratios (1992-1995) for Port Angeles and several pages of - 3 - Utility Advisory Committee February 9, 1998 information from the American Power Association which described data that could be obtained via that organization as an alternative to having EES obtain this level of detail. Director Pittis explained that the competitive benchmark of the future will be costs associated with local operations often referred to as wire charges. Additional detailed analysis on this can be obtained in the future if we find results that are troubling. He explained that the purpose of this study is to compare the City's utility against others to see how competitive it is and to see what other business opportunities the City may be able to enter. The study will look into internal and external issues to develop a future plan. Chairman Doyle inquired as to the time line for this project, and Mr. Titus responded that the proposal gave a three to four-month time frame. Discussion followed, and Councilman Campbell expressed concern over part of task two, Initial Project Conferences. One of the subtasks consisted of meeting with Council members, staff and the Project Team. Councilman Campbell felt this was unnecessary and could be eliminated, saving the City $1,500. Also, under task four there is a three to five-hour conference at a cost of $4,000. He wanted to know why the second conference was so much more than the first conference. Joe Michalczik explained what the two conferences hoped to achieve. Deputy Director Titus suggested a conference call be placed so that Mr. Saleba could respond to questions and provide clarification. A conference call was placed to Mr. Saleba who explained some of the merits and pitfalls of benchmarking and explained why he felt the pre- and post-project meetings were necessary. Mr. Saleba then responded to questions and offered clarification on several points. Councilman Campbell informed Mr. Saleba why he thought the pre-project conference was unnecessary and asserted he knew EES would provide a high quality initial assessment without having to spend a lot money on conferences. Mr. Saleba stated it was going to be difficult for the City Council to deal with the changing environment. Time spent by the Consultant working with the City Council would result in fewer misunderstandings and a higher level of comfort in the study recommendations. However, if the Council firmly believes conferences are not necessary, EES can adjust the scope. Chairman Doyle agreed with Councilman Campbell and stated the Council worked closely with staff, and he didn't feel the Council would make many changes to staffs recommendations regarding this project. Councilman Doyle did feel a post-project meeting would be beneficial. Councilman Doyle asked why the pre-conference was so much more than the post-conference, and Mr. Saleba explained that the post-conference amount included drafting the final report. Director Pittis suggested the initial meeting be a one hour workshop in conjunction with a Council meeting. Mr. Saleba felt this workshop could be worked in with another trip scheduled for interviews or project work, which would minimize the time and expense incurred and he will get back to Mr. Titus with an adjusted cost. Councilman Williams inquired if the strategic plan would be - 4 - Utility Advisory Committee February 9, 1998 consistent with Council's goals and objectives, and Mr. Saleba ensured him it would. There were no further questions for Mr. Saleba, and the conference call was concluded. Discussion followed. Councilman Campbell proposed the Project Committee work with Mr. Saleba to minimize the time spent with the Council, thereby minimizing the cost of the project. After further discussion and clarifications, Joe Michalczik moved to direct staff to fmalize the proposal with Gary Saleba and submit the proposal to City Council. Bill Myers seconded the motion. Following limited discussion, a vote was taken on the motion, which carried unanimously. V. Late Items None. VI. Next Meeting: There will be a special meeting February 24, 1998, at 3:00 p.m. VIII. Adjournment: The meeting adjourned at 4:55 p.m. hAM 0 ~A-/ Deputy City Clerk - 5 -