 Good afternoon. I'll call the meeting of the Board of Public Utilities for the city of Santa Rosa to order if we may have a roll call, please Chairman Calvin here vice chair Anoni board member Batenfort board member Bannister Board member Dowd Board member Grable here board member Mullen here Any statements of abstention by board members? Seeing none. We have no study session Minutes from August 2nd will be approved and filed and we will move to our staff briefings director Harnstein item 5.1 is a Briefing to the board of two Incentives and Zoting Code revisions that are being brought to city council as part of a ongoing effort that council is asking for ways to Support housing initiatives in greater density downtown deputy directors Zunino and Jessica Jones from Planning Economic Development will be presenting welcome ladies Thank you Good afternoon chairman Galvin and members of the board. I am here with Jessica I'm good just going to be introducing the item and then she's going to be presenting for you But I will be here for questions afterwards as well This item is to address city council's tier one goals for rebuild and housing All city staff has been tasked with determining opportunities to encourage increased density and affordable housing And so water staff and other departments have been working with Planning and Economic Development Who's really on the front line of that issue and therefore leading the effort by bringing policy changes and programs as a whole to the city council In that effort there are two items today being Brought to you that will go to city council next week and this briefing is to keep the BPU informed and benefit from your feedback on them There's currently an urgency with the rebuild to provide opportunities to add affordable units and Increasing accessory dwelling units in the city what provides one of these opportunities Jessica will go over with you the zoning code change that they are proposing At city council next week And in addition to that there are specific tier one goals for housing in the downtown And they have been working on a pilot program for incentivizing building So we ask that they update you on this pilot program with specifically addressing the payment options for water That are being proposed as part of that program and with that I will hand it over to Jessica Thank you, good afternoon Chair Galvin and members of the board So my name is Jessica Jones. I'm a supervising planner in the planning and economic development department And as Kimberly mentioned, I'll be walking you through two items that would be presented to the council this next Tuesday So The first is a proposed zoning code text amendment that would add some language to clarify with accessory dwelling units that there would be No longer a requirement for utility connection fees for smaller ADUs Which generally are 750 square feet or less is Kind of the smaller size units that the council has identified in there traditionally looked at as more affordable by design the other piece of this is the downtown housing incentives program that Kimberly mentioned and this is an Initiative that is a pilot program for a period of five years that the council will be looking at and it would provide some options for Utility for water and sewer payments And some reductions and other fees, which I'll go over in a moment so going over a bit of the background the State adopted some new legislation back in January of 2017 Related to accessory dwelling units again with the idea of really trying to incentivize these smaller units within local jurisdictions as part of that process the council did adopt amendments to comply with state law and one piece of that is Was to include a prohibition of water and wastewater connection fees for ADUs that were created as Conversions of internal existing space and then the council did adopt some other changes related to Fees which I'll get into the next couple slides So just kind of stepping back Kind of how we got here in October of 2016 the council accepted the housing action plan which outlines various policies and Guidelines moving forward and how to address the city's ongoing unmet housing needs As part of that in both June of 2017 as well as October of 2018 the council adopted their goals in both of those time periods When the main goals was housing for all And then in December of 2018 Is when the council adopted those accessory dwelling unit amendments that I mentioned So those were really looking at implementing the state laws that had recently changed along with some other changes that were identified through the process and through the housing action plan as Again ways to incentivize these smaller more affordable by design type units It within the Ordinance that the council adopted they at the same time adopted a couple resolutions that Related to reduction in impact fees But what was not addressed was water and wastewater fees for units that were not an internal conversion the council has regularly requested staff to really look at various options to help incentivize affordable housing and increased density In the downtown as well as citywide and so that's why this item is being brought forward to council so for the accessory dwelling unit fee reductions that the council adopted with the new ordinance They included reductions in the capital facilities fees parks fees as well as the southeast and southwest area impact fees and those were a range of Fee reductions based on the size of the unit and the the most fee reduction would be for those smaller units of 750 square feet or less so what is proposed now is Looking at the water and wastewater piece of those impact fees So this is the language that would be added to the code currently as I mentioned the code already does address water and sewer connections for the Internal conversions and so this would add the language that would allow that reduction also for the smaller 750 square feet or less units so the other piece of this is the the The incentive program that the city is looking at this is a brand-new like said pilot program Would be a five-year period in looking at this It includes proposed reductions to impact fees and then also It looks at the sewer and water fees and again Actually, I haven't said this yet, but the the one difference is that with the with this program They're looking at Reduction impact fees, but for sewer and water. It's not a reduction fees. It would be providing two options for payment of those fees And again, this is really in response to the the council's goals for Fostering the strong downtown meeting housing needs and then we have our top tier Priority which is developing housing in downtown so The as I mentioned just mentioned the water and wastewater would be no fee reduction But a payment plan and that's identified in this slide here So they would be looking at two potential options They would get to choose between one or the other first would be a deferral fees that would those so those sewer and water fees would be paid once the Project has received or has gotten to a 75 percent occupancy or Within six months of final inspection of that Project, whichever would be sooner. The other option would be a payment plan Which would provide them an option to play in equal installments with interest And then if they chose that program, they would not be able to do the deferral program in addition to that So it really concludes the presentation I'm happy to answer any questions that you may have again. This is going to council on Tuesday So we'd like to be able to provide any comments that you might have to the council Thank You. Ms. Jones board member comments or questions remember Mullen Thank you a Few questions if you please first of all, I commend the the direction as we try to incentivize Building in the in the downtown area as well as the accessory dwelling unit a policy Took to waive connection fees First question about the the accessory dwelling units So would permit someone to to install one without paying additional fees I understand that part of it is their language or is there already language in there that would prohibit that accessory Unit from being converted into like a home office So that it would actually be a dwelling unit and not an accessory structure that's used for an office. I Don't believe currently if it was an office we would charge because it would be just a That size anyway, and you might be more familiar with us that wouldn't wouldn't Necessitate additional fees from us the dwelling unit previously would have but if it was an office space it would just be a Residential office included on the lot Even though it might have plumbing new plumbing associated with it. Yes If I if I can't speak to that I think the zoning has to already allow for Accessory dwelling units, and so it's a residential zone. You can have home offices in the residential zone There are certain I think limitations on what how you can use them so I don't think they can be They have heavy traffic, etc. But we can't we're not in this program with the ad use actually Limiting or restricting the use as far as you have to rent it out to somebody who's living there So it is possible that they could build the ad you they could use it for yoga studio or home office or rent it out But it's it's to incentivize that availability of additional housing So if I if I understand it then They're currently not paying additional utility connection fees now For the ad you they are currently paying those now We're going to restrict it with the new state law They can build an ad you up to 1200 square feet so correct 1200 square feet And so we're going to restrict that to the 750 or smaller where they wouldn't once they go to 751 square feet they pay demand fees for that So if I understand our attorney's response is we could not add anything into this Policy that would go forward to the council recommending that if we're going to give them an exemption from paying additional Utility fees that we require it to be a dwelling unit We wouldn't require what I guess my point was we wouldn't require additional fees if it was just a small home office That's not it that doesn't trigger additional fees from us If it was just a tiny office that they were having on site or as if we're not we're not talking about a commercial use Yeah, we're talking about how the exact the additional space is utilized as a home office or as a For residential use it's not we're not talking about conversion to a commercial zone Yes, it's in a residential zoning area So the the additional fees and connection Requirements are because it is an additional living unit that could potentially have you know another family living in there And so the idea is that for these smaller units We really want to incentivize those and having those additional fee requirements for that unit is very cumbersome and Wanting to get these smaller More you know affordable by design units this this would help that But again, there would be no there wouldn't if somebody just wanted to build an office on their property. They wouldn't have this additional fee currently Okay, so My other questions are dealing with the overall the overall policy again, I'm supportive of the policy is Is it going to apply to any it we're talking about high density development in the downtown corridor basically correct, so If we're going to incentivize that Does is it only restricted to below market rate housing or is it would it apply to market rate housing as well? It would apply to both So it would apply to market rate housing. So it's to incentivize those higher higher higher density But you know structures that that we're really wanting to see in our downtown So if it's going to apply to all types of housing high-density housing in the downtown corridor We It's not free. There's there's still a cost associated with it correct We're gonna have to roll that back in to our overall fee structure So that we're in compliance with prop 218 and all the other requirements related to fees So There's no reduction on that program We're not reducing fees at all for the high density program for the high density program We are giving them the opportunity to basically Move the financing of the fees themselves into their permanent financing from their construction Financing so that they can get their construction underway get their buildings built And then they have to pay us for the full amount of the demand fees We're not giving them any reductions for the demand fees. Okay and I do there are additional reductions for Not not specific to water and wastewater, but other of the demand fees as part of this program are being Further reduced for affordable housing projects in this incentive program. Just wanted to point that out Thank you for answering. I also just briefly wanted to know that Of course is noted. This is a five-year pilot. So we'll be able to revisit How much is utilized what the staff Time and resources go into managing payment plans and the like at that five-year period and make decisions from here as well as council Do they want to continue that program and somewhat similarly for 80 years while that's not specified for five years We do expect to Gather data from the implementation of this understand how many folks actually use it Be able to report back to the BPU and the council on the effectiveness of bringing in more housing at the same time What the no fee represents in terms of a revenue drop and those sort of things so Both of these will be periodic updates to the BPU if they were to move forward in terms of how they're Reacting in the operational context if I might Want to pick up if I can on board member moans question Is is it possible that this ordinance can be written in a way that the waiver for those 750 square feet or less is conditioned upon the unit being used as a dwelling It would be a zoning code change. So I'd have to ask Molly about that Well, I mean it's it's not been noticed as such today and I think the difficulty with that would be How do we enforce that and who needs to occupy if you have a single-family Residents they have an accessory dwelling unit can they say their 18 year old is occupying the unit could we really is there really a viable way that we could Require that I think that would be difficult I think the idea is to to have the units created in hopes that they will fill that gap of You know where we need additional housing for students for elderly Maybe it's a family member. Maybe it's you know a student at the JC So I think it's not something we could easily regulate or enforce But I think it's a hope that we would be able to have those things happening anyway I realized that it would be an enforcement potential nightmare I just it bothers me that there could be people who take advantage of this waiver of the fees and having no intention of building a unit that's ever going to be occupied, but Yeah, unfortunately, I think that is a component of this that there's a risk of that Or remember Grable would add to that that We you know We could rely on the on the fact that it is typically a lot more costly to build an ADU that is Intended to be a dwelling that is that a zone to be a dwelling and then not to occupy that either with a family member a renter Of some sort and to use it as an office. There's you would be Not necessarily reaping a whole lot of benefits there based on the cost to build versus a home office or some other structure that wouldn't Typically require the the hookup fees the impact fees of the permitting fees. Am I right? Would like to know what the number is that we're saving people typically for an ADU 700 square feet or below or you know what Is the You know, what's the number? I think Karen's gonna come up with it right now $7,500 plus of $510 processing fee on each and then a separate meter So about $8,000 is that yeah, that's that's what I thought I thought it was between eight and ten That's a that's a really good incentive I'm really glad that we're starting to move toward these sort of real incentives Housing and housing diversity. I know that not only do we have a lack of housing We have a lack of housing diversity and typologically speaking and in the past there have been things like density bonuses and other policies that To be frank aren't necessarily an incentive because the developer still has to pay for those units and they frankly just never get built the I Would like it, you know sort of hammered hammered into the presentation to the council that That number so it really shows In, you know, whatever Kevin McCallum writes about that city council meeting that shows to people in the city like Hey, this is the incentive. It's about $8,000. I mean, it's one thing to say it will you know Create an incentives another thing to say exactly what that incentive is in a dollar amount I think that's powerful for people who are You know a lot of people are looking at this option right now Just quickly the other thing I wanted to note is that just so the board is aware the accessory dwelling ordinance that the council recently adopted one of the changes that they did incorporate is a restriction on Rental terms so the city does not normally restrict short-term rentals But for accessory dwelling units they did include a 30-day rental restriction So these could not be used for short-term vacation rentals, right? It's basically an Airbnb moratorium But it could still be used for a visiting physician or someone who has a 30-day term is my understanding is why they chose that 30-day windows because you have a lot of visiting doctors and whoever that you know Would need it for that amount of time and I do appreciate that because I know Whereas we can't enforce a unit being occupied. We can Have some say and and how that Yeah, that I'll keep How a how long a dwelling is occupied? The second question I had Comment on the on the density on the downtown housing incentives I do know that I you know, obviously it's important to reduce barriers to entry to building downtown. I appreciate that Do we know home practitioners exactly, you know, it says the six months Where is it? the financing term it's 75% Occupancy or six months from final inspection Can you tell me how that was determined and whether that is? sort of the The term that would be beneficial in terms of you know seeking financing for a development You know what is that Something that the bank is going to look at and actually you know say oh, yeah, that makes sense You know because I know a lot of contingencies and encumbrances Don't necessarily make sense to the lenders and I want to make sure that the projects get built if we're creating these incentives So how was that how were those numbers and timelines determined on the on the deferral? If they're that far into occupancy, they should be well into their permanent financing But we didn't want to open it up So that we just did it on occupancy because that could could then move it way farther out And so we decided to put a limit on that and make sure that it was within six months of that Final inspection so we didn't want it to carry on for for many many years if they opened a building and it doesn't get occupied But if they occupy it a little bit sooner than we know they're in their permanent financing And they're already receiving profit on that building and we want them to start or to make those deferral payments And typically a lender will look at occupancy as far as viability of the project and In the lending process and the render writing process In terms of the roll out the cash roll out. Yeah, okay. Thank you for my banster Thank you. I agree with Commissioner Grable that the Amount of that eight or ten thousand dollars on the ad use that you're waving is an important number and shouldn't be included in your Presentation to the city council. I imagine they'll want to know that and it does show the public. They were taking meaningful steps to try and improve housing availability That eight or ten thousand figure on the ad use is that reflective of actual costs that the city Encurs anytime a new connection is made or where did that where is that number coming from in the first place? We had a demand fee study done and they looked at it as a multi-family Unit, so they were using it as a multi-family We don't have enough data and I actually spoke to our fee consultant about it today to do a full demand fee study on Accessory dwelling units unfortunately, there's just not that kind of data out there for just those pieces So when they were looking at accessory dwelling units, they were looking at the smaller units because I believe they used to even be only 700 square feet and So just kind of determining by size when we got to that smaller Demand fee amount, but our demand fees are based on increasing the capacity to the system the just to add to that the Process of demand fee. It's not reflecting a cost of service per se It's reflecting a buy-in to the system based on the demand that would be exerted so the Essentially in a broad way they look at the asset value of your system and spread that over flow and strength that comes in and then that proportionally is applied to new folks coming in so it's a way for Essentially to buy in to a system that the current ratepayers have built. That's a concept behind it So while it may not be a cost that's incurred upon occupancy It's a cost. It's a long-term cost Which means that we're going to be spreading that cost out to the rest of the ratepayers. Is that correct? Well, we did look at that because we want to be careful to Not have this be a rate payer Subsidized program because we can't do that under proposition 218 Rather we looked at this in a percentage relative to the overall Connection fees that we Generate for the system and found that it's a very small amount around three percent or less probably Overall, and so we think we found that it's not a significant impact to the revenue stream It's consistent with the state law direction the state when adopting their ad you Statutes that told local municipalities in different areas to go forth and try to help these be more accessible Wanted to Have jurisdictions look at Just how much demand fees were being charged and we're carefully looking at it as a very small piece of a large picture But it's something that I think will continue to evaluate as director Hornstein said Thank you, and I don't suppose we have any projections about how many of these ad use we might be talking about in the area We pulled some numbers and there were 17 in the last year that were under the 750 square foot Size with the rebuilds. I mean we are trying to you know incentivize Having additional affordable units in the rebuild So we could see probably a higher number because we were talking about vacant lots now that are starting from zero and building on them I did want to mention though. However that once they do Become a part or they're built and they're connected to the system that they are a part of a rate payer base So they are paying rates. They will be paying rates through their usage and their fixed fees. Thank you Remember Grable and yeah I was gonna note that as we increase deliveries as far as I know our rates are determined by a number of deliveries and volume of delivery so increasing deliveries would actually benefit ratepayers and potentially decrease rates, you know, I mean potentially, right so Board member well I'd like to go back to the to the feed deferral the one that's on the screen right now where we're gonna Permit fees on certain projects To be paid When it's 75% occupied or six months from final inspection I Presume as a part of that we would do some sort of surety document at application that Stipulates exactly what that says on the slide Because we've seen the development business is speculative by its nature And there have been projects that have started And at certain phases the project's been sold to someone else and we want to be sure that we've captured the ability to Reel them in under this provision in their fee structure as part of the program There will be required to record a deed of trust against the property for us. Okay. Thank you That was part of my question as well and the payment plan option if they opt for that and do the five equal payments There's a deed of trust also then correct great until it's paid Wonderful any other board member questions or comments? Thanks for presentation. Hopefully we've given you some feedback that you can use when you go to the council. So good luck. Thank you And I would just like to say I'm really excited about this. Thank you We have One item on the consent calendar Unless somebody wants it pulled I'll entertain a motion to approve the consent calendar item So move So moved Motion by board member Mullen and seconded by board member Bannister to approve item seven or excuse me It's should be six point one All in favor say aye. Aye. Aye. Any opposed? Passes unanimously. Thank you. We have a couple of report items item seven point one is The report on the plan for lifting the advisory in the fountain grove area Deputy director Burke welcome This is an item that we've been Keeping the board apprised on of course as we've progressed through The investigation and the intent today is to bring the board up to speed on where we are is You're likely very aware There's been a fair amount of press interest as we move to lift the advisory and Deputy Burke's been very active responding to many if not all of them. So with that miss Burke Thank you. Good afternoon Chairman Galvin and members of the board. Sorry. Can you hear me? As director Horstine mentioned I'm here today to provide an update to the board and go through the plan for Lifting the water quality advisory in the fountain grove area This has been a top priority for the department for Almost a year now on really trying to understand the cause The extent and the resolution and how we would restore water quality to the fountain grove area In particular, I just want to mention That there have been a lot of staff that have worked on this project As well as the expert team and I just want to really thank all the folks that have put a lot of effort into this Without them and without all the staff working on this we couldn't have been successful in getting as far as we have So with that What I'm going to talk to you about today is give an overview on The background and how we got here talk about our pathway to repair I'm going to review the data the most recent data and talk about The effectiveness that we've seen in replacing components of the system Then I'll walk you through the plan for lifting the advisory and then talk about next steps and our post advisory monitoring and flushing plans So just as a reminder When the fires came through in October of last year The area was evacuated and folks were not allowed to re-enter into The burn area until early November The area that you see in front of you on the map is what we call the advisory area and it's an area in fountain grove That had 352 Homes and after the fire there were only 13 homes remaining in this particular area When those homeowners were allowed to go back into the burn area and and Reenter their homes we received a call from one of the homeowners with a taste and odor complaint They were just thinking that something that was a bit off with their water We sent staff out immediately to test the water and see if we could identify the issue and When staff was out there they recognized that something did seem a bit off so they actually did a test for volatile organic compounds or VOCs and Based on all the testing that we done in the results we found that we had a benzene Contamination in this particular area We issued an advisory on November 10th to the 13 homes that were in the area We also provided a press release and information to the public and then as we got into the investigation and further Understood the contamination We issued additional precautions In january that really limited not only their ability to drink and cook with the water but also Exposure to the water in general Once we realized this contamination issue We Initially flushed and tried to resolve it and it was still persistent And so then we reached out to a number of agencies throughout, uh, california as well as nationwide Try and see if anyone else had experienced something like this post fire We didn't find anyone else that had ever experienced this issue So we quickly pulled together a team of experts not only working with local regulators such as Sonoma county public health state regulators such as division of drinking water national federal regulators the us epa region nine Brought on a forensic chemist team Worked with toxicologists and brought on a national water quality expert to help us really try and determine What occurred and how we could resolve this issue? so we embarked upon a very methodical and Data-driven investigation to understand what occurred At this point, I think we're roughly at 6,500 samples that we have taken That samples of the water that samples of soil that samples of the components of the water system to Make sure we fully understand what's occurring And we did a number of different analyses We have been sharing all of that data with the public. It has been available on our website This is actually an old picture If you went to our website today, the good news is you'd see I think almost all blue dots, which means the waters meeting all regulations But this we shared all the data through a gis map that was searchable where folks could put in an address And they could pull up that particular address and get all the sample results Not only the most recent ones, but previous results could also search search for neighborhoods or streets, etc so With that intensive investigation and working with our team We determined that the fire did cause this issue With the fire melting of plastics Materials both on the property side and to some extent we think maybe our meters in our side as well as smoke sit and ash Got back siphoned into the water system and then either adhered to copper service lines or absorbed into plastic service lines and in some cases gaskets and then Has been in the system since So using the data and continuing to sample it has driven all of the decisions that we've made and Not only did we Sample all throughout the advisory area, but as the map on that previous slide showed We also tested every single service line within 500 feet of a burned property So we tested the entire burned area anywhere something burned within 500 feet. We tested all around there And based on that information and based on that testing we did find in approximately 2,500 service lines that we tested outside of the advisory area There were 150 water service lines where we found some contamination That was acting very differently than the advisory area where we found it in more components of the system Outside of the advisory area. We found it in water service lines to burn properties When we found it we Valved off those service lines and replaced those service lines and that had proven to be successful So that information plus the data really drove us to a phased approach to look at replacing the components where we had known contamination first Continuing to flush and sample and then see if that resolved the issue or next steps we had to take The good news is that as I mentioned outside of the advisory area by replacing service lines that has been successful in restoring water quality Inside the advisory area. We've now replaced the water service lines to all 352 properties We've replaced the 28 blow-off valves. We've replaced eight hydrants where we found contamination And then we've been looking at the data and based on the data, which i'll talk about in a little Bit that also led us to replace three main segments on three courts in the advisory area as well So we'll talk a little bit about the process. So we've been evaluating the data We have been working with our expert team as well as our regulators. We Have a call we used to Have a weekly call. It's kind of dropped back down to bite weekly We're getting back to weekly again now that we're getting close to lifting the advisory With both the division of drinking water and us epa region nine We've been sharing the information Through every avenue we can to share the data and the plan for lifting the advisory and getting feedback So to date um with sharing the plan we had a special meeting with the city council on september the seventh We had a meeting with the 13 homeowners For those that were available to share this information that actually happened on september the fifth prior to the council meeting We met with the Fountain Grove master ranch association board and and attended their board meeting and gave this presentation there We met with the hidden valley and fountain grove Black captains at the black captains meeting and also shared this presentation We had a community meeting last night At the utilities field office. I think between 15 to 20 people attended We also had channel seven news there So they also videotaped a lot of the meeting and we actually taped the community meeting last night as well as the city council meeting and both of those are available on our website So that if folks couldn't attend couldn't see the information They could watch those as you know the bpu meeting is also recorded So that'll be up there as well So people can watch any of these three videos if they'd like and the plan is also shared So we're doing our best to get this information out to as many people as possible get feedback See if folks have any questions on the plan for lifting the advisory And then if the data holds as we're anticipating that it will We will be lifting the drinking water advisory and we'll be doing that through formal notifications door hangers to the existing properties Letters or sorry to the existing homes letters to all the properties within there as well as putting out press releases Using our website social media e-newsletter One of the biggest feedbacks That we got from meeting with the homeowners is they really ask that we try to get the word out as much as possible So that folks can know this neighborhood has now back returned back to normal and the drinking water is safe So we're really going to do our best to honor that and get this information out when the plan is lifted So that's sort of an overview of the process Just a reminder that when we're talking about benzene and the reason why we have the advisory in place the Safe drinking water act has regulations that have certain limits for constituents in water For benzene the maximum contaminant level or mcl is five parts per billion for the u.s California we're more restrictive and so the mcl in california is one part per billion And what the mcl looks like looks at is exposure to this constituent in water through three different avenues through ingestion or drinking through Dermal absorption or through inhalation and it's looked at over a 70 year lifetime to set what those safe regulations would be So now i'm going to walk you through a little bit of the data This first graph here shows the data that the water quality For the water that has been going to the 13 homes in the area One of the things that we quickly realized when we were doing this investigation and I mentioned earlier is that the highest concentrations of the contamination was found in the water service lines And the water service line is the line from the main to the meter Once we determined that was the case We went through and either valved off those service lines or in some cases valved off whole courts And that was in mid january and you can see the graph here starts data with the january Once we did that The water actually started meeting all regulatory requirements in january We continued to flush and do other activities in that area We also sampled the water from every single one of those homes on a weekly basis And since mid may we haven't seen any detects of benzene, which is really good news And that's the water going to the 13 surviving homes These graphs here show you data from the water service lines. So the graph on the left is the initial data Results from sampling every single one of the water service lines in the advisory area And you can see it ranged all over the place In some cases where we didn't find any To cases where I believe the highest was a little over 900 parts per billion In the water service lines We have since replaced all the water service lines in the advisory area and the graph on the right shows you the post replacement sampling All the sampling has come in below the one part per billion mcl for benzene In addition, we have also been sampling the Hydrants within the advisory area. So one of the things for a water system is Typically you sample the water using water sample stations in this particular area We have three water sample stations and we knew that that would not be enough to really get a sense of the water quality in the mains and what was occurring so fire hydrants also give you a very similar Opportunity to test the water and so we've been testing the water from the 65 fire hydrants that are in the advisory area The graph on the left shows the data where Starting in june, we still saw some contamination in the area. We started aggressively flushing as well as replacing components of the system The graph on the right shows you the most recent data For the hydrants and all the hydrants are below the mcl for benzene the one part per billion digging into a little bit more detail As I said since june once we started really aggressively flushing and sampling All the hydrants have met all the regulatory limits 51 of the hydrants show no detectable amounts of benzene 11 of those hydrants have shown Maybe a one time or a two time But an infrequent minimal amount of benzene below the 0.5 part per billion and then would drop back down to non-detect Three hydrants have shown minimal amounts on a consistent basis That are just about at 0.5 parts per billion And those three hydrants were located on stony oak court foxtail court and blue sage court And we did replace the mains on those three courts that work has now been completed I believe that was in front of the bpu Maybe a month ago or so with the change order that work has been completed and we are have Tied those lines back in flushing and are going to be sampling getting those results soon So based on the information and the data and working with the expert team We know that the water quality is is meeting all regulatory limits for safe drinking water both state and federal We know that the target replacement has been successful in restoring water quality So we worked with the division of Division of drinking water to develop a plan for lifting the advisory The plan consists of sampling all the service lines post replacement, which we have completed 10 percent resampling of all the service lines to confirm the results. We are in the process of doing that this week Weekly sampling of the 65 hydrants for four weeks. So at this point, we've got about two weeks down Or so we have another couple weeks to go And then if all the data holds as anticipated, we would lift the advisory potentially As early as next month Once the advisory is lifted, we know or no our work is not done And we know we have to continue to monitor and flush to ensure that we don't see a reoccurrence of the contamination So we will be Sampling bi-weekly. So every two weeks for two months following lifting of the advisory from all 65 hydrants While that data holds and looks good, we would drop down to monthly sampling of all 6500 65 hydrants for months three through six All that data continues to hold we would drop to quarterly sampling of all 65 hydrants for months six through 12 And then if all that holds a year later, we would return to the normal quarterly sampling For bocs But we would add two of the water sample stations from this particular area to be included with our routine sampling All of this data and information will be shared not only with our regulators, but also with the public if anyone has questions In terms of next steps, we are continuing to work closely with division of drinking water and usepa to coordinate our activities on this We're continuing to try to get the word out and communicate as i mentioned We've attended a bunch of meetings so far this month We're also open if anyone else wants us to come and attend and give information. We're happy to do that We're going to we're continuing to sample right now and we're going to continue monitoring and flushing ongoing post advisory And as I mentioned if all the data holds We anticipate lifting the advisory sometime next month For those that may not have Known where to get information we continue wanting to share where you can get updates where you can get the data Um, so you can go to our website, which is srcd.org Slash wq advisory And that has all of our latest information and data it has links to the presentations It has the plan for lifting the advisory This slide is a little out of date because we actually did send another update This week on the 13th, I believe To of our e-newsletter and if folks have not signed up for our e-newsletter You can also go to the website and sign up for the e-newsletter As I mentioned before we're going to continue to use all of our different media channels So we are using all of our social media channels our website as well as press releases and we'll be sending mail and Door hangers when we lift the advisory and all that information You can also get a link to it from this nomacountyrecovers.org website as well So with that I'm happy to answer any questions that the board might have Thank you. Deputy director Burke any questions or comments from the board Board member grable Yeah, I just want to say thank you. I know how much work has gotten into this and um, how just over and above typical duties and expectations of staff and others throughout this process and What did a wonderful job on the radio by the way? I was going to ask What's the what's the differential in the projected the original projected amount? The 40 million And and what we actually ended up spending on this is it about So at this point we're roughly 8 million that's probably going to continue to grow a little bit because we have the ongoing testing and monitoring so It and it's going to be a little bit more So the 8 million I believe includes The investigation and sampling and that of course would be in place even with either capital approach So if we looked at it a 40 plus million capital program, which is where we were of replacing pipes Were in the ballpark of about 10 percent of what that cost would have been Right and I think it's important to to really make sure that you know our press releases reflect that because that that Differential that cost savings. I think it can is really attributed to the methodology and the approach that staff took That you know, we didn't have a knee jerk reaction that we didn't you know respond for instance to a lot of the pressure to just fix everything all at once and just you know The methodical approach that you took I think was was not only the correct way to go but ended up being much more economical as well And and you know, I just I commend I commend you all for that My other my other question was in terms of the outreach on this I know that'll go out to the public press release door hangers Um Obviously for those who don't who no longer live in the city of Santa Rosa, but are you know potentially rebuilding in found grove And maybe you're already doing this, but I just thought it might be important to reach out to the realtors Yes, the hospitals key side Those with a disproportionate number of employees for instance in the found grove area and you know, maybe that's already happening North cusp builders exchange others who are working up there just seem like a Useful pathway to get that information to people as quickly as possible. Yes, that is a great point. We have Reached out. We've we've gone to meetings at all those locations in the past so we can definitely reach out again provide information Um, and you are right is it is difficult to to reach All the folks because they're no longer there One of the things um is that as we've sent letters and they've come back We have gotten some forwarding information So we've at least captured that so we'll be sending letters to the best we can to folks where they've moved to So it's a little bit helpful, but yes, and we will definitely reach out to all those organizations again And and then maybe we can go back to being the obscure technical nerdy Department that isn't on the front page anymore. It would be lovely Any other board member comments or questions I would echo What board member gravel said the presentation was very good I happened to be able to see the presentation that you all made also to the city council and along with the fire chief and the director and It was well done. I think it was very well received I was a little disappointed that there weren't more members of the public there to to see it But hopefully they're going on the website and they're Picking up the information on what an outstanding job Staff has done in the water department as a whole to get us to where we're at today. So congratulations and Keep up the good work. Thank you. Thanks. I just want to point out that we we do have a Recommendation for the board to make a motion to accept the report today It's not a typical process but under the circumstances. We thought it was something that would make sense I Move to accept the report on the plan for lifting the advisory from the water quality advisory area in a portion of phone grove Second motion by board member gravel seconded by board member mullen to recommend that the by motion accept the report of the plan All in favor say aye. Aye. Any opposed? Passes unanimously. Thanks again Item 7.2 as a report on the first amendment to the agreement for design installation operation and ownership of a micro grid system at the treatment plant Deputy director walton welcome Good afternoon chairman galvin members of the board. I'm am a walton deputy director of engineering resources I'm here today to Seek approval for an amendment to the agreement for the installation design and ownership of a micro grid demonstration project at the laguna treatment plant Before I get into the specifics of the amendment, which is really A very small portion of the project I'll go over the background of the project Get into some details about the project itself The current status of the project as well as some of the costs and benefits That may be realized by the city It's important to note that this is a demonstration project. So we don't know exactly How this project will be implemented in the end But as we continue to gather data and implement the project We will come back to the board with findings and keep you all apprised of how the demonstration project is going And then finally i'll get into kind of the specifics of the amendment itself So a little background on the project with the continual and widespread Implementation of renewable energy sources like solar California's electrical grid is experiencing some instability Due to the on-off nature of renewable energy sources like solar And in 2013 the california independent system operator cal iso. They're the entity or the organization that's responsible for managing california's electrical grid and they oversee local agencies like pgne They recognized and predicted that with increased implementation of solar that Our electrical grid would become more and more unstable over time And that's the the curve you see in front of you. It's known in the industry as the duck curve 2013 is kind of the blue line there in the middle. That was the starting point And cal iso predicted that as over time there would be More and more instability in in how they have to manage the grid It's ideal to manage an electrical grid kind of where supply equals demand and that's where you see a straight line and when There's kind of an over generation of electricity and during daylight hours you get these big swings in in supply and demand so there really is just An instability where supply doesn't equal demand In california There are a number of ways that this issue could be addressed but this project is in particular Is looking at how micro grids could help Help flatten this curve or create a more stable grid and so in The a number of years ago the california energy commission Who's the state's primary? Policy energy policy and planning agency One of the things they're responsible for is encouraging research and development into energy supply and demand problems like the duck curve And to better understand how micro grids could help solve this problem. They Released a grant And the grant had kind of two fundamental goals that Needed to be kind of further investigated and accomplished one was to fund the development and the testing of micro grids That use battery storage and renewable energy and to also show how micro grids can enable energy users like the the treatment plant to participate in the energy market, which basically means We can sell our ability to alter our demand on the system to try and help stabilize Those large swings in energy So train who's a building performance They're in the industry of building performance They closely monitor grants like the one the cec issued and They identified the santa rosa lukuna treatment plant as an ideal demonstration site for this project to be implemented and with coordination with staff And eventual approval from the city council the mayor signed a letter Authorizing train to list the lukuna treatment plant as the demonstration project in their application in their grant application And in 2015 Train was awarded a grant for the implementation of a micro grid project at the lukuna treatment plant And the grant funds were five million dollars So that brings us to the project kind of what is it? There are three main components of the project one is a small solar installation Doesn't really tie much into the the micro grid project, but it is a small benefit for the city of santa rosa There are also two SCR or selective catalytic reduction units that will be installed on our existing Engines that we operate at the treatment plant. We operate four Combined heat and power engines that produce energy on site through burning digester gas and natural gas And then finally there'll be a large battery Installed as part of the project With the micro grid controller and the micro grid controller is kind of the proprietary piece of the project that train is is bringing to help Manage the whole system the system as a whole So as I mentioned, uh, there's a 125 kilowatt solar system that is being installed This is a photo of the installation Uh, since this photo was taken the installation actually has been completed and the system is operational Again, it it doesn't really tie into how The treatment plant could operate as a micro grid, but it is it is a benefit to the city Secondly the two scr units. These are photos of the actual units That have not yet been installed, but they're basically post combustion Exhaust treatment units They're a more thorough They provide a more thorough Cleaning of our exhaust which allows us to utilize our engines more readily Right now we have pretty strict Regulations on how often and in what circumstances We can use our engines. So installing these units will allow us to use the excess capacity of those engines and Provide us the ability to meet more of our own energy demands on site and then there's A large Two megawatt hour battery that will be installed as part of the project This battery has a large capacity to kind of put it in perspective This battery alone would allow us to operate the treatment plant for a half an hour Or an average American household for approximately two months. So this is is a very large battery And I have a short video. Hopefully I can get it to work The manufacturer of the battery management system actually put out a little video About this battery that's being manufactured for us specifically. It's about a three minute video I don't think it's gonna work, but it's um It's kind of a neat video. It's a promotional opportunity for the the manufacturer, but it's just neat how How big of a deal this really is in the industry and what a exciting project this is Since the the fabrication of this unit Occurred off-site it has now been shipped to the treatment plant is actually currently installed at the treatment plant now So what does this all mean kind of how does all of these little components help? the concept is that In concert the battery the micro grid controller and kind of the freed up use of our engines That we would be able to alter our demand on the overall grid at key or critical times and that's Not only good for the grid in general, but it has the potential to be worth money our ability to we could sell our ability to do that and so During critical times if we were able to increase our Demand on the system we could start kind of incrementally bringing up the belly of the duck If we were able to decrease our demand we could start bringing down the head of the duck And in combination with other micro grids around the system We could incrementally start bringing up The belly down the head eventually getting to a place where we have kind of a more stable grid where supply Equals demand which becomes a lot easier for callus cal iso To operate so that's kind of the concept behind the project Again, it's a demonstration project. So We're really using the industry is really using this project to better understand how this might work industry-wide Which is great, and I think something that Santa Rosa should be proud to support But we also need to keep in mind that we need to Be thoughtful about how we're spending our money even though this is a grant funded project the city does Have kind of skin in the game As part of the original agreement we agreed to 750 thousand dollars in matching funds this 750 thousand dollars Is really to pay for one of the exhaust treatment units we had previously budgeted for in our cip and an exhaust treatment unit because It saves us money in the long run Because it's cheaper for us to Purchase gas and burn it in our engines than it is to purchase electricity So we get money savings there We also as part of the project need to upgrade some of our infrastructure In particular our digester gas treatment The sc our units are very sensitive to any imperfections in gas. So we need to kind of beef up Our our digester gas conditioning system The 968 thousand is the actual bid that we received and We'll be coming to the board for contract approval in the next month or so So you'll see that and then project implementation costs are estimated around 500 000. This includes Engineering support permitting support. We are changing How we're operating Our engines so we do have to alter our air permit And also this line item accounts for staff time So in general we're spending around 2.2 million dollars in city funds to support this project For reference the cost incurred incurred by the c ec is about five million and train Is also putting money towards the project about 2.2 of their own money towards the project So if we look at the benefits compared to the city's capital investment As I mentioned the the electrical savings that we get from purchasing natural gas as opposed to purchasing electricity is Somewhere on the magnitude of a million dollars per year We do get a small solar savings from the 125 kilowatt solar system There's also the potential For us to sell our ability to alter our demand on the grid which it's it's kind of playing in the energy market That's part of the intent of the grant is really to understand whether or not It's feasible for entities like us to do that So we don't know if that will even be a viable option for us or really what that dollar value may be 150 000 is on the low end of the estimates And then there will be increased o and m costs due to Maintaining this additional infrastructure. So that's accounted for there, but we are realizing around A half a million dollars in net savings per year and if you compare that with our capital costs It's about a little over a four-year simple payback And that brings us to the amendment the amendment like I mentioned is kind of a small portion of the overall project after we Entered the agreement with train about a year ago. We recognized an opportunity to apply for A self-generation incentive program rebate Those rebates Provide incentives to support distributed energy sources and one of the qualifying technologies Is advanced energy storage which the battery component of this project Meets that that technology requirement So we are positioned to receive an s-gip rebate, but The original meter that was proposed to be used on that battery system is not a revenue grade meter it's one that train proposed to use through the grant project and If we want to Increase to a revenue grade meter That will be about $13,000 in additional funds that the city would be responsible for because it's above and beyond What the grant was originally intended in the grant in addition to And that's that's what this amendment here today is covering is just to cover the increased cost of the meter But to apply for and receive The rebate There are other items that we will need to invest in one is The s-gip application itself And That includes The responsibility to monitor The use of the battery over a five-year period. So pdp services. There's performance data provider services So the the incentive program does require that we hire a consultant that monitors our usage of the battery And then our rebate is partially based on how we utilize the battery So the estimated benefits Again, these are estimates It will depend on our actual usage of the battery But we're anticipating around $80,000 at installation and then Anywhere from $16,000 to $32,000 a year over the next five years With a total rebate value of about $160,000 on the conservative side So that with that I'll bring us to our recommendation Which is to By motion approve the amendment and I will open it up for any questions Thank you board member questions Board member mollusk Not a question as much as a as a comment as as one of the Members to this board It's it always seems like Nearly every item that comes before us It's it's a very innovative approach to delivering the services that we we provide here in the city and the way the staff Goes about researching and And Bringing forward innovative projects Is just really impressive I just want you to know that This item is is no different than that to to Free money is always in high demand and it takes a lot of research and dedication to to get in line and and Carry it through because there's a lot of work when people are handed out free money To to qualify and then see it through and see the benefits that it and this project is just Awesome The way it is lined up and and the the money we've invested it is certainly significant But the value that we're getting from the grant money and the other partners is is just equally impressive So I just want to commend the staff for that Thank you Any other board member questions or comments? I would echo board member molland. Um, this is something we've been Following for a while and looking forward to seeing what the results are once we actually have the micro grid Up and running and we see how productive it is. So Thank you very much Yes, um, I have a question in the original uh in the original letter that you referenced in the presentation from From mary Bartley it it made a Reference to electric vehicles Is that is there a component of the micro grid project that uses vehicles as sort of a An outsourced battery basically, I mean they'd be parked in the same park in a lot as long as you had charged components I know that's a component of other micro grids where you're basically You have your own battery bank for operations, but then in terms of leveling that curve off even more um, and I know that the bms Usually has a you know a metric for that if the chargers are online and all that Um, is there is there a component there that would incentivize for instance employees or or say vehicles, you know Um getting more electric vehicles out there right so The grant the reason that that electric vehicle language is in there is the grant did allow for that and encourage that The project that was specifically Submitted by train to the california energy commission did not include That component So it's just not part of our project, but it's part of potentially other grant funded projects So that would have to be in addition to that would have to be it could could it not something in the future That may make sense to add on to it. So I don't think it's necessarily out of the question, but going forward at this point, it's not part of it That's correct. Um, I don't know that we would be eligible for grant funds necessarily through that previous c ec grant, but it's definitely something we can look into incorporating In the future. I just know that as a city the more that we I know the county is pursued it, but as a city as well the more we have more of our city vehicles As ev is all electric not only does it benefit Us and and and the planet, but I think there's also it puts in a different Tier for matching funds related to cap and trade and all kinds of things They'd be something to to look at maybe in the future and maybe consult with some clean power as well My my only other question is on that requirement for the pdp Don't doesn't a typical bms have its own capture of data performance like Isn't it logging its own metrics on that? The bms does I don't know that it logs the specific metrics that The s-chip the s-chip incentive program requires So it's a separate meter that is actually being proposed So that's what we're going to do next Awesome man very soon. We may be uh more than just a water utility Whenever whenever people ask are they assume? Oh board of public utilities. I must just be like the puc. I'm like, no, no But looks like we're looks like we're moving in that direction. Thank you so much. Thank you If there are no other board member questions or comments, I'll entertain a motion to approve the amendment That the board approved the first amendment to the agreement for the design installation operation and ownership Of a micro grid demonstration system. Do I need to stipulate the amount? Not necessary it's in the staff report second Motioned by board member mollin seconded by board member grable to approve item 7.2 Yes 7.2 all in favor say aye. Aye any opposed Great. Thank you so much Item number eight is public comments on non-agenda matters Seeing no one rise. We have no referrals One written communication Which you should have all received Subcommittee reports I will report that uh, I have board member battenford has agreed to serve on the ag ad hoc committee So I've appointed her to the committee and I would ask staff to include her when planning the next meeting of that ad hoc committee Any board member reports directors report Chair galvin. I do have a few items to share with the board today First we wanted to note that after an extended shutdown that we had chaired at a previous meeting to repair A leak on our geyser pipeline turned out to be a leak of a expansion joint on pine flats road Is going back online as of the 18th So is it back up? Yeah, so it's back online at this point And we're probably at a very close to maximum capacity The system's been shut down since mid august about six weeks or so Which is roughly 200 million gallons in storage that has been in our storage instead of going up to the geysers staff has been addressing some of the excess water by Relaxing the allotments for our ag customers that they presumably have appreciated Over the next few weeks we'll get a better sense of where we actually are In terms of storage and what we're projecting going into wet weather and we'll be coming back to the bpu to share that information But at this point it doesn't appear that we're in a Position to be overly concerned about The other piece of it is we do have obligations to meet with the geysers Contract, but they have agreed as we understand it to Because of this emergency to suspend during that time period the requirement. So we're in a relatively good position particularly since staff was able to find the leak and repair it very quickly Did want to note that there were There's other similar expansion joints Up the pipeline that we're now that we had this experience. We are concerned about and we will be Evaluating those over The near term to ensure that those aren't experiencing a similar problem that occurred with this particular expansion joint Another item to share that our biosolids land application Which as you know is one of the key places that we reuse our biosolids Along with our compost operation The land application is a dry weather operation And it's wrapping up in the next few weeks But it's gone well Moving on wanted to share that we are Transitioning in the FEMA process. I know we've talked a lot about FEMA But it is well deserved reflective the work that goes into dealing with FEMA and the reimbursements But we're to share we're moving past the phase of getting the project submitted and accepted We aren't fully there on the acceptance part with everything, but we're very close And we're transitioning into the reimbursement phase Should be easy you just get the money as it comes in but It does have a lot of details Including For the water enterprises to ensure that as a checks come to the city The enterprises are getting the appropriate revenue streams Into the enterprise and not the general fund and working with finance to make sure that works And make sure that all the invoices that we sent are actually coming in because as I understand it You can just get a check in the mail of some amount from FEMA that's not attached to a project and it's not So anyway, there's a fair amount and we're just trying to get ahead of it and I believe we're doing that So we wanted to share that because it is a considerable amount of work The next item we wanted to share is um work continues, but it's um nearing completion on farmers lane Well rehabilitation project as you may be aware we we discussed at a meeting or two that The project is underway and the wells were offline this year because of the rehabilitation project We do expect to be bringing them on back on over the next few weeks and we expect everything to Go well if it doesn't we'll report back accordingly On september 10th At 2 a.m. Which these things always tend to happen in the wee hours of the morning We had a rather significant failure on a water main under oakmont drive And it required a quick response which we did of our staff to respond to it and a fair amount of Repair work on the street and concrete aprons and the like and also this was such a significant break That we did lose pressure for a number of homes Which then triggered a precautionary do not drink advice boil water notice advisory that was quickly lifted once the results came in about a day and a half Later, but I think it was really an exceptional response by staff of how quickly we got that repaired Next item to share that our tap program take it from the tap Um is off to a great start this year We're very active as you're aware Educating our student community in the city on the value of water and water conservation We have over 80 presentations that have been scheduled for the fall and through through january And we expect we will have reached Four to five thousand students by the end of this year. That's quite a milestone for us Also wanted to share that at the end of the month staff is putting on a water efficient landscape ordinance workshop Really designed to help owners that are rebuilding from the tubs fire to utilize these more relatively efficient Templates that have been pre developed to facilitate the rebuild and reduce part of the load for these survivors that are rebuilding their homes And that seems we've been working closely with pet in the city and it seems that has been Very well received by the landscape community and homeowners Coming up with a streamlined way to work through That requirement with the homeowners The next item is an update on the potter valley project relicensing and We noted at a past meeting that pg&e indicated they were going to be putting up the project for auction And they have released that information They're using a request for offers process We do understand from how this is played out in areas around the state that it does get a bit opaque in terms of Who actually applied and what's pg&e? Thinking and I expect that to be the case here A piece of what we believe is good news for the city is that Some upper Upriver Stakeholders have developed a jpa And it includes mendicino county water agency city of yukair potter valley irrigation district and redwood valley water district and a few others Have announced their intention to enter the auction process and for us their interests very much dovetail with Lower river interests that we have so that's a very positive move But obviously certainly will stay very engaged and active and share with the board as that moves forward A lot of items say we a lot of work going on The next item I wanted to share is the we touched on at the last meeting and just a continuation of that We've been working on an rfp to pick up the recommendations from the study that we shared with you and council On how our water system performed during the fires We expect that rfp to go out Broadly as soon as next week And we do expect to bring that as we work to develop and refine the scope to the Contract subcommittee of the board, so we'll be doing that and bringing it to the full board As we work through that Also wanted to share that and this is an ongoing effort, but it is quite an initiative of the city and of the department The implementation of our new asset management program city works So that is Really gearing up and a lot of work is underway At this point it's A bit of an assessment of how we manage our assets and our programs and approaches to work And then benefiting from the recommendations of a consultant woolpert that we've brought on that is specialized in the implementation Of these computerized asset management programs And they're going to bring some recommendations to us based on how we're current doing work before we Really dive into the design of the system. This is probably a two-year process and we're Leading the effort for citywide implementation. So this is very significant not just for the water department, but citywide The benefits as well Wanted to Remind the board I just touched on it. So maybe it's more than reminding that the next board meeting on october 4th We are planning on a relatively brief board meeting with the focus of the afternoon being a A bit of a Remembrance and honoring the one-year anniversary of the fire So the plan is to have a relatively brief meeting. We've invited the city manager to bring a proclamation to the bpu for your consider consideration that would Recognize work that staff has done in the fire and the recovery efforts And then the meeting would be followed by refreshments and Open mic and a banner for folks to sign and similar Is you're all aware this is a significant moment for staff of one year So we're looking forward to that important event And that's going to be at the utility field office, I believe. Yes, it will. Thank you Wanted to note that we've currently we're in a um exceedance situation at the laguna treatment plan for coliforms We believe it's due to and coliform of course is the indicator organism Reflecting the efficacy of our uv disinfection system to meet our permit requirements We're investigating the cause we believe it may be due to Biological growth in the channels leading to the uv system So we'll be looking at Some sort of cleaning and chlorination of those channels and expect At this point that that will address the issue We're doing a fair amount of work in the department in broader city and preparation for the wet weather season With a focus on the watershed and the burn sites to Do what we can to anticipate Excuse me possible flooding and land movement and also be prepared for response in the event that something does occur And then lastly Just wanted to remind that saturday from 10 to 2 staff is putting on a 50th anniversary Of our laguna treatment plan. We're inviting the community. We're also we've also gone to the city councils of our partner members At sub regional invited those communities as well so if The board is able to make it. We certainly love to have you there So with that that concludes my comments Any comments or questions for the director the board member Melody Thank you I'd like to circle back to your comments on fema and our relationship with with fema as we are approaching the one-year anniversary It it seems like across this country. We're having natural disasters almost every month And the information that has come out recently that that I heard just this week was that That the administration has been siphoning off some of the disaster money for other programs. Let's just leave it at that And um, I I hope we're we're uh In touch with our elected representatives back there And anybody else that will listen to us so that we don't lose our place in line Knowing that the damages for whatever the latest disaster is seem to eclipse The one before it by eons so that uh, we don't lose our place in line Absolutely, and I would just say so far You never know what's behind the scenes, but we haven't heard or really seen of financial constraints In terms of getting our money from fema For the most part it's been process oriented Going through their bureaucracies and the fire Damage doesn't fit their typical floods hurricane approaches Now one related issue we're dealing with is Most of our high-level key contacts that we've made with fema are At other places The caribbean with the hurricanes the north carolina So we have kind of a new group we're dealing with and we're working through that But so far we really haven't heard as a city that there's a financial limitation that could impact I'm not saying it's not there, but most of it has seemed to be The process and kind of bureaucracy built into that former grave Yeah, I just wanted to circle back to the first The first item which was on the geysers pipeline. It was offline for longer than I thought And just related to the ad hoc specifically It would I heard from A few of the customers the aqua customers during that period and I'm kind of venture to say they didn't have a completely fair assessment of Of the you know arrangement, but I would like to see just How we communicated with those aqua customers during Because it really would inform how we set those rates and those contingencies and how how I myself Understand those predicaments and what is fair and and what is what is being accurately communicated to me from You know, I you know obviously from staff it's accurate, but it helps me to be able to Talk to a constituent If I know exactly what the the communication was to them. So maybe for the ad hoc if you could You know send us what what the you know Members of the ad hoc or the bpu you could send us what exactly what those communications were ccs So that we see what was said to those customers during that period Exactly and not take their word for it or anything. I would just like to see that and it would inform That process going forward and in good faith. So I see um deputy director prince making a note. So I suspect Um He'll be on that and we'll be sending the ad hoc and update on how we communicated during this and and board member baton fort did To death me as well. So I would think that to probably be sent to the full board because I don't think just the ad hoc committee's going to be Questioned about it. So thanks for my banister Also about that first out in the geysers. Um, as you know, there's only my second meeting so that was the first I know about it, but It just raises a question of I know and then the answer is going to be dependent on seasons and Rainfall and so on but what I mean, it's 23 million gallons a day roughly go into the geysers Mike do do you want to come up and share the amount we were sending or would have been sending during the time period? The flows during the summer are our lowest flows and they're uh the equivalent of we we Conversationally talk about the geysers operation in terms of the number of pumps that are running makes it easier Um, we have a total of five pumps Two pumps typically are running during the summer and that equals about 7.5 million gallons a day At a full flow rate with five pumps operating. We can move about 18 million gallons a day So that raises a question of How much storage capacity do we have and how long could you be offline with that pipeline before you'd be running into issues? In aggregate we have a lot of storage capacity and it's approaching its lower Uses level at this time of the year Storage peaks out in the early spring early to late spring Well sometime during the spring around around may it's about 1.3 billion gallons That's the normal high storage level that we have we have a total of 1.4 billion gallons of storage available Right now storage levels are in the neighborhood of four 450 million gallons so as the summer goes on irrigation demand and geysers demand Exceeds with the plant is producing and that exceedance is addressed with storage Water in our storage facility. So right now we've got a lot of storage capacity But at the same time we need a lot of storage capacity in the late winter. Uh, basically we accumulate Water in our ponds during the winter For eventual usage When demand exceeds supply which occurs during the summer So if this failure occurred in the late winter it would be a bigger problem than it is today. Yes It depends on a number of scenarios. I mean there could be and and During the winter we have the ability to discharge as necessary and that's a function of numerous receiving water quality parameters and operational Objectives but our npdes permit does specifically allow us to discharge during the winter To put it into context in the winter of 2016-17 it actually only occurred in 2017, but We discharged a total of 1.23 billion gallons Which is almost the equivalent of our entire storage volumetrically. So I'll per permit No other way around it. It was an extremely wet year and and discharge is Valuable and sometimes necessary component of our disposal means So if this had occurred during the winter, uh, we would If needed do a controlled discharge According to our permit to keep our water storage curve where we need it to be And it does your your questions and the responses do reflect The complex operations to some extent fairly unique for a wastewater facility complex operations of how we reuse our effluent from the treatment plant And the discharge that we're able to do is We have windows. It's tightly constrained and of course as you know, we have to pay for nutrient offsets when we do discharge So it's relatively costly and then the geysers Is a critical outlet yet. It's just one pipeline and no redundancy built into it So it is a three-legged stool and they're all very important to moving that water And I think what we're seeing with the geysers pipeline is probably reflective And we'll be carrying the conversation on in terms as we think about investing in our infrastructure And what it may look like in the future and the geysers probably Mike once kind of showed me a Graphic of a bowl with a new project where For quite some time you don't have to make investments because it's a new system And we're approaching the period where we're probably going to have to think about we are going to get problems We are going to have to make investments and we need to be prepared for that So we'll be having quite a number of ongoing discussions related broadly to the infrastructure And specifically our reclamation program And the the expansion joints that you spoke of would be part of that Kind of looking forward considering we had problems with one. There's a number of others that are similar as a Fair assessment if I may add We spoke to the manufacturer of the expansion joints and they indicated Which amounted to a surprise to us that they have an anticipated lifetime of 15 years And they are 15 years old So the fact that one uh spring of leak Didn't surprise the manufacturer and I think that'll be factored into our evaluation of the other four expansion joints on pine flat road Any other questions or comments? Hearing none, we'll be adjourned. Thank you all