Duluth/North Shore Sanitary District – Board of Managers

Meeting # 68

Date:                                        September 14, 2005     

Board Members Present:               Lars Fladmark, Kevin Bovee, Mary Ann Sironen

Board Members Absent:                Scott Smith, Rick Certano

 

Others Present:.            Scott Harder, Eric Appelwick, Mel Olson, Nate Grayson, Clare Carpenter, Mary Frances Skala, John Bowen, John E. Kessler, Jeff Cook, Ty Hebl, Larry Moon

 

Minutes to:       Jim Anklam, Eric Appelwick, Mike Appelwick, Darryl Bathel, Dan Belden, Bruce Berg, Kelli Boedigheimer, Kevin Bovee , John Bowen, Clare Carpenter, Rick Certano, Jeff Cook, City of Duluth, Duluth City Council, Duluth Township, Lars Fladmark, Greg Garmer, Jane Gilbert, Mark Gottwald, Wendy Gustofson, Scott Harder, Mark Herman, Duane Herold, Lynn Ann Hollatz, Kevin Holm , Dan Jacobson, Laurie Johnson, Al Katz, John Kessler, Lakewood Township, Nancy Larson-St. Louis County, Sue Lawson, Patti Logergren, Mike Mahoney, Joe McGaver, Don McTavish, Larry Moon, Dan Neiman, Mel Olson, Wayne Parson, PLAWCS, David Pierson, Tom Pulse, Yvonne Rutford, Mark Schaus, John Schifsky, Dale Schroeder, Dick Sigel, Mary Ann Sironen , Mary Frances Skala, Scott Smith, Kurt Soderberg, Tim Strom, George Sundstrom , Carol Surine, Peg Sweeney, John Thomas, Nelson Thomas, Jonathon Thornton, Pete Weidman, Robin Whaley, Sandy Woolum

Minutes by:            by Mary Ann Sironen

Item

Discussion

Conclusion/Actions

Roll Call

·         Rick Certano has relocated out of the area and has submitted his resignation from the D/NSSD Board.

·         A quorum is present.

·         Mary Frances Skala recommends that D/NSSD seek a replacement along with the other two members whose terms will be expiring at the end of December.  The Board regrets Rick's leaving and will send a letter of their appreciation for his years of faithful work, careful consideration of issues and unfailing good humor in his work with the district.

·         Mary Ann will ask Scott Smith to confer with City of Duluth residents to identify a potential board member.

Minutes

M.Sironen moved and K.Bovee seconded approval of the August minutes.  Unanimously approved.

Treasurer's Report

1.       Clare Carpenter submitted the September payables of $262,869.10

2.       Scott Harder presented the budget for 2006 that was prepared by the Rates & Charges committee of Lars Fladmark, Kevin Bovee and himself. Operating expenses are estimated at $632,200 that includes depreciation. Contractors are still working so the accounts are not closed.

1.       Motion by M.Sironen and approved by K.Bovee to pay the submitted outstanding invoices.  Unanimously approved.

2.      Motion to approve the 2006 budget as presented by K.Bovee, seconded by M.Sironen.  Unanimously approved.

3.      Motion to set the levy for St. Louis County tax statements at $269,758 by M.Sironen, seconded by K. Bovee.  Unanimously approved.

4.       Scott Harder will deliver the levy to the county auditor today.

Public Comments

Jeff Cook questioned the installation of a grinder pump on the Charles Bille property near Stony Point.  A building permit for that portion of the property has been rejected several times by the Town of Duluth Zoning Board. Mel Olson explained that a house at that location had been added to the planning documents, possibly at one of the Open Houses held between 1999 and 2002 when input from residents was solicited.

1.       Further investigation will be done on whether Mr. Bille has been assessed for the sewer.

2.       John Kessler, assistant zoning administrator for Duluth Township will forward any requests for building permits to M.Sironen and it will be added as a regular agenda item for board meetings.

Easements

The only remaining easement needed is from Knute Nisswandt. Eric Appelwick has visited the residence   several times but nobody answered the door.  A certified letter has been refused.

The Board will assess its options.

·         M.Skala recommends contacting St. Louis County to inquire on their role in enforcing nonconforming septic systems.

·         S.Harder will check to see if the assessments are being paid.

·         A daily fine of $1,000/day for failure to comply with D/NSSD regulations can be imposed against the value of the property.

KR-LSD

Larry Moon reports that the Knife River-Larsmont district is close to getting the pipe in place from the plant to the D/NSSD main line.  Discussion with WLSSD continues about an allocation for the Larsmont portion. Further meetings between Scott Harder and David Drown, financial advisors for the districts, will firm up details between D/NSSD and KR-LSD for further board action.

WLSSD

M.Skala has seen the draft of the next 5 year allocation agreement.   She and S.Harder are developing a plan with broad application that could become a model ordinance for managing extensions and additions to the customer base. 

Commun-ications

Kevin Stroom, Greenwood Road, has requested assistance in planning an addition to his home that will be within the D/NSSD easement.

M.Skala will talk to Dan Maddy about options for modifying this easement. 

L.Fladmark will call Kevin to tell him work is in progress on his request.

Legal Issues

1.       M.Skala presented the Wastewater Service Agreement with Knife River-Larsmont Sanitary District.

2.       M.Skala presented the agreement for connecting Loren Mindestrom, KR-LSD customer within the D/NSSD area to the D/NSSD system.

3.       With the resignation of Rick Certano, the board will need a treasurer.

4.       The agreement with Ayres Engineers to serve as the ongoing engineering firm for D/NSSD needs additional fine tuning.

5.       Ted Sunde has informed the board that he wants to void his easement because the control box is not in the location he needs it to be.

6.       The S.J.Lewis litigation is under way.

7.       There has been no further contact with Christine Penney over the bill sent to her relating to repair of her basement wall.

8.       M.Skala submitted additional changes to the Application for Connection. Fees are being reviewed to be sure to include an application fee, connection fee, easement expense, I&I inspection as well as extension permits with WLSSD and the MPCA.. It is thought that the hook up fee will be paid after the engineering work is done. Mel Olson wants to be closely involved in designing the permit to ensure that the appropriate paperwork is done from an engineering standpoint. The "60 day" rule is being considered but doesn't appear to apply to sanitary districts at this point however the district want to be sensitive to customers timelines.

1.      Motion by M.Sironen and approved by K.Bovee to approve the agreement as presented.  Unanimously approved.

2.      Motion by M.Sironen and approved by K.Bovee to approve the agreement as presented.  Unanimously approved.

3.       Motion by K.Bovee and seconded by M.Sironen to appoint Scott Smith as treasurer for the rest of 2005. Unanimously approved.  Mary Ann will notify him.

4.       Scott Harder will bring a model that includes rates and insurance indemnification within its scope.

5.       M.Skala advises that an easement can't be voided. Eric will contact Mr. Sunde to see if a plan can be developed to move the control panel to his garage.  Additional contact with the grinder pump manufacturer and possibly more wiring and pipe is needed.

6.       Cost to cover the legal expense for the S.J.Lewis work is included in the 2006 budget.

7.       M.Skala will have a member of the Fryberger firm pursue this matter with Melanie Ford, Christine Penney's attorney.

8.       Mel Olson will recommend a fee to cover the entire package. Motion by M.Sironen and seconded by K.Bovee to allow Mel Olson to accept an application with approval by the vice chair, K.Bovee. Unanimously approved. 

Construction

Mel Olson reports:

1.       Don Elias has a restoration disagreement issue.

2.       Frontier has been reluctant to hook up the Seeley house.  The question on how that basement was damaged is unresolved.

3.       Restoration complaints continue to come in.

4.       There are 51 customers left to hook up.  11 of those need their grinder pumps dug into rock.  It is expected that everyone will be connected by the end of the year.

1.       Eric and Mel will confer with Mr. Elias

2.       Eric will talk with Jeff Cook on his observations during his I&I inspections as well as conferring with Joyce Seeley about hooking up her residence.

3.       The board and NTS will explain the delay as much as possible and keep communicating with customers to expedite action in restoring their property.

4.       Resolution of issues on the Mindestrom, Seeley and Nisswandt properties need to be done before connecting them.

NTS report

Eric Appelwick introduced Ty Hybel who will be working with him on maintaining D/NSSD operations.

Eric handed out the September report.  Further discussion on:

1.       The Board had previously established a 1.5 times the actual cost to the property owner for work done by another company then charged to the district.  This would make costly jobs even more expensive. The Board agreed to modify their policy to add a $100 surcharge to the actual cost as a bill to the customer  instead of the 1.5 multiplier.

2.       There was a series of alarms in the area of the new "Nokomis" restaurant. A valve near the Scenic Café was closed.  The cause is unknown.

3.       The issue of who is responsible for a flooded basement is unclear.  Eric will check the City of Duluth ordinances for guidance.

4.      Eric presented a revised contractor application form.  This would be for the board's approval of an independent contractor doing work on the D/NSSD system.  Motion by K. Bovee and seconded by M. Sironen to approve the application as submitted subject to Mary Frances Skala's review and approval. Unanimously approved.  An application has been received from Superior Construction Company, 1804 Tyrol St. Duluth, 55811.  Duane Peterson owner.  No action was taken on this application at this time.

5.      With the resignation of Carol Surine as minute taker, Mary Ann Sironen asked if NTS would have secretarial help available for this function at the current rate of $20/hour.  Eric believes that there will soon be someone hired for that kind of work in the Duluth office. 

6.      John Bowen commented that the time and money spent on checking valves is well spent.  He and other residents of the Ryan Road/North Shore Drive area have experienced strong sewer odors from time to time.  NTS has responded promptly much to the relief and satisfaction of customers.

7.      There has been no further action on the Charles Erickson incident.  He is currently not responding to letters and it's thought that he's not currently in town.  Further contact will be attempted when he returns.

 

Board vacancies

Rick Certano's position is open.

Lars Fladmark and Scott Smith's term will be up at the end of 2005.

The Board will act as its own nominating committee to fill these openings and report back next month.

Celebration

Representative Oberstar would be available in October for the Completion Celebration for D/NSSD

Due to conflicts in board members' schedules, this event will be put off until spring.

Meeting adjourned.  Next meeting is at 0700 at French River Lutheran Church on October 12.

 

 

Approved  (10/12/04):                                                                                                                                          

                                                Chair                                                    Secretary