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Minutes_2020_05_20_Policy ReviewProtecting our community's health and the environment by providing solid waste and wastewater collection services. www.cmsdca.gov Costa Mesa Sanitary District ….an Independent Special District Policy Review Ad Hoc Committee 290 Paularino Avenue Costa Mesa, California 92626 (Teleconference Meeting via Zoom) Note: This meeting was conducted utilizing teleconferencing pursuant to Government code Section 54952.2 and the Governor’s Executive Orders in effect waiving some of the requirements of that Section. MINUTES May 20, 2020 8:30 a.m. Committee members present: Director Art Perry, Director Michael Scheafer, Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) Member Sue Lester, General Manager Scott Carroll, Finance Manager Kaitlin Tran, Administrative Services Manager Dyana Bojarski, Management Analyst II Gina Terraneo, Office Specialist Angela Colunga Committee members absent: Citizens Advisory Committee Member Monte Fields Others present: None 1. Call to Order General Manager, Scott Carroll, called the meeting to order at 8:30 a.m. 2. Review and Discussion of District Policies Mr. Carroll reviewed the District policies to be discussed by the Committee. He presented the Naming of District Facilities policy. Director Perry inquired if District Counsel, Alan Burns, has reviewed the Naming of District Facilities policy. Mr. Carroll stated that Mr. Burns will review the policy after the Committee has submitted their comments. Policy Review Ad Hoc Committee Minutes May 20, 2020 Page 2 of 5 Director Scheafer inquired if the District has any additional facilities available for naming aside from buildings and wastewater lift stations. Mr. Carroll confirmed that the District only has its headquarters and wastewater lift stations available for naming. Administrative Services Manager, Dyana Bojarski, discussed a public comment submitted by District resident, Jim Mosher, regarding the inclusion of meeting rooms as facilities available for naming. The Committee revised the definition of the policy to include “designated areas of the building.” CAC Member Lester reviewed section C. Objectives of the policy and inquired about the length of time a building will be named. She noted that other organizations typically have a policy that allows a building to be renamed after a certain amount of time. She suggested stipulating a duration of time for which a building will be named. Mr. Carroll stated that the policy includes a statement regarding the process of renaming District facilities. Director Scheafer recommended including a statement that allows future Boards of Directors to rename District facilities. Director Perry reviewed section G. Procedures and noted that the policy allows the Board of Directors to approve and reject any naming or renaming request. Mr. Carroll stated that any member of the public may submit a naming request for a District facility. Ms. Bojarski reviewed the rejection process for a naming request. Director Scheafer inquired about Mr. Mosher’s comments regarding the Naming of District Facilities policy. Management Analyst II, Gina Terraneo, read aloud Mr. Mosher’s comments for the Committee. Mr. Carroll discussed the District’s responses to Mr. Mosher’s comments. He stated that the District’s Operations Code defines the District’s process for adopting Administrative Regulations. He noted that District staff drafted its proposed Naming of District Facilities policy by reviewing naming policies by similar organizations. He reviewed the provisions for renaming a wastewater lift station. He noted that District staff will incorporate his suggested grammar revisions. Policy Review Ad Hoc Committee Minutes May 20, 2020 Page 3 of 5 Directors Scheafer and Perry stated that they do not recommend establishing a time limit before naming a District facility. CAC Member Lester discussed the possibility of newly elected Board members renaming a District facility too frequently. Director Scheafer stated that District staff should be responsible for maintaining the historical significance of an approved name for a District facility. Mr. Carroll noted that the policy allows the Board to rename District facilities at their discretion. He suggested including a timeframe of ten or twenty years for a District facility to retain its name in the policy. CAC Member Lester recommended that a District facility retains its name for a minimum of ten years. Director Perry suggested extending the timeframe to a minimum of twenty years. The Committee revised the policy to include a timeframe of twenty years through which the District facility will retain its name. Director Scheafer suggested reviewing similar policies as a reference for determining an appropriate timeframe. He discussed Mr. Mosher’s comment regarding the District’s ability to name a facility after a person who made a significant donation or contribution to the District. Mr. Carroll stated that a person’s donation or contribution to the District does not qualify as substantial criteria for having their name on a District facility. He reviewed Mr. Mosher’s comment in the context of a person donating a large piece of land to the District. Director Scheafer and Director Perry expressed support for the Naming of District Facilities policy. Mr. Carroll presented the Capital Assets Policy to the Committee. He noted that District staff will be adding the policy to the District’s Operations Code. Finance Manager, Kaitlin Tran, provided details regarding the Capital Assets Policy. CAC Member Lester inquired about which section the Capital Assets Policy will be added to in the Operations Code. Policy Review Ad Hoc Committee Minutes May 20, 2020 Page 4 of 5 Ms. Tran confirmed that the Capital Assets Policy will be added to Chapter 4.03 Financial Policies. She noted that Chapter 4.03 starts on page 31 of the Operations Code. Director Scheafer stated that the Capital Assets Policy details a depreciation timeline for District assets and inquired how District staff determined the proposed timeline. Ms. Tran stated that the depreciation timeline is typical amongst similar agencies. She noted that the Capital Assets Policy’s $5,000 capitalization limit is the norm. Director Scheafer inquired if the policy was modeled after federal government regulations and how often the timelines are reviewed. Ms. Tran stated that the policy was modeled after regulations established by the City of Costa Mesa. She added that the District reviews its Capital Assets every year, but the depreciation timeline has not changed. Director Scheafer inquired about the possibility of an asset extending its scheduled depreciation timeline. Mr. Carroll stated that if an asset has reached the end of its depreciation timeline but is still equipped for use, then the District will review its condition before replacing it. Director Perry stated that the District’s capital assets are reviewed every year within the Capital Assets Management Plan. Ms. Tran clarified that an asset’s depreciation does not dictate that it will be replaced. She noted that assets may be fully depreciated but still available for use. The Committee decided to include the proposed Capital Assets Policy to the District’s Operation Code. Mr. Carroll stated that District staff will incorporate the recommended revisions to the policies that have been discussed. He shared that District staff will present the policies for adoption to the Board at the June or July Regular Board meeting. Ms. Tran inquired if the District wants to include a policy regarding permit refunds to the Operations Code. Mr. Carroll stated that the Operations Code currently has a policy regarding refunds. He noted that District staff will edit the current refund policy to include information regarding refunds for permits, plans, and fixtures. Policy Review Ad Hoc Committee Minutes May 20, 2020 Page 5 of 5 The Committee decided to present the new refund policy to the Board of Directors rather than the Policy Review Ad Hoc Committee. Director Scheafer recommended codifying a timeline for the District to review its policies. Ms. Bojarski recommended including a policy review schedule to the District’s 2020- 2025 Strategic Plan. CAC Member Lester inquired about a list of edits that have been incorporated in the District policies. Mr. Carroll shared that District staff will present the policies to the Board with tracked changes included. 3. Adjourn Adjournment – 8:39 A.M.