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Minutes - Board - 2021-07-13COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT MINUTES OF BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION JULY 13, 2021 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. Members present Arlene Schafer, Art Perry, Bob Ooten, Brett Eckles, Mike Scheafer Members absent None Staff present Scott Carroll (General Manager), Noelani Middenway (District Clerk and Public Information Officer), Kaitlin Tran (Finance Manager), Dyana Bojarski (Administrative Services Manager), Mark Esquer (District Engineer), Gina Terraneo (Management Analyst II), Nabila Guzman (Management Analyst I), Lieu Tran (Accountant), David Griffin (Facilities Maintenance Worker & Acting Code Enforcement Officer) Others present Julie Barreda, CR&R Regional Vice President Judith Gielow, Citizens Advisory Committee Member and District resident Jim Mosher, District resident Meeting called to order at 9:31 A.M. A. OPENING ITEMS Procedural: 1. Roll Call - (If absences occur, consider whether to deem those absences excused based on facts presented for the absence — such determination shall be the permission required by law.) COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PAGE 2 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION HELD JULY 13, 2021 Vice President Scheafer called the meeting to order at 9:31 A.M. District Clerk and Public Information Officer, Noelani Middenway, noted that Vice President Scheafer, Secretary Schafer, Director Perry, and Director Eckles were present while President Ooten was not present at this time. B. PUBLIC COMMENTS Procedural: 1. Public Comments Vice President Scheafer opened public comments. Ms. Middenway noted that no members of the public requested to submit a public comment. Hearing no one requesting to comment, Vice President Scheafer closed public comments. C. ITEMS OF STUDY Action, Receive and File: 1. Receive and File Code Enforcement Officer Report — June 2021 Recommendation: That the Board of Directors receives and files this report. General Manager, Scott Carroll, introduced David Griffin, Acting Code Enforcement Officer. Mr. Griffin thanked the Board for the opportunity to fill the position of Code Enforcement Officer. He presented the June 2021 Code Enforcement Officer's report. He stated that there were seven proactive scavenging investigations that were concentrated primarily on the west side of the District's service area. He reported no graffiti on District trash carts. He added that President Ooten requested for an ordinance regarding graffiti, which he is currently working on. Secretary Schafer shared that she has witnessed scavenging within the College Park area. She requested for Mr. Griffin to investigate the area on Wednesday morning. COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PAGE 3 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION HELD JULY 13, 2021 ............_ Vice President Scheafer expressed recognition for Mr. Griffin's report. He requested a future newsletter article about cart storage and carts in public view. There was no further discussion, and the report was received. Action: 2. Consider Changing the Start Time for Board of Directors Study Session Meetings to begin at 8:00 a.m. Recommendation: That the Board of Directors directs staff to report back on July 263 2021 with a resolution that approves changing the start time for Board of Directors Study Session meetings to begin at 8:00 a.m. Mr. Carroll introduced the report. He stated that an 8:00 a.m. start time for Study Sessions would not impact District staff since they report to work at 7:00 a.m. He added that the new start time may increase public participation since it is before work hours for most people. He noted that if the Board decides to change the start time, then District staff will bring the item back to the Board for formal adoption. Secretary Schafer shared that the Independent Special Districts of Orange County (ISDOC) and the Water Advisory Committee of Orange County (WACO) begin their meetings at 7:30 a.m. She expressed support for changing the start time of Study Sessions to 8:00 a.m. She inquired if the Board needed to issue a motion. Mr. Carroll stated that he would prefer to present it to the Board as a resolution for the Board to officially adopt. Director Eckles and Vice President Scheafer expressed their support for this item and for the new proposed start time. There was no further discussion. Action, Discussion: 3. Consider Approving Performance Measurement Benchmarks for CR&R Environmental Services Recommendation: That the Board of Directors approves the Performance Measurement Benchmarks for CR&R Environmental Services. COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PAGE 4 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION HELD JULY 13, 2021 Mr. Carroll stated that the Board had requested for District staff to suggest performance measurement benchmarks for assessing CR&R Environmental Services. He noted that the benchmarks were shared with CR&R for comment and approval. He added that this item will be presented to the Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) tomorrow night. Director Perry inquired about benchmark #7 of the report and asked if the District can use the Newport Beach transfer station. Mr. Carroll shared that City of Newport Beach officials and CR&R have agreed that the District can use the transfer station. He added that the two agencies came to an agreement regarding scales. He noted that the District is waiting to receive an update. President Ooten entered the meeting at 9:43 a.m. Vice President Scheafer requested to view the CR&R Letter — Performance Review attachment. He asked if CR&R's Friday trash route is the biggest issue. Mr. Carroll stated that the District has identified in their performance evaluations certain routes with heavy loads. He reported that the District is encouraging CR&R to reduce their loads. Vice President Scheafer discussed transitioning from a 2-cart system to a 3- cart system. He asked if the Solid Waste Ad Hoc Committee should be discussing this item. Mr. Carroll stated that the District is finalizing their request for proposal (RFP) for a survey to assess if residents support transitioning to a 3-cart system. He noted that the Solid Waste Ad Hoc Committee is scheduled to meet this month and will discuss preliminary items related to Senate Bill (SB)1383 and survey questions. Discussion followed regarding prior citizen surveys. Vice President Scheafer inquired about installing Global Position System (GPS) on CR&R trash trucks. COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PAGE 5 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION HELD JULY 13, 2021 Mr. Carroll stated that the District has not brought that discussion back yet. Vice President Scheafer asked about China's "National Sword" policy. Mr. Carroll stated that China refused to accept recyclables because they were too contaminated. He noted that the District must ensure that their recyclables are clean in order for China to accept them. President Ooten stated that the District should talk to CR&R about a 3-cart system before the District drafts their questions for the survey. Vice President Scheafer relinquished control of the meeting to President Ooten at 9:48 a.m. Director Perry suggested that the Solid Waste Ad Hoc Committee meet with CR&R before the survey. Secretary Schafer expressed appreciation for the letter from CR&R. She suggested for the District and CR&R to draft a flyer for Christmas Tree collection which has CR&R's phone number in case trees do not get picked up. President Ooten stated that the District can provide that information in the District newsletter. Discussion followed regarding the District's newsletter distribution timeline. Director Eckles discussed benchmark #3 of the report. He inquired about the use of 95% as the benchmark. Mr. Carroll stated that a benchmark of 100% is not achievable. He noted that 95% still equates to a very high performance level. He added that if the Boards wants to make it 100%, then District staff will adjust the benchmark. Director Eckles inquired if this benchmark is related to CR&R notifying the District about operational delays. COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PAGE 6 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION HELD JULY 13, 2021 Mr. Carroll confirmed that it is related to operational delays. He added that the sooner the District is notified, then the sooner the District can inform the public. Director Eckles stated that there is a timeline for utilizing the Newport Beach transfer station, but he would like to see an implementation plan. He discussed benchmark #2 and noted that each year has seen an increase in complaints. He recommended having a benchmark in the 120-130 range based on data prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Mr. Carroll noted that the benchmark is based on a 6-month period. Discussion followed regarding how the benchmark was determined. President Ooten stated that the benchmark requires more clarification. Director Perry inquired if CR&R has already agreed to the benchmarks. Mr. Carroll stated that they will inform CR&R of the Board's comments. Director Eckles asked if the Board will receive input regarding the survey after the Solid Waste Ad Hoc Committee drafts it. Mr. Carroll stated that the Solid Waste Ad Hoc Committee will report that item to the Board. President Ooten stated that the Board will receive input from the committee members before it is approved. He inquired about how many residents will be surveyed. Mr. Carroll reported that 1,000 residents will be surveyed. He shared that in the past, the District has surveyed S00 residents. He noted that it is more beneficial to survey more residents, since transitioning to a 3-cart system will be a significant change. Vice President Scheafer suggested having a public meeting or town hall to discuss this topic. COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PAGE 7 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION HELD JULY 13, 2021 Mr. Carroll expressed agreement with Vice President Scheafer's suggestion. He noted that the Board can determine if that is necessary. President Ooten stated that the District must explain the possible transition to the public since they told the public that a 2-cart system would work. District resident, Jim Mosher, commented that the benchmarks are specified for a 6-month period. He recommended specifying the number of complaints acceptable within a 6-month period for benchmark #2. He added that the benchmarks should specify the timeframe within which the District wants to be notified of any delays. Director Eckles and President Ooten expressed agreement with Mr. Mosher's comments. There was no further discussion. Action, Discussion: 4. Best Communication Practices Between CR&R Environmental Services and CMSD Recommendation: That the Board of Directors provides feedback to staff. Mr. Carroll stated that this item was requested by the Board to review how the District communicates with CR&R. He reported that the District will be incorporating face-to-face time with CR&R's Route Manager and Sustainability Coordinator. President Ooten stated that the issue involves customers trying to get in touch with CR&R. He inquired if this issue has been addressed. Mr. Carroll stated that the District's online request system, GoGov, is the best way for customers to get in touch with staff after hours. He shared that District staff has been monitoring GoGov after operating hours. President Ooten recommended including this item in the survey. He noted that there are a lot of residents who do not engage in social media. Secretary Schafer requested to hear from CR&R's Sustainability Coordinator, Mike Carey. COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PAGE 8 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION HELD JULY 13, 2021 Mr. Carey stated that CR&R is committed to streamlining the communication process. He noted that it is unique for District staff to communicate with multiple individuals at CR&R. He added that there are a lot of people involved. He stated that communication has improved over the last few weeks. President Ooten recommended for the online request system, GoGov, to be adequately explained on the website. Director Perry recommended highlighting GoGov in the District's newsletter. President Ooten expressed agreement with Director Perry's recommendation. There was no further discussion. Action, Discussion: S. Receive and File Citizens Advisory Committee 2021-22 Goals and Objective Schedule Recommendation: That the Board of Directors provides direction to staff. President Ooten presented the proposed list of topics for the CAC's 2021-22 Goals and Objective Schedule. Mr. Carroll stated that the list of topics is not finalized. He noted that topics can be adjusted or rescheduled. President Ooten noted that his intention for item #3 for the CAC's November loth meeting is for the Board to have a plan that the CAC can review and provide comments. There was no further discussion. Action, Discussion: 6. Receive and File Project #311 Sewer Siphon Evaluation Recommendation: That the Board of Directors receives and files this report. Mr. Carroll introduced the item. He reported that the District had a significant repair at the Bristol Sewer Siphon. He stated that the District decided to examine all siphons to evaluate their condition and create action plans. COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PAGE 9 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION HELD JULY 13, 2021 District Engineer, Mark Esquer, stated that the District hired a firm to conduct a study. He shared a graphic to explain a sewer siphon. He noted that inverted siphons dip below an obstruction and back up to a gravity flow. He described the condition of the ten siphons and the phased plans to rehabilitate them in the next few years. He also discussed the proposed budgets for the projects in the next two fiscal years. Director Eckles inquired about the budget and asked if $250,000 is anticipated for phase 1. Mr. Esquer stated that the District may have to carry over funds into year 2 of the budget. He noted that the District will update their estimates as the work is reviewed in more detail. Director Eckles inquired about a timeline for the three projects of phase 1. Mr. Esquer stated that the goal is to complete phase 1 in Fiscal Year 2021-22. He added that the goal may be ambitious since the District has a lot of ongoing capital projects. President Ooten inquired about two siphons that the District determined were incorrectly identified. Mr. Esquer stated that the siphons were constructed out of ductile iron and were placed under obstructions. Discussion followed regarding the projects timeline. Secretary Schafer expressed recognition for Mr. Esquer's presentation. Mr. Mosher commented that it seems like these inverted siphons are essentially the same as U-shaped traps found under kitchen and bathroom sink that have wastewater constantly flowing through them. He inquired if these siphons are leaking sewage into the environment. He stated that he was intrigued by Mr. Esquer's explanation of the air jumper. He asked if all of the District's siphons have the air jumper and if it is intended to be an alternate route for the sewage. COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PAGE 10 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION HELD JULY 133 2021 Mr. Esquer stated that groundwater is typically above the District's gravity sewer. He confirmed that a full pipe is in place to push the solids and wastewater around obstructions. He noted that, for any water level created by the obstructions, infiltration comes into the pipe but not out of the pipe. He added that there is very low pressure in the pipelines. He stated that an air jumper is not meant to be an overflow, since it is typically not large enough. He noted that it is intended to move the air or foul odor down into the wastewater treatment plant. He clarified that not every siphon has an air jumper. He added that the sewer may have minimal odor, making the air jumper unnecessary. He stated that it is more common to have siphons near the end of the system. He noted that the District can add chemicals and other methods for treating odor if there is no air jumper. He shared that the District has not evaluated all ten siphons to determine which ones have air jumpers. Discussion followed regarding air jumpers. There was no further discussion, and the report was received. Action, Discussion: 7. Review and Comment on CMSD's Redesigned Website Recommendation: That the Board of Directors provides feedback on the redesigned website. Mr. Carroll introduced the item. Management Analyst II, Gina Terraneo, provided a brief overview of the District's new website. She shared that the District worked with Revize LLC, an established municipal website designer that has been in business for over 20 years and has launched over 1,300 websites nationwide. She added that Revize has provided the most modern and user-friendly design while managing to provide services at the same cost as the District's previous vendor, which was $6,000 per year. She reviewed the website's homepage and alert messaging function. President Ooten discussed the website's calendar functions. Ms. Terraneo continued her review of the District's website. She demonstrated the website's translation abilities. She discussed the picture COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PAGE 11 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION HELD JULY 13, 2021 formatting of the website's home page. She reviewed the meetings, quick links, recent news, and social media sections of the homepage. Vice President Scheafer inquired about the website's Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) functions. Ms. Terraneo reviewed the website's ADA features. She discussed the main tabs listed on the homepage. She demonstrated how to access the District's online request system. Director Eckles expressed recognition for Ms. Terraneo's presentation. He inquired about the design of the homepage and requested for the public to be able to email all Board members rather than individual Board members. Ms. Terraneo confirmed that she will incorporate Director Eckles' suggestion. Vice President Scheafer suggested replacing the term "Governance" with another term. Ms. Terraneo stated that she can change the term if the Board agrees on a new term. She noted that many government agencies use that term on their websites. Discussion followed regarding the term "Governance" and the items listed within the "Governance" tab. The Board expressed recognition for the new website. Mr. Carey submitted a comment as a District resident. He expressed recognition for the new website and noted that it is very user-friendly. Mr. Mosher recommended substituting the term "Governance" with "Board." He commented on the meetings section of the website and noted that the cursor does not indicate that meetings are clickable. President Ooten inquired if the website lists the direct extensions of District staff members. COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PAGE 12 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION HELD JULY 13, 2021 Ms. Terraneo stated that extension information is not available on the website. She noted that the District prefers for callers to go through the auto receptionist. Secretary Schafer suggested rearranging the design of the website's homepage. Ms. Terraneo stated that she will work the vendor to address the concern, but that she is unsure if she can edit the main design. There was no further discussion. Procedural: 1. Oral Communications and Director Comments Secretary Schafer shared that the California Special Districts Association's (CSDA) Board Seat A is currently vacant. She added that ISDOC's next meeting is on July 29, 2021, and that the Director of Planning for the Great Park and the Director of the Placentia Library will be the special guests. She shared that ISDOC has a new associate member, former Senator Dick Ackerman. Vice President Scheafer shared that Los Angeles' Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant experienced a sewer spill of 17 million gallons. Discussion followed regarding the sewage spill. Vice President Scheafer inquired if the Governor's mandate on water usage affects District operations. Mr. Carroll stated that the District cannot cut their water usage to clean its systems, but that it uses minimal water for its landscaping at the District Headquarters and Yard. He confirmed that the Governor's mandate does not impact District functions. President Ooten shared that the Orange County Sanitation District (OCSD) is conducting a study regarding residential water usage. He added that OCSD is experiencing corrosion at the bottom of their sewers. He noted that OCSD sent a letter objecting to the Governor's mandate. COSTA MESA SANITARY DISTRICT PAGE 13 MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS STUDY SESSION HELD JULY 13, 2021 Director Eckles asked if more detailed information can be added to the website regarding the upcoming Liaison Committee meeting. He requested for President Ooten or Vice President Scheafer to inquire about the school district's plan for responding to the Governor's water usage mandate. There were no additional comments by the Board. Procedural: 2. Adjournment President Ooten adjourned the meeting at 11:07 A.M. Secretary Bob oten President