For your consideration, please read the minutes from the Commission meeting held on Thursday, April 19, 2018.

Commission Meeting Minutes 4-19-18 with Attachments

To read the minutes please open or download the pdf from the link above, or you may see more below.

Brunswick-Glynn County Joint Water and Sewer Commission

1703 Gloucester Street, Brunswick, GA 31520

Thursday, April 19, 2018 at 2:00 PM 

COMMISSION MINUTES 

PRESENT:                             

Donald M. Elliott, Chairman

Mike Browning, Vice-Chairman

Clifford Adams, Commissioner

Steve Copeland, Commissioner

Tripp Stephens, Commissioner

G. Ben Turnipseed, Commissioner

ALSO PRESENT:                 

Jimmy Junkin, Executive Director

Charlie Dorminy, Legal Counsel HBS

Andrew Burroughs, Deputy Executive Director

Todd Kline, Director of Engineering

Pam Crosby, Director of Procurement

John D. Donaghy, Director of Finance

Jay Sellers, Director of Administration

Janice Meridith, Exec. Commission Administrator

Mark Ryals, Superintendent

Donnie Bankston, Superintendent      

ABSENT:                               

Cornell L. Harvey, Commissioner

Chairman Elliott called the meeting to order at 2:00 PM.

Chairman Elliott provided the invocation and also led the pledge.

PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD

Chairman Elliott opened the public comment period.

Chairman Elliott noted a public comment that was posted on Facebook recognizing Jay Sellers for being forthright, honest, and frank with the ability to take care of problems.  She had a positive experience learning information from him about payment plans offered by JWSC, notations on bills, and suggestions of how to check around the home for problems causing increased use of water.

There being no citizens for public comment, Chairman Elliott closed the public comment period.

 Chairman Elliott requested a motion to add the approval for the FY ending 2019 Budget Draft to be forwarded to the City of Brunswick and Glynn County as Approval Item #5 on the agenda.

Commissioner Browning made a motion seconded by Commissioner Adams to add this item as approval item #5 to the agenda.  Motion carried 6-0-1.  (Commissioner Harvey was absent for the vote.)

 APPROVAL

1. Minutes from the April 4, 2018 Special Called Budget Workshop

Commissioner Browning made a motion seconded by Commissioner Copeland to approve the minutes from the April 4, 2018 Special Called Budget Workshop.  Motion carried 6-0-1.  (Commissioner Harvey was absent for the vote.)  

2. Minutes from the April 5, 2018 Regular Commission Meeting

Commissioner Browning made a motion seconded by Commissioner Copeland to approve the minutes from the April 5, 2018 Regular Commission Meeting.  Motion carried 6-0-1.  (Commissioner Harvey was absent for the vote.)  

3. Minutes from the April 5, 2018 Executive Session

Commissioner Browning made a motion seconded by Commissioner Adams to approve the minutes from the April 5, 2018 Executive Session.  Motion carried 6-0-1.  (Commissioner Harvey was absent for the vote.)  

4. Sinclair Agreement – C. Dorminy

Charlie Dorminy recalled for the Commission that the Sinclair Developer submitted an unsolicited proposal which the Commission had reviewed and approved at the last meeting.  He advised that the Sinclair Comprehensive Agreement was being brought to the Commission for review and a vote.  Mr. Dorminy presented a memorandum and a draft of the Agreement, and noted that the bolded print on the memorandum outlined the revisions to the Comprehensive Agreement since the discussions at the last meeting.  Specifically mentioned was the scope of work may be completed in 2 phases but the term of the Agreement runs for 10 years from the date of acceptance of the Phase I dedication.  He confirmed that this means that Phase II must be completed within that 10 years or the project reservation for capacity will terminate at the end of the 10 years following the acceptance of the Phase I improvements.  Mr. Dorminy then addressed a previous question regarding whether the credit would be redeemed at fluctuating rates with the change in capital improvement fees or whether it would remain static at today’s capital improvement fee rate, and he provided that the Developer requested that the credit be redeemed at today’s capital improvement fee rate and remain static during the entire time of the Agreement.  He added that the Developer intended to begin the Phase I improvements in September 2018.  Chairman Elliott confirmed that the 10 years begins after the completion and formal dedication to JWSC of Phase I, and Mr. Dorminy advised that it would.  Commissioner Turnipseed questioned when the Developer would start paying the minimum bill, and Mr. Dorminy replied that once the Developer redeemed the first account.  Commissioner Copeland questioned if there were any controls, pipes or other upgrades in order to accommodate the flow, and it was advised that if any were found necessary they would be included in Phase I.  Commissioner Turnipseed commented that during the last discussion the taps were transferrable, and he confirmed that the taps are only transferrable to this project property (remain with this land).  It was questioned that if this property was never developed what would happen to the taps, and it was confirmed that they would be forfeited, and as per the Agreement the Developer acknowledges that the tap credit amounts may not be redeemed in full.  Commissioner Stephens confirmed that the taps cannot be used by the Developer in a different development at a different location.  Mr. Dorminy advised that the taps can be transferred within the same basin as the Developer originally purchased them for.

ommissioner Browning made a motion seconded by Commissioner Adams to move that the JWSC approve the Comprehensive Agreement between JWSC and the Sinclair Developer.  Motion carried 6-0-1.  (Commissioner Harvey was absent for the vote.)

5. Approval for FY Ending 2019 Budget Draft Submission to City of Brunswick and Glynn County for Review – J. Donaghy

John Donaghy provided a memorandum regarding the Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 2019 Draft Budget, and recalled for the Commission that JWSC is required to forward a Draft Budget to the City and County by May 1^st of each year for their review and comment.  This is as per the Operational Agreement.  He advised that as per the workshop discussions earlier the same day the requested revisions had been made to the document. Mr. Donaghy then noted that staff recommends the submission of the Proposed Fiscal Year 2019 JWSC Budget to the City of Brunswick and to Glynn County for their review and comment.  Commissioner Stephens asked for an overview of what revisions were made to the Draft Budget based on the workshop from that morning. Mr. Donaghy provided that the “Purchased Infrastructure Repairs” account was revised to $1.4M, and the amount reduced was transferred to the “Repair and Replacement Reserve” increasing that amount to $5.799M.  Commissioner Stephens asked for clarification of “Repair and Replacement Reserve.”  Mr. Donaghy replied that these funds are for named infrastructure projects, it is a rolling fund, cash reserve, and is funded each year through the Operating Budget.  Commissioner Turnipseed asked for clarification of how the amounts for revenues, debt service, administrative fees, and other income were derived, and Mr. Donaghy explained the process for calculating those amounts for the budget. Commissioner Turnipseed then asked for the breakdown of what “Technical Services” are for.  Mr. Donaghy responded that this cumulative total included all technical services provided to all 10 of the JWSC divisions and explained the types of services this covered. Commissioner Copeland inquired to confirm calculations he had made by taking the 2018 budget and backing out the reserves, and comparing it with the 2019 budget less those same reserves.  He noted that by that comparison the 2019 budget was actually lower than 2018 budget by $1M.  Mr. Junkin clarified that the reserves are funded from the Operating Budget and revenues and are held to be used for funding necessary projects as approved by the Commission. It was confirmed that the overall budget still showed an increase of 1.99% over that from 2018, however the requested revisions were accomplished by reducing certain budgeted areas and increasing the reserves.

Commissioner Browning made a motion seconded by Commissioner Adams to move that the Brunswick-Glynn County Joint Water and Sewer Commission approve submission of the Proposed Fiscal Year 2019 JWSC Budget to the City of Brunswick and to Glynn County for their review and comment.  Motion carried 5-1-1. (Commissioner Adams, Commissioner Copeland, Commissioner Stephens, Vice-Chairman Browning, and Chairman Elliott all voted “Yes”.  Commissioner Turnipseed voted “No” with reasons of not agreeing with approving a budget that does not have an approved revenue stream and a lack of clarity on some line items within the drafted budget.  Commissioner Harvey was absent for the vote.)

Mr. Donaghy provided clarification that this was not a request to approve the Budget at this point, the approval was for forwarding the Draft Budget to the City and County for their comment and review before it is actually adopted in June.  Commissioner Turnipseed asked when the information would all be available for approving the Budget, and Mr. Donaghy replied that it was scheduled for the June 21, 2018 meeting.

DISCUSSION

1. McKim & Creed I & I Update – Greg Anderson, McKim & Creed

Ellis Zettler, Engineering Systems Analyst for JWSC advised that as of a few months prior, the first phase of the Inflow & Infiltration Project on St. Simons Island was completed.  He introduced Greg Anderson from McKim & Creed who presented the project update for the Inflow & Infiltration Abatement Program – Flow Monitoring Study which McKim & Creed performed on St. Simons Island for JWSC.

The presentation included:

• The project approach utilized to complete the flow monitoring effort;
• Work completed to date;
• Establishment on average 24-hour dry weather flows for 4 flow meter sub-basins;
• Wet weather flow analysis (December 7^th – 9^th & January 3^rd – 4^th) for 44 flow meter sub-basins;
• Flow monitoring results;
• Recommended inflow source investigations; and
• Recommended infiltration source investigations.

Mr. Anderson noted the 5 phases of the project approach which are:

1. Flow Monitoring (To identify benchmarks)
2. Smoke Testing, Manhole Inspections and Night Flow Isolations
3.  Dye Testing and CCTV Inspections
4. Inflow Abatement and Infiltration Abatement
5. Flow Monitoring

Mr. Anderson advised that it was determined that the wet weather related flow during the monitoring period equaled about 65.6 MG, the cost to transport and treat this extraneous flow equals about $164,125, and with an average annual rainfall of 49 inches the projected annual cost to transport and treat this extraneous flow equals about $809,000. Out of the 44 flow metered sub-basins, 16 were recommended for influent source investigations, equating to about 210,000 linear feet of gravity sewer.  It was determined that the daily groundwater infiltration equals approximately 850,300 gallons (30% of total flow to WWTP), the annual groundwater infiltration equals approximately 310,359,500 gallons, and the annual cost to transport and treat this groundwater equals approximately $775,900.  Mr. Anderson recommended the program InfoMaster by Innovyze which is a risk analysis and rehab planning program used with GIS system, and reads the CCTV scans to determine status of pipes and prioritize the rehab projects.  McKim & Creed uses it for capital planning to advise customers what the best way is to use their funds on rehabbing their systems.  Inflow Source Investigations including smoke testing processes and costs were a point of discussion and is the next recommended step for the program.  Mr. Anderson discussed what was involved in doing the smoke testing in-house.  He also explained the processes and costs involved with the recommended Infiltration Source Investigations.  Staff will take the reports and information as provided by McKim & Creed and determine whether the next steps can be done in-house and how staff should proceed.  Chairman Elliott inquired as to what is required by the consent order JWSC is currently under and requested a discussion item in a May Commission regarding the next bi-annual report and response to the EPD.

2. Waste Water Treatment Plant Flows Update – M. Ryals

Mark Ryals presented the monthly report on the waste water treatment plant flows for Academy Creek, Dunbar Creek, and South Port for March 2018.  He noted the spreadsheets and charts as provided for each WWTP.  Mr. Ryals advised the Commission that there was one violation during the month of March at the Dunbar Creek WWTP, which was a weekly BOD average of .5 mg/l over the 7.5 mg/l the permit allows.  He noted that letters have been sent to the EPD and corrective action is being taken. Commissioner Stephens noted the spike at Dunbar Creek in the summertime and that the rain also spikes in the summertime.  He asked if there was a way to normalize that so the summer peak can be determined outside of the rainfall, which may help to determine how many people on SSI were truly seasonal.  Mr. Ryals advised that there was only one inflow meter.  Mr. Burroughs suggested that they could provide the average flow when it was not raining and provide the average flow for when it is raining and compare the data.  Commissioner Browning mentioned that the groundwater infiltration is a big problem and that will have had an effect on the data.  Commissioner Stephens indicated that he is looking for some way to validate whether or not (from the Rate Structure discussions) there is truly a big influx of people on SSI during the summertime.  Staff will research the data to determine if it is useful for this purpose.

3. Academy Creek WWTP – B. Turnipseed

Commissioner Turnipseed opened the discussion regarding the Academy Creek WWTP by noting that there have been several engineering reports done and many discussions regarding the plant and condition.  He provided that this WWTP currently is permitted for 13.5 MGD with an average flow of around 6 to 6.5 MGD, resulting in excess capacity of around 7 MGD.  After talking to the operators and walking through the WWTP, he recommended that it be considered to look at filtration, even though the plant is within permit. Commissioner Turnipseed advised that there is a vendor that builds the same type filters as are at Dunbar Creek, and a proposal has been submitted for furnishing a pilot unit.  He noted that prior to the proposal, Mark Ryals collected and sent a sample for the vendor to do a bench study to show that elements would be amenable to filtration.  The vendor, Aqua-Aerobic Systems, Inc. has a filter unit available to send to Academy Creek WWTP which can be there by May 7, depending on execution of the agreement by Mr. Junkin.  This proposal for the pilot test is to be at no cost to the Commission, and Commissioner Turnipseed recommended that Mr. Junkin be authorized to sign the proposal to begin the study so that staff may determine if this filtration system should be put into place long term or perhaps some other type of filtration system be used.  He also noted that 95% of the plants in the State of Georgia with effluent filtration have this type of filtration or a similar type. Commissioner Turnipseed referenced that proposal and package as provided for the Commission to review, and added that the duration of the pilot study would be 1 to 2 months.  It was agreed that Mr. Junkin will review the documents and proposal for consideration of execution.  Commissioner Turnipseed also provided an update on odor control.  He recalled that at the last meeting they discussed four pump stations that predominately pump waste water to Academy Creek WWTP.   He noted that staff has started to implement odor control at those pump stations which should reduce the problem at the plant.  Once the effect of this has been seen, staff can determine what the content and extent of the odor control issue is at Academy Creek.  He added that there is a large influent headworks station that needs to be covered, which will be expensive to do.  Commissioner Turnipseed noted that staff wants to be sure that they have addressed every other possibility to reduce the odor and keep it at a manageable level. Additional operational adjustments undertaken and which Andrew Burroughs has spent some time with staff on is chlorine addition to keep micardia under control, reducing dewatering costs, reducing hauling costs, modifying the operation of the belt presses, housekeeping and safety issues.

4. March 2018 Month End Financial Statements – J. Donaghy

John Donaghy presented the March 2018 Month End Financial Statements to the Commissioners.  He noted that in the earlier session some of the information had already been reviewed.  He provided that on the balance sheet the capital assets balance increased YTD by $6.2M, which was a result of SPLOST work and other R & R projects, some of which are still in progress.  On the Combined Statement of Revenues the YTD net revenues was at $4.668M, including SPLOST revenues and Capital Improvement Fees.  Mr. Donaghy also noted that on the Combined Revenue Statement the requested “YTD Actual Annualized” and “Budget Variance Annualized” columns had been added, and he reviewed those.  There was some additional discussion pertaining to the budget, actual expenditures, encumbrances, and reserves.  After discussion regarding the form of the reports, Chairman Elliott inquired if this financial report is prepared in the same manner as most municipal governments’ accounting, and Mr. Donaghy replied that the current form is more of an operational report rather than a typical accounting report.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S UPDATE

Mr. Junkin noted that Senator Kirsten Gillibrand from New York was pushing through what was termed as the “Pipe Act” to the Senate.  If legislation goes through, this would be a 5 billion dollar grant program for water and sewer utilities, and he noted that she recognizes the needs they have.  In case it does go through Mr. Junkin made contact with Representative Carter’s liaison here with hopes to ensure that utilities such as JWSC fit into the criteria of eligible utilities to apply for such grants. Regarding projects, he added that we are at the tail end of finishing up on Phase 1 of the SPLOST Project.   Staff is working with the contractor to make resolution on some last items.  Mr. Junkin also noted that staff is continuing to work on the strategic business plan.  He provided that based on today’s feedback, we will be looking at the 5 Year Capital Plan to set up the strategy for how to move forward, particularly on the piping infrastructure for changes on the sewer piping. 

CHAIRMAN’S UPDATE

Chairman Elliott had no further update.  He did provide that he has been impressed with the energy and knowledge that all the Commissioners bring to overseeing the activities of this organization and noted his appreciation.  He added that everything they are doing is making JWSC a better organization

EXECUTIVE SESSION

There was no executive session.

Commissioner Stephens inquired about the Georgia Rural Water Association Conference that was upcoming.  He also asked to meet with staff to review the Georgia Power bill for JWSC and perhaps look at some opportunities for saving.

Commissioner Browning commented that he had attended the Georgia Regional Water Commission meeting the day before, and provided a handout of information for the Commissioners and staff to review pertaining to possible funding sources.

Mr. Junkin noted that earlier in the week he had sent out a letter to fellow WRMAC stakeholders, regarding commitment of funds to continue the WRMAC and studies done by USGS.  There have been no responses as of yet.  He noted in previous meetings JWSC agreed to put in $50K with other stakeholders adding the other $79K needed to continue the studies on the aquifer and salt plume by USGS.

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 4:23 p.m.