September 12, 2023 KWWA Minutes

Call to Order

The regular meeting of the Kiowa Water and Wastewater Authority was called to order on September 12, 2023, at 6:00pm by President Debbie Ullom with the following in attendance:

Directors: Eric Whitman appeared in person. Tim Craft began the meeting on zoom and then joined in person at 6:03pm. Teresa Parker was present on zoom. Annette Burmaster was absent.

Town Clerk/Utility Billing Clerk: Sasha Davidson

Town Administrator: Kimberly Boyd

Guests present:

Paul Grant, Headways Consultant, LLC, appeared via.zoom.

Consent Items

Approval of Agenda

Debbie Ullom made a motion to revise the agenda to add the Wright Water Engineers proposal to New Business as item "D". Eric Whitman made the motion to approve the agenda with the addition. Teresa Parker seconded, and the motion passed with no discussion.

Approval of Minutes

Teresa Parker made the motion to approve the August 8th regular meeting minutes. Eric Whitman sec;:onded, and the motion passed with no discussion.

Financial Report

Discussion was made that there were about two times as many repairs and maintenance than had been budgeted for and that the contingency funds might have to be used to fill in. It was also discussed that the legal budget is higher due to going through the operating agreement.

Staff Reports

Paul Grant, Headways Consultant, LLC
The sewer plant's actuator is not working; a part has been ordered and should be here in a couple weeks and be replaced. The digester has also been having problems with accumulated foam, so Paul and his crew are going out each day to adjust the blower down until the problem is resolved. C&C used a fiberglass patch on the elbow at the wastewater plant, so the replacement elbow that was not used will be returned for a refund. It was proposed that we purchase a 12" valve and an 8" valve for the water mains in the next couple years to replace the aging ones. The UV bulbs will be ordered should be here by the end of the month. Work continues regarding the replacement of digital meters with the current ones on hand. When those are used, new ones will be ordered for replacement next year. Customers may see a change in their bill due to better accuracy with new meters.

Sasha Davidson, Town Clerk
With the computer upgrade, there was some loss of communication between Express Bill Pay and RVS, but the problem has been fixed. The next step will be to get RVS settled to be able to take the new digital meter readings. There was a brief discussion about the cost for the program to work; Sasha will contact RVS and see if there is a related expense. The System Totals reports for August and July were included in the packet for review. The water loss in August was 26.54% and in July it was 12.65%. There was discussion about the fact that the increased water loss was probably because were three substantial leaks and yoke repairs in the last month and a leak near town hall out at the curb stop. Bulk water was also discussed, including amount used, number of users and accounts, accountability, and wear and tear on meters and hydrants. There was discussion about the county's bulk water system and a separate dispensing station system. Tim made a motion to table the discussion about dispensing stations at this time until more information could be gathered, and Eric seconded the motion. It was requested that the.bulk water on the Systems Totals Report should be checked and updated for clarification on use and add the fire flushing numbers back in.

Kimberly Boyd, Town Administrator
No grant updates at this time. Will discuss Wright Water Engineers Proposal in New Business.

Public Comments

There were no public comments.

Old Business

Operating Agreements
Insurance quote for 2024-waiting for final numbers in October. Looks like the numbers will be like the previous year. Plan to pay a lump sum, rather than monthly increments. A motion was made by Erick Whitman to table discussion about operating agreement, Tim Craft seconded, and the motion passed with no discussion.

New Business

Budget Discussions
Currently, the 2023 budget is going to fall short, possibly due to the rain and people not using as much water. Tap fees from the county have been put in restricted funds. Need to have a budget committee to have the final budget done by October, to be published. Tim Craft and Teresa Parker agreed to be· on the budget committee.

Replacement of Yokes/Bids
Debbie Ullom spoke about the fact that we have had to replace three yokes in the last 40 days. The costs are being passed back to the property owners. Max repair time was eleven hours. Plumbers were consulted on labor costs for comparison, which were twice as much as our repairs. There was also discussion about the age of yokes in the various areas of town, that may need to be replaced around the same time and the cost to be incurred.

Resolution about leaks and financial responsibility
Discussion was made about having a separate policy for emergency repairs and clearing up discretionary charges. In addition, there was discussion about the code needing cleaned up so there is a clear line between the KWWA board and the Town of Kiowa's responsibilities. There was discussion about raising rates to build up the reserve to help cover costs. Also, it was noted that tap fees needed to help fund the reserve to help cover costs of repairs and infrastructure replacement. In addition, it was brought up that notices need to be sent to the residents in town to clarify the costs that they could incur should their yokes fail due to age, or other reasons and that they need to have pressure relief valves.

Wright Water Engineers Proposal
Wright water has been retained for this project since they have done all the legwork. The next stage is a "project needs assessment". A $10,000 grant was awarded to help defray the costs of this assessment. The total price of the assessment is $12,000, so $2,000 needs to be covered by KWWA. Rate studies, water safety needs assessment, capital asset studies, and water protection studies are all being done by the Colorado Rural Water Association. These studies will help get more funding for the new well project. Tim Craft made a motion to accept the proposal and the expenditure of the $2,000. Eric Whitman seconded the motion, and the motion passed with no -discussion.

Discussion

None

Correspondence/Information/Review