MINUTES

A. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

B. ROLL CALL

Roll call showed the following Directors present: Orth, Venturi, Monteleone, Estabrook, and Whitney. Also present were General Manager Williams and District Counsel Neary.

C. ADDITIONS/ ADJUSTMENTS TO THE AGENDA

Director Estabrook asked that the Finance Report be given prior to the discussion of the Five Year Capital Improvement Plan.

Director Monteleone asked that item 1 be deferred until after the BPOA meeting of August 9th. Board members agreed to move it to the Focus Meeting on August 15th.

D. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS - None

E. SPECIAL PRESENTATION - None

F. PUBLIC HEARING - None

G. PUBLIC COMMENTS

Director Orth commented on a recent "phantom" letter to the editor of the Willits News, which referenced erroneous information.

President Whitney announced that the District's recent grant application to the State Water Resources Control Board was rated number four on the list for funding. He thanked General Manager Williams, Secretary Joanne Cavallari, and Consultant Evan Engbar for their efforts.

General Manager Williams commented that another grant request will be submitted to the Department of Fish and Game.

H. ACTION AGENDA

1. REVIEW OF REQUEST FOR ACTION FOLLOW UP PROGRAM, REVISED SITE DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS, AND NOTICE TO LOCAL REALTORS.

Deferred to August 15th.

2. REVIEW REQUEST FOR E-MAIL OPINION THROUGH APPROPRIATE CHANNELS.

Board members reviewed a draft letter to Senator Wes Chesbro and Assembly Member Virginia Strom-Martin, asking them to obtain an opinion from the State Attorney General as to how public officials can communicate by e-mail and still meet the requirements of the Brown Act. In response to President Whitney, District Counsel Neary concurred that the request for an opinion and the wording of the letter were appropriate.

Director Orth mentioned that Judge Quentin L. Kopp was very interested in matters concerning the Brown Act, and suggested the letters be copied to him.

Director Orth moved to approve sending the letters, seconded by Director Venturi. After a brief question and answer session with Mike Adair from the Willits News, a vote was taken on the motion which passed unanimously.

3. REVIEW OF A REPORT FROM THE OAK CONSERVATION COMMITTEE ON THE PAST AND PRESENT CONDITION OF THE COUNTY'S OAK WOODLANDS.

President Whitney, the District's representative on the Oak Conservation Committee, briefly reviewed the report with the Board, and invited any comments or suggestions.

Director Orth commented on the need for protective measures to shield young trees from deer and other hazards. He asked that the District Architect be made aware that oaks need to be protected from soil compaction caused by grading machinery, and suggested protective measures be included in the County's grading ordinance.

Director Monteleone pointed out several typographical errors in the report, including on page 27, changing the word "due" to "do" and adding a comma between "limited" and "the programs." She suggested changing the wording from "removal of a tree" to "destruction of a tree."

Director Estabrook suggested, on page 3, changing the word "aloud" to "allowed" and on page 21 changing "Geographical" to "Geological." He questioned the recommendation for "cluster" development, and suggested that section be reviewed. He asked for additional information on the Environment Impact Report referenced. President Whitney commented that the correct title of the report should be "Program EIR", not "Project EIR." Director Estabrook felt it would be interesting to map oak woodlands and species in Brooktrails, and asked that oaks be given the same consideration during Site Development Review as is given to redwoods.

President Whitney suggested that the following language be added to the end of the second paragraph on page 22, after (appendix 1); "These protection measures have been approved by the County of Mendocino through the adoption of the Brooktrails Township Specific Plan and Site Development Standards." He encouraged fellow Board members to contact Greg Guisti with any other comments they may have.

4. BUDGET WORKSHOP

General Manager Williams reviewed the changes made as a result of the discussion at the previous meeting. He furnished replacement pages for General Fund, Fire and Golf, and provided an estimate of $34,738 in Active Use for repairs to the tennis court.

President Whitney commented that he had a lower estimate to bring the tennis courts up to useable condition for less money.

Director Orth commented that the playground equipment at the Par Course was outdated and will have to be replaced after an inspection which is scheduled for October. He suggested a fund be established to upgrade the equipment, and to provide additional recreation facilities in the District, and that grant availability be investigated.

Director Venturi stated his preference of, rather than spending money on temporary repairs to the tennis courts, waiting until enough funds were available to make all necessary repairs. He voiced concern that the District would be liable if someone were hurt.

Director Monteleone pointed out that the estimate included staff time, and was not all cash outlay. She also felt that the courts could be upgraded at a lower cost, suggesting that only one side be repaired, and the other be converted into a basketball hardcourt. She commented that she would like to see the maintenance workers spend less time on the Golf Course, and more time in the other recreation facilities in the District, and suggested that the excess in the Golf budget be directed towards improving the other recreation facilities. She asked for clarification on the terminology used to describe revenues, and about the status of the reassessment of the Grove Property.

Director Estabrook spoke in favor of bringing the tennis courts back to a playable condition, asked that prior to spending any money, a quote be obtained from a contractor, based on President Whitney's suggestions, and felt that the liability issue should be researched. Also, he asked that the possibility of the Fire Department going to CDF dispatch be researched.

President Whitney asked that the title of "Chief" be removed from the Fire Department Budget and replaced with the correct title of "Director of Emergency Services." Also, he suggested that the Budget show the allocation proposed for the Franchise Fee. Director Venturi proposed setting up a separate Fund for Franchisee Fee.

Director Estabrook spoke in favor of allocating money from the Franchise Fee to the Fire Department, to make up for losses resulting from lot mergers. However, he pointed out that the purpose of lot reduction is to benefit the Water and Sewer Funds by reducing the number of available connections, and therefore he could not justify putting money back into those funds.

President Whitney asked that "Active Use" be renamed "Recreation" and that the cost to slurry the parking lot be allocated between all of the Departments. He asked that on page 60, under "Objectives" the statement "Increase maintenance of vegetation along roadway" be deleted and "Continuation of hazard abatement program" be added.

As to the tennis court, he suggested it simply be cleaned, patched, and used as an all-purpose hardcourt, with a sign stating "For public use, uneven surface, use at your own risk", spending no more than approximately $2000 plus staff time. He suggested chain link fence material be used as opposed to a nylon net, and that it be closed during the rainy season. He asked District Counsel Neary to research liability of public agencies for recreational facilities.

In response to concerns raised by Director Monteleone, Director Orth suggested raising the Board member's stipend by a fixed percentage per year, matching the Cost of Living increase given to the employees. General Manager Williams explained that $100 per meeting was the maximum allowed, up to 6 meetings per month. Director Orth felt it was important that the Board not increase their monthly stipend by increasing the number of meetings, as he felt the Board should be able to conduct its business in two meetings per month.

Director Venturi spoke strongly against increased stipends for Directors, because of recent rate increases, and reduced staff positions.

Director Monteleone clarified that she was not suggesting the stipend be increased, but rather she wanted to have the correct information and was under the mistaken impression that the Board's stipend was at its maximum at $200 per month, when actually it was allowed $100 per meeting, up to 6 meetings per month. Noting the amount of work and time involved, she felt it was unfair for a Director's stipend to be reduced if a regular Board meeting were missed, and felt that it would be appropriate to review an increase to the stipend rate in the future.

General Manager Williams suggested reviewing the Five-Year Capital Improvement Plan at the next Budget Workshop, as Superintendent of Utilities, Wendell Wilson, would be attending.

Also, he reported an increase in property taxes of $53,000 for the year, and that play at the Golf Course had increased since the rate increases.

I. SPECIAL REPORTS - GENERAL MANAGER

i. Significant Correspondence received since last meeting:

A letter had been received from Evan Engbar concerning a disputed invoice for consultation services.

ii. Personnel

General Manager Williams reported that Chuck Harden had been appointed as a member of Finance Committee at their meeting of July 17th.

iii. Finance

Board members discussed the list of the District's assets, the existing telemetry system, and the water tanks that had been re-roofed.

iv. Planning

District Counsel Neary commented that he expected to finish the opinion he was working on soon, which addresses use of development fees.

v. Possible upcoming agenda items

vi. Other

General Manager Williams reported that he and Director Orth would be attending the field trip to inspect the Mayfield Timber Harvest Plan site on August 2nd.

J. PUBLIC COMMENTS

None

K. ADJOURNMENT

Director Orth moved to adjourn and President Whitney declared the meeting of August 1, 2000 closed at 10:04 p.m.

PAUL A. WILLIAMS

Secretary to the Board of Directors

BOB WHITNEY,

President