 |
MINUTES
BROOKTRAILS TOWNSHIP COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
BROOKTRAILS COMMUNITY CENTER
24850 Birch Street, Willits, CA 95490
December 14, 2004 |
The Board of Directors of Brooktrails Township Community Services District met in regular session on December 14, 2004 at 7:00 p.m. in Brooktrails Community Center.
A. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
B. ROLL CALL
Roll call showed the following Directors present: Ziady, Horrick, Skezas, Pohlson and Orth. Also present was General Manager Chapman. District Counsel Neary arrived at 7:02 p.m.
REPORT ON CLOSED SESSION.
None.
C. BOARD REORGANIZATION
President Orth opened the floor to nominations for president, noting that no second was needed. Director Horrick moved to nominate President Orth to continue as president. There being no further nominations, President Orth closed nominations and the motion carried.
President Orth opened nominations for vice-president. Director Pohlson nominated Director Ziady; Director Ziady declined and nominated Director Skezas. There being no further nominations, President Orth closed nominations and the motion carried.
D. COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTS
President Orth requested that any director wishing to change their committee appointment so advise. President Orth stated he wished LTF (Local Agency Solid Waste Task Force) to be included on the list of committees and that he was willing to be the delegate for it. Discussion ensued about the current status and activities of several committees, particularly the Green Committee. It was decided that unless Golf Manager Ron Runberg requested a Board representative, there would not be one assigned. The One-Town One-Vision Committee was stated by Director Horrick to have not met for two or three years; however, President Orth stated he believed they were going to come up with a sustainability community plan. Director Horrick was added as a second delegate to the Finance Committee.
E. ADDITIONS/ADJUSTMENTS TO THE AGENDA
None.
F. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS
1. November 9, 2004 - Director Skezas moved to accept the minutes. Director Pohlson requested a correction to the third page to read: "Director Pohlson commented that looking to store water elsewhere might be a better plan than paying the cost of raising Lake Emily." Director Skezas amended his motion accordingly; Director Pohlson seconded, and the motion carried unanimously.
G. SPECIAL PRESENTATION
2. Adoption of Resolution 2004-32 Honoring Dave Richards for his Service to the Community. President Orth read the resolution honoring Dave Richards and then presented a framed copy to Gail Richards, because Dave Richards was unable to attend. Director Pohlson moved to adopt the resolution; Director Skezas seconded. General Manager Chapman spoke of his appreciation for all of the work that Mr. Richards had done for the District. President Orth stated he was going to donate $50 towards a bench in the names of both Gail and Dave Richards to be placed in the new Ohl Grove. Director Pohlson made positive comments on the features of the website.
Roll call vote was as follows:
AYES: Directors: Ziady, Horrick, Skezas, Pohlson, Orth
NOES: Directors: None
ABSENT: Directors: None
H. PUBLIC HEARING
2. Consideration of Rate Increases Requested by Solid Waste of Willits. President Orth opened the public hearing at 7:10 p.m. General Manager Chapman gave a brief background statement about the preceding steps in the process and the financial impact on the typical residential customer and recommended that the rate increases be approved. Jerry Ward of Solid
Waste of Willits was present. There were no comments from the public and the hearing was closed at 7:11 p.m.
I. PUBLIC COMMENTS
None.
J. CONSENT CALENDAR
3. Review of Accounts Payable Report and authorization to issue checks; Retroactive approval of second November check run; Authorize second check run in December, to be approved at January 11 meeting. Director Ziady asked what a "strike team" was and President Orth described the procedure during mutual aid fire situations where after 24 hours the team goes into pay mode and there is a reimbursement from the State to the District to the firefighters. Director Horrick moved to approve the accounts payable with retroactive approval of the second check run in December. Director Skezas seconded and the motion carried unanimously. Director Pohlson moved to approve a second check run in December, to be reviewed and approved at the January 11 meeting. Director Skezas seconded and the motion carried unanimously.
K. ACTION AGENDA
5. Adoption of Resolution 2004-33 authorizing 2.59% rate increase for Solid Waste of Willits services effective January 1, 2005. Jerry Ward of Solid Waste of Willits spoke about the proposed rate increases which will accommodate COLAs and increased operating costs. Director Skezas and General Manager Chapman discussed the current franchise fee that approximated $21,900. Director Skezas moved to adopt the resolution; the motion was seconded.
Roll call vote was as follows:
AYES: Directors: Ziady, Horrick, Skezas, Pohlson, Orth
NOES: Directors: None
ABSENT: Directors: None
6. Consideration of providing separate electric service/meter to golf maintenance shop. General Manager Chapman reviewed his finding that the cost to install separate metering to the golf maintenance shop would apparently not as cost-effective as first thought. Director Skezas moved to find that providing a separate electric meter at the golf maintenance shop would not be cost-effective. Director Horrick seconded. Bob Turner suggested that in order to save the District money, the golf shop be billed each month by the District. Director Pohlson commented that in the past the electric heater in that shop has been kept on during winter nights to facilitate vehicle warm-up in the mornings. General Manager Chapman said he was not aware that there was a heater there. Director Pohlson responded that the heater was on steady for about three months of the year; she and President Orth requested that that heating cost be determined by staff so that potentially, in a future finding, the golf course might be charged for it. The motion not to install a separate meter carried unanimously.
7. Receipt and discussion of CFIP final report (Greenbelt Management Plan).
General Manager Chapman commented that this substantial document had been received December 9 and staff had little time to review it. He proposed that the Mr. Sternberg, the principal writer of the document, appear at the second January meeting. Director Ziady stated that what she had read indicated that public comment had been included in the findings, and she wanted the January 25, 2005 meeting to be publicized. Most directors commented they had not had enough time to review the report. Director Skezas moved to receive the report and allow payment to Roger Sternberg; Director Pohlson seconded.
Bob Whitney said the Fire Safe Council was pleased with the document. He commented as to page 23's statement about there being no significant insect and disease problems in the greenbelt as being good, but then recommended that the emergency fuel reduction regulations be considered so that the expense of a timber harvest plan could be avoided.
Claudia Reed of the Willits News asked if copies of the report were available at the office; General Manager Chapman commented 40 copies had been printed so far and interested persons could request one. President Orth asked that it be placed on the website. Wallace Stahle asked if the Board was leaning toward "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" for the plan or if there was room for public input to tweak certain aspects of it. President Orth responded by saying that it would be a living document that would be seriously tweaked starting at the neighborhood level. He said he wanted to see watershed issues addressed, but the document presently was focused on fire issues. He said he did not want a two- or three-year program and that this would be detrimental, and said that the program should proceed over 20 - 30 years and go to the worst area first, which needed to be identified. He said this cannot be a partial approach. Director Ziady commented that these were suggestions and you had to have community buy-in. The motion to receive and file the report carried unanimously.
8. Consideration of Fire Safe Council grant application. President Orth stated this also would be an item with no formal action due to its late receipt. General Manager Chapman said that he met with representatives of the Fire Safe Council (FSC) and CDF for several months on this issue. He said the matter would return to the Board in January for further discussion. He commented that the deadline for the grant submission was February 4th, 2005, and that it was somewhat procedurally paralleling the CFIP grant. The earliest funding would be November 2005, effective 2006. He emphasized the main components would be the Firewise Plan, expanding the ongoing abatement program, and taking a serious look at the tan oak fire reduction program. He said his only caveat was that the District had lost 45% of its General Fund due to ERAF (State education shift) and he had cash flow concerns about any matching funds.
Bob Whitney compared the current grant application to last year's application. He said CDF had been included in their deliberations ahead of time this year. He said Colin Wilson, chairman of the Mendocino County Fire Safe Council (and Anderson Valley Fire Chief), had been implementing some of these programs. Bob said equipment and other items had been excluded this year, but vegetation management for private roads in Sylvandale and Spring Creek were retained. He said a 50% match by the two road associations would be fair. He said the advantage to the entire fire district would be safer fire access for firefighters and also safer evacuation. He said the sheriff's department now had the designated authority for evacuation but doesn't have the planning and resources to develop such a plan. He said it would be wise for the FSC and the District to focus on the fact that we do not have a functioning evacuation route. He recommended that the Board come up with recommendations about the application; he said General Manager Chapman would have the fire department review it and hopefully there will be a final document by the end of January. He said that meanwhile they would take the same document to other communities, organizations and government entities associated with fire safe activities.
President Orth stated that CDF just finished a quarter-million dollar program in Brooktrails. He said that CDF had identified the high-risk areas as within the urban-suburban interface; he said he would have thought this grant would be an add-on to that process because the community wants to go into areas abutting development. President Orth said he liked all the education process, but with a grant this soon, paralleling the CFIP management plan, he felt it would have been nice to tailor this to an add-on to the CDF program. Mr. Whitney responded that CDF said no crews were available, and thought that was true for their current budget position (but in 2006 hopefully this could change). He said he had originally had a lot in the grant for Brooktrails to contribute, but General Manager Chapman had explained the slash in the general fund from the State ERAF shift, and Mr. Whitney had therefore gutted this portion of the grant application.
Director Ziady commented she could see problems if firewood cutting was being done on both public and private lands, and that questions would arise. She asked how it would be cut and what equipment would be used, and said she felt more information was needed. She said she would like to see a merger on some of the CFIP points. Mr. Whitney said he saw the directors taking a lead in greenbelt management; he said the grant would follow that direction in terms of public property, but while Brooktrails has the authority to abate the entire fire district, the large parcels in Sylvandale and Spring Creek outside the traditional abatement areas were treated with benign neglect, and he said those areas are probably the greatest wildfire danger. He said that's where the majority of the firewood cutting would occur. Director Ziady said that needed to be made more clear; she said there had to be guidelines before firewood would be cut. Claudia Reed asked whether this was voluntary or whether the program money would be used for enforcement; Mr. Whitney said the FSC has no regulatory authority and this would be entirely voluntary outside of the greenbelt. He said the Specific Plan restricts you to a certain size tree, but outside the Specific Plan area, in Sylvandale, Spring Creek and some other larger parcels, you do not need government approval from any agency, except if you sell a commercial product you need permission from CDF. He said they would just promote what's available and how it can be done. Director Ziady asked, if you were going to do fuel reduction on 1,000 acres, how are you going to divide this up between Brooktrails, Sylvandale and Spring Creek? Mr. Whitney said he hoped they would have a lot of volunteers, but he felt it would be very difficult to get people to start managing their own properties. He said if they did get funding, the Fire Chief's and General Manager's commitment would make a difference because of follow-through. He said a lot of the larger parcel owners do not realize that CDF will not come out and protect them. He said now in order to develop property you have to meet CDF fire clearance and road standards. He said 60 - 70% of the Sylvandale/Spring Creek and larger parcels are not fire safe.
Director Pohlson said the voters passed the fire tax for a comprehensive fire prevention program and this was part of that. She felt the District was obligated to provide this kind of plan. She envisioned funds will be available to keep the program going and this would allow the District to hire grant writers and get more money. She expressed her appreciation for the FSC doing this.
Bob Turner said the Sylvandale and Spring Creek voters helped pass the fire tax and he believed they were part of the Brooktrails Township District. President Orth clarified that they were part of the Fire District. Mr. Turner asked if they pay the same fire tax, why wouldn't they fall under the same umbrella as he does on Primrose Drive? President Orth responded that because of their larger acreage and the Specific Plan specified they be treated differently. Mr. Whitney said the reason Sylvandale and Spring Creek wanted to be excluded from the Specific Plan was based on design review of their housing. He agreed that the majority of Fire Safe Council members were from those two communities. He said they do pay fire tax and get full fire services, and the fire prevention officer can have equal jurisdiction anywhere in the fire district irrespective of the Specific Plan. He said he and General Manager Chapman had discussed this specifically with CDF, and anywhere within CDF's jurisdiction is equal irrespective of parcel size and has nothing to do with the local specific plan. He said he believed Sylvandale and Spring Creek are at greater risk than Brooktrails.
Mr. Turner asked if the fire prevention officer would work that area also. President Orth said our fire abatement program was specific to Brooktrails, but that other programs might be developed if the grant goes forward. General Manager Chapman said Spring Creek and Sylvandale were also under CDF and there was some overlap on fire functions. He said in the past their attitude was "hands off," but that the lightning fires in September 2003 triggered a willingness to be more a part of the fire District.
L. ADDITIONS TO FUTURE AGENDAS
None.
M. SPECIAL REPORTS
General Manager Chapman reviewed his report. He stressed that finding that a leak was the supply for a longstanding "spring" was very significant and accounted for 9% of overall production. He pointed out that the long-rumored easement on a parcel by the golf course was found to have been abandoned by the District in 1983 via a resolution. In further comments, he spoke about the ERAF cuts into our general fund. He clarified that this affected all government entities. Director Skezas directed a question about the granting of four connections from DHS. General Manager Chapman responded that this was a doctor currently living in Los Angeles, but currently teaching medicine in Japan, who was not aware of the February 2003 moratorium, but had continued to paying architects before and after the moratorium. He said the DHS order differs from all previous orders in that it was very specific about County and Brooktrails post-development review prior to receiving the service connections. He said the doctor had requested six and received four for a duplex located at the intersection of Clover Road and Primrose Drive Claudia Reed of the Willits News asked about the abandoned connections listed. She asked if people could buy these connections and General Manager Chapman said no. Ms. Reed asked for more information and specifics. District Counsel Neary said he felt the answer was probably no. Brief discussion followed about exemptees turning over their connections for profit.
N. PUBLIC COMMENTS
Bob Turner initiated discussion of publication of directors' contact information. Claudia Reed suggested contacting her editor.
O. ADJOURNMENT
Director Skezas moved to adjourn and President Orth declared the meeting of
December 14, 2004 closed at 8:20 p.m.
CHARLES A. ORTH
President
MICHAEL V. CHAPMAN
Secretary to the Board of Directors
|
|
 |
