MINUTES OF DIMONDALE/WINDSOR SEWER BOARD REGULAR MEETING
December 20, 2007

7:00 p.m. Meeting called to order by Chairperson Blair
Roll Call
Present:  Blair, Chappell, Reznick, Rich, Slucter
Absent: none
Also Present: Denise Parisian, Village Manager; Mike Spitler, WWTP Operator; Art St. Clair, Windsor Township Supervisor; Don Heck, Wolverine Engineers; Betsy Kelly, Recording Secretary
Treasurer’s Reports/Bills
Motion by Reznick, second Chappell, to accept the treasurer’s report for November 15, 2007 as presented.  Motion carried.  Motion by Reznick, second Chappell, to accept the treasurer’s report for December 20, 2007 as presented.  Motion carried. Motion by Reznick, second Rich, to approve payment of $17,105.03 for November 15, 2007 bills.  Motion carried.  Motion by Reznick, second Rich, to approve payment of $24,296.99 for December 20, 2007 bills.  Motion carried.
Minutes
Motion by Reznick, second Chappell, to approve the minutes of the October 18, 2007 regular meeting as written.  Motion carried.
Open to the Public
No public comments were received.
Superintendent’s Report
Spitler reported on the following items: pumps at the Creyts Road and Canal Road lift stations have been repaired and reinstalled; the DEQ has requested that the product discharged to the plant from the septic haulers undergo testing and he has prepared a schedule for that purpose with testing costs borne by the haulers; and the new truck has been ordered with delivery expected in January 2008.  Parisian recommended paying cash for the truck to avoid interest charges and she requested the following budget amendments: to increase capital purchases from $25,000 to $55,000 to cover the cost of the new truck and UV system upgrades and to increase Ball Septic revenue from $15,000 to $30,000 .  Motion by Chappell, second Reznick, to purchase the truck with cash rather than financing.  Motion carried.  Motion by Chappell, second Reznick, to approve the budget amendments as proposed.  Motion carried.  Chappell questioned the purpose of the large “mound” of dirt at the WWTP and Spitler explained that the clean fill has been brought in to raise the property elevation for future expansions.  He noted that this work was done at no charge to the WWTP by Davis Construction.
Old Business
1.  Reznick suggested removing the REU Transfer Policy from the agenda until there is new information available and the members agreed with this action.
2.  Parisian stated that there is nothing new to report on the truck stop redevelopment as the potential buyers are presently working to resolve certain title issues.
New Business     
1.  Don Heck, Wolverine Engineers, presented a brief synopsis of the feasibility report regarding the exposed ductile iron pipe in the Grand River noting the following four options for the Board to consider: take no action and monitor the situation for movement of the pipe; build another syphon pipe under the river and institute an annual maintenance program; construct an additional pump station on the northeast side of the river and install a new pipe under the river; or replace existing pump station #7 setting it deeper with a new 12"-15"gravity sewer line under the river.  Heck stated that his recommendation at this time is two-fold: continue to monitor the pipe and put together a plan for replacement of the pipe and lift station #7, along with obtaining a permit from the State in order to be prepared to take action when necessary.  Discussion followed regarding engineering costs; establishment of a sinking fund to cover the cost of the project; length of time the pipe has been exposed; and other possible remedies.  St. Clair questioned the possibility of sleeving the pipe in concrete.  Heck and Spitler spoke against this action.  Slucter requested a proposal from Wolverine for the design cost and Heck agreed to prepare this information for the January meeting.  Motion by Rich, second Slucter, to monitor the situation and delay further action. The Board directed staff to obtain an engineering cost estimate from Wolverine. Spitler spoke in favor of having a permitted plan in place and Reznick supported being proactive.  Motion carried.       
2.  Parisian provided a line by line review of the preliminary 2008-09 Budget and answered questions.  Parisian noted the following highlights: revenues are based on a $2.00 per RE rate increase; a five-year main televising program is initiated; a program for pump maintenance and repair is included; monitoring the pipe in the river and potential engineering costs are included; a plan to transition the lab work back to the plant from Hughes in the third quarter is anticipated; and sludge removal from all four tanks to allow for repairs is budgeted.  Discussion followed regarding the need to increase the fund balance for large projects and the lack of growth on the system.  Parisian provided copies of the rate study to support the proposed rate increase and members discussed the value of televising the sewer lines.  The board members agreed to provide feedback to Parisian regarding any changes to the proposed budget.  Parisian will prepare budget packets for final review in January.

Motion by Reznick, second Slucter, to adjourn.  Motion carried at 8:33 p.m.