FINAL MINUTES
Regular Meeting
Board of Directors
Monterey Peninsula Water
Management District
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The
meeting was called to order at 7:00 PM in the Seaside City Council Chambers. Board
members present: Zan
Henson, Chair – Division 5 Judi
Lehman, Vice Chair – Division 2 Alvin
Edwards – Division 1 Molly
Erickson – Division 3 (Arrived at 7:15 PM) Kris
Lindstrom – Division 4 David
Pendergrass – Mayoral Representative David
Potter – Monterey County Board of Supervisors Board
members absent: None Acting
General Manager Fran Farina: Present District
Counsel: Absent The
assembly recited the Pledge of Allegiance. The
following persons addressed the Board during Oral Communications. (1) Edwin Lee introduced himself as
a member of Water For Us and a former member of the District’s Water
Augmentation Committee. He proposed
that the Directors should apologize to the public for stopping the
construction of a dam on the Carmel River, and refusing to allow the people
to vote on the most cost effective and environmentally sound solution to the
water supply problem. (2) Mark
Beique asked District staff to explain why the District’s resources are
spent on monitoring privately owned wells for water quality. (3) Sheryl McKenzie requested that Board
packets be available for review on the District’s web site, in order to
provide the public with easy access to the materials prior to the Board
meeting. (4) Don Basseri
addressed the Board on Consent Calendar item 3. He requested that the Board deny the variance
extension so that the project developer would be forced to begin the
permitting process again. He believed
that fundamental flaws in the project would be revealed if an EIR were
required for the project. (5) Edwin
Lee expressed opposition to approval of Consent Calendar item 2. He stated that it would be a waste of
money to retain a contractor, and suggested that the District hire someone to
take photos of the study area. On a motion by Director Pendergrass and second by Director Edwards, the Consent Calendar items were approved, except for items 1 and 3 that were pulled for separate consideration. The motion to approve was adopted on a vote of 6 – 0. Directors Edwards, Henson, Lehman, Lindstrom Pendergrass and Potter voted in favor of the motion. Director Erickson was absent. No
action was taken on this item because minutes were not presented for
approval. The minutes will be
presented at the August 28, 2003 Board meeting. Approved.
On a motion by Director Potter and second by Director Edwards, the request for a variance was approved on a vote of 6 – 1. Directors Edwards, Erickson, Henson, Lehman, Potter and Pendergrass voted in favor of the motion. Director Lindstrom voted in opposition to the motion. Approved.
Approved. Approved. Acting
General Manager Farina reported that candidates for the November 2003 Board
member election in voter divisions 3, 4 and 5 will receive Board packets
through the end of October 2003. In
addition, the candidates will be invited to attend a briefing on September
11, 2003 where they will meet with key staff members and learn about the
functions of the District. Ms. Farina
noted that the Directors received the complaint filed by the
California-American Water Company to adjudicate the Seaside Goundwater
Basin. District staff will bring a
recommendation to the Board on this item in the future. Ms. Farina referred to a letter dated July
24, 2003 from the Independent Reclaimed Water Users Group regarding high
sodium levels of reclaimed water applied to golf courses in the Del Monte
Forest, and stated that staff would provide the Board with additional
information in the future. She advised
the Board that the recent purchase of a new photocopier will enable the
District to publish Board packets on the web site, once additional software
is purchased and the procedure is thoroughly tested. District
Counsel David Laredo could not attend the meeting, so Acting General Manager
Farina presented a report prepared in advance by Mr. Laredo. She stated that the Closed Session of July
21, 2003 convened at 5 PM. The Board
held two conferences with its legal counsel.
The first was to review the court’s final order in the case of Currier
& Kaminske v. MPWMD (Case No. M59299).
The Board directed the payment of sixty-seven thousand eight hundred
fifty-seven dollars and thirty-nine cents ($67,857.39) payable to Sumaro
Trust to satisfy, in full, all reimbursable legal fees, costs and/or expenses
incurred on behalf of the plaintiffs.
Directors voting in favor were Henson, Edwards, Pendergrass, Lehman
and Lindstrom. Directors voting in
opposition were Erickson. Director
Potter was absent. The Board’s second
conference with legal counsel was to review the status of a single matter
that presented significant exposure to litigation. The Board provided direction to staff and
counsel; no other reportable action occurred in this closed session. The Board adjourned to regular session at
7:00 PM. Director
Lindstrom read excerpts from a report on Seawater Desalination prepared by
the California Coastal Commission (please refer to
Attachment A). Mr. Lindstrom concluded his comments by
stating that his review of the California Coastal Commission Report has
brought him to the realization that the Board is on the right track and on
the road to a successful desalination facility in the public interest. Director
Erickson requested that a report be included in the weekly letter from the
Acting General Manager to the Board of Directors that quantifies the amount
of water from the Carmel River system and Seaside aquifer that is being
provided to the Ryan Ranch Water Distribution System. In addition, she asked for an estimate of
how much water is expected to be used overall before the replacement well is
on line. Chair
Henson announced that item 11 would be considered before item 10. He welcomed the candidates for election to
the Board that were in attendance:
Mark Beique and Kristi Markey (District 3), Robert Pacelli (District
4), and Larry Foy (District 5). Director Erickson offered a motion that was seconded by Director Potter, to deny the November 12, 1996 application to amend the California-American Water Distribution System and construct the Carmel River Dam and Reservoir Project, based on the Findings of Denial presented as Exhibit 9E in the staff report. Director Erickson offered an amendment to the motion
that was approved by Director Potter, to adopt the Findings of Denial
presented as Exhibit 9E with the following amendments: (1) the title of the Findings of Denial
should read “Findings of Denial for November 12, 1996 Application by
California-American……”; (2) amend the title of the Findings to state that
this is “the final decision of this Board on the application;” and (3) add
Finding No. 18, which will read “The community has demonstrated that it does
not want a dam like this and when given a choice between pro-dam and anti-dam
candidates has elected water Board directors who question the dam. Supporting evidence is the 1995 vote by
this community against the dam, a dam identical to this Cal-Am proposal; the
1999 and 2001 elections of Directors who questioned the dam as
environmentally harmful, unachievable, too expensive and undesirable; and the
1996 and 2000 District 5 Supervisorial elections.” The amended motion was approved on a vote
of 5 – 2. Directors Erickson, Henson,
Lehman, Potter and Lindstrom voted in favor of the motion. Directors Edwards and Pendergrass voted
against the motion. Director Erickson offered a motion that was seconded by Director Potter, to immediately direct staff and legal counsel to take measures to obtain payment from Cal-Am for all unpaid reimbursement of the EIR costs owed to date. The motion was approved on a vote of 7 – 0. The
following comments were directed to the Board during the public hearing on
items 9.A and 9.B. (1) Edwin Lee
stated that Administrative Law Judge Cook prepared a draft decision
recommending that the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) dismiss
Cal-Am’s application without prejudice.
He urged the Board to refrain from taking any action on Cal-Am’s
application until the CPUC has made a determination. Regarding item 9.B, Mr. Lee expressed his
hope that the costs calculated for collection from Cal-Am do not include
charges associated with projects other than an EIR on a dam project. (2) David Dilworth, representing
Helping Our Peninsula’s Environment (HOPE), urged the Board to deny the
application with prejudice, and without delay. According to Mr. Dilworth, the dam proposal
that was rejected by the voters in November 1995 is identical to the present
proposal. He noted that NOAA Fisheries
took a stand in opposition to the dam project. Mr. Dilworth stated that the dam proposal
would destroy habitat critical to the survival of the Carmel River
steelhead. (3) Mark Beique, a
candidate for election to the Board in Division 3, stated that the dam
project does have its good points. He
requested that considering the significant monetary investment the community
has made in the dam project, the Board should delay a decision on the
application. Regarding item 9.B, he
opined that Cal-Am should be held responsible for any task orders it
signed. (4) Steve Leonard,
Manager of California-American Water Company, stated that the company is
moving forward on development of the Coastal Water Project, but is not moving
ahead on the dam project. He requested
that the Board keep the application active, because on August 21, 2003, the
CPUC was scheduled to take action on the application. He noted that Cal-Am has kept the CPUC
application open because State Water Resources Control Board Order 95-10
requires that an application for construction of a dam be active and moving
forward. Regarding item 9.B, Mr.
Leonard explained that he discussed this with District staff member Henrietta
Stern, and he is researching the issue to determine why the bills have not
been paid. (5) Lou Haddad
explained that one of the conditions of approval of Cal-Am’s application is
to account for 3,000 acre-feet of water set aside for Cal-Am on Table 13 in
SWRCB Decision 1632. He recommended
that Cal-Am assert this windfall and reduce the need to replace 10, 730
acre-feet by 3,000 acre-feet. (6)
Robert Pacelli, a candidate for election to the Board in Division 4,
recommended that the District place a lien on Cal-Am so that the public could
ultimately acquire the company and operate it as an institution that is
responsive to the people who voted against the dam. Director Potter offered a motion that was seconded by Director Lehman, to approve the amended timeline for recruitment of the General Manager as follows: September 15, 2003 consider approval of candidate profile and recruitment advertisement; week of November 3, 2003 receive resumes from candidates; early December 2003 receive recommendations from consultant on candidates to consider for the position; early December 2003 conduct candidate interviews; January 2004 conduct second round of interviews; January 15, 2004 make offer to successful candidate; and February 2004 new General Manager anticipated to begin employment with the District. No
comments from the public were directed to the Board on this item. Director Lindstrom offered a motion that was seconded by Director Potter, to adopt the staff recommendation to amend the Wastewater Reclamation Project Fiscal Sponsorship Agreement to include the PBCSD site in the list of benefited properties, and adopt Resolution 2003-07 that amends the agreement. Director Erickson offered an amendment to the motion to:
(1) attach to Resolution 2003-07 the map of the project area that was
submitted by staff that evening; and (2) amend paragraph No. 2 of the
resolution by inserting the words “2.5 acre fire station site (APN
008-031-009)” after the words “adjacent to its.” Director Potter seconded the motion only
after the applicant indicated agreement with the amendment. Director Erickson offered an amendment to the motion. In paragraph No. 4 of the resolution, insert the words “now designated as APN 008-031-009” after the words “4.7 acre parcel.” Director Potter seconded the motion.Director Erickson offered an amendment to the
motion. The legal description of the
4.7-acre parcel to be added to the list of benefited properties (Exhibit 11-A
on page 139 of the staff report) will be attached to Resolution 2003-07 as
Attachment B. Chair Henson seconded
the amendment. The motion and amendments were unanimously adopted by the Board on a vote of 7 – 0. The
following comments were directed to the Board during the public comment
period on this item. (1) Leo Laska,
President of the Board of Directors of the Pebble Beach Community Services
District, urged the Board to approve the amendment to the Reclamation Project
Agreements and designate the fire station site as a benefited property. (2) Mike Niccum, Pebble Beach
Community Services District, explained that the entire 4.7-acre parcel was
assigned one assessor’s parcel number.
The original 2.5-acre parcel is the area that is to be included as a
benefited property. There
was no discussion of the Informational Items/Staff Reports. The
meeting was adjourned at approximately 9:00 PM. |
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CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALLPLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCEORAL COMMUNICATIONSCONSENT CALENDAR
1. Consider Approval of Minutes from the Regular Board Meeting of July 21, 2003 2. Consider Authorization of Contract with California State University Monterey Bay for Carmel River Large Woody Debris Assessment
GENERAL
MANAGER’S REPORT ATTORNEY’S REPORT7. Report on Closed Session of July 21, 2003 DIRECTORS’ REPORTS
PUBLIC HEARINGS9. A. Consider Denial of Application to Amend the California-American Water Company (Cal-Am) Water Distribution System to Construct Carmel River Dam and Reservoir Project (CRD&R) B.
Authorize Action to Collect District Costs
Relating to CRD&R Analysis from Cal-Am
ACTION ITEMS 10. Consider Approval of General Manager Recruitment Strategy 11. Consider Amending the Original Pebble Beach Reclamation Project Agreements to Designate the Pebble Beach Community Services District (PBCSD) Fire Station Site as a “Benefited Property” INFORMATIONAL
ITEMS/STAFF REPORTS 11.
Letters Received 12.
Committee Reports 13.
Strategic Planning
Initiatives Progress Report 14.
Monthly Water Supply
Project Status Report 15.
Carmel River Fishery
Report 16.
Water Conservation Program
Report 17.
Monthly Allocation Report 18.
Monthly Cal-Am Sales
Report 19.
Monthly Cal-Am Production
Report 20.
Production Report –
CAWD/PBCSD Wastewater Reclamation Project 21.
Semi-Annual Financial
Report on CAWD/PBCSD Wastewater Reclamation Project 22.
Monthly Water Supply
Status Report ADJOURNMENT |
____________________________
Fran
Farina, Secretary to the Board
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