MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE SEMITROPIC, BUTTONWILLOW, POND-POSO, AND WILDLIFE IMPROVEMENT DISTRICTS OF SEMITROPIC WATER STORAGE DISTRICT Convened at 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday April 8, 2009 The regular meeting of the Board of Directors was called to order by President Wegis on Wednesday, April 8, 2009, at 12:30 p.m., at the offices of the District, 1101 Central Avenue, Wasco, California. Those in attendance included: Directors Present: Directors Absent: James A. Crettol, Ted Page, Phil Portwood, Todd Tracy, Dan Waterhouse and Fredrick Wegis; Jeff Fabbri; Via Conference Call: General Manager, Will Boschman; Others Present: District Engineer, Paul Oshel; District Superintendent, John Lynch; District s Controller, John Wooner; District s Staff Engineer, Craig Wallace; District s Accountant, Judy Burns; District s Exec. Secretary, Marsha Payne; Districts Legal Counsel, Ernest Conant; District s Consulting Engineers, Bookman-Edmonston, GEI Consultants, Inc., represented by Dick Rhone; W.M. Lyles Representative, Rick Amigh; District Consultant, John Jones; ACDF, LLC Representative, Devin Aviles; Steve Gair, representing Wingate Realty; Semitropic Wildlife Advisory Committee members Fran Burgess and Jim Forrest; and District landowner, Mark Palla. President Wegis led the flag salute, then introduced and welcomed all guests. Appointment of Directors 1
District s Exec. Secretary, Marsha Payne, reported that the Kern County Board of Supervisors officially reappointed three Directors whose terms were up for re-election. Those reappointed for another 4-year term include Directors Crettol, Portwood and Wegis. District s legal counsel, Ernest Conant, stated that this was also the time and place to reorganize the Board and asked if there were any nominations from the floor. A motion was made by Director Page, seconded by Director Portwood and unanimously carried to nominate Director Waterhouse as Treasurer. A motion was made by Director Crettol, seconded by Director Portwood and unanimously carried to nominate Director Tracy as Secretary. A motion was made by Director Portwood, seconded by Director Tracy to reappoint General Manager, Wilmar L. Boschman, as Assistant Secretary. There being no further nominations, and it being the consensus of the Board that other officers remain the same, the Board unanimously approved the slate of Board officers which are as follows: President Vice President Secretary Assistant Secretary Treasurer Fredrick A. Wegis Ted R. Page Todd Tracy Wilmar L. Boschman Dan Waterhouse Approval of Agenda It was noted that one new item came to the staff s attention after posting the agenda: Consider Support for Water Awareness Campaign thru Water Association of Kern County and KCWA. On motion by Director Waterhouse, seconded by Director Tracy, the revised Agenda was unanimously approved. ACTION ITEMS Minutes On motion by Director Waterhouse, seconded by Director Crettol, the Minutes of the Regular Meeting on March 11 and Special Meeting on March 31, 2009 were approved as presented. 2
Treasurer s Report On motion by Director Portwood, seconded by Director Waterhouse, the Treasurer s Report for Semitropic Water Storage District and Semitropic Improvement District for March 2009 was approved as presented. Accounts Payable The Cash Disbursement List was presented for review and payment. Several items were discussed, including payments to environmental consultants; KCWA for 3 wells on the Pioneer Project; airfare to Sacramento for meetings with USBR and USF&G; computer training for engineering staff; and membership fees to the Delta Coalition Committee. On motion by Director Waterhouse, seconded by Director Crettol, the Board authorized payment of the Accounts Payable as listed on the April 8, 2009 Disbursement List for Semitropic Water Storage District and Semitropic Improvement District. A copy of the Disbursement List is attached hereto as "Exhibit A". Consider Sale of Bonds to Restructure Debt Manager Boschman restated that at a Special Board Meeting on March 31 st, the Board indicated its desire for no more debt. District Controller, John Wooner, reviewed details of the 2009 Adopted Budget Debt Service & Interest schedule which includes $50 M in 2008A Bonds. Wells Fargo Bank is willing to restructure the Bonds to reduce the debt on the general funds and move them to non-recourse debt. With the current low interest rates in mind, the Board requested staff and Wells Fargo Bank representatives to proceed with gathering the information to restructure the debt service and present it at the next Board meeting. Consider Support for Water Awareness Campaign thru Water Association of KC and KCWA The Manager reported that the Water Association of Kern County, in conjunction with the Kern County Water Agency, along with urban and agricultural purveyors, will again sponsor a major media Water Awareness campaign for 2009. The District has been asked to contribute $950 or more toward funding the campaign. This program has been tremendously successful in the past by providing citizens of Kern County television messages about local water issues. The focus of the 2009 Water Awareness 3
Campaign will be on the severe water shortage and its effect on the economy. On motion by Director Tracy, seconded by Director Portwood, the Board authorized a contribution of $950 toward the 2009 Water Awareness Campaign. Design/Build Team Construction Update W.M. Lyle s representative, Rick Amigh, reported on the status of the SWRU Phase 2 project. District staff and consultants are proceeding with efforts to get Water Service Agreements signed for Service Areas X, Y and Z. Efforts also continued to secure Rights-of- Way and Easements. District staff and consultants resumed operations in March of the Raw Water Processing Plant. A new polymer was used to accelerate the rate of settlement in the flocculation process along with experimenting with different injection intervals. There appears to be measurable improvement in the process as data continues to be collected. INFORMATIONAL AND UP-DATE ITEMS Manager Boschman s written report on District Activity During March 2009 dated April 2, 2009 was accepted for filing. In addition, Manager Boschman presented the following: Water Supply Update Manager Boschman reported that during the month, the State gave notice that it increased its allocation from 15 percent to 20 percent. This amount, together with the District s contribution of 10 percent allocates 30 percent to the District s Contract Water users. Overall, this still represents a dire outlook for the State s water supply. Status of Delinquencies The total amount of Contract Delinquencies is $6,255.30: 7-K Ranch - $4,564.32 and Chance Ranch - $1,690.98. Landowner Meeting Discussion followed on the 2 nd Annual Landowner s Meeting/BBQ set for May 15 th at the Elks Lodge. Preparations for the meeting are currently underway where the focus for discussion will include District operations, water supply, Delta issues and District policies. 4
Semitropic-Rosamond JPA Activities The Manager reported that construction activities at the Antelope Valley facility are currently on hold in order to do some further planning. Discussions are continuing with Antelope Valley-East Kern Water Agency (AVEK) regarding the possibility of constructing joint facilities which could be of mutual benefit to both the Authority and AVEK. Energy Activities Manager Boschman reported that due to provisions for renewable energy in the economic stimulus package, there has been significant interest recently from solar vendors for installing solar facilities in the District. Discussion followed. Poso Creek IRWMP District Engineer, Paul Oshel, reported that the Poso Creek IRWM Group is preparing a regional acceptance grant for project funding. The Kern County Water Agency (KCWA) has expressed a desire for the Poso Creek Group to join them and combine forces; however, the Poso Creek Group has already established governing by-laws and completed all the groundwork necessary to become a viable independent entity. There are currently no plans to combine the groups. Consultant s Reports District consultant, John Jones, reported on the well drilling operations, water well development, and pump installations. Recently there have been requests for the video camera to tape wells that are between 35 to 40 years old and in very poor condition. Office Addition District staff reported that the date has been set for April 17 to receive bids on the office addition. It is anticipated that several bids will be received. Fallowing Program The Manager reported that a letter was sent to District landowners to inquire of any interest in a fallowing program; however, only several parties responded positively. Further discussions with KCWA indicate that they now are not in favor of the program and therefore, for all practical purposes, the program will not move forward at this time. 5
Semitropic Wildlife Improvement District Manager Boschman reported that the Semitropic Wildlife Advisory Committee has been trying to develop the West-East Pintail Slough (WEPS) Project in an effort to convey water in either direction for more efficient management of available water supplies and to enhance wildlife habitat; however, the project needs funds in order to get started. SWID Chairman, Fran Burgess along with Committee member Jim Forrest, reported that the Tulare Basin Wetlands Association has donated $50,000 towards engineering studies and preliminary work. Wayne Dahl of GEI Consultants, performed the engineering work on the No. Pintail Slough and is willing to help on the WEPS Project. Discussion followed. Consulting Engineer s Report Mr. Dick Rhone from Bookman-Edmonston, GEI Consultants, Inc. presented the Consulting Engineers Report on Projects for Semitropic Water Storage District for work during March 2009, which was accepted for filing. Mr. Rhone also reported on engineering activities related to Groundwater Modeling, various grant proposals, completing the P-565 Distribution System and completion of the 2008/2009 Winter Improvement Projects. Also discussed were the proposals for furnishing pumps, motors and equipment for the Pond-Poso Canal Reverse Flow Completion Project. Closed Session At 1:50 p.m. the District s legal counsel, Ernest Conant, stated that a closed session was needed pursuant to the following: a. Conference with legal counsel to discuss pending litigation (Gov t Code Section 54956.9(a)-California Groundwater Association, et al. v. Semitropic Water Storage District b. Conference with legal counsel to discuss anticipated litigation (Gov t Code Section 54956.9(b) (One matter) c. Conference with Real Property Negotiators (Gov t Code Section 54956.8) Negotiators: Will Boschman and Rick Wegis Parties: Various landowners d. Personnel Matters (Gov t Code Section 54957) 6
All visitors left the meeting except Steve Gair who reported on various land negotiations. Steve Gair left the meeting at 2:00 p.m. At 2:15 p.m. the Board reconvened to open session. President Wegis stated that several items were discussed; however, no action was taken. At 2:20 p.m. the Board went into executive session to discuss personnel issues and all staff left at that time. At 3:40 p.m. the meeting was adjourned by President Wegis until Wednesday, April 22, 2009 at 12:30 p.m. at the District office to continue the business of the District. APPROVED: /s/ Todd Tracy, Secretary /s/ Fredrick A. Wegis, President 7