Stormwater Oversight Commission Regular Meeting

Stormwater Oversight Commission Water Resource Recovery Facility - Ottotorium 1300 Market Ave SW Monday, October 24, 2022 – 2:00 PM MINUTES 1. Call to Order Bersche called the meeting to order at 2:05 pm. 2. Roll Call Members Present: Julie Wildschut, Casey Kuperus, Katie Doyen, Kristine Bersche, Jack Barr Others Present: Brian Bradley, Cara Decker, Brent Geurink, Chad Reul, Carrie Rivette, Michael Staal, Dan Taber, Shanyn Viars, Nathan Williams 3. Approval of Agenda Motion by Doyen, supported by Kuperus, to approve agenda for October 24, 2022. MOTION CARRIED 4. Approval of Minutes from July 25, 2022 Motion by Doyen, supported by Kuperus, to approve the minutes from July 25, 2022. MOTION CARRIED 5. Correspondence Only correspondence was from those members indicating they were unable to attend. 6. Reports i. Asset Management Reul presented summary of asset management maintenance work completed to date in 2022 in three main areas: Storm sewer mains: cleaning of mains is nearly complete for the year and on track to meet 2022 goal. EGLE reporting year recently changed to calendar year format. Televising: the 2022 goal has already been met and exceeded. The City has now completed televising of all mains 75 years old and older; in line with the target of Level of Service “C” for the City. Catch Basin Cleaning: the 2022 goal has already been met and exceeded. This is also in line with the target of Level of Service “C” for the City. Page 1 of 5 Reul proposed different goals for some maintenance activities going forward. For regularly scheduled catch basin cleaning, proposed to perform on a rotating 5-year schedule. Crews have been finding relatively little buildup of sediment in basins after initial cleaning. City also requires extra-deep sumps in basins which can help reduce maintenance frequency. City crews can still respond to higher need areas/basins through existing work order response system. Now that all mains 75 years old and older have been televised, proposed revised televising goals to televise entirety of system, regardless of age, on 12-year rotation. Televising findings to date have allayed fears that oldest elements of the network may have structural deficiencies. Generally, largest reoccurring problem found in system is related to service line intrusions into pipes, which occurs independent of main age. It is also planned to begin storing televising footage linked to the City’s GIS mapping for easy access. Rivette supports proposed goal changes by Reul. Televising of entire network on 12-year rotation will also help identify additional cross connections. Doyen questioned how proposed goal changes would impact the existing budget. Reul and Rivette noted that proposed goal changes will not negatively impact existing maintenance budget. By systematically televising network based on geographic grid area instead of age, televising will be much more efficient. Budget will still include the typical adjustments for inflation. Bersche questioned how televising changes would be prioritized based on road projects. Reul and Rivette noted that grid sections with upcoming road construction projects would be prioritized each year in order to locate any potential issues prior to construction. Viars wondered if there was presently a quantitative story of savings, budget impacts, etc.? Rivette responded that something like this is currently in process. The proposed changes are much more efficient so it should be a visible win. Reul added that City crews have begun catch basin lining. This practice is estimated to extend the useful life of a basin, which should result in lowering annual material and trenching costs for replacing basins. ii. Public Education Rivette presented an update on the upcoming Highlands daylighting event. Event is noted on the Facebook page for RSVP. iii. Water Quality Index Rivette presented on water quality metrics in the Grand River and trends over time. Generally, the indices measured have indicated that water quality has been increasing since 1990. Viars questioned if water quality problems came from agricultural activities upstream. Rivette noted that sometimes occurs, but often water quality issues have been observed to run parallel to upstream indicators. Page 2 of 5 Wildschut wondered if sampling tracked wet weather vs. dry weather. Rivette responded that testing did not necessarily track with weather patterns. Sampling is based on monthly schedule. City consultant TetraTech had noted weather conditions with their regular sampling. Viars wondered if there was a plan to communicate any of this to the public. Staal responded that river quality metrics would be communicated to the public but in a larger context. The City currently has an agreement with the USGS to receive USGS monitoring data. The goal is to be able to use this data along with historic E.coli sampling data to create a regression equation that would be used to estimate E.coli presence with the real time USGS data. E.coli testing takes, at the quickest, 18 hours to get results and so is generally too slow to be an adequate warning to the public. Previously, USGS E.coli testing in the Grand River over the past three years only found one sample that exceeded the State’s standards for recreational water quality. Grand River water quality communication to the public will be part of this larger USGS testing project. Rivette added that the City is also working on getting data available on the website again. 7. Old Business i. Capital Budget Rivette presented proposed budget for FY 2024. This includes the added FY 2028 proposed projects. Apart from typical maintenance and repairs items, proposed FY 2028 projects include Plaster Creek Streambank Restoration with the Plaster Creek Stewards near #650 28th Street SE as well as daylighting a portion of the Richard Fairplains Drain through Huff Park. The proposed added items can be officially adopted at the next meeting in December 2022. Bersche wondered how Reul identifies catch basins in need of lining. Reul responded that catch basins that may be candidates for lining are typically identified as they do regular maintenance as well as noted during other road projects. There is more opportunity for lining than there is currently budget for the work so they prioritize those basins with the highest need. There is an estimated extension of the useful life of the basin by about 20 years with the lining product. ii. Stormwater Vulnerability Report Rivette presented a status update on the existing Stormwater Vulnerability Report. The previous report is several years out-of-date but they do not have the resources to dedicate to updating the whole report. This is largely a result of some of the workflow complications from the 2020 season and beyond. Relevant data and information are still being collected and updated. Bersche questioned if the City could ever revisit this report in time. Rivette noted that it would be revisited at some point. Similar information is still be tracked and presented in other formats like the comprehensive master plan updates. Bersche wondered how much the stormwater department is currently involved in the master plan updates. Page 3 of 5 Rivette noted that it is not involved much yet in the general master plan updates but is involved in the comprehensive master plan for streets. Taber added that he can discuss with City planners and provide an update. The master plan update is a big project with time planned for comment and engagement. Viars wondered if the existing report can still be used for other purposes, like grant applications. Rivette responded that, yes, the existing report is still useful for grant opportunities. iii. Bylaws Changes Rivette presented two proposed changes to the existing Bylaws. These are: • Updating all references of the “Technical Reference Manual” to the “Stormwater Standards Manual” • Adding “as updated” to references to the 2013 Stormwater Asset Management Plan and the Capital Improvement Plan This would require a vote of 2/3 of the commission members present. Motion by Wildscut, supported by Kuperus. MOTION CARRIED. 8. New Business i. Membership Renewal Stormwater Oversight Commission positions will be expiring at the end of the year. Any commission members not interested in renewing their positions should let Carrie Rivette know. Rivette provided link to city website. 9. Agenda Items for Next Meeting • New Capital Project Descriptions • Operations & Maintenance Budget • 1300 market Avenue SW 10. Date and Time of Next Meeting i. December 19, 2022 2:00 pm at the Water Resource Recovery Facility Ottotorium Motion by Doyen, supported by Kuperus. MOTION CARRIED 11. Public Comment Taber recently attended the “Healing Our Waters” conference in Milwaukee. Taber represented Grand Rapids at the conference and found that he was able to connect with several people from the Page 4 of 5 Milwaukee sewerage department to discuss parallel stormwater issues and questions. While there, he received several questions about Grand Rapids, including questions on the dam removal project. Bersche had also received several questions about the dam removal project while doing some work recently in the Upper Peninsula. Staal provided a brief update on the dam removal project; the public comment period for EGLE inland lakes & streams permitting has closed but the public comment period for the Federal NEPA permit is now open. Public input, including letters of support for the project, is welcome. 12. Adjournment Bersche adjourned the meeting at 2:51 pm. Page 5 of 5