Water Resources Board

MINUTES MURFREESBORO WATER RESOURCES BOARD June 28, 2022 The Murfreesboro Water Resources Board met on Tuesday, June 28, 2022 in the conference room at the Operations and Maintenance Building, 1725 S. Church Street. Present at the meeting were Board members: Dr. Al Carter, Mr. Ron Crabtree, Ms. Kathy Nobles, Ms. Madelyn Scales-Harris, Mr. Kirt Wade, and Ms. Sandra Trail. Also present were Darren Gore, Doug Swann, Michele Pinkston, Roman Hankins, Marshall Fall, Alan Cranford, Joe Russell, John Strickland, Matt Powers, Steve Campbell, Randy McCullough, Travis Wilson, and Brent Fowler along with other members of the public. The Consent Agenda was presented to the Board for approval: A. Raw water easement abandonment from Osborne Ln to DeJarnette Ln B. CIA engineering proposal for design of water main extension with extension of Beasie Rd C. Quotes for Mill Street Tank building D. Commercial Structures & Facilities Painting Contract Change Order #4 E. Rockwell Automation TechConnect Support purchase F. GE GlobalCare Support purchase G. Sodium Hypochlorite Contract Amendment A motion was made by Sandra Trail to accept the Consent Agenda as presented and it was seconded by Kirt Wade. The Board voted unanimously to approve. The May 24, 2022 Board Minutes were unanimously approved as presented. The Board considered Salem Highway Sewer Upgrades easement offers. These upgrades are necessary to release the self- imposed sewer moratorium, continue development in the area and avoid sewer capacity issues. The easement offers were rounded up and staff also thought it best to offer a minimum of $1000. Staff requested approval in the amount of $40,850 to purchase easements and, if easements are not obtained within a reasonable amount of time, then approval to move forward with condemnation. Sandra Trail notified the Board she had a conflict and abstained from voting. Kathy Nobles made a motion to approve. Kirt Wade seconded. The motion unanimously passed. The Board considered CCTV equipment purchase. O&M utilizes Cobra Technologies closed circuit television (CCTV) systems to inspect and assess the condition of sanitary sewer lines including service lines and stormwater infrastructures. Staff received notification from Cobra Technologies they will no longer sell or provide service to their units after 12/31/22. Water Resources Board Minutes June 28, 2022 Page 2 502 Equipment provided an on-site demonstration of the features of Aries DC 400 Voyager’s hardware and software which is compatible with Wincan. Staff requested the Board recommend City Council approve the purchase of this equipment in the amount of $223,577 with funding from the Capital Budget. Sandra Trail made a motion to approve. Kathy Nobles seconded. The motion unanimously passed. The Board considered a Draft Ordinance removing sanitary sewer fees for accessible sewer. MWRD has been charging properties that have “access” to sanitary a minimum monthly sewer charge of $10.22 per month whether a residence or business has been connected to the sewer since July 1, 2016. The term “accessible sewer” has been defined as a public sanitary sewer located in a street, alley, right-of-way, easement, or other public property abutting on the property in question. Based on recent customer input, and the relatively few numbers of accounts affected, staff is recommending dropping the fixed monthly fee for properties not connected to sewer but are defined as having access to it. Staff recommended the Board recommend to City Council adopting revisions to City Code 33-1 per the draft ordinance. Sandra Trail made a motion to approve. Kathy Nobles seconded. The motion unanimously passed. Staff updated the Board on the American Rescue Plan (ARP) grant funds. In March of 2021, Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act (ARP). Monies were allocated to state and local governments. The City of Murfreesboro received $24.1 million. Of the City funds, roughly $9 million is being designated to Stormwater projects, including Town Creek Phases I and II. The State of Tennessee received $3.9 billion. Of that total, the State earmarked $1.35 billion for a Water Infrastructure Investment Plan (WIIP), to be administered by TDEC. With costs for future projects uncertain, staff is including projects that will easily exceed the total projects funding available, i.e., Hobas pipe rehab, current and future rehab projects. TDEC will cease funding at the base allocation of $10,115,422. MWRD must match 35% of the base allocation which will be $3,540,398 for a total project funding of $13,655,820. Projects initiated after March 2021 (signing of the bill) are eligible for funding. Funds must be obligated by December 31, 2024 and fully spent by December 31, 2026. Staff has completed the Infrastructure Scorecard required by TDEC. LJA Engineering is preparing a Preliminary Engineering Report (PER) to be filed for each project submitted. The Grant Application portal is open now and closes on November 1. Staff expects to complete and file the application during July. Water Resources Board Minutes June 28, 2022 Page 3 Staff updated the Board on the WRRF Wet Weather Expansion study. In the fall of 2018, staff identified the need to evaluate the peak hydraulic capacity of the WRRF and identify options to upgrade facilities to treat peak weather flow. The Board previously approved a task order for Smith Seckman and Reid (SSR) to study the WRRF hydraulic capacity and identify necessary upgrades based on the analysis. The proposed upgrades include additional filters, additional UV disinfection equipment, and piping upgrades. The analysis also recommends an assessment study of the decommissioned Headworks to determine costs to refurbish and place the Headworks back into service to provide additional preliminary treatment capacity. The upgrades will allow for treatment of peak wet weather flows up to 80 mgd, while also providing treatment facilities for the expected expanded NPDES discharge permit and future WRRF expansion. The costs associated with the upgrades have increased from $7,137,000 to $9,072,000 based on SSR’s latest estimate. While these funds are designated to come from the Department’s working capital reserves, staff will investigate funding this project through the TN Municipal League (TML) bond fund. Staff believes this project will take at least a minimum of eight months to design and another 12 months to bid, award, and construct upgrades. Staff presented and discussed the Water Resources Dashboard Performance for May 2022. Staff presented the Financial Reports for the year ending May 31, 2022. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned. ____________________________ Alphonse Carter, Jr., Vice Chairman