SABPA Meeting

December 8, 2022 South Amherst Board of Public Affairs Storm & Water Minutes Roll Call: Board Members Present: Zoltan Zoltai, Tom Pellittieri, Mark Leshinski, Operator of Record: Dennis Hevener Clerk: Alexandra Sabine Liaison and Council Representative: None Present Visitors: None Present Agenda Amendments: Mark Leshinski added 1702 N Lake & Job Descriptions to water new business. Approve Agenda: Mark Leshinski moved to approve the agenda including amendments. Tom Pellittieri seconded. The motion passed unanimously. Previous Minutes: 11/07/2022 Public Hearing: Tom Pellittieri moved to approve the minutes from the November 7, 2022 Public Hearing as written. Zoltan Zoltai seconded. Mark Leshinski abstained. The motion passed. 11/21/2022 Public Hearing: Tom Pellittieri moved to approve the minutes from the November 21, 2022 Public Hearing. Mark Leshinski seconded. The motion passed unanimously. 11/21/2022: Mark Leshinski moved to approve the minutes from November 21, 2022, as written. Tom Pellittieri seconded. The motion passed unanimously. Storm Operator’s Report: Dennis Hevener reported that Great Lakes jet rodded Leonard Street. They found a blockage about 22 feet in on Leonard (corner of Leonard & Elm), they hit mud & could not get through. The blockage will need to be addressed in the future. They also ran out of allotted time & did not make it to Oakdale. Discussion ensued. Tom Pellittieri asked Dennis to get a price for the repair & report back to the board. Dennis stated he will get two estimates & report back. Dennis Hevener also reported that he met with Aaron from Bramhall regarding the fire station holding tanks. He reported it will cost approximately $50,000 to $70,000 to complete the holding tanks project. Aaron will get back in touch with the Village in approximately two weeks with an update. Lastly, Dennis Hevener reported that he reached out to Matt Arnold to report the Maroy Replacement. He requested a map to show what was replaced with sizes. Tom Pellittieri volunteered to complete a map, which he will give to the clerk to forward to Matt Arnold. Alexandra Sabine inquired if there was any response from the Health Department regarding the sludge found on Maroy. Dennis replied that Anne Maczuga called him & stated there was nothing found that warranted action or violation at this time. 1|Page Clerk’s Report: Alexandra Sabine reported that she sent the board information regarding the GIS Mapping system within the last two weeks. She included a link as well as the login credentials. She plans to look into the system a bit more when she has a free minute as well. She also reported that she received a letter from the Storm Water Management District which was a notification of an internal audit in February of 2023. We already went through the EPA audit, so she believes the county Internal audit will be pretty similar to the EPA audit we went through last winter. Herself & Dennis will go through the checklist provided and prepare for the internal audit. Completed Tap- In’s: None Pending Tap-in’s: None The board reviewed the financial reports (Exhibit A). Mark Leshinski moved to accept the financial reports as written. Tom Pellittieri seconded. The motion passed unanimously. Old Business: Water Operator Worklist: Mark Leshinski updated the worklist; he will present the updated list at the first meeting of the new year. Storm Tap-In Penalty: The clerk reported that the board discussed this at length during their work session, there was a discovery of a penalty in the ordinances already, so there is no further action to be taken at this time. The current penalty in the ordinances is the amount of the application fee plus two times the fee, equaling a total of $1500.00. New Business: 217 Annis Storm Tap-In: The board discussed the situation regarding the tap-in to the storm system which is across the road from the property. The board discussed the possibility of allowing the customer to tap-in to the ditch, which leads to a catch basin, requiring that the customer is responsible for cleaning the ditch to allow water flow. Further discussion ensued regarding the grading/flow of the water & if it would even make it to the ditch. The clerk asked for specific direction from the board to respond to the customer’s inquiry. Zoltan Zoltai moved to respond to the customer and request that they conduct an engineering study as to how to move the water & what will propel the water off the property. Mark Leshinski seconded. The motion passed unanimously. The clerk verified that she could send this information via email, which the board confirmed. The clerk also reported that this customer recently inquired about a grading/drainage permit to install a pond. The village clerk advised Alexandra Sabine that this would fall under grading/drainage which is the responsibility of the BPA. The clerk reached out to the County to see if the customer pulled a permit with the county as well. For a grading/drainage permit they would need an engineering study/topographic map so they may want to include both together. Discussion ensued. The clerk advised that she would inform the customer of the drainage/grading permitting process when she responds to the storm tap-in question. She will also direct them to the next board meeting with any further questions. Water Operator’s Report: Dennis Hevener reported that the parts have been ordered for the North Lake Street Replacement Project. They should be delivered tomorrow and will be stored in the village landscaping 2|Page trailer at Douglas Field. He also reported on a water shutoff for 402 East Main, which is a triplex. The landlord did not pay the bill, the new renter was concerned & requested that Dennis check to see if there is one or three water meters. Dennis completed the work order. The bill was eventually paid & water did not need to be disconnected. Finally, he reported that on December 15, 2022 he will be attending a training (stormwater) in Oberlin. There is no charge for the training. Clerk’s Report: Alexandra Sabine reported that the inactive account interest ordinance is in the process of going through council. The final reading is at the January 9, 2023 meeting & a vote will be taken to approve. She also reported that the Data Command SOP has been completed as requested. She emailed the board that document as well as all of the SOP’s to date. The board may advise with any corrections or additions. She reminded the board that she emailed them regarding a letter from Mr. Harper regarding 305 E Main Street. She reviewed the letter with the board & simply wanted to make the board aware. She has not sent any correspondence back. She also followed up with core & main regarding the meter pits on order. Certain parts came in such as lids & pads, which Dennis picked up from Core & Main today, however the pits themselves are not expected until January 3-9 & January 28, 2023. Discussion ensued of the borrowed pits from rural water. The clerk verified with the fiscal officer that the purchase requisitions for the meter pits can be transferred to 2023. Alexandra Sabine reported that there was one disconnection due to delinquency. The property was on Maple Street. It has since been resolved & the service has been reconnected. The clerk also reminded the board of the council & committee work session on December 12, 2022 at 7:00pm with a purpose to recap 2022 & plan for 2023 collectively. She advised that she responded to Jeri Leigh Siss that she will not be able to attend but she has passed the information on to the board, she is hopeful that someone will be able to attend to represent the BPA. Jeri Leigh Siss also inquired if there was anything the BPA would like posted on social media for December. The clerk asked if there was anything the board would like posted. Zoltan Zoltai suggested posting about the North Lake Street Replacement Project. The clerk stated that she will have the North Lake Street information posted on social media, physical postings, webpage, & via WENS notice. The board discussed including in the posts possible disruption of service, low pressure, discolored water & flushing lines if so. It was decided that Dennis will notify the school garage. Zoltan Zoltai suggested notifying the police department as well. The clerk inquired if there is an official start date yet, which Dennis Hevener responded there is not. He will advise when an official start date has been decided. Alexandra Sabine updated the board on the clerk & operator job descriptions. Mark is responsible for updating the operator’s job description, & she is responsible for updating the clerk’s job description. She will have the job description completed and sent out to the board as soon as possible & the board can discuss at the next regular meeting. Zoltan Zoltai inquired on the progress of finding a new supply operator. Tom Pellittieri is reaching out to Corey Timko & Chris will remain the supply operator until we get a new hire. Alexandra Sabine further updated the board on information regarding her maternity leave/return. She notified the board that she has a laptop to donate, which she clarified with the fiscal officer could be completed using a letter written to the BPA stating that she is donating the device & minutes reflected the acceptance from the BPA. The clerk will get the computer ready to donate & the letter to the BPA in January. She also reported that the fiscal officer advised that there will be monthly costs associated with the laptop including monitoring, antivirus, Office 365 & SharePoint. She estimated an approximate cost of $25 per month. The initial setup of the laptop will be approximately $300-$400. 3|Page Lastly, she advised that a cell phone can be added, the board will need to decide what phone they would like to buy. The cost should be approximately $50 per month, depending on the type of phone. Mark Leshinski inquired on the lifting requirement on the job description. Discussion ensued. The board decided to leave the requirement as written. Finally, the clerk reminded the board that she is on vacation the following week. The clerk added that when meters were read, there was a water account with an exceptionally high bill on Annis Rd. The clerk called the customer & created a work order for Dennis to investigate. Dennis completed the work order and the customer advised Dennis that they had a leaky toilet, but they did not think it was that bad, so it has not been repaired yet. Discussion ensued regarding the leak & the suggestion of a payment plan. Zoltan Zoltai inquired if there was an interest rate on payment plans. The clerk advised that there is currently no interest on payment plans & she does not have recollection of a discussion of implementing any interest. Zoltan Zoltai moved to allow a payment plan of up to six months with equal payments each month, & good standing on their current bill until delinquent balance is paid in full. Mark Leshinski seconded. The motion passed unanimously. November 2022 Adjustments: The board reviewed & approved the adjustments from November 2022. The board reviewed the financial reports (Exhibit B). Mark Leshinski moved to accept the financial reports as written. Tom Pellittieri seconded. The motion passed unanimously. Old Business: 319 Elm Street Meter Calibration / Water Account: Dennis Hevener stated that he went to Rural Lorain County Water Authority & he tested the meter. It is functioning gallon for gallon. The board discussed the customer’s expectation of her account to be adjusted. The adjustment will be less than $250.00. The board recapped the previous discussion with the customer. Tom Pellittieri suggested notifying the customer that the meter was tested & it came back normal, however the account has been adjusted as discussed previously. Tom Pellittieri moved to adjust the account to credit the amount of $182.66 in water & $23.27 in late fees. Mark Leshinski seconded. Zoltan Zoltai abstained from voting. The motion passed. The board asked the clerk to send the customer a letter notifying them of the results of the test on the meter & of the account adjustment. North Lake Street Replacement Project Update: Discussed Previously. Water Map Project: The board discussed the project & decided that Mark Leshinski will be the point person for this project. The clerk will reach out to Jeanne Maschari to let her know that Mark Leshinski is the point person, she will then communicate with him moving forward. The board discussed the cost of scanning, the village will work with downtown direct & the cost will be 50 cents per page, as advised by the fiscal officer at the previous work session. New Business: (M) Meeting Recordings: The board discussed the recent implementation of recording the meetings. Mark Leshinski pointed out that the BPA was never consulted regarding the recording of the meetings, they never approved or voted on it, and other boards are not recording their meetings. He pointed out that our meetings are posted, open to the public, and detailed minutes are available. Mark Leshinski moved that the future BPA Meetings not be recorded or transmitted via webcast. Zoltan Zoltai 4|Page seconded. The motion passed, with Zoltan Zoltai & Mark Leshinski approving & Tom Pellittieri disapproving. The clerk inquired if the board would like the clerk to distribute that information to anyone else. Mark Leshinski suggested distributing the information once the minutes from this meeting are approved. Mark Leshinski or the clerk will advise the liaison at that time. Ohio Rural Water Association Membership Renewal: The clerk advised the board that it is time to renew the ORWA Membership if they wish to do so. She advised that this is also the association we are using to perform our rate study, so it would be in the best interest of the board to remain members at this time. The board inquired on the cost of renewal, which she advised was $362.50. Zoltan Zoltai moved to accept the renewal of the Ohio Rural Water Association Membership for the 2023 year. Tom Pellittieri seconded. The motion passed unanimously. MOR Violation, Ohio EPA: The board inquired if there was a fine association with the violation which the clerk responded there was not. The clerk advised that the violation was resolved. After speaking with the EPA, it was determined that Dennis will complete the MORs during the time that the chlorinator is not running. Dennis submitted the MOR for October 2022 & November 2022. Discussion ensued. (M) 1702 N Lake: Mark Leshinski inquired if we provided water service to 1702 North Lake Street. Dennis Hevener responded that we do service this property and the meter pit/tap-in has been installed already. (M) Job Description: Discussed previously. Mark Leshinski moved to Adjourn the meeting. Zoltan Zoltai seconded. The roll was called with all in favor. Respectfully submitted, Alexandra Sabine, Water Board Clerk 5|Page