Town of Germantown

O’Dells’s Bay Sanitary District No. 1

BOARD OF DIRECTORS SPECIAL MEETING

MINUTES

Half Moon Bay Clubhouse
N7832 Lake View Ct
New Lisbon, WI 53950
September 9, 2021
9:00 a.m.

Present: (all via Skype) Board Members Jim Murphy, Jim Keene, Brad Pavloski, Ken Jax, Rod Abbrederis. Administrator Kathy Oliver, Tom Fitzwilliams from MSA, Kyra Cassidy from MSA

Call to Order/Approve Agenda-

The meeting was called to order via Skype at 9:05 AM and the agenda was approved the board. With all board members present, we did have a quorum.

Minutes-

A motion was made by Brad Pavloski, seconded by Rod Abbrederis to approve the minutes from the July 8, 2021 regular meeting with no changes or corrections. Motion carried with all in favor.

Administrator’s Report –

-Financial Status Summary – Financial information was provided by Kathy Oliver, including bank account balances, accounts payable and accounts receivable. We have had 21 connections year-to-date, with an additional 25 requested but not yet complete. A motion was made by Brad Pavloski, seconded by Ken Jax to approve the Administrators report. Motion carried with all in favor.  Kathy also presented a new report detailing the status of the upgrade project, including financials, construction info and some photos of the project. Jim Keene suggested we share the report with the Town of Germantown board to keep them updated on the project. Brad Pavloski made a motion to do so , which was seconded by Jim Keene and passed with all in favor.  After some discussion Ken Jax volunteered to ask to be on the agenda at the next Township meeting to present. Ken asked if it was OK for board members to stop in at the plant to personally see the construction progress. Kyra Cassidy commented that they are welcome to do so and that she’d be happy to show them on site.   She also mentioned that she has a monthly progress meeting with the construction crew and that she will share her notes from those meetings with the board.

Discussion and Possible Action on WWTF Operators Report–

Tom Fitzwilliams reported on the daily operations. Average influent and effluent flows are in-line with expectations for the time of year.  Ammonia concentrations have decreased and are below the DNR limits. Tom mentioned that the new system should be up and running next spring, and that we could experience some issues with those levels in the winter or spring before it is fully up and running. He will continue to monitor.  6 Service connections were done in July and August. Recent maintenance included spraying and cutting weeds from the lagoon liner, curb stop maintenance, plant blower #1 repair, and WPDES WET test sampling.  

Tom also commented on 2 recent service connection requests that we were unable to accommodate, due to the cost that would have to be absorbed by the homeowner. There was some discussion of what the district could do to make these kinds of connections more affordable.  Brad Pavloski commented that the situation is basically the same as when natural gas is brought in and homeowners must bear the cost to do so, and that we are in the same position as the gas company. Other board members agreed and the discussion ended.

Tom noted that with the construction well under way and MSA Staff on site daily, there is no longer a need for Arvin (Red) Gates to visit the plant to do his daily checks. Once the project is complete all of the systems will be automatic and closely monitored by MSA via computer. Ken Jax made a Motion that we inform Red of the situation and that we pay him for the balance of the year as a gesture of our gratitude for his many years of loyal service. The motion was seconded by Rod Abbrederis and carried with all in favor. Kathy will talk with Red as soon as possible and make sure he understands how grateful the board is for his service. Kathy asked about the need for Jeff Tomaloff to continue doing the monthly generator bump test and Tom said that yes, it should continue until the new generator is installed, which may be in a few weeks.

Discussion and Possible Action on WWTF Construction Update-

Kyra Cassidy and Tom Fitzwilliams reported that Wapasha Construction continues to submit product and construction information. There will be a total of about 90 submittals; MSA has approved about 50. Wapasha has completed the building foundation, chemical containment basin and the polishing reactor. Water testing on the chemical containment basin and the reactor began August 30^th and will be completed this week. Backfilling of the structures will also begin this week.

Change Order No. 2 was recently processed, which included a truck-fill connection at the front of the building and modifications to the Soda Ash feed hopper.

The lift station improvements are underway. An easement agreement will be signed by the new owners and District representatives in the next weeks. MSA is waiting for the revised proposal from Wapasha for this work. MSA is also working with Alliant and the subcontractors to receive gas service at the lift station.

Wapasha is behind schedule on this project. Some of this is due to delays in material delivery and some due to poor project organization and management. They requested a two-month extension on the completion date. MSA has not responded to this request.

Public Comment –

Brad Pavloski questioned the status of the campground project that Steve Laridaen had asked approval for at our last meeting. Ken Jax commented that the Township Board was still waiting for them to get approval from Sanitary District #2. 

Adjourn

A motion was made by Brad Pavloski, Seconded by Ken Jax, to adjourn at 10:00 AM.  Motion carried with all in favor.  The next board meeting is scheduled for Thursday, November 11^th, 2021 at 9:00AM.

Respectfully Submitted,

Kathy Oliver, Administrator