Minutes for Trustee Special Meeting – August 30, 2012

 The Combined Lake Delhi Recreational Facility and Water Quality District

Board of Trustees Special Meeting

August 30, 2012 – 6:30 p.m.

Maquoketa Valley Middle School Conference Room

Delhi, IA

The meeting of the Combined Lake Delhi Recreational Facility and Water Quality District Board of Trustees was called to order by President Steve Leonard at 6:33 PM at the Maquoketa Valley Middle School Conference Room in Delhi, IA.

Trustees present: Peter, Kramer, Kray, Schneider, Leonard, Davidson, Burger, Schneider

Trustees absent: N/A

Visitors: Pat Dede, Don Dede, Darrel Berry, Pauletta Carbaugh, John Carbaugh, Chloe Colgan, Pat Colgan, Diane Bauers, Sue Christiansen, Lou Christiansen, Ken DeKlotz, Barb DeKlotz, Larry Aschenbrenner, Bill Lux, Marcheta Cooey Lux, Dwayne Donels, Chip Hughes, Dave Fry, Dan Staebell, Hatala by phone, Murphy by phone, Holman by phone.

Davisdson made motion to approve agenda,  Kramer second.  Motion passed.

Kramer discussed organizational structure and how each office election should be handled.  The pages are the same as what we reviewed last month.  Burger indicated Organizational structure document should also include the how to elect president and how we get board underway every year.  Burger made motion and Davidson second to begin discussion on Organizational structure.  He would prefer to put this in one form.  Burger will volunteer to put in one form and bring to next meeting.  Davidson said before that if absence of President, the Vice President should take action in the place of the President.  Leonard said lets revise motion to combine into one page.  Burger made motion to table until next meeting until revisons can be completed, Davidson second.  All ayes, Motion passed.

Memorandum of Agreement between LDRA and the Distirct for transfer of properties was introduced by Leonard.  Our attorneys finalized all exhibits and attachments to the document.  Leonard wants to bring the document to the table and discussion.  Kramer made motion, Schneider second.  Individual roll call requested.  All ayes, motion passed.  Document will move forward to LDRA for signature.

Pat Colgan gave FEMA update.  The 2008 and 2010 Flood events have been reobligated.  Colgan and Dave Fry had their first initial meetings with FEMA last week and the kick off meeting was scheduled for September 17th .  In the meeting last week with FEMA, they went through the 2008 disaster.  The 2008 event has a monitoring/audit report that is still an issue and needs to be addressed.  During the meeting they went through 25 pages of the monitoring/audit report and got a game plan.  Homeland Security will work with us and help to work through the report.  Iowa Homeland Security will also help us to go through the application for the 2010 flood for  FEMA this fall.  FEMA will rule no later than April 1, 2013 of next year (soonest it could be).  There is a lot of work ahead of us.  Leonard thanked Fry and Colgan for their participation in working on the monitoring report.  Leonard is thankful that we can work both issues at the same time and feels this is because Homeland Security is comfortable with our leadership team.  Fry indicated the 2008 monitoring report will be a ton of work.  He wants to give the District Trustees a heads up he doesn’t have the time to do all that will be required.  There is a need for a  strong engineering background to finalize this report.  Every one one of the items is asking for a cost analysis to justify the costs that were expended.  On top of he cost analysis requirment, there needs to have justification for the sole source contractor award.   Fry said we may need to have an agreement with Stanley Engineering to assist.   Colgan said that comment leads into the next item on the agenda which is Agreement #14 with Stanley.  Colgan said he realized right away that it is a ton of work and that he and Fry would need assistance.

The 2010 FEMA meeting was exciting and we have an opportunity for another possible source  of funding.  The Stanley Engineering proposal is another $26,700 to assist with the funding assistance request.  Homeland Security said we need to have a separate estimate of how much it would cost to bring the dam back just as it was.  Then we also need to show the cost with the changes we made.  The summary spreadsheet in the Stanley agreement will delineate all of this.  Another big item is silt mitigation.  We need to study it and stop the silt before it gets in the lake.  We will propose this to FEMA.  Stanley has recently done mitigation work like this with Homeland Security and FEMA so they know the process.  Burger asked if the costs within the Stanley agreement are reimburseable for 2010 and Colgan believes so.  Fry said the key to our success is how well we prepare our application.  A large part of the application is building the case and the costs and the reasons for it.  Having our best foot forward is essential.  No one knows more about the project than Stanley, especially after they produced our 600 page report.  Leonard asked if the Trustees did not move forward with this contract, what would be the negative.  Colgan said he and Fry don’t have the time or the resources to do all of this paperwork and engineering work.  The type of resources Stanley will provide would be more cost effective.  Fry said time is not our friend here.  The FEMA process is extremely combursome at best and full of land mines that can derail us.  We need to make sure we do everything we can to maximize the amount of money we can get from FEMA. Schneider said it is critical we do it right because we are under a microscope because of the  previous audit report.

First thing we have to do is ask for an extension for 2008 because there is a 4 year timeframe to claim funds.  Colgan said FEMA is very precise and it is important to work with someone who knows what they are doing.  Pat Dede asked if the 30 day timeframe on the Stanley Agreement  is for the 2010 project.  But no timeline on 2008.  Davidson asked Hatala if he had anything to add since he was at the meeting.  One thing Hatala says needs to be addressed is the record keeping and accounting.  FEMA will be sticklers for accounting on this.  Needs to be someone who is good at record keeping.  We will be audited by the State of Iowa and all likely hood by FEMA as well.  His recommendation to the board is to have someone who handles all of this.    Fry says not so much accounting, but more procedural and all processes as they happen.  They have already been asked about our contract with Stanley Engineering and how it was let.  We need our record keeping at a very high level.  Fry said we also have complexity because of our several funding sources.  FEMA won’t pay for items that will already be reimbursed.  Hiring an adminstrator is a direct cost of the project and should be able to be reimbursed as well.  Burger said needs administrator and he is aware of  a agency called Easy Cog from Dubuque that we  may want to consider contracting with.  In order to be eligible for FEMA reimbursement all contracts  have to be bid and Homeland security has some other names of companies that do this work as well for our bid process.  Colgan gave opinion that it is more important to get FEMA funding.  We can do the construction bidding before spring 2013.  Schneider made motion to accept Stanley Agreement #14, Peter second.  Holman was asked by Leonard how much time does Stanley need for task of 2008 flood.  He thinks a good month should give them the time to complete most of the 2010 but it will depend on how much work is needed.   Davidson asked how much time will be needed for  2008.  Holman responded that it depends on how much work is required.   Burger asked who is our designated rep for  FEMA for 2010 event.  Colgan said the paperwork for the 2010 flood hasn’t been done yet and the Trustees should add this as an agenda item for their next meeting.  All ayes on motion to accept Supplemental Agreement #14, motion passed.

After 2010 breach, the Steel Fab was one of our contractors for 2008.  The equipment they provided has been at Dave Fink’s business property but he has now leased this space.  Colgan worked with Rich Hughes and other people and has 3 bids for the movement of this equipment, however, Colgan does not have copies this evening.  $3900 was the low bid and $4700 was the highest.  We are moving it back to the dam on top of powerhouse.  We will be blocking it, and will inventory it.  Steel Fab will then be inspecting it for us.  Anthony Bardgett said 3 bids is okay.  The equipment has to be removed.  Leonard reminded board he can approve up to $5000.  Colgan said he hasn’t had time to review the bids and see if they are bonded.  Leonard is saying we have given him the authority before.  Davidson made motion to give Leonard up to $4500 to approve contract based on the information we have tonight. We are only giving authority to accept the agreement so Davidson changed his motion to give Leonard authority to accept the agreement, Kramer second.  Individual roll call rquested, all ayes, motion passed.

Archeology update by Colgan explaining they have completed their work.  They are submitting their report tomorrow.  The agreement with the Corps will need to be done and signed by the Trustees that says we will agree to do what ever the final report says.  After that all the shore line work can begin again.  Should still all be done by mid September.

In public comment, Diane Bauers confirmed no permits for dam until all this is done and that was confirmed. Chip Hughes asked what is status for the DNR permit?  Colgan said need to get okay to refill the lake from all owners.  Working with DNR and attorneys for legal language and we are not sure how many will have to sign.  By mid next week we should know where DNR is.

Hughes asked if flood plain elevation has been determined.  DNR says it is top of dam.

Schneider made otion to go into closed session for the purpose of discussion regarding terms for acquisition of property and property rights for purposes of restoring the lake and Dam pursuant to Iowa Code Section 21.5.  Kramer second, individual roll call requested, all ayes, motion passed.

At close of closed session, motion to adjourn meeting by Burger, Schneider second.  Motion passed.

Adjourn closed –  Burger motion, Kramer second.  Individual roll call, moiton passed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Work session.  Burger moved  all tasks to .  Will participate as volunteer on fema committee because he has participated in fema.  burger redid form and added what he wanted to participate in.

 

Davidson – consider things don’t done.

 

Tuesday, September 11th.  Next meeting

 

Agenda for Trustee Meeting August 30, 2012

The Combined Lake Delhi Recreational Facility and Water Quality District

Thursday, August 30, 2012

 6:30 p.m.

Maquoketa Valley Middle School Conference Room

Delhi, IA

  1. Call to Order
  2. Approve Agenda
  3. Consideration and possible action on Organizational Structure
  4. Consideration and possible action on Memorandum of Agreement between the District and LDRA for transfer of property
  5. FEMA Update
  6. Review and consideration of Supplemental Agreement #14 with Stanley for FEMA Activities
  7. Consideration and possible action of Moving Expenses of Steel Fab Equipment
  8. Public Comment
  9. Receive a motion to go into Closed Session for the purpose of discussion regarding terms for acquisition of property and property rights for purposes of restoring the lake and Dam.  This will be a closed session pursuant to Iowa Code Section 21.5 (j).
  10. Adjourn

 

 

Work Session

Immediately Following the 6:30 pm Session

1.  Review Task List. The work session will be for the purpose of identifying various tasks that will need to be completed for the restoration of the dam and the possible assignment or allocation of those tasks.

 

What you should know before doing shoreline work!!

The Lake Delhi Trustee’s want to thank the hundreds of people who were able to come to the Public informational meeting on Sunday June 10th.   One discussion point that was covered during the meeting and that needs to be emphasized is shoreline work (walls repaired, new walls installed, and general bank stabilization).  It is a requirement per the regulatory agencies that this type of work needs to go through the permitting process in order to move forward.  If property owners were to do shoreline work without a permit within the impounded area, it could result in a situation that may prevent the Corps of Engineers from issuing the necessary permits for the reconstruction of the dam.  For the sake of your neighbors and friends on the lake, please take this request very seriously that you submit your request for work through the normal permitting process. (See Below)

As a reminder, a requirement that is needed to get the final permit of the Dam is to complete an  Archeological Study which was started last year.  At that time, it was determined that some areas of the lake would need to have further review and we expect that process to get started in the near future.  If you happen to see the archeologists in and around the Lake Bed soon, don’t be alarmed.

Once this study is completed, the regulatory agencies will be able to help us better understand what, if any, areas that will need to be protected for cultural value.

Questions and Answers:

1.  If you have filed a permit and are approved to move forward with work, do you need to take any further action?     Answer: No, go ahead and complete your work as permitted.

If you or your contractor encounter historical or cultural resources, please stop construction and contact the appropriate authorities.

2.  If you would like to complete shoreline work before the Lake archeological study is complete, what should you do?    Answer:  Please go through the permit process to get approval process started.

3.  Could the application process be delayed until the lake archeological study is complete?   Answer:  Yes.  It could be determined that the type of work you propose could impact the cultural value of the lake bed if it is determined to be within an area of archeological interest.   You will be given the option to pay for your own archeological study for your project area or you will need to wait to perform the work until after the Lake Study is completed.  (There should be plenty of time for projects to be completed after the study is complete and before the Lake is refilled.)

Thank you for your cooperation and please share with your neighbors.

Once we have additional information, we will forward it out to you.

Sincerely,

The Lake Delhi Trustees

To start the permit process:  You can use the link for the Iowa DNR
http://www.iowadnr.gov/InsideDNR/RegulatoryLand/FloodPlainManagement/FloodPlainDevPermits.aspx
or the link for the Corps of Engineers
http://www2.mvr.usace.army.mil/Regulatory/
Please utilize the joint application packet for Iowa located on either site.

Q & A on Boat Lifts & Docks

Common questions and Answers on Boat Lifts and Docks

We encourage property owners to reach out to the local DNR to get additional information and clarification. The phone number is:  563-927-3276 and ask for Sue.

1.        Question: Do I have to remove docks and lifts over winter?

Answer:   Chapter 16:18 exempts artificial lakes from winter removal of docks and hoists unless they are subject to damage by ice movement. Docks left in over winter are required to have reflective material visible from all directions to operators of snowmobiles, other motorized machines or wind-propelled vessels lawfully operated on the frozen surface of the water body.  Additional information can be found at: http://search.legis.state.ia.us/NXT/gateway.dll/ar/iac/5710___natural%20resource%20commission%20__5b571__5d/0160___chapter%2016%20docks%20and%20other%20structures%20on%20public__2e/_c_5710_0160.xml?f=templates$fn=default.htm

2.        Question: In the past, hard covers were grandfathered in. Will this remain the same?

Answer:  Hard covers were never grandfathered in, but a previous Enforcement Bureau Chief had a hand-shake agreement that they would not enforce the rule banning hard covers during the initial permitting process back in 2007. The handshake agreement contained specific criteria but this handshake agreement is no longer acceptable. Current enforcement staff have decided Lake Delhi needs to come into compliance with state law which has banned the use of hard roofs for approximately 20 years in the State of Iowa.

3.         Question:   What are dock requirements?

Answer:  Interpretation of the dock rules has evolved over the last 5 years both within the DNR and as a result of contested court cases. Major changes include the ruling that Class 1 docks are only for properties with a residential home on the property (no condos, apartments or empty lots). If the abstract for a seasonal or permanent residence built on leased land contains specific wording for shoreline easement, the owner of the residence may be allowed to have a Class 1 permit; however, the abstracts will require case-by-case review. When specific footage is not included in the abstract on leased land, all docks off the property will require Class 3 permits (or Class 4 where applicable). Additionally, dock arrangement will be affected in some areas to (1) guarantee access to the shoreline for angling and (2) guarantee access to the shoreline for boaters in distress. Shorelines cannot be blocked off by large dock/hoist configurations.

4.        Question: Where do I go for permits for docks and shoreline work?

 Answer: Permits can be printed off online at:

http://www.iowadnr.gov/Recreation/Boating/DockPermits.aspx. You can also find a link to read Chapter 16 (the current dock rules) at this location.

5.        Question: What is the renewal process for permits?

Answer: Class 3 & 4 permits (new applications, renewals and/or transfers) must be handled on paper by printing off the application at the address above. Class 1 permits can be handled either on paper or online at https://www.iowadnr.gov/boatdocks/index.php. Docks need to have permits when the lake comes back.  If they don’t have water under them until sometime in 2014, for example, residents can wait until early spring 2014 before applying.

6.  Question:  Do I need to anchor my Docks and Lifts?

 Answer: Chapter 16.3: All river docks must be securely anchored to prevent them from becoming floating hazards during times of high river flows. The riparian owner is responsible for dock retrieval and removal when necessary to prevent or remove a navigation hazard.

7. Question:  What are the websites I can find more information?

Answer:  Residents may go online and read Chapter 16 at: http://search.legis.state.ia.us/NXT/gateway.dll/ar/iac/5710___natural%20resource%20commission%20__5b571__5d/0160___chapter%2016%20docks%20and%20other%20structures%20on%20public__2e/_c_5710_0160.xml?f=templates$fn=default.htm or follow the link off the site https://www.iowadnr.gov/boatdocks/index.php.

 

The Information provided is not deemed to be all inclusive or represent the Lake Taxing District opinions.  Please confirm with the Iowa DNR for rules and regulations

 

Volunteers Needed!! Here’s our current list.

Here is the list of folks who volunteered for various projects around the lake after Sunday’s meeting.  I may have missed some people or spelled your name wrong.  Please let me know if that’s the case.  Also, if you want to be a part of any of these groups and have yet to sign-up, please don’t hesitate to email us at the Trustee’s website:  lakedelhi.org  The more help we get the better!!

Fundraising:

Todd Gifford

Pam Klima

Nancy Grimm

Doug Hermon

Chad & Amy Hovdell

 

Sanitation/Wastewater Management:

Ivan Lilenthal

Corey Groth

Rick Allan

Todd Gifford

 

Public Access:

Marcheta Cooey

Kelley Kascel

Jim Stepanek

Bob Klima

 

Dredging/Watershed Management:

Larry Sloan

Todd Gifford

Gary Grimm

Jim Locke

Ken Kray

 

Dam Project (Construction Management Skills):

Rick Reysack, CM HR Green

Dwayne Donels, Project Supt.

Larry Sloan

Robert Klima, Carpenter Supt.

Doug Ricklefs

Larry Peter

 

Dam Operations:

Rob Klima

Larry Aschbrenner

 

Water Quality:

Dudley Brollier

Bob Galiher

Todd Gifford

Ivan Lilienthal

Corey Groth

Jenny & Wayne Garvin

George Kinnard

 

Lake Bed Clean Up & Weed Control:

Brian Hughes

Bob Galiher

Todd Gifford

Dale Kartman

Darryl Discher

Jackie Smith Duggan

Gary & Nancy Grimm

Deb Knake

Rick Allan

Jim Locke

Chris Jones

Amy Draker

Clint Houdek

 

Fish Club & Fish Stocking:

Dale Larson

Stan Holt

Cory Pearson

Dan French

Darryl Discher

Wayne & Jenny Garvin

Ivan Lilienthal

Nick Noel

Kelly Salow

Jim Wittenbel

Jim Locke