Minutes from October 20, 2016

The Combined Lake Delhi Recreational Facility and Water Quality District

Thursday, October 20, 2016

6:30 pm

Lake Delhi Trustees Administration Building

Delhi, IA

The regular meeting of the Combined Lake Delhi Recreational Facility and Water Quality District was called to order by Vice President Todd Gifford at 6:30 pm.

Trustees present: Kramer, Gifford, Colgan, Herman, Havertape, Leonard (phone), Burger (phone)

Trustees absent: None

Recording secretary: Shelley Kallenbach

Guests: Larry Peter, Eve Peter, Ed Schmidt, Jim Locke, Donald Dede, John Carbaugh, Becky Willey, Jim Willey, Ken DeKlotz, Barb DeKlotz, Dan Reyner, Chloe Colgan, Jen Colgan, Chip Hughes, Dan Recker, Larry Aschbrenner, Mike Russell

Motion to approve the agenda as posted made by Herman, seconded by Havertape, motion approved.

Motion to approve the September 15, 2016 meeting minutes made by Gifford, seconded by Herman, motion approved.

Kramer presented payment claims for approval. Payments from the General Fund in the amount of $4,428.40 for electricity, supplies, internet/phone, bond registrar, lobbyist, signage, and labor for a generator backup system were presented. Payments of $110,138.75 for the GO bond interest were presented from the Debt Service Fund. Payments in the amount of $345,766.24 for dam operations, Phase 2 payments, and engineering services were presented from the Dam/Spillway Project Fund. Motion to approve payments as presented made by Havertape, seconded by Colgan. The interest is for the district’s bond debt and the principal payment is due in June. Motion approved.

Kramer presented the financial reports. The General Fund had revenues of $94,693.15 and expenditures of $20,892.28, ending September at $329,773.79. The Debt Service Fund had revenues of $172,784.18 and no expenditures, ending September at $247,015.25. The Dam/Spillway Project Fund had revenues of $1,614.91 and expenditures of $80,337.07, ending September at $2,175,592.35. Herman motioned to file the financial reports as read, Gifford seconded. An estimate of what remains to be paid includes a payment of approximately $200,000 to Lunda and the GCI settlement. Motion approved.

The Board considered possible action on Stanley Supplemental Agreement #44. This is in reference to holding up to $3,000 for the ongoing issues with Gate 2 to be held until the new Gate 2 is complete and installed. Kramer motioned to approve, Havertape seconded, motion approved.

The Board considered possible action on Stanley Supplemental Agreement #45. This is a placeholder in the amount of $2,500 for remaining items necessary to close out the Phase 2 contract. It is to cover excess expenditures should they happen. Herman motioned to approve, Kramer seconded, motion approved.

The Board considered possible action on Stanley Supplemental Agreement #46. This is for professional services to set up information on the webpage for flood awareness not to exceed $10,000. Colgan motioned to approve, Havertape seconded. This is in anticipation of future work necessary and will still have a review process to be accessed, including a letter of proposal and bids. Motion approved.

The Board considered possible action on the LDRA donation request for assistance with the LDRA dredge debt. This is a request for the December 2016 dredge interest loan payment of $23,146.00. Kramer motioned to approve, Burger seconded, motion approved.

The Board considered possible action on a proposal from Kluesner Construction for asphalt work on the north side of the dam. This was the only bid received for this work due to the timeframe. Leonard attempted to get a 2nd bid from a large contractor but was told that it would be difficult to have them come out for a bid anytime soon let alone actually do the work this year. The amount of the bid is for $4,950 and includes using a highway mix concrete to pave the north U-shaped dam to the fence to allow for blacktopping. Kramer motioned to approve Kluesner’s bid, Gifford seconded. It was confirmed that this was appropriate pricing and not inflated due to the timeframe. Motion approved.

The Board considered possible action on a proposed drainage study from Burrington Group regarding Lost Beach. Lost Beach sustained damage after both of the recent rainfalls. This has become a major watershed with many property owners and developers invested. Because of this, it was suggested to have a study survey the water flow and the options to mitigate future damage prior to fixing it outright. This study would be done by Burrington Group and they would review existing data as well as new observations. Motion to approve an hourly rate fee for this study with a total not to exceed $5,400 for such a study made by Herman, seconded by Havertape. Burger expressed concerns about making sure the study does not negatively impact or blame watershed on Hughes, as well as the possibility that a simple fix may be used. It was discussed that until a study is complete it is difficult to know if a simple fix will be sufficient going forward. Herman stated that he feels tabling this study is a good idea because he believes that some of the runoff is the responsibility of the developers and he is not sure that the Board needs to solely pay for such a study. Burger motioned to table a decision on the study and put it on the agenda for next month after research, Havertape seconded, motion to table approved. Leonard will coordinate a posted walkthrough of the area for board members.

The Board considered possible action on a recommendation for the GCI overrun settlement. The majority of the GCI work is complete but the Board has been holding retainage until an agreement is made between the Board and GCI for the late completion date. Bill Holman has recommended an agreement based on the assessed value of $105,982.85. Leonard is seeking an estimated payment amount for the Board to use before entering negotiations with GCI for settlement. $130,000 is currently retained. Gifford motioned to approve the amount of $105,982.85 to begin discussion, seconded by Colgan. Discussion was made whether a range approval was necessary for Leonard to enter into discussion. Motion amended to allow Leonard to negotiate and return with a proposed number if it is anything lower than Stanley’s recommendation. Motion approved.

The Board considered possible action on a Procedure and Policy Guide for hiring individuals to address significant lake debris or obstructions. Gifford suggests that a policy would be important to prevent needing a Board meeting every time there is significant debris or obstruction necessary to be removed immediately for lake safety. Gifford motioned to create a policy and procedure based on the draft he presented, Colgan seconded. Burger expressed concerns about the liability and insurance checks for potentially hired assistance. Concerns were also expressed about potential damage to private property. The timeline for this concern was discussed due to the potential for hazards to snowmobilers that would not be visible due to snow cover. A new motion was made by Herman to table the policy and procedure and to use the current ability to hire staff using existing procedures up to $5,000 to care for emergent items, Havertape seconded, motion approved.

The Board heard committee updates.

The Beach Maintenance Committee states that we are aware of what happened to Lost and North Beaches and the need to assess the damage. The port-a-potties will be out before the end of October.

The Lake Recreational Maintenance Issues Committee had no updates.

The Dredging Committee stated they will have more information from Bill Holman regarding a siltation trap and its cost for the next board meeting.

The Dam Operations Committee presented updates. Colgan stated that the dam controlled all gate operations throughout the entire flood. The water flow went from 500 cfs to 16,000 cfs overnight. Gates 1 and 3 opened a total of 12 feet, and Gate 2 was opened manually to 6 feet. It was reiterated that the dam is not a flood control dam, but is a run of the river dam. The dam operated exactly as designed throughout the flood.

The Water Quality Committee is looking to do water quality testing in the spring and also participating in the Maquoketa Watershed Management Authority.

The Funding and Finance Committee did increase the dam office contents to include the SKATA computer.

Shrubs have been taken out at the dam office area along with a new window, new carpet, and new toilet to be installed in the near future. The prairie grass project has been postponed until spring due to the ragweed going to seed.

The Legislative Committee stated the DNR has declined the request to put Lake Delhi on the Public Lake list and be eligible for the lake restoration funds.   The legislative committee will work on this in the new session.

The floor was opened for public comment.

Chip Hughes stated that there was no beach damage to Lost Beach that has not occurred during previous rainfall events. He stated that he did repair the 3-inch rain damage as in the past. He stated the DNR does not require a change in watershed runoff and that is a municipality requirement. He stated the DNR permitting has to do with erosion and not runoff. He offered to join any meeting to review the area to explain and offer simple changes.

A question was raised regarding the usefulness of the lobbyists. It was reiterated that they are still involved in funding and FEMA issues and they are intended to help these issues resolve easier, but they are reviewed regularly for their usefulness.

Larry Peter requested a louder speaker system. He will also be sending safety discussion information to the Board.

A request was made for more FEMA updates. Herman stated that deadlines are nearing and issues continue to exist with the Harbach property and ownership of the LDRA transfer.

Dan Reyner stated that the boatlift issue n the lake was resolved.

Herman motioned to adjourn the meeting, Colgan seconded. Meeting adjourned at 8:23 pm.

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