HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-0825 Special Mtg MIN
ASHLAND CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING
August 25. 2009
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MINUTES FOR THE SPECIAL MEETING
ASHLAND CITY COUNCIL
August 25, 2009
Council Chambers
1175 E. Main Street
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Stromberg called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. in the Civic Center Council Chambers.
ROLL CALL
Councilor Voisin, Navickas, Lemhouse, Jackson, Silbiger and Chapman were present.
NEW BUSINESS
1. Will the Council ratify the City Administrator's decision to declare a water shortage emergency and
implement Stage 1 Water Curtailment as outlined in the Ashland Municipal Code (AMC) 14.06?
Public Works Director Mike Faught, Associate Engineer Pieter Smeenk and Water Conservation Analyst
Robbin Pearce provided a presentation that included:
. Determination of Water Shortage (AMC 14.060.020)
. Findings - Demand for water in the City of Ashland
. Findings,-- Volume of water in Reeder Reservoir
. Findings -Standard drawdown curve for Reeder Reservoir
. Findings - Projected curtailment date for Talent Irrigation District (Till) water
. Findings - Flows in the east and west forks of Ashland Creek
. Water Curtailment allocation Table in cubic feet (cf) (Residential)
It was clarified that 3,600 cubic feet a month equaled approximately 900 gallons of water a day for a regular
household. There are 7.48 gallons of water per cubic feet. Converting cubic feet to daily-allotted gallons is
determined by multiplying the numbers of cubic feet by 7.48 gallons then divide by 30. Customers exceeding
the allotted water allocation for stages 1,2 or 3 will incur a surcharge offourtimes the rate in addition to what
they would have paid prior to the surcharge. The typical daily use is 100 gallons per person per day, with a
multiplier added depending on what type of irrigation is used. For Stage I, the City is asking citizens to
continue daily water needs inside the house but cut irrigation 50% unless they are already in excess.
. 14.06.080 Excess water consumption surcharge
The minimum water draw down for the reservoir is 35 feet and the City has never gone below 43 feet. The
maximum draw down is 20 feet due to sediment and pipes that disrupts water quality. The total percentage
draw down for the reservoir is 65%, which is where the City is. If the reservoir continues to drop at this trend,
it will hit 35% by September 23,2009.
Staff eXplained all exemption requests were subject to careful review and required an audit, currently there
were 25 exemptions. Shift changes to cover operations were discussed with an estimated $8,000 in overtime
for the following two-week period that could double ifthe curtailment is extended. Mr. Faught was working
with the TlD Board on extending use from October 15 to October 30 as well. He went on to explain the
challenge for the future was how to protect drinking water and augment with other sources. It is complicated to
treat Till water, if the City had a separate system that ran through the irrigation system those two would not
come into conflict. Alternatively, ifit were augmented with the effluent another 2 million gallons a day would
help. However, for the current situation, experience has shown that Stage I should be enough for Ashland as
the community is quick to respond.
Jim Moore/U17 Park Street/Voiced appreciation for City's response to the water crisis but had concern
regarding citizens ability to read their utility bills accurately because billing used cubic feet while the ordimlnce
used monthly gallons. A greater concern was plans for the future. The current crisis could have been avoided
ASHLAND CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING
August 25.2009
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if the City had taken advantage of the TAP (Talent! Ashland/Phoenix) project earlier. He noted the loss of
snow pack over the years and how the Request for Proposal (RFP) soliciting a review of water resources could
take 6 years to award and complete the project during which the City could deal with potential drought. He
encouraged the Council to start the TAP project immediately.
Ron Roth/69S0 Old Hwy 99S/Appreciated how quickly the City was able to start using TID water. He
advocated using TlD adding there was more water available through TlD than what is proposed through TAP.
TlD could be part of the auxiliary supply so Reeder Reservoir could be kept close to full. He cautioned on the
perception of the City running sprinkler systems for the medians while homeowners could not water their
lawns.
Staff responded to Council that TlD was tested for herbicides and the results were treatable.
Councilor SilbigerNoisin m/s to ratify the City Administrators decision to declare a water shortage
emergency and implement Stage 1 Water Curtailment as outlined in AMC 14.06. DISCUSSION:
Councilor Silbiger thought the allotment for homes and businesses was generous and hoped citizens would
respond as they have in the past. Councilor Lemhouse voiced appreciation to the staff and Community
Emergency Response Team (CERT) volunteers for their efforts. Councilor Chapman expressed the difficulty
citizens are experiencing converting cubic feet to gallons and knowing if their efforts were helping. City
Administrator Martha Bennett acknowledged the difficulty and noted people could contact the Utilities
Department for information on where they were regarding usage. Councilor Jackson agreed the conversions
were hard and suggested people whose irrigation systems ran on timers to adjust the time to half instead of
working with the formula. Councilor Navickas commented that a healthy aspect to the curtailment for the
community is seeing how conservative citizenry can be with water. Roll Call Vote: Councilor Jackson,
Chapman, Silbiger, Lemhouse, Voisin and Navickas, YES. Motion passed.
Mayor Stromberg attended a Public Safety Coordinating Council meeting where a vote regarding truancy made
him question whether he had the authority in this capacity to make decisions. City Administrator Martha'
Bennett eXplained a future Study Session would address this topic.
ADJOURNMENT
Meeting was adjourned at 5:46 p.m.
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Barbara Christensen, City Recorder