Minutes of the
Green Lake Sanitary Sewer and Water District Commission
Monday, December 22, 2003
GLSSWD Wastewater Treatment Plant

Present: Harvey Lange, Trudie Dubord, Dennis Peterson, Ollie Hagen, Dennis Baker

Absent: Bill Taylor, John Bergman

Others present: Ron Hagemeier, Brad DeWolf, Clayton Anderson, Gary Sletten, Gary Danielson

The meeting was called to order by chairman Harvey Lange at 6 p.m. on Monday, December 22, 2003 at the GLSSWD Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Water/Wastewater Flows & Influent Flow Chart

There was a full month of readings for the month of November. Spicer’s water loss was 10.7% and the losses for Green Lake were 10.1%. These numbers reflect the three leaks that were fixed on the east side of Green Lake and that the mag meters are working accurately. The water loss for New London, which has been consistently in the mid-20 percent range over the last three months, was 25.1%. The Eagle Estates mag meters are not working. There will be work done on these meters. The influent meter at the wastewater treatment plant, which Ron uses for his reports, has been reported to be working accurately.

The influent flow chart shows the wastewater flows are down which is not good for the District’s revenue. This reduction is from the cities of New London and Spicer not the Lake.

Trailer Park Inspection

The inspection has indicated that all the systems in this particular trailer park are not working properly. A handout was distributed showing a proposed layout of a new sanitary sewer and water system for the Lakeview Motel and Mobile Home Park. There are currently 4 septic systems serving the park with an internal sewer collection and water distribution system. The proposal is to install a grinder pump station at each of the 4 septic sites to pump up to the force main on 153^rd Avenue, a water service with a 6-inch water line with a fire hydrant, and to continue to use the existing motel and park sewer collection system and water distribution system. The estimated cost is approximately $219,000 for the project plus about $30,000 for trunk area fees totaling approximately $250,000.

Sewer Line Correction at Indian Beach Harbor

A map was distributed showing the proposed rerouting of the sewer line to the south of the house. A plan was sent to three different bidders with GM Contracting being the low bidder. A contract will be sent out tomorrow to GM Contracting and the work will start after the first of the year.

Pond Land Sales Update

It was reported that a few of the items have been taken care of but there are still some that haven’t closed. Everything is going forward with just the final paper work needing to be done.

Eagle Estates Hookup Fee Request

Mike Ackerman has purchased the Dietz Addition property and is building another new house on the property. He came to pay the $1,000 hookup fee, which is per an agreement with Dietz through September 2004. After he was informed that the fee would be $1,750 after September 2004, he requested to pay for future hookups in advance on all the property. Ron recommended for the commission not to grant this request. Following discussion, Ollie Hagen moved to proceed with the $1,000 per hookup fee until September 2004 on only those houses that are under construction with a building permit at that time. Trudie Dubord seconded the motion. There being no further discussion, the motion carried.

Minutes & Bills

The Chairman called for a motion to approve the minutes and bills. A motion to approve the minutes was made by Dennis Peterson with Dennis Baker seconding the motion. There being no discussion the motion carried. A question was asked regarding the status of the Quam billing. There has been no action taken on this. The motion to approve the bills was made by Dennis Baker and seconded by Ollie Hagen. With no discussion, the motion carried.

Other

Ron met today with the City of Spicer to discuss his needs for reports at the end of the month after the water meters are read on the lake, getting the billing dates on the bills including when read last and the current read, and the need for good public relations with the customers. There was discussion on when the contract with Spicer doing the billing for the District ends. Dennis Baker will inquire as to the accurate date of agreement.

A copy of the restated agreed upon budget recommendations for County Board review requested at the last meeting was distributed to the Commission this evening. The budget was accepted by the County Board at the December 6, 2003 meeting.

A copy of a letter by the District’s lawyer to X-cel regarding the problems with power surges to be documented is still forthcoming.

It was noted that the district needs to, based on the budget discussions, extend sewer capability as far as possible. This would require active participation and sales by someone knowledgeable of the system’s capabilities. What is the possibility both economically and feasibility wise of getting together a public relations package for visiting lake boards as potential customers? Following much discussion, Dennis Baker made the motion for pursuing this and to have Brad, Gary Danielson and Ron come back with some ideas and costs at a future meeting. The motion was seconded by Ollie Hagen. There being no further discussion, the motion carried.

A summary of the status on the progress between the City of New London and the New London Township regarding the city’s annexation of property was given. There is a tentative 30-year plan on an entire comprehensive urban growth area. Possibly by the next Commission meeting, there will be information for the district.

A thank you was extended to Ollie Hagen for all his hard work as a member of the Commission over the years.

Motion to adjourn was made by Dennis Baker and seconded by Trudie Dubord and the motion carried.

The January Commission meeting will be on Monday, January 12, 2004.

Respectfully submitted,

Elizabeth Slinden
Secretary

Minutes of the
Green Lake Sanitary Sewer and Water District Commission
Monday, November 24, 2003

GLSSWD Wastewater Treatment Plant

Present: Harvey Lange, Ollie Hagen, Bill Taylor, Trudie DuBord, Dennis Baker, Dennis Peterson, John Bergman

Absent: none

Others present: Gary Sletten, Ron Hagemeier, Gary Danielson, Bob Brown, Clayton Anderson

The meeting was called to order by chairman Harvey Lange at 6 p.m. on Monday, November 24, 2003 at the GLSSWD Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Water/Wastewater Flows & Influent Flow Chart

The Spicer and Green Lake mag meter problem was repaired in October. As we get through November there will be a full month of readings. The calculated loss for Spicer and Green Lake equals 24.2%. The water loss for New London was 26.5% which is up from last month. Eagle Estates has a couple of meters that are not recording the amounts of water correctly. Following discussion, consistent meter readings will be done from month to month and Bob Brown will help Ron look into the cause of the malfunctioning meters.

The influent flows chart shows there is less wastewater being brought into the plant than in the previous two years with the biggest reduction being from New London and Spicer which creates a loss on the budget.

Field Water Leaks & Sewer Repair

The three service leaks reported on the East side last month have been repaired. Two of the leaks were from bad pipe flare problems and the third leak was found half way between the street and the house where there was a loose threaded connection that had been leaking since day one. About 65% of the curb stops have been re-listened to and the remaining 35% will be looked at next spring. Mrs. Illies, a property owner, has complained of an odor problem. When there was no odor at the lift station, an odor was detected at the residence. An excavation was done and it was found that her sewer service pipe was full of septic water and sludge which is the homeowner’s responsibility.

Trailer Park Inspections

Chris Bossart did an inspection of the trailer park property on November 7, 2003. The manager of the property was present during the inspection and is in agreement that there are problems. Chris will follow up with a written report to the manager and the county indicating septic failures that exist. The manager will have 10½ months after receiving the letter to remedy these problems. The report should be available to the Commission for the next meeting.

Indian Beach Harbor House Built Over Sewer Line

The new house being built in Indian Beach Harbor at the intersection of CR 134 and Indian Beach Road was recently identified as being constructed over the sewer collection line by 6 feet on the north edge of the house. This creates a liability for the District. Following discussion, Ollie Hagen made a motion to have the GLSSWD attorney issue a letter to Tim Carlson stating that the house remains unsold and unoccupied until this problem is resolved. Dennis Baker seconded the motion. Following additional discussion, the motion carried.

Quam Bill

There was a request granted to table this for one more month to give more time to resolve these issues.

Lake Budget Report & GLSSWD Budget

The Lake Committee had a meeting regarding the budget and suggested increasing the EDU water from $12/month plus $14.40/year to $12.50/month plus $14.40/year and the EDU sewer from $12/month plus $93.60/year to $12.50/month plus $93.60/year and a 5% increase regarding the water and sewer usage fees. The New London Council recommended a 2% increase on the water and sewer usage fees, no increase on EDU’s and to balance the budget but with no recommendations on how to do so. Spicer’s Council is looking at staying with a 5% increase pertaining to water and sewer usage fees and no increase in EDU fees. Spicer also had questions regarding the 3-year and 5-year projections. Following a lengthy discussion, Ollie Hagen made a motion to accept the proposed 2004 budget with a 5% increase regarding the water and sewer usage fees and the EDU increase as suggested by the Lake Committee. Dennis Baker seconded the motion. Following additional discussion, the motion was amended by Dennis Baker to set per month EDU charges for the lake at $12/month each for water & sewer and keep all others the same as 2003. Ollie Hagen seconded the amended motion. There being no further discussion, the motion carried. (NOTE: The EDU charges for 2004 are $13.20 for water and $19.80 for sewer. Usage fees for 2004 for water are $2.05 per 1000 gallons and $3.15 per 1000 gallons for sewer.)

Minutes & Bills

John Bergman made a motion to approve the minutes. Dennis Peterson seconded the motion. There being no discussion, the motion carried. A motion to approve the bills was made by Dennis Peterson and seconded by Dennis Baker. With no discussion or questions, the motion carried.

Other

There was discussion regarding the Xcel electric service problems from the last meeting. The field man that was called is looking into the situation. They know about the voltage problem at the #1 lift station and have documented this. A suggestion was made to document in a rough form who was talked to and about what and turn this over to the district’s attorney and have him send a letter to Xcel to get their attention. A motion was made by Dennis Baker to generate this type of action to put them on notice with the attorney. Ollie Hagen seconded the motion. With no further discussion the motion carried.

An inquiry on the ponds liner removal was made. There will be nothing more done on this until next spring.

The status of the planning meeting with New London Township, the city of New London and Harris Duininck was mentioned. There was a meeting with a professional and is another meeting with the Township on Wednesday. There are plans for a half day session with them in a couple of weeks.

Chairman Harvey Lange asked that either Ron or Gary Danielson generate one last sheet that reflects the calculations of the approved budget and present a resolution to the County Board.

Motion to adjourn the meeting was made by John Bergman and seconded by Dennis Baker. The motion carried.

Respectfully submitted,

Elizabeth Slinden
Secretary

Minutes of the
Green Lake Sanitary Sewer and Water District Commission
October 27, 2003

Present: Harvey Lange, Bill Taylor, Dennis Baker, Ollie Hagen, John Bergman, Trudie Dubord, Dennis Peterson

Absent: none

Others present: Ron Hagemeier, Gary Sletten, Gary Danielson, Bob Brown, Clayton Anderson

The meeting was called to order by chairman Harvey Lange at 6 p.m. on Monday, October 27, 2003 at the GLSSWD Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Clayton Anderson was introduced to the Commission to be the person replacing Ollie Hagen as of the first of the year.

Water/Wastewater Flows & Influent Flow Chart

The separate water loss numbers for Spicer and Green Lake were not available because the mag meter on the west side wasn’t operating properly. The problem with the mag meters could be due to electrical brown outs the district has been experiencing. Ron will contact X-cel Energy regarding this situation. The Eagle Estates numbers still aren’t looking right. The recording range on these meters has been adjusted down which may make a difference next month. New London’s loss is down to 6.8%. The Green Lake side (Spicer & lake) loss is 9.1%. An explanation for the dramatic reduction on the Green Lake side may be that a leak has been shut off when winterizing a residence. There will be a close watch on this when residents come back in the spring. Next month’s numbers will also be off because the readings for Spicer & the lake were done a week earlier than the district mag meter readings. These readings need to be coordinated more closely in the future.

DNR Unaccounted for Water Loss Information

The information requested includes the 2002 unaccounted for water for twenty randomly chosen cities in Minnesota. The losses for these cities are under 20% and some 10% with the exception of one city. This would indicate, with the age of the system, GLSSWD should be below 20% and/or 10% in losses.

Skyline & Rice Estates Water Usage Update

The 4-inch meters were removed and replaced with 2-inch compound meters. Rice Estates was averaging 360 gallons a month per unit and has now increased by 3000 gallons per month per unit. The readings for Skyline Estates were 600-700 gallons a month per unit and have increased by 4000 gallons per unit per month.

Current Service Line Water Leaks

There are three current service leaks on the east side. These leaks were found by listening at the curb stops and appear to be on the homeowners’ side of the shutoff. Ron will be working on this tomorrow with Lake Region Contracting to get these repaired rather than shutting them off. Two of the leaks have concrete cover issues along side and over the service lines.

Approval of Final Payment for North, South & East Shore Water & Sewer Services

A recommendation was made to the Commission to approve the final payment to Quam Construction on the North, South & East Shore service contracts. Following discussion a motion to approve the final payments on the North, South & East Shore service contracts was made by Dennis Baker and seconded by Dennis Peterson. There was further discussion regarding an outstanding bill of about $17,000 that includes additional pressure testing, fixing leaks out of the warranty period, and some other fix-up requirements. With no further discussion, the motion carried.

Draft GLSSWD Budget

The draft budget has been based upon this year’s existing rate structure without increasing the rates according to the long-term projection. It was asked in general when the final draft of the budget is required by the County Board. Following discussion it was concluded to possibly have a final budget recommendation by the November meeting. The District draft budget shows a potential shortfall of ($32,300). The Lake draft budget shows a net balance of $9,750. The draft budget will be taken to the three entities for evaluation. Ollie Hagen will set up a meeting with the Lake Committee. There was a request for a breakdown on the salaries and wages portion of the District budget. This will be put together and mailed to the Commission members this week. The Commission will come back with recommendations for the final budget on Monday, November 24, 2003.

Minutes, Bills & Expense Report

Dennis Baker made a motion to approve the minutes from the October meeting with Trudie Dubord seconding the motion. A question was asked regarding the status on the Lakeview Trailer Park. There is an inspection scheduled for the second weekend in November. There should be a report by the next meeting. With no further discussion, the motion carried.

A motion to approve the bills and expense report was made by John Bergman and seconded by Bill Taylor. The Capital One FSB vendor was questioned. This was a credit card purchase of $377.38 for mineral oil for the fire hydrants. With no further questions, the motion carried.

Other

A letter from the Habitat for Humanity of West Central Minnesota Chapter was read that requested the district hookup fee of $750.00 for a house in New London be waived. Following discussion, the chairman entertained a motion for the Commission to grant the waiver of the $750.00 hookup fee. Harvey Lange so moved and Trudie Dubord seconded. There was discussion to look at these individually when requested. With no further discussion, the motion carried with Ollie Hagen and Dennis Baker opposing.

Ron reported on the sludge and liner removal problem at the ponds. With the weather and equipment permitting, there may be another experiment tomorrow with a street sweeper to clean the sludge from the liner.

There are a few people that are delinquent with their bills. One has an outstanding balance of $510.28 of which the majority is penalties. This account has not been current from day one and the owner has the property for sale. Ron requested this to be put on the owner’s property taxes. This procedure is an established policy of the district and Ron will take care of getting this done.

There was discussion regarding the December meeting being the week of Christmas. A unanimous decision was made to tentatively leave the meeting date as scheduled for Monday, December 22, 2003.

The approach on the south side of the Indian Beach bridge has quite a large rumble strip. There will be a plan put together to get this fixed in the spring attaching it to the bridge work projects utilizing the bridge fund.

There was discussion regarding the coordination of the readings of the meters for the Lake and Spicer to be closer together and to the first of the month. Bill Taylor will get this resolved.

There will be a planning meeting between New London Township, New London, and Harris Duininck regarding development of his particular lots this coming Wednesday evening at the New London Township hall. Harvey Lange would like to have a representative from the Commission in attendance. Harvey Lange will attend.

Motion to adjourn was made by Trudie Dubord and seconded by Bill Taylor.

Respectfully submitted,

Elizabeth Slinden
Secretary

Minutes of the
Green Lake Sanitary Sewer and Water District Commission
August 25, 2003

Present: Trudie Dubord, Ollie Hagen, Harvey Lange, Bill Taylor, Dennis Peterson, John Bergman

Absent: Dennis Baker

Others present: Gary Sletten, Ron Hagemeier, Dick Baken, Terry Frazee, Gary Danielson

The meeting was called to order by chairman Harvey Lange at 6 p.m. on Monday, August 25, 2003 at the GLSSWD Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Water/Wastewater Flows & Influent Flow Chart

The July water pumped and accounted for indicates New London with 18.1% water loss and Eagle Estates with 14.4% loss. With the wastewater mag meter at Eagle Estates calibrated and the MXU at the Steve Williams’ residence hooked up, by this time next month there should be a solid meter read. New London had leak detection done throughout the city and has fixed a large leak and a couple smaller ones. Spicer shows a 15.2% loss and Green Lake a loss of 27.2%. The annual meter calibration work will be done this Wednesday on all meters in the field. There was one leak found during the lake inspections under the house at the Pat Cleary residence on Indian Beach Road. This leak was before the meter and filling up the crawl space. There was discussion regarding these water loss percentages not being acceptable for a new system. The Skyline Estates 2-inch meter installation will be Thursday of this week and the 2-inch meter at Rice Estates next week. After the annual meter calibration and the 2-inch meter installations, an assessment of the percentages will be made.

Lake Inspections

There are 28 homes yet to be inspected with hopes of getting down to 20 or better before the fall. Those homes remaining will have to be inspected next year. There have been several sump pumps found and some meters have been switched out. Some of the problems found won’t be fixed this year and will need to be worked with next year.

Pat Cleary-12944 Indian Beach Road Water Leak

This was discussed with the water/wastewater flows above.

Draft Unpolluted Waters Discharge Policy & Draft Water Metering Policy

Since these are draft policies that exclude the cities of New London and Spicer and rather than take the time of the commission, it was asked that these be taken to the Lake Committee for their input and at the same time ask the cities to also consider these as ordinances. If these are policies that the Lake Committee would adopt in total, the Lake Committee would come back to this Commission and recommend these be adopted as far as the lake is concerned and/or the cities. This Commission would then make recommendation to the County Board to accept such policies. It was decided to have the drafts distributed to the Lake Committee and the cities of New London and Spicer so as to have suggestions and/or changes that the Commission can use for final drafts by the next meeting, September 22, 2003. The final drafts can then go back to the cities to be addressed as ordinances and the Commission can make the same recommendation to the County Board.

Pond Decommissioning Proposals

A number of requests for proposals for the liner removal and sludge disposal were sent out with one response received. Paul Montain from Mountain Environmental Inc. in Lino Lakes came out to look at it and has since sent a letter saying it doesn’t work for him. There has been a call asking if it was too late to get in a proposal. Ron responded that a proposal would be welcome anytime. There may be something submitted this week. The status of the land and personal property sales were discussed.

Dick Baken, GLPOA, Project Restoration Clarification

Dick Baken, representing the Green Lake Property Owners Association, spoke regarding the restoration after the sewer and water hookup that was supposed to be returned to the same condition as before the construction. There are complaints and problems still being brought up at the meetings each month. Such as, the original work was not finished, the quality of the work was not right, and if the work was done, the equipment used has created other problems. Dick requested the Commission consider sending out a letter to all property owners for responses as to any problems. Terry Frazee suggested there could be something put in the Green Lake Breeze. Following discussion it was determined the project is done and there were final punch lists gone through and the work completed. However, property owners are welcome to write letters if they are experiencing problems. These would be considered as to what can or cannot be done. If there are property stakes that have not been replaced, the West Central Land Services should be contacted.

Minutes, Bills & Expense Report

A motion for approval of the minutes was made by Ollie Hagen and seconded by Trudie Dubord. With there being no discussion the motion carried. A motion to approve the bills and expense report was made by Harvey Lange and seconded by Bill Taylor for discussion. There was a question regarding what account 32 is for. This is an account for engineering costs of the different aspects of the same special project. With there being no further discussion the motion carried.

Other

Gary Danielson distributed the results of the bid tabulation of a project that would service water and sewer to the Dave Rose property with the potential of serving a number of other lots. The final plat is being processed for the sales of the lots. Discussion took place as to whether or not to approve the project following the established policy as far as $13,000 assessments. If not, there is need to go to the landowner and work something out. A recommendation for a motion stating the Commission will not provide trunk sewer and water lines as proposed was made. Ollie Hagen so moved with Bill Taylor seconding the motion. Further discussion that the water and sewer service needs to be economically feasible took place. With there being no further discussion, the motion carried.

A question was asked regarding the policy for properties located within the Green Lake District that did not hook up to sewer and water at the time it was installed. These properties will need to hook up at the time the septic system becomes deficient.

It was asked what is being done as far as whether the trailer park at Nest Lake is in compliance. The decision was made to check with the county sanitarian.

The status of the bike path was discussed. The granite fines have been shot with an over spray coating intending to hold them in place and not to lose the contrast between the bike path and the road. With parking being considered in this area, this coating may not stand up to the extra traffic and may need to be fully sealed. At the present there has been a cure provided for keeping the stones from getting on the bike path.

Motion to adjourn was made by Bill Taylor and seconded by John Bergman.

Respectfully submitted,

Elizabeth Slinden
Secretary

Minutes of the

Green Lake Sanitary Sewer and Water District Commission

July 28, 2003

Present: Harvey Lange, Ollie Hagen, Bill Taylor, Dennis Peterson, John Bergman, Trudie Dubord

Absent: Dennis Baker

Others present: Gary Danielson, Ron Hagemeier, Gary Sletten, Brad DeWolf, Dick Baken, Terry Frazee

The meeting was called to order by chairman Harvey Lange at 6 p.m. on Monday, July 28, 2003 at the GLSSWD Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Water/Wastewater Flows & Flow Chart

The water pumped and accounted for shows Spicer with a 26.5% loss which is up because of the mag meter malfunction on the south side of the lake and is not recording accurately because of the valving and construction work that has been going on. Green Lake�s loss was 30% for June. The July reading may be a little different because of the inspection work and the fact that the Green Lake tower ran over a few times because of the valving that is being done in the City of Spicer. The tower water levels have been lowered and only a few thousand gallons were lost. New London had a 31.1% loss some of which may be from the water main break. Eagle Estates showing a 44% loss had little water usage. Part of the loss could be from the Steven Williams� irrigation meter MXU that was not read and there may have been some flushing at the church that did not go through the meter. The system will continue to be monitored for any possible leaks. The wastewater mag meter has been repaired and readings will be taken shortly.

The monthly and cumulative influent flow charts again show less flow than last year. New London and Spicer show a little increase over the last year. This would indicate the reduction seen is the lake area.

Short Meter Read

After the known leak along Highway 23 was isolated an 18-day test read was done resulting with a 23.6% lost that is down from the previous 30% loss for Green Lake. The inspection that is currently being done involves the meters being physically read, spot checking with the field computer, and checking the computer program that the system is recording right. There will be 2-inch compound meters installed at Skyline Estates and Rice Estates at a cost of $1,500 for each meter plus $500-$1,000 for the plumbing involved.

New London Water Leak

Ron reported that the leak at the golf course was fixed as of today by Quam Construction.

Lake Inspections

As of today a total of 188 inspections have been done by Jason and 17 have failed for different reasons such as, sump pumps, fittings before the meters, etc. Door hangers were left at 181 residences and people are calling him back. He is doing a good job with compliments being made. There is good data being compiled to be addressed later by the board.

Water Pressure Report for New London Service Area

As a result of the discussion of low water pressure at the end of the last meeting, Brad ran a computer water model to look at the Dietz area. Areas of less than 42 psi were found at the Steve Williams� home and at 4-5 future house sites in the area. The north end of the addition was in the upper 40 psi, Golf View was at 50 psi, and around Ness Lake was at 50-60 psi with a 20-foot water level in the tower. The district is required by the state health department to provide at least 20 psi and not over 70 psi. Following discussion the commission arrived at the obligation to tell people up front in these areas they will need a booster system for sprinklers and in the house or if they have specific fixtures that use a lot of water. The concern was also expressed of there being enough pressure for fire sprinkling systems. These systems are mostly designed with auxiliary pumps to provide the proper pressure.

Pond Bids

Gary Danielson spoke regarding an analysis of all the bids. Other than the question about the bid on the ponds, that there is no question the commission should be extremely pleased with the results. After much discussion, a consensus was reached to accept all the bids and reject bid A (the three ponds) and solicit quotes to remove the sludge and liner. A decision to re-bid the 80-acre property can be made at a later date. Hagen moved that the commission recommend to the County Board they accept the bids on all the other real and personal property (B, C, D, E, the two irrigators, and other equipment) but reject the bid on property A. Trudie Dubord seconded. There was no further discussion and the motion carried.

The chair called for a motion to direct Ron to do research on contracting to dispose of the liner. John Bergman so moved and Dennis Peterson seconded. With no additional discussion, the motion carried.

Minutes, Bills & Expense Report

A motion to accept the minutes, bills, and expense report was made by Dennis Peterson and seconded by Ollie Hagen. There were questions on the Paynesville Septic System bill that was for grit & sludge accumulation pumped out of the system and the Quam bill was for the repair of a gate valve box on the Green Lake water tower. Questions were raised in reference to the percentages having been reached on the budget. Particular attention to the gas expenses, which is a concern, and the operating expenses are up in that Ron is adamant about keeping the maintenance up to par so there are no surprises if there is a problem. With no further questions, the motion carried.

Other

What is the plan for the bike path? The granite fines have caused unanticipated problems in not staying put. The plan is the Kandiyohi County Public Works will shoot them with an asphalt product that should soak in and make a hard surface containing the granite fines in place. Secondly, the county board is considering allowing parking along County Road 95.

Discussion took place regarding a copy of a letter about getting utility services to the property north of Little Crow Country Club. The New London City Council will receive the letter at their August 4^th meeting and also be meeting with the New London Township on an annexation proposal.

The Indian Beach Cove status is that the dewatering has started and the putting in of the sewer & water should be in the next two to three weeks. The cost was reduced to by change order to $187,500 for the project.

The Quinn property on the east side of Indian Beach Harbor situation was discussed. The sewer and water is through the Indian Beach Harbor with the property paying an assessment and hook up fees.

Motion to adjourn was made by John Bergman and seconded by Bill Taylor.

Respectfully submitted,

Elizabeth Slinden

Secretary

Minutes of the
Green Lake Sanitary Sewer and Water District Commission
May 19, 2003

Present: Bill Taylor, Harvey Lange, Ollie Hagen, Dennis Baker, Dennis Peterson, Trudie Dubord, John Bergman

Others present: Ron Hagemeier, Gary Sletten, Gary Danielson, Bob Brown, Dick Bakken, Terry Frazee, Merle Gjerde, Chuck Burmeister

The meeting was called to order by chairman Harvey Lange at 6 p.m. on Monday, May 19, 2003 at the GLSSWD Wastewater Treatment Plant.

GLSSWD Audit, 5-8-03 Newspaper Article

After much discussion regarding the concerns of the City of Spicer, Bill Taylor agreed to generate a list of specific questions to be given to Gary Danielson. These questions will be reviewed and if anything needs to be readdressed by the commission, Gary will bring it to the commission’s attention.

Nest Lake & Golf View Expansions

Merle Gjerde, Chairman, spoke on behalf of what the New London Townships’ thoughts and plans are to extending the facilities in the Golf View or Nest Lake areas since the merger did not go through. The Golf View Estates will probably be going through the bid process in February, 2004 with a hearing starting in August, 2003 with maybe getting on with Nest Lake next year. The Commission would like to see an inventory study done of the systems in place on the north shore of Nest Lake as to the numbers, ages, conditions, any soon to fail. Because of the cost of this type of inventory, an informational meeting possibly could be initiated to gather this information before a study would be done. The suggestion was made for volunteers from the commission to meet with the New London Township Board and discuss as to what is the best way to approach the Golf View Estates and additional properties in the future. Those appointed from the Commission are Ollie Hagen, John Bergman, and Dennis Baker.

Water/Wastewater Flows & Flow Chart

The Spicer and Green Lake water pumped readings are not reliable on the report because of a calibration problem with the trunkline meter. After the meter was calibrated, the residential meters were read and at the next meeting there should be a week and a half of good solid numbers. The forcemain on Highway 23 should be going in at any time now. The Hope Church and Tiede lines still need to be fixed. The leak detection worked great for the cities of Spicer and New London and they are looking for better numbers at the next meter reading. The Eagle Estates trunkline meters have not been working properly. The water meter was calibrating properly but was experiencing interferences and the wastewater meter may need to be sent in to the factory.

Duinincks are still promising the June 1, 2003 date on the water line on Highway 23.

Ron was asked to provide a maintenance schedule to look over at the next meeting.

Minutes & Bills

A motion to approve the minutes was made by John Bergman and seconded by Dennis Peterson. With no discussion the motion carried.

A motion to approve the bills was made by Dennis Baker and seconded by Bill Taylor. There was a question on the Jasper Engineering & Equipment bill. This was for the wireless connection between the water towers. Also a breakdown of the Bolton and Menk bill was requested. This was for relocation of the forcemain on Highway 23 and the watermain at Indian Beach Cove. There was a request for a more detailed description of these bills in the future. This can be penciled in on the reports. With no further discussion, the motion carried.

Other

There were two people, Dennis Baker and Ollie Hagen, appointed to work with Gary Danielson on Indian Beach Cove.

Discussion took place regarding how the punch lists Quam Construction and Duininck Bros. have for completing the project are coming.

Motion to adjourn was made by Dennis Baker and seconded by John Bergman. The motion carried.

Minutes of the
Green Lake Sanitary Sewer and Water District Commission
April 28, 2003

Present: Harvey Lange, Bill Taylor, Ollie Hagen, Dennis Baker, Dennis Peterson, John Bergman

Others present: Ron Hagemeier, Gary Sletten, Gary Danielson, Terry Frazee, Dick Baken

The meeting was called to order by Chairman Harvey Lange at 6 p.m. on Monday, April 28, 2003 at the GLSSWD Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Water/Wastewater Flows

Spreadsheets again basically tell the story with Spicer having a 37.3% loss. They did fix a fairly good size leak on Lake Avenue. This number may go down but not becoming solid until May is over. Green Lake with a 62.1% loss and there was a leak found and repaired today on Old North Shore Drive. Also one on Lake Avenue will be fixed tomorrow. New London took a jump to 40.8% loss not sure of the reason. There was a bad hydrant found which has been shut off until fixed but this is not responsible for the total amount of loss. Eagle Estates is still having problems with the mag meters not getting accurate results.

Influent Flow Chart

Question was asked regarding the June 1, 2003 deadline of having leaks fixed. It is being worked on. Dean Helstrom is no longer with Bolton & Menk. Barry Glienke who has been with the company has taken the job. The numbers are expected to come down because of the leaks that have been found and fixed. When the last known leak is repaired Spicer will be doing special meter readings for the district.

Tower Inspections

The district had a company come in at no charge to inspect the water towers. The Green Lake & New London towers looked good with the Spicer tower looking okay but there is some paint missing inside the tower. With the towers now being 4 years old next year some maintenance should be done on the towers starting with the Spicer tower. This is nothing critical, just something that should be done with many options available. Ron will be receiving a complete report on the inspections. It was recommended that a maintenance schedule on the towers should be drawn up. For the next meeting Harvey would like to know how much of the current budget is for maintenance on the two facilities, what percentage of that budget is going to be for future maintenance, and how is that maintenance budget going to grow in years.

Highway 23 Relocation Project

After the bids were opened and compiled, there was need to get going as soon as possible on the project. Harvey was consulted and Duininck’s appeared to be the low bidder. It was brought to the County Board, which awarded the project to Duininck’s. It is now being brought to the commission for formal approval. A motion was made by Ollie Hagen and seconded by Dennis Baker to give approval of the awarding of the project to Duininck’s. The motion carried.

Gary distributed information on how much engineering charges have been accrued for this project.

Indian Beach Cove Water & Sewer Extensions

When meeting with the developer, Conrad & Donna Bostrom, last week, they also requested to include improvements on 137^th Avenue. Gary asked for the commissions’ approval to advertise the projects for bids. A motion was made by Dennis Baker and seconded by Bill Taylor to authorize Gary to advertise for bids and draw up the agreements for Indian Beach Cove and the owner’s adjacent property. Motion carried.

Multi Unit Assessment Policy

The Lake Assessment Committee met on the issue of the assessment that was prepared for Mr. Olson and discussed multi-unit policy. The committee felt that within the 1,000 feet it should be the same as individual residences and that there should not be a break given. The committees’ recommendation is that the Olson 21-unit complex would be treated as being 21 units separately and that raises the price to him about $30,000. Ollie made this a motion. Harvey stated the motion to be for the commission to agree to the recommendation made by the Lake Assessment Committee to make the assessment at 100% as opposed to the 70% of the multi-unit policy that New London & Spicer have. This motion was seconded by John Bergman. Harvey asked for discussion. There was disagreement expressed and following much discussion the motion was denied. A motion was made by Ollie to go with the 70% assessment per unit and was seconded by Bill Taylor. Harvey asked for further discussion. Motion carried.

Meeting Date for May

Since the meeting date for May is the Memorial Day holiday, the meeting date was changed to Monday, May 19^th, at 6 p.m.

Minutes, Bills & Expense Report

A motion to approve the minutes was made by Dennis Peterson and seconded by John Bergman. The motion carried. A motion to approve the bills and expense report was made by Dennis Baker and seconded by Dennis Peterson. Motion carried.

Other

Ron was notified by the Fish and Wildlife last Friday that they are not interested in the ponds and farmland site. It was asked if the properties have been advertised. The ads are almost complete and should be in the paper about the second week in May.

Minutes of the
Green Lake Sanitary Sewer and Water District Commission
March 24, 2003

Present: Bill Taylor, Ollie Hagen, Dennis Baker, Dennis Peterson, John Bergman, Trudie Dubord

The meeting was called to order by Vice-chairman Dennis Baker at 6 p.m. on Monday, March 24, 2003 at the GLSSWD Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Water/Wastewater Flows

The two meters at Eagle Estates, one on the water and one on the wastewater, are not working properly and need calibrating. Spicer had a 34.5% loss with Green Lake losses going up to 57.1%. The actual leak was found last week on the east side next to the Clayton Anderson home. This was dug up at the connection last fall with no leak found, but it now has surfaced. The last twelve-month period has shown 10% of wastewater treated from the lake area above water sold. This is thought to be coming from sump pumps rather than infiltration.

It was reiterated that after having seen these losses for 18 months these water leaks need to be found in the near future.

Dean Helstrom reported that a locator was used last week to check all of the lines where problems were noted when the pressure testing was done over the entire system. No additional leak locations were found. Some pressure testing of the system was not done properly, as the pressure tests at Ollie’s house stopped at the water shut-off. The district has a definite commitment from Brad that known leaks will be fixed by June 1, 2003. Dean was asked what the approach would be from here on. The leak on the East shore, the one that has surfaced, will be taken care of. The other lines with known leaks will receive temporary service to the homes to still have water while the testing leaks are isolated. There is a long service line by the County Park area that will be dug down to install additional gate valves that will create smaller sections to pressure test. At this point there are three service lines to repair plus one main line along Highway 23 that will be relocated by June 15, 2003. It will be difficult to get accurate readings to the point to know at the end of the month when coming to the meeting already being a month behind. By July it would be August before it would be known what the numbers are. The Highway 23 project bids are going out on April 8, 2003, however, the completion date of the relocation will depend on how the bids come in and the contractor. The board is in agreement this needs to get fixed and brought to a conclusion. Dean was asked to take these issues back to Brad and to get moving on it.

Influent Flow Chart

There have been two frozen water lines in the last month. One was the main line at Indian Beach Harbor. This line lacks 1 ½ foot of planned cover. Dean had to steam the 8” line open. A meter has now been installed in the clubhouse and the water was left running to keep it from freezing again. The second was a frozen service line in the Dietz addition. The plumber came, opened it up and also left it running and metered. Ron was concerned there may not be enough cover on this line.

It was also noted that there is no blacktop to absorb the heat and the frost goes deeper. There was more discussion concerning the reason for the frozen lines. Dean said the problem this year is the wet summer and fall has pushed the frost further than ever has before and the lack of snow cover. The Dietz addition should be inspected closely for adequate cover. The district needs to be sure adequate cover is there before the bituminous goes on. New London Township bid the project so they are responsible. There is 9 inches of material including the blacktop yet to go on the road.

Terrorism Alert Information

Ron stated with everything going on in the world there is need to worry about the water and wastewater system security issues. The district basically is in Code Orange status, which is second from the top, with everything essentially locked all the time. When going to Code Red there is more monitoring rather than more locking. There are no tours, no visitors, and critical need of being very careful when maintenance work is being done. On the weekends, the gates are locked at all times. Concern was expressed about the water towers with antennas on them as to the possession of the keys to access them. Each tower has three different locks making it very difficult to get to the water supply bowl. When in Code Red no one would go to the towers without a district person with at all times.

2002 Budget Review

2002 revenue was $643,216.62 plus actual expenditures of $600,179.96 with an actual balance of $43,037.66. This was great since the budget wasn’t expected to balance. The major contributing factor was the insurance money received for the old office that was sabotaged and burned and the irrigation damage from vandalism. There were also several areas where reductions in projected expenditures were experienced.

There was discussion regarding the pump purchased from Vegdahl’s to replace the two original pumps that had met the project specifications but barely met the need. This larger pump is used on a daily basis and has improved this weak spot.

Ron has designed a mixer, being made by a local welder, for the sludge well. The mixing of this material is necessary to keep a sludge pump from wearing out. The sludge in the pump area has stratified with too high solids content near the pump intake. The cost will be about $500 for the motor and $500 for the rest of the mixer.

Ron was asked what other areas of the plant could work better. The belt press, that works, but it is costly to run. The liquid is now being hauled because it is more economical than using the press. There was enough storage in the tank this winter, so belt pressing was not necessary. It would also be nice to have the sludge tank bermed so it doesn’t freeze. Ron tries to get the sludge as thick as possible because the ATAD’s work better and space can be conserved in the liquid storage tank and cuts down on hauling costs. The hauling will begin in a couple weeks, depending on the weather. There should be enough storage until the hauling starts.

2002 Budget Review

In the Lake Area Budget, the projected revenue was $105,476, expenditures of $74,010, and projected balance of $31,010. The actual revenue was $104,120.83, expenditures of $49,082.38 and a year-end balance of $55,038.45. Indian Beach Harbor paid ahead on hookup fees for some of the lots being built on in 2003. This amounted to about $7,000-$8,000. There were also several projected expenditures that were not used. The Lake Committee will work this $55,038.45 balance into future budget decisions.

John Bergman asked about the bio-feed process problem. The plant was designed for a 2 ppm phosphorus effluent but is running closer to 3 ppm. Ron has met with Herman from Bolton and Menk and they are doing additional analysis to try make this work better. Ron is sure there will be a MPCA phosphorus limitation when the new NPDES permit comes back. Improving the bio-p will reduce future costs of additional phosphate removal.

Multi Unit Assessment Policy

Gary Danielson had sent correspondence regarding this to Ollie and Harvey, as they are involved in the assessment process around the lake. Jerry Olson of the Riverside Park Development (Old Mill Inn-Trailer Park) is researching a conceptual design for a 21-unit building. As part of the planning process, he came to Gary to work through what the assessments would be on this type of structure. An amount in excess of $10,000 cost per unit for sewer and water was arrived at. They will also pay $750 per unit hookup fees to the district but are receiving the adopted break of 70% on the lake hook up fee. The assessment and fee committee may need to meet and recommend a comprehensive multi unit policy.

Minutes, Bills & Expense Report

Minutes: Ollie asked if there has been anything found out from MN/Dot since the last meeting. A commitment in writing has not been received, but Gary Danielson is convinced from the various phone calls, that the chances that justification of their requirement without compensation is slim. The proper person will be contacted to get this in writing. The district will be looking at an agreement before doing any work on County Road 30. There will be 100% reimbursement on anything outside of the right of way. Bill Taylor made a motion to accept the minutes and Trudie Dubord seconded the motion. There being no questions, the motion carried.

Bills: Dennis Baker asked Dean Helstrom as to the $13,360 bill for Bolton and Menk. The Trunk Highway 23 force main plans are $12,545 and the split of $407.50 & $407.50 are for Indian Beach Harbor. John Bergman asked for a break down of the bills to know where being applied and for what reason. The expense report is new to the packet and shows the line item descriptions. There will be a break down of the bills at the next meeting. No further questions on the bills, Trudie Dubord made a motion to approve the bills and John Bergman seconded. No other questions. The motion carried.

Other

New London Township increased their general budgets, but they have not specifically addressed the issue yet. The township questions there is need to further study the conditions before scheduling and doing projects.

A question was also asked regarding the Willmar plant question noted in last month’s minutes. Brad was going to take care of this and will be reminded.

Is Ollie’s water tasting any better? No, but it could be worse. In reality it is probably the fact of less water being used in his common connection line because of winter vacationing, etc.

Bill Taylor asked if anything had been done about the policy as far as establishing what the sewer districts’ responsibilities were regarding mains and where that would end and where the individual would begin responsibility. It has been decided to wait until the ordinances that are in progress are ready since those issues are covered.

Information was distributed on where the 2003 EDU’s ended up. The actual budgeted EDU’s were about 4% less than the actual EDU’s that have been calculated for 2003. The reason for that is there has been a reduction in residential consumption overall within the cities and there hasn’t been a corresponding reduction in the commercial usage. As the city residential consumption goes down and this average consumption is divided back into the commercial usage, commercial EDU rates have increased.

Ron noted that the MPCA gave 187 wastewater treatment facilities in the state of Minnesota an “Operating Award”. The Green Lake Sanitary Sewer and Water District received one of those awards. The district met operational requirements, filled out all the reports on time, checked all the boxes and did all the calculations right, applied the bio-solids correctly, and so forth. There are thousands of waste treatment plants in Minnesota so it is kind of nice to be receiving this award.

Is there anything new happening with the land sales? Gary is working on the ads to be authorized by the County Board on April 1, 2003.

Ron stated that he has gotten some confirmation on the ponds from the MPCA regarding the discharge of the water that is still in the ponds. He had requested some specifications as to just what is expected of the district when cleaning the ponds. A list of guidelines has been received and as soon as the weather cooperates and the ice disappears on the pond, the discharging will begin to get the water out as fast as possible.

Minutes of the
Green Lake Sanitary Sewer and Water District Commission
February 24, 2003

Present: Harvey Lange, Bill Taylor, Ollie Hagen, Trudie Dubord, John Bergman, Dennis Baker, and Dennis Peterson

Chairman Harvey Lange called the meeting to order at 6 p.m. on Monday, February 24, 2003 at the GLSSWD Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Water Flows

Ron referred to the enhanced monthly operations reports that now show how much water is pumped from the water plant, total accounted for water, total gallons of water lost, the percent of lost water and the gallons of wastewater treated for the month. There continues to be concern with the Green Lake losses of 41.6%, although actual losses are more instructive than percentages. A water loss chart that showed how much water could be lost through a certain sized hole was discussed.

Wastewater Flow Chart

The influent meter flow chart graph shows about the same flow as last year for the month of January. Ollie questioned the ratio of water used compared to wastewater treated. Ron explained infiltration continues over the winter as many collection pipes are in groundwater. The cities are generally in the 50% range and the lake averaged about 10% last year. The water table is still high.

Leak Report

Ron reported on the leak information. Last month, about the 9^th of January, there was a leak fixed at the Bruce Ruber residence. The curb stop was partially open to the ground and Dean estimated it was losing about 6-10 gallons per minute. Dale Mortenson reported a pipe had burst in his cabin before the meter and there was 3-4 inches of ice covering the whole floor of the cabin and water was running out the door down to the lake. The water was then turned off. There is no way to know how long the water was running or how much was lost. Ollie reported a potential leak that turned out to be a natural spring.

Four meters have been found and replaced that read in cubic feet. When these meters were read, each 1-gallon reading was really a 7.5-gallon reading. Only one of the meters was in a year- around residence. The problem was caused by a one box shipment of the wrong meters, of which four got out of the box.

Ron looked at residences with erratic or unusual usage readings that included 75 total residences. Of these, 16 are year around homes and 59 are seasonal homes. There were 12 of these seasonal homes having a reading of zero. Two just put the meters in after having estimated readings, but the rest have been in for a while and should have showed some water usage. One was found that didn’t turn at all and was replaced. Ron suspects the remaining zero reading meters haven’t used enough water to get over the 1000-gallon usage threshold. There is money in the lake budget to hire someone to inspect all of the residences for sump pumps, cross connections, faucets installed before the meter, and to verify meter readings. This job would need to be done during June, July and August with some work on the weekends. The City of Spicer used their laptop computer to confirm meter readings around the lake. There were 10 homeowners found home where the district went in the houses, physically read the meters, then went back out to the street and checked the laptop readings. All were found to be correct.

At the Skyline Estates there is concern that the 4 inch compound meters may not be accurate due to low water use. Ron has talked with the meter representative about this meter being calibrated when weather permits. If it calibrates okay, Ron may experiment with a smaller meter to check low flow accuracies.

Leak detection discussed at the last meeting was brought up. Ron has spoken to Dave Holm and also another leak detection firm in Iowa and they both started it is tough to detect leaks in PVC pipe. It doesn’t give a clear, detectable sound when leaking. The advice given by both was to fix the known leaks first and then decide if additional work was needed. Pressure testing is the only sure leak detection method in PVC pipe.

Brad summarized what steps have been taken looking for leaks. As a result of past pressure testing, there are still leaks that need repair. Brad expects these will be done by June 1, 2003.

Highway 23 Watermain & Sewer Forcemain Relocation

Brad referred to the plans that have been sent to Mn/DOT for approval for moving the district lines affected by the Highway 23 project. The project is in need of permits from Mn/DOT and the DNR. There was a meeting with all the utilities and Duininck Bros. last week. They will be starting on the south end of the project south of the Spicer city limits that will allow the district to get everything moved ahead of construction. This is a separate bid package from the Highway 23 project and will be an advertised for bids. The district will receive reimbursement of about $50,000 for moving the lift station and lines by the water plant leaving an estimated district cost balance of $480,000.

Ollie commented that he and Gary Danielson had talked last week about the County Road 30 changes and if the sewer district would have expenses with this part of the project. Gary said the State has not agreed to reimburse GLSSWD for the move. Ollie asked how Mn/DOT could have a county road and county sewer and water under the road and expect the district to pay for their changes? Brad recalled a change order being made to the Duininck North Shore contract to reroute the force main down County Road 30 to get it out of the way for the Highway 23 project and avoid additional expense to the district. Mn/DOT now wants the district to move several hundred feet of the sewer and water line because they are lowering the intersection of Highway 23 and County Road 30 by five feet. Mn/DOT is saying it is their “policy” that the district should pay for this moving. Gary has asked for their legal basis for not paying for the move.

Brad and Gary asked for commission approval to bid the utility move. A motion was made to do so by Dennis Baker and was seconded by Ollie Hagen. The motion carried.

Land & Pond Sales

Gary Danielson spoke about the maps of district property that is for sale in Roseville Township, Section 30. The district is actually looking at 5 parcels to be let as bids separately. The County Board - depending on how the bids come in - may opt to keep the 40 acre parcel that is in the SW corner of the section for the gravel and reimburse the sewer district for the value. There are some questions with the dealings with MPCA’s problem with the pond property and the sludge needing to be removed before the land can be sold, rented, given away, or whatever. This sludge either needs to be taken out and land applied per MPCA regulations or hauled to the landfill. It would need to be noted in the purchase agreement that the buyer of the property has the responsibility for proper disposal of the sludge. The district would have to closely inspect and monitor that this process is done correctly because the district is essentially responsible until this is done. Ollie wondering if there is any way to retain the liners to possibly sell the ponds for use as fish farms by pumping water into the ponds and diluting the sludge and pumping the water out to get rid of the sludge. A new application for a permit with MPCA has just been sent in for the facility and when a new one is issued the district could be put on a schedule of compliance as far as the decommissioning of the pond system. These properties are basically ready to be advertised now pending County Board approval.

Minutes & Bills

Ollie questioned the Ron Strom Plumbing & Heating bill for rerouting a water line. Gary Sletten explained this is a proper expense of the district for boring in a line that was part of the service contract. However, after some discussion, Brad said Bolton and Menk would contact Quam to pay for this. The Bolton and Menk billing for Indian Beach Harbor was also discussed. This will be paid by project assessments.

A motion to approve the minutes and bills was made by Trudie Dubord; Dennis Baker seconded the motion. The motion carried.

Other

Gary handed out a map entitled “Proposed Service District” that showed areas that will eventually be served by the New London Township 2002 sewer and water extensions or other needed extensions due to onsite treatment problems. Harvey and Gary met with the New London town board to talk about this potential future service area and what the need and timing might be for sewer and water extensions. The township has a substantial investment within the designated trunk area that encompasses part of this boundary area. Their trunk area is slated to eventually pay for the trunk lines. However, there are no current plans or specific timetable as to extending those services to either the north shore of Nest Lake or Golf View Estates. Harvey stated there should be a letter of request sent to the township to study what the needs are and propose a timetable for extension of services so the public is aware of a proposed timeline for improvements. Brad suggested an independent contractor/consultant be retained to evaluate existing septic systems. The township, county and GLSSWD would then evaluate how to correct problems.

There was discussion as to the county and township jointly funding a study independent of the commission, maybe lessening the boundary area, and the need of the commission to have a position on this. Harvey asked for motion to ask the New London Township to consider taking positive action in terms of this study area. Bill Taylor so moved and Dennis Baker seconded. Discussion took place regarding how the map should be presented and it was unanimously decided to submit the map to the township as is. With no further discussion, the motion carried.

Ollie questioned a charge on the water billing statement of $1.30. This is a Minnesota Department of Health connection fee that is charged quarterly.

Ollie spoke of the article in the paper on the Willmar Treatment Plant’s needs. Possibly the district could run a line from Eagle Lake, down the Spicer bike path to receive and treat their excess sewage. This would be a revenue source for the district. Brad will talk to them.

The water taste around the lake has deteriorated with a pronounced chemical taste and odor of chlorine. Possibly more chlorine needs to be added but residuals testing needs to be done first. Use around the lake during the winter is down leading to extended detention time during which chlorine residual is lost. Ron would rather not drain one of the towers down because of the expense to get it refilled.

Ron reported when the Highway 23 project begins, the line regulating the water level to the Spicer tower will be severed and not replaced. A radio read system needs to be implemented and get installed before the project. Two quotes were obtained, Jasper engineering for $4,250.00 and Pete’s Communications for $5,865.00. Ron needs a motion to endorse the purchase of the radio read system of $4,250 plus $700 for computer programming to be installed into the computer system. Motion was made by Dennis Baker and seconded John Bergman. The motion carried.

A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Ollie Hagen and seconded by Dennis Baker.

Minutes of the
Green Lake Sanitary Sewer and Water District Commission
January 27, 2003

Present: Trudie Dubord, Harvey Lange, Dennis Baker, Ollie Hagen, Bill Taylor, John Bergman, and Wayne Thompson standing in for Dennis Peterson

The meeting was called to order by chairman Harvey Lange at 6 p.m. on Monday, January 27, 2003 at the GLSSWD Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Water/Wastewater Flows

Ron Hagemeier reported on the Water/Wastewater Flows saying again that not a whole lot changes. The lake area water loss has increased in the last three or four months. There was a decent sized leak repaired in January where a shut off valve was not closed all the way. There is still the leak we know about on Highway 23 that will be fixed when the new water line is installed next spring. On average in round numbers we lost 35% throughout the whole district in 2002 from what was pumped out of the ground and what was accounted for. Again the question was asked by Ollie Hagen that the metering of water being pumped could be wrong. Ron stated he doesn’t think so since the meters have been calibrated on a yearly basis and the readings between the seven meters are within1 to 1½%, which indicates that the water is definitely leaving the facility.

Dennis Baker is wondering if the engineers and contractors shouldn’t get involved to find another company that could come in with a different system to pin point leaks or to somehow do a better job ourselves and he is not sure that the district should stand the cost. Ron stated the cities of Spicer and New London are looking at hiring a company in Wisconsin called Water Leaks Locaters who comes highly recommended to assess their situations. The pressure testing was done around the lake with about 12 to 15 leaks being found and fixed but things don’t seem to be getting any better. There may be some leaks out there that were small at one time and at this time are now larger. Dennis Baker encouraged the commission to look at getting another firm in with it being up to the engineers and contractors to get something going. The cities of Spicer and New London need to take care of their own and are already looking at that. The fact that the commission realizes they have an entirely new system around the lake this leak testing needs to move forward. Ollie Hagen stated that leak testing is needed in order not only for the DNR temporary permit but for the district as well. He asked if the County Board should be asked to approach Bolton & Menk because he feels the district is not getting results from them. The City of Spicer has already approved a contract with Water Leaks Locaters and New London has approved to contact them to do the whole city as soon as the ground thaws. If the two cities go together it will cost them $1,200 each.

Dennis Baker made a motion to put this on the table and get this going to work with the two cities as a district and get the Green Lake done. Cost wise he doesn’t think the district should have to pay but is not sure how to put that in a motion but this needs to be worked out together.

After much discussion regarding the leak situation, Harvey noted there is a motion on the table by Dennis Baker that the lake area make a recommendation to join with the two cities to hire Water Leaks Locators and that there can be talk about cost later. Ollie Hagen seconded the motion. There was discussion on estimated cost stating that Spicer was looking at $1,500 and when New London came in the cost went to $1,200 each and there is thinking that with adding the lake the cost would possibly be some higher. There being no further discussion the motion carried.

Ron commented that the water/wastewater spread sheets will be condensed to one sheet next month and will include a column with the actual number of gallons lost.

Flow Chart

Ron explained the influent flow chart handout that shows the monthly flows coming into the plant comparing 2001 and 2002. This will most likely be continued each month. Also, anyone wanting to see something different or having any other ideas of things they would like to see let him know. Gary Danielson commented on the numbers and how the chart shows how the income can vary depending on the type of year you have.

Gary Danielson had some information sent from Brad DeWolf on getting the Green Lake flows down to an average of about 23 to 23½ gallons per minute actual water loss in the system which has been consistent since August 1, 2002 with it not changing much through December. Ron compared this to a full stream garden hose running 24 hours a day.

Ron put this on the agenda mainly to get the board’s opinion. Normally private services are not located but because of the continuous construction around the lake the district has been locating everything in the street and up to the houses up to date to help the homeowners out and to help avoid problems being created. This takes half a man each day to take care of these locates coming in. Eventually when there is an ordinance adopted the operation and maintenance of these lines will be the responsibility of the homeowner. There is a problem with not having real good as builts as far as to how these services are installed. Ron is worried a flag could be put down wrong per the as builts and if there would be some damages the district would be liable because they did the locate. Ron would like to get away from located these services.

Discussion took place as to where the service responsibility of the district ends. On existing single lines this would end at the curb stop and common lines would be taken care of up to where the line splits with two or more additional curb stops. There are blanket easements at this time for obtaining access on the properties. Ron now sees a copy of all building permits which is checked against the as builts to be sure there is no building over a common line. He also checks with the homeowners to be sure they know where their service line is and not build over it. Harvey clarified that Ron is asking the commission to authorize him to turn over the private service locating to the homeowner from the connection point whether it be at the street curb stop or a common line curb stop.

A motion relieving Ron starting this next construction season of the responsibility of locating the private lines up to the connection point was made by Dennis Baker and seconded by Trudie Dubord. There was discussion with Bill Taylor seeing a problem with the need prior to this in having a policy in place as to where the responsibility of the sewer district ends. Ollie stated he would rather see a written policy adopted before voting on this motion.

A motion was put forth by Ollie Hagen and seconded by John Bergman to establish a written policy regarding the common property. Ron will get this policy together. More discussion with concern about the as builts possibly not being entirely correct or complete. Ron showed some examples of as builts as being fairly generic drawings. This all needs to be put in order with easements being drawn up before the initial withdrawn motion can be put in place.

Minutes & Bills

Harvey called for a motion to approve the minutes and bills. There was discussion regarding the Bolton and Menk bill. This was for the relocate of the sewer and water trunk lines on Highway 23 and Indian Beach Harbor Development. The assessments will pay for the Indian Beach Harbor engineering bill. On the 12/20/02 register for Bolton and Menk there is a same invoice number and amount entered twice. This was clarified as a split between the sewer and water. The same question was noted on the Pettipiece and Associates bill on the 1/10/03 register. Trudie questioned the Quam bill for pressure testing. Are we paying them while they are looking for leaks? Yes, this is the case. John Bergman asked what the $2,592.32 to Vegdahl’s Hardware was for. Ron explained it was for a new utility pump to replace the old pumps that were out of warranty and worn out and also too small to handle the job. This being the reason they were not rebuilt instead of buying a new pump.

On the December minutes, Ollie asked if the accounts that were mentioned being delinquent were put on their 2003 taxes. Ron explained yes they will be if not paid by the end of this month. Mr. Mattson, one of the accounts, discussed verbally with Ron that he would pay the base fees and a certain estimated usage fee that is a reasonable amount as compared to any other resident on the lake. If this is done and the check arrives to Ron by Friday, January 31, 2003 this account will not be put on the taxes. Mr. Mattson also has verbally committed to putting a water meter in at a certain designated time. Ron will follow up with a letter to Mr. Mattson verifying the understanding of this verbal agreement when the check is received. Ollie moved to accept the bills and minutes with Dennis Baker seconding the motion. There being no further discussion the motion carried.

Other

Ollie asked about what is being done about selling the property owned by the district. Gary Sletten has been working getting the ads ready for all the sales. Right now there are five separate parcels that are being put out there with a projected bid opening date of June 4, 2003. A total of eleven notices of sales are going out on the market.

Gary Danielson stated that the preliminary plans are done for the utility relocates on highway 23. They have been sent to the DNR and MnDOT for the permit process to see if they have any problems with them. At the time of the next meeting these should be in approved order with a full cost estimate.

Harvey noted that Wayne Thompson is here to stand in for Dennis Peterson. Harvey also stated the need to have a new slate of officers, which would include a president, vice-president and secretary and asked for any volunteers. Ollie Hagen moved that Harvey Lange continue as chairman with Trudie Dubord seconding and Bill Taylor moved that nominations cease. Harvey nominated Trudie Dubord to remain as secretary with Dennis Baker seconding and Harvey also nominated Dennis Baker as vice-chairman with Trudie Dubord seconding and Harvey moved nominations to cease. With there being no descending votes or discussion the motions carried.

Motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Bill Taylor and seconded by John Bergman. The motion carried.