Phelps County PWDS #4
Board Meeting Minutes

October 4, 2010  

Call to Order
| Board members in attendance were John Staples, Jack Lansberry and Bob Laney. Also present were Jodie Branson from MRPC and Dusty Densmore of Triple D Construction. The President of the Board, John Staples, called the meeting to order at 6:02.

Approval of Agenda and Minutes
The agenda for the October 4 th meeting and the minutes from the September 13, 2010 meeting were provided to the board in the meeting packet for their review. Bob Laney made a motion to accept the agenda as presented and Jack Lansberry seconded the motion. The motion carried. Jack Lansberry made a motion to accept the minutes as presented. Bob Laney seconded the motion. The motion carried.

Financial Statements
The financial statements for the period ending August 31, 2010 and the revised 2010 budget were provided to the board in the meeting packet. Jodie Branson reviewed the financial statements with the board. The year to date revenue is $63,323 before depreciation. The operation account balance is $41,787 which includes $ 35,313 in reserves. The accounts receivable are $251,668 which includes approximately $201,000 in doubtful accounts. The board has deemed the late fees accrued under the old late penalty policy as uncollectible and approved adjusting late penalties to what would have been assessed under the new late penalty policy of 10% per year. Four properties received disconnect notices at the end of September. The cash flow statement reflects September receipts of $15,337 on the receivables and a refund of $1,214 from Flo-Systems for warranty work billed in error. Bob Laney made a motion to approve the financials. Jack Lansberry seconded the motion and the motion passed. The revised 2010 budget aligns with the per user rate adopted at the September meeting. Jack Lansberry made a motion to accept the revised 2010 budget. Bob Laney seconded the motion. The motion carried.

Maintenance and Operations Report
Dusty Densmore presented the maintenance activities report for the month of September:

• Triple D pulled the pump from the trailer at Don Usery’s. Jack Lansberry questioned if they were charged a disconnect fee. The board determined that since it was not the primary residence on the property that it did not require a disconnect fee, but, if he should want to reconnect the trailer, a minimum of $300 reconnect fee will be due. MRPC will advise the Usery’s. Triple D took two and one half hours to pull the pump and clean it. The control panel is still connected.
• Triple D picked up a used 270 holding tank for free. Triple D will pick up the necessary fittings to make the tank work.
• Dusty Densmore reported that Dwyer will not warranty or repair the float sensor that went out at the lift station. Dusty can not repair the sensor. Jack Lansberry suggested purchasing a backup part in case another on should go out on a weekend. John Staples recommended that we look into the float system that the City of St James uses. Dusty will research the cost of switching the control panels and the float systems at the lift stations and report at a later meeting. Dusty Densmore pointed out that Lift Station #3 is different system than Lift Stations #1 and #2.
• Dusty Densmore reported that he continues to pursue Flo-Systems to provide the promised training to repair the pumps. Dusty Densmore reported that Flo-System technicians have been borrowing parts from inactive locations within the district to repair active locations (Gray’s). Flo-Systems also stated that pumps in their shop may not be rebuilt when they come in. Triple D asked for an inventory of pumps in their shop and he requested the pump repair manual that was promised a year ago. Dusty Densmore stated the borrowed part and the part at Finley’s should be covered under the warranty.
• Dusty Densmore reported Flo-Systems stated that the wire harness connection on the pumps has been tightened too much, breaking the rubber seal and allowing water to enter and short out the connection. This occurs when the pumps aren’t working and the liquid gets high enough to reach the connection. The connection replacement part is $25.

Bob Laney made a motion to approve $210 payment to Triple D for service calls in September. Jack Lansberry seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

Old Business
Board will discuss board vacancies at the next meeting.

The board discussed the situation with Ray Aumann. Mr. Aumann has stated that he is only at the home two weeks a year and doesn’t feel that he should have to pay. MRPC advised Mr. Aumann that the rate in the ordinance could not be reduced by MRPC. Jodie Branson told the board that if we offer disconnect, Mr. Aumann will not reconnect and according to the ordinance, the home has to be connected. Bob Laney pointed out the district has collected the monthly sewer fee on vacant properties for sewer availability. The board agreed to bill Aumann the full fee and address it at a later meeting.

Bob Laney will do a site visit to 14832 Private Drive 2331 to determine if the house is occupied. Lance Bowser has not made a payment since he bought the house. The house may have been foreclosed and the bank should be billed. Bob will also see if he can determine which bank has possession of the Matthews property at 16070 County Road 2300.

Jodie Branson reported advertising will be placed for an auditor for 2010 records and MRPC will pay for the advertising. The district will have to pay for the audit which will happen after April (tax season) of 2011. Jack Lansberry felt that the district did not have the money to pay for the audit and if an audit was requested by the users’ that a surcharge should be billed to pay for the audit. Bob Laney stated that he was in favor of an audit of the 2010 records. Jodie Branson pointed out that the public can request the State to audit the district at the district’s cost. Jack Lansberry stated that he was against the expense on a recurring basis.

City of St James has not been approached. The board tabled the topic for a later meeting.

Curt Voss has two grinder pumps and would like to remove the second pump. It was determined that the waste would not gravity flow on a pressurized line and the sewage would back up into the shop. Triple D pointed out that pulling the pump still leaves the can in the ground, the control panel and live electric wires. We already have that situation at the Usery’s second connection, and the vacant lot on County Road 1020 (Davidson). Dusty Densmore stated that the district has the product in the ground but won’t receive any income. Dusty Densmore also pointed out that when we pull a pump and the can fills up, the remaining electric connections short out and have to be replaced. District may have to call Intercounty to disconnect the electricity. John Staples and Dusty Densmore will visit with Curt Voss.

The board will discuss the autodialers at a later meeting.

Next Meeting
Monday, November 1, 2010.

Adjournment
John Staples adjourned the meeting at 7:43.

I, John Staples, the duly elected President of Public Water Supply District #4 of Phelps County, do herby certify that the foregoing is a true and correct copy of the minutes of the regular board meeting of the Board of Directors held at Meramec Regional Planning Commission in St. James, Missouri on October 4, 2010.

_______________________________
President: John Staples