“LEW’S VIEW”

Regarding the “final installment” of the

REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING OF THE

LAKE DON PEDRO COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT

Monday, October 17^th, 2011 1300hrs

 

NOTE: Verbatim transcriptions based on analog and digital recordings.

Here are some brief descriptions of the agenda items, Board decisions, and pertinent verbatim transcriptions.

XXXXX

p. RANCHITO WELL STUDY– Information update by District Engineer Elizabeth Binkley.  Letter explaining why the capacity test of the Ranchito Well is taking longer than expected due to the necessity of well stabilization.  Kalvin Gile expressed concern that the CSD could be liable for lowering the water table and harming other well users in the vicinity.  Director Ross commented that he received a call from a property owner complaining about well difficulties. 

r. REQUEST FROM MIKE SCHARTZ- follow-up on his request for water service to a property he just purchased. This property is outside MIDPOU and further discussion is subject to the results of the well test.  Mrs. Poe suggested “give him one of my old meters, I don’t care”.  Director Ross suggested the Board speculate and offer an opinion as to furnishing water service if the well test proved satisfactory.   VP Bill Kinsella and Director Lew Richardson declined to offer such a hypothetical answer.  Director Skoien advocated providing a meter to Mr. Schartz so that Mrs. Poe could also recoup her losses due to the nonpayment by Donna Martin/Morasci for the line extension.

s. REQUEST FROM ROY WALTON – to discuss his request for water service.  Interim General Manager Dan Tynan advised Mr. Walton had called and was not going to be able to attend the meeting.  Postponed to next month pending the well test.  CSD counsel has advised in the past that “will serve letters” should be avoided. 

t. RETIREMENT HEALTH BENEFIT LIABILITY – Information by Charise Reeves about the formal valuation performed to comply with the GASB 45 requirement for Retirement Health Benefit Liability.  Re-evaluations occur every two to three years depending upon the changes in the rules and how much CSD contributes.  $168,000 annual required contribution, we paid out $43,011 in 2011 fiscal year on premiums for retirees (subtracted from the annual contribution).  Currently we are not contributing to the program but at some point need to restart the funding. The board could also decide not to provide, from this point on, certain medical benefits for retirees.   Two employees have already been hired without this benefit.  Policy needs to be updated regarding this issue.

u. BOARD ROOM RECORDER – Request by Director Richardson to discuss/act  on replacing/upgrading the Board Room tape recorder with digital equipment.  The old dual tape recorder often begins to “squeal” and there have been tape malfunctions.  Going digital would be more dependable, efficient and less costly for copies requested by the public.  Charise Reeves advised an equivalent tape model would run between $600-$800 but she will check into the possibility of digital.  Many people do not even have cassette tape players anymore.  More research will be conducted with a report next meeting.

v. SECURITY OF FACILITY AND RECORDS – Request by Director Richardson regarding the possibility of missing records, initial and subsequent law enforcement reports about a past break in, and funding a security program regarding plant facilities and official records.  Months after the initial report of the break in, and during attempts to fulfill a Grand Jury request for 2009 Minutes, it was discovered a box of records (Board Packets) was missing.  The CSD was able to electronically recover most of the Minutes with the exception of one or two meetings.  Discussion ensued regarding the protection of records with Director Richardson suggesting CSD maps and transparencies were very valuable records regarding CSD history. 

DIRECTORS COMMENTS

VP Bill Kinsella:  I have been emasculated by some people for taking action to preserve the integrity of this organization and, by a couple of people, and I’m a little disgusted and tired of it particularly since the intent was not to circumvent this, this board.  Although I’ve become more and more disgusted with it, the intent was to cease a problem that would have perpetuated and put this whole board in trouble and yet I find the people who really don’t know what the hell is going on can make statements accusing me of certain things and I’m just a little disgusted with it, I’m tired of being the target for most of this crap.  People want to make a, if I do something wrong that’s fine but when I do something with the specific intent to protect this organization and then some dingbat decides that they are smarter than me, never around – just listen to rumor and then they ostracize me.  Fat chance it’s going to happen again, I will not put up with it.  I’m done.  Anybody else?

Director Lew Richardson:   Yeah, just reiterate that I think it was a total embarrassment today that we could not select a director to fill a spot, one spot open, we had one applicant who was more than qualified.  I think this is just another example of some of the repugnant, childish games that are being played.  That’s it.

VP Kinsella: I could go on about that too but I’m not going to.   Go ahead Mark.

Director Mark Skoien:  Well real quick, I had nothing to say but, Lew knows I probably got to give him a little bit of an answer (laughing), ah, regardless of what you think of it there’s no games, I mean, everybody has their right to vote and you shouldn’t be calling their right a repugnant game.  That’s all I got to say.  Let’s go watch some football.

Board Secretary Charise Reeves:  Ah please adjourn.

VP Kinsella: OK, the meeting is adjourned (1742hrs)

XXXXX     END OF OCTOBER 17^th, 2011 MEETING     XXXXX

My best to you and yours, Lew

PS:  The October 21^st, 2011 meeting (originally a Personnel Matter) was  “derailed” by only a handful of the SO GOSIP during Directors Comments despite several advisements that it was not subject matter of the district.    [Same old complaints about this website – guess they won’t be happy until they control every single source of information.  Gee, you think they hate this website eventhough they say they don’t read it?   Wait until they DON’T READ the book!  lol]    I’m working on another post regarding that ridiculous display [last meeting], however, with rain coming Thursday I’m also quite busy taking advantage of burn days to get rid of the Pine cones, needles, leaves, branches, etc.. 

BAIT COMES IN MANY FORMS

 

POE MATTER INSTALLMENT OF “LEW’S VIEW”

Regarding the

REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING OF THE

LAKE DON PEDRO COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT

Monday, October 17^th, 2011 1300hrs

 

NOTE: Verbatim transcriptions were based on analog and digital recordings.

Here are some brief descriptions of the agenda items and pertinent verbatim transcriptions with PERSONAL OPINION INSERTS AND MAYBE SOME ATTEMPTED HUMOR CONTAINED WITHIN BRACKETS  [  ].

XXXXX

n. Request from Mrs. Poe, Michael and Theresa Terry.  Request by Mrs. Poe in response to questions raised at the September 19^th, 2011 Board Meeting.

I’ll try to make this as quick as possible, I know everybody is tired.  Well, I’m trying to address some questions from last meeting, and I do apologize my son Michael Terry could not be here because the other son had an emergency situation and I said stay with your brother since I can’t be there, stay with your brother.  Ah, it may be he will be coming to the next meeting if that needs to be. 

The first page you’ll see that I talked to Elene and she sent a letter stating we have one parcel number and we have 41.43 acres and she was kind enough, which I have a lot of them that I wanted ah, an update from her, she was kind enough to send me a map it’s not as pretty as the map of last week, but it’s true and it’s truthful and it’s from the county.  She highlighted my property, I don’t know why there was some question about the BLM property, no I’ve got the map, anybody is more than willing to look at it, they can even call the county and they’ll give it to you.  She highlighted the BLM property that also surrounds our property that I don’t even know why that was an issue, but I do have a little BLM property and anybody’s more than welcome to look at this, that’s from Elene, she, I’m not going to read all of this to you, you can read it later, she says any… you’re all welcome to call to verify I have one pen number.  I do not have three.  She also on the second page stamped, ah a tax master page showing I have one PN, APN number and then concerning that BLM property the third page shows, and on 1989 we have a right of way too  from BLM to get to the back of our property and I don’t know why this wasn’t in my file with ah, the water company because if you look on the fourth page there is a letter from the commn…ah Lake Don Pedro Community Services stating they were advised by BLM that we had gotten a right of way through BLM property and they would appreciate us letting them know if at any time we were going to be digging or whatever because they might have some water lines down there so they were well aware that we had BLM property around us.  On the very last page, is a letter from 1991 when Mrs. Martin and you’re going to have to excuse me, I don’t know her by this other name, I know her by Donna Martin.  When she ended up not, reneging on her portion of the bill, we attended a meeting on January the seventh

[The information provided by Mrs. Poe regarding her ownership of one 41.43 acre parcel is immaterial to the subject matter at hand and was never questioned.  The important issue is to which of the two other property APNs (Assessor Parcel Numbers) the two meters on the POE parcel were originally registered according to CSD records.  The meters were removed based on information provided by Directors Emery Ross and Mark Skoien obtained from their individual investigations and interviews of Mrs. Poe.  A former President who resigned also provided a map of portions of the properties involved (for those of you counting, yes that was 3 out of 5 directors involved and raised a “Serial Meeting” question.)  Following my request for further information on April 23^rd, 2011 Director Ross sent a May 3^rd, 2001 email to directors in an attempt to clarify what he stated at the January 18^th, 2011 meeting, however, that email also contained clearly incorrect information as well.  That clarification email was not sent to the Billing Office.  Ross also failed to attend the Closed Session meeting dealing with the issue the next day.]  

Board Secretary Charise Reeves: Mrs. Poe could you hold that thought for just a second (inaudible) [switching tapes for recording of meeting]…OK

Mrs. Poe:  Ready?

Secretary Reeves:  Yeah

Mrs. Poe:  We attended a meeting by the then sitting board explained that she was not going to pay her portions, which was going to end up costing us a lot of money and it did, but we did not want to be bad neighbors, like, I’ve expressed this at another meeting, what a year or two years ago when I came when she was inquiring on water, we did not want to be bad neighbors moving up here, we knew we were going to be living in a community that was our dream, and I  explained that to you, it was my husband’s dream and we didn’t want to come up here with the water company mad at us.  So we told that sitting board we will, take on the responsibility of her bill and we did. 

[Though Mrs. Poe has repeatedly stated she and her husband decided to pay the other portion of the CSD billing because “we didn’t want to come up here with the water company mad at us” perhaps the actual reason for the payment is documented in CSD correspondence to Mr. and Mrs. Poe dated July 29^th, 1991: 

“The board of Directors agreed to extend a water line and to provide you and your partners with temporary water service pending your application for annexation.  Not only have you not paid in full for the line extension, but we have heard nothing regarding your annexation application.

Please provide us with the balance due on your account and the status of your annexation request no later than September 1, 1991, or it may be necessary to discontinue your water service.”  (cc: John Terry, Hank Pattison)

It would appear the discontinuing of water service may have been the overriding factor in paying the balance due, not that the water company would be “mad” at them.  Why does the letter refer to “partners” rather than “partner”?  Only Poe and Martin are stated to be involved in the extension project?]

It’s paid in full, OK?  But I said I won’t pay for her meter and I won’t pay for her box and I have some copies here of one of the many bills that we received that had Martin’s name and excludes any hookups, and excludes her meter fee.  Her name is there in black and white, Martin.  She was definitely involved in this project we had going and there, I do want to clear up one mistake that was in our little Foothill paper, they did not bore or come across my driveway to give me water they come across my driveway to give that property water, it was all OK’d by that board, uhm at that time, that’s what they were doing was giving water to that property.  My water came down Granite Springs, my line came across the road, we bored under the highway, came in, up right up to my hill on this side of my driveway – I had water.  The only reason was she wanted water and the water company went across my driveway, dug up my driveway to give her water and of course covered it back up which we had to pay for that cuz at that point she was saying oh no, I, you know, blah, blah, blah, but we took on all of that, all of that bill from that time, now when we first were starting this project the water company was well aware we were looking into digging a well.  Boy- should have stuck with that one, ah, but they, the county again years, and years and years ago sent me all these names of people because the water company at first had thought about coming off of Arbolada and going all the way down that whole ridge where I live which there’s, a electrician that lived there, ah Carol or whatever, there’s several places along there and on these Donna’s name wasn’t on there because she had bought the property but this wasn’t changed.  The county X’d off the names of some people that lived around in that facility.  One of those names was Ramona Shaw.  Ramona Shaw had, she still lives in Chatsworth and I owe her a public apology, she’s not as old as dirt, she’s a young 81 years old and still alive.  She lives in Chatsworth, my old stomping ground and she had 32.01 acres.  Now I have no clue, and God knows I would not want that woman’s name in association with my son.  I have no clue, that happened in house.

I certainly would not, and why in the world I would use another woman’s name with, I don’t know how that happened, it happened, the only thing I can explain is one time I had some papers destroyed from a water heater that broke, and I called the water company and I said could you send me some copies of da-da-da-da-da, looking in my file they said well, Mrs. Poe there’s nothing hardly in your file, huh?  No, I said well look in Donna Martin’s maybe it’s in there?  Her’s was cleaned out.  We later discovered she had a friend in the water company.  We don’t know what happened in that, something went on, something went on in that water company, at the time I didn’t think anything of it, but I had no clue that my son, their names were on with my son all these years, all these years until it came up over this and I, I don’t, I would like to know, I would like to know how did their names get on?  How? Somebody put them on there and I’m assuming it was in around 1998 from what was in the papers. 

[“A friend in the water company”?   This begs the question:  Who would benefit?  Three meters for three separate properties (as recorded in CSD records) would make sense and not raise any “warning flags”.   However, three meters registered to only one property appears contrary to normal CSD operations.  The fact all three properties are OUTSIDE the DISTRICT SERVICE BOUNDARY, OUTSIDE THE MIDPOU and not annexed as previously agreed is extremely relevant.]     

Now I don’t know, I honest to God have no clue, the bills never came Hank Pattison and Donna Martin or John Terry/Ramona Shaw.  Poor Ramona Shaw doesn’t even know her name was being used which I don’t aa..h, I mean, who would do that? 

[Good question.  Does Poe benefit from using two other property owners’ names and APNs to register two water meters located on Poe property for which they and their sons have paid monthly service charges for years?  Was Mrs. Shaw’s name and property APN used to extend the line further?]

It had to be in that Board at that time and they were very good to my husband and I at the time because of what she did, of course they were also very grateful that we were paying her bills and, but just to make a long story short, the whole thing, that board approved that line going across my driveway to deliver water that was an issue that was done years ago, it was there, I mean that was the whole purpose it was all approved.  So, I mean, I don’t know what else to try to prove to you that, I don’t know what you all have against me?  I don’t know what else to do to prove to you that I don’t have three parcels of land, I have one parcel.  I don’t know how those women’s names got on the, I don’t know.  Go ahead.

[The approval was obviously conditional.]

Director Lew Richardson:  Uhm, when did uhm your son first became involved with that other property with Shaw?  With Ramona Shaw? 

(Director Emery Ross talking in background about the matter)

Mrs. Poe:  He wasn’t involved. 

[Director Ross (inaudible- got nothing to do with it (inaudible)]

Mrs. Poe:  You’re not getting it, you’re not getting it.

(Continued background voices including Director Ross discussing matter and son’s involvement)

Director Richardson:  So you’re say he has nothing to do with that property?

Mrs. Poe:  (Multiple voices) I can’t tell you what the woman looked like.

Director Richardson:  Well, I don’t know either, I’m just trying to figure out because Ramona Shaw evidently received the property from her parents back in 1974.

Mrs. Poe:  That’s her property not me.

Director Richardson:  Right.

Mrs. Poe:  That’s her property.

Director Richardson:  So you don’t understand how you’re son’s name (Poe talking) became attached..

Mrs. Poe:  Her property, her property was way down the way from us.

(Director Ross talking in background)

Director Richardson:  Right, south of you.

Mrs. Poe:  Yeah

(Director Emery Ross still talking in background)

Mrs. Poe:  Why, how did Donna’s name get there?  At the time the woman had fought us on a lot of money (Ross still talking in background) and I’m gonna, oh let’s put her name down there.  I don’t even want to look (inaudible)

Director Richardson:  I just recently found out she has a third name.

(Ross talking in background)

Mrs. Poe:  Good, well I’m going by one.  What I’m saying is (Director Ross still talking in background) I don’t know how those names got on there.  I have no clue.

Director Richardson:  Well, I, I  think and, you know, you don’t understand how it got there I don’t know how they got there either but the fact of the matter is the records indicate that your, both of your sons names were associated with those properties, with the meters, were registered to.

(Director Ross still talking in background)

Mrs. Poe:  Wait a minute now.  Show me some documentation, show me where it says my son, you’re saying my son was involved in Ramona Shaw’s property?

Director Richardson:  Didn’t your son pay the bills for the meter?

Mrs. Poe:  OK, I’ve tried to explain that, I was so upset last week.  When we decided to go ahead and go with the water company versus digging a well, first they were going to have us come down Arbolado, then they said no you’ve got to come this way and bore under the highway.  OK.  When it came time for the meters, we were told if you’re ever going to have three dwellings and maybe at some point try to split it which we never did, you need to have three meters, we have since learned that we didn’t need three meters.  We could have all three gone off of one and shared the bill, which we’re a loving family we, we don’t have a problem with things like that, but OK, and they said oh and by the way you better get them cuz they’re going to go up next month considerably.  And the kids are coming to us, I mean, here, here we go back to the green they want their water and a house there blah, blah, blah – Mom we better get them.  We’ve always been fairly strict parents, OK?  You want them, you buy em.  They went through our billing system, but those boys had to pay us for their little meter and you’re going to pay the monthly payment, I’m not.  We’re not.  And that’s how they became, we came to the b – water company, we need the three meters but we want one in Hank’s name (PATTISON), one in John’s name (TERRY), and one in our name (POE).  Wasn’t a problem, they paid those bills faithfully, look back, they never were late, those bills have been paid faithfully for years.

Director Richardson:  OK, but why did they not investigate somebody else’s name being on their billing?

Mrs. Poe:  Well who? We never, I never knew it until I saw you got – had it.  I never knew it.

Director Richardson:  No, at the last meeting you said you never understood how Ramona Shaw, and that’s when you said she might be old as dirt and all that, how her name became associated with you son’s.

Mrs. Poe:  Exactly, sitting right there.  I sat right there and looked at the names up there and I thought, (gasp)

[Contradicts previous statements made at the September meeting – see below]

Director Richardson:  But it was on the billing too.

Mrs. Poe:  No it was not, no sir.

Director Richardson:  Alright, I believe it was.

Mrs. Poe:  No sir, you show me.

Director Richardson:  I don’t have it here right now

Mrs. Poe:  It’s my proof, it’s the truth, it’s legal

Director Richardson:  Well, OK, so, so both your sons wrote those letters correct, that director Ross brought to this board, your sons wrote those letters?

Mrs. Poe:  What letters?

[What letters?  How many are there?]

(Soft speaking in background)

Director Richardson:  The letters asking the meters to be removed?

Mrs. Poe:  Yes, they asked that that the, did you see that Ramona Shaw or Donna’s name?

Director Richardson:  No I did not.

Mrs. Poe:  Donna lives right up there in Greely Hill.

Director Richardson:  No I did not.  So you’re saying

Mrs. Poe:  Show me where

Director Richardson:  So you’re saying Ramona Shaw is still the owner of that property south of yours?

Mrs. Poe:  I don’t, I guess she is.  I know she still lives in Chatsworth.

[Did Mrs. Poe contact Mrs. Ramona Shaw?]

Director Richardson:  Hum.

Director Ross:  No it’s Martin, is, ah, Morasci is south, below you.

Mrs. Poe:  She, he

Unknown:  Directly south (inaudible)

Mrs. Poe:  She’s, I, he’s right next door to me, Ramona Shaw owns property down

Director Richardson:  Was, was

Mrs. Poe: Way down

Director Richardson: Was Mrs. Morasci, or Martin, or Madden, I understand Madden is involved too, we’re you aware she was in real estate at the time?

Mrs. Poe: No.

Director Richardson:  OK

Mrs. Poe:  We, she told us she sold log cabins. 

Director Richardson:  OK.

Mrs. Poe:  When we met her, never did meet her in person.

[There appears to be a contradiction (below).]

Director Richardson:  You’ve never seen…

Mrs. Poe: Never seen her

Director Richardson:  …Mrs. Morasci in person?

Mrs. Poe: Never seen Donna Martin, never.  If I have I didn’t know it was her.  Never have seen her. And she’s, if you ever speak to her, she’s a very pushy woman, she’s, you know, she was at me constantly about you know we need to get this done and, she was calling the water company and giving them orders and, and it was just a big thing but, no, I’ve, I, that was the first time I saw that, I, when I sat here that’s why I got so upset to see my sons’ names associated with other women when they are married and have children.

[Never met the woman with whom they agreed to split a $13,843.13 bill?  Seems rather strange.]

September 19^th, 2011 meeting, Mrs. Poe stated during her presentation to the Board:

 “… She just, at a board meeting I came to, when I requested why she hadn’t paid the contractors, which was a man named Ken Nichols and the water company what was left on the water company bill, she said my name wasn’t on anything was it?  And we were left with all that to pay.  Our kids had to help us and then, you know, all this just didn’t make sense to me that, you know, it’s in place, this has been all approved years ago and ….”

”And they have her with Shaw.  I don’t know who Ramona Shaw is, she has shown up on our papers for years.  The woman’s got to be old as dirt if she’s even still alive.  So I, this is bogus.  This is bogus.”

[I am sorry but how can Mrs. Poe say she was unaware of Ramona Shaw’s name being associated with her son Terry Shaw if “she has shown up on our papers for years”?]

Director Richardson:  Well of course, yeah.

Mrs. Poe:  I mean, it was a very insulting (inaudible)

VP Kinsella: I’d get a little nervous about that

Director Richardson:  Sure

Mrs. Poe:  It was very, yeah I’m glad one of my grandkids didn’t walk in and see Dad linked up with another woman.

Director Richardson:  Yeah

Mrs. Poe: That wouldn’t have gone over.  But I, I mean, then we go on, and on, and on about this, you know, and it’s already been approved years ago, it’s, and we paid her costs.

[The approval was conditional upon the properties being annexed which they never were.]

Director Richardson:  I, I understand that and that’s really unfortunate.

Mrs. Poe:  And you know, we would have never done that, we’re not trying to jip somebody out of something, we’re not trying to, why do you think we came to that board twenty some years ago and said we’ll pay her, we’ll pay what she’s not?

[The meters would have been disconnected without the agreed payment.]

Director Richardson:  Right, but if what you’re saying is, what you’re saying is then that Shaw and the Morasci, or the Shaw property never had any water coming to it at all.

Mrs. Poe:  No, her’s is way down

Director Skoien:  Not Shaw

Director Richardson:  Not Shaw?

Director Skoien:  Not Shaw

Director Richardson: But wasn’t there three partners with your group to begin with?

Mrs. Poe:  Three partners where?

Director Richardson: With you Morasci and a third person?

Mrs. Poe:  No.  No.

[No third partner?]

Director Skoien:  It was her and her two sons.

Director Richardson:  Ahum

Director Skoien:  (inaudible)

Director Richardson:  I haven’t seen it yet, but my understanding is there are some Minutes from 1991, and I’m not sure if it was you, or somebody involved in your group, said that there were three partners involved.

Mrs. Poe:  No.

[OK, again Mrs. Poe says there was no third partner.]

Director Richardson:  So you’re unaware of any third partner?

Mrs. Poe:  Have you read the paper that the board sent me, that I received that, when I was, we were at their meeting and they sent us a letter stating they appreciated the fact that we had taken on that responsibility of paying that, that we’re looking forward to your payment.

Director Richardson:  But you’re una, you are totally unaware of a third party involved in this?

Mrs. Poe:  No, I don’t know what third party it could be.

[OK, Mrs. Poe doesn’t even know who a third party could be?  This seems to contradict Minutes from the January 7^th, 1991 Meeting at 2:00PM where it states under Item 8: FOR THE GOOD OF THE COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT, A:

“Mr. & Mrs. Ray Poe addressed the Board about the billing of the Amber Ridge line extension.  Originally there were three partners.  One partner has refused to pay her portion of the bill, and the Poes requested that, if they pay the entire bill, will service be denied to the other party until she pays her share.  The Board agreed with Mr. Poe and will send a letter to him guaranteeing reimbursement for others who later hook on to the line.  Mr. Poe indicated to the Board that he is getting a loan to pay the extension costs and should have payment to the District by the end of January.”

I would imagine it would be safe to assume Mrs. Martin/Morasci/Madden was the woman who did not pay her share.  Who was the other partner?  Why would three partners, each receiving a meter, divide a $13,843.13 bill for a line extension in half?  Who should have paid for the third meter that was made available by that line extension?  If Poe claims her son was the third party, why should Martin/Morasci pay for half the bill instead of a third since two family members were receiving a meter each?  Why wasn’t Mrs. Ramona Shaw paying for the meter that was registered to her property?   Did she even know a meter was registered to her property?  Was her APN just used so the paperwork would appear correct in the Billing Office and appear to justify three meters on one property?]

Director Richardson:  OK

Mrs. Poe:  How do I know?  I mean,

Director Richardson:  OK

Mrs. Poe:  You know and, and if you read on there it’s, it’s

Director Richardson:  Well see, I would look at it as the third party was the Shaw lot since there were three APNs involved, you and your husband’s

Mrs.  Poe:  OK

Director Richardson:  Morasci, Madden, Martin and then Terry/Shaw and

Mrs. Poe:  No

[Why could not the third party be the property CSD records indicate is “Terry/Shaw”, after all, a meter was registered to that APN?]

Director Richardson:  was it Pattison was associated with

Mrs. Poe:  Pattison was my oldest

Director Richardson:  no, Terry, Terry was associated with Shaw.

Mrs. Poe:  Yeah, OK, show me that paper.

[At the September meeting (above) Mrs. Poe acknowledged that Ramona Shaw’s name had been associated with their paper work for years.]

Director Richardson:  I don’t have it right here.

Mrs. Poe:  Show me

Director Richardson:  I don’t’ have it right here

Mrs. Poe:  Show me where they’re connected, connect that dot for me.

Director Richardson:  Ah ask your son to show you one of his old bills.

Mrs. Poe:  No sir.  The first thing my son would have done is got on that phone

Director Richardson:  Well that’s what I thought, that’s what I thought when I saw it, I thought well if somebody sent me a bill and it had someone else’s name on it I’d be picking up the phone and calling right away, but see, here’s the problem, if that was done, then there wouldn’t have been meter service to Shaw because the way it was set up with the three meters being in your property registered to three separate properties it made perfect sense on paperwork.  One meter one property, two meters second property, three meters third property, that makes sense.

Mrs. Poe:  There has, my son has never gotten a bill, now there might be one on record, why?  Is that to protect somebody?  Protect Donna from maybe not having to pay a standby fee?  It looks like she’s making payments on a water bill, I don’t know, but

Director Richardson:  There would be no standby required because she was paying, or somebody was paying the monthly service charge – you can’t charge an availability fee

Mrs. Poe:  But not on her meter

[A meter was registered to Donna Martin’s property but placed on Mrs. Poe parcel, just like the one registered to Ramona Shaw that was also installed on the Poe property.  How can an availability charge be made against a property without an obligation to pay?  These properties are outside MIDPOU, outside the CSD Service Boundary, and were never annexed as previously agreed.]

Director Richardson:  with a monthly service charge.  It was that lot.

Mrs. Poe:  Wait, you’re not, you’re not listening to what I’m saying.

Director Richardson:  No I’m listening, I’m not understanding

Mrs. Poe:  My son, neither one of them, has ever gotten a bill that said Terry and Shaw or Hank Pattison and Martin.  OK?  Never. 

[But that is exactly how the billing records were set up.  Mrs. Poe even admitted Shaw’s name had been on their papers for years.  Heck, even a vicinity map in the GM’s office depicts the connections with red lines drawn from the meter location to the intended properties of consumption which are both located south of Poe.   Former GM and Board Member Wes Snyder also confirmed that the meters located on the Poe property were originally installed to serve the Martin and Shaw properties.   Quite often meters are located in a more desirable or convenient location due to terrain difficulties with the actual customer service line crossing another person’s property.  (The Harry Alfier case was a perfect example of this fact.)  That is not unusual at all, but multiple meters to serve one property not subdivided?  Where else has this happened?] 

Director Richardson:  OK

Mrs. Poe:  Now if there’s one in, this is what I’m asking, if there’s one in the records in the folders, somebody put it there, why?

[I believe a possible answer to this question would involve who stood to benefit?]

Director Richardson:  Well that’s what you said earlier, you thought

Mrs. Poe:  Why?

Director Richardson:   there was com – plicit ceny with

Mrs. Poe:  Something was wrong, something’s wrong

Director Richardson:  Complicity with, with someone in the office doing something funny with the records, right?

Mrs. Poe:  Something, because we’ve never seen anything like that.  We would have corrected it immediately that’s what we, all we do.

[But correcting the name situation would have put the spotlight on to which properties the meters were actually registered.  IF THE METERS WERE originally installed using incorrect information that would have been discovered.  Simply paying the monthly service fee was the most reasonable course of action to avoid a potential investigation of the matter, that is, until Mrs. Poe became aware that Mrs. Martin/Morasci/Madden was going to sell her property to Schartz.  I can certainly understand Mrs. Poe’s anger and determination to have the meters removed because of nonpayment by Martin/Morasci/Madden but that doesn’t change how they were originally installed.]

Director Richardson:  Do you know if there’s ever been a meter on Mrs. Morasci’s property?

Mrs. Poe:  I don’t, I’ve never personally gone and looked, cuz it use to tick me off to even look at her box.

[This is peculiar because I believe human nature would dictate that if someone was forced to pay another’s bill they would likely inspect that box to observe that for which they paid?  Or did Mrs. Poe already know there was no meter as she and others stated at the September meeting and only now appears noncommittal to give Mr. Ross an easy out from his prior contradictory statements?  Did Poe already know the meters on her property were registered to Martin and Shaw, and by having them removed would force Martin/Morasci/Madden or the new owner to the CSD to obtain water and thus provide Poe with the opportunity to collect from the new owner according to the past CSD agreement to not furnish water until Mrs. Poe was paid?   That agreement also bothers me.  Why should a public agency be used to coerce payment of a party to a private contractual agreement?  Seems kind of like using our CSD as a bill collector on a private debt.]

Director Richardson:  Right well, the other meeting you said she didn’t have one.

Mrs. Poe:  As far as I know.  I, my meters were over here.

Director Richardson:  Right, if you’re facing the property to the left.

Mrs. Poe:  Ah-ha

Director Richardson:  One of them was disconnected, two of them were connected.  Where did the other pipe go to the one that was removed? 

Mrs. Poe:  What pipe?

Director Richardson:  Well you can see in the box that one meter has a pipe going to your house which is the active meter, the other one had a pipe that was severed and cut off, where did that pipe go?

Mrs. Poe:  OK, you mean where did it go?

Director Richardson:  Right

Mrs. Poe:  When we were waiting for our modular to be delivered we were in our 5^th wheel and the boys ran us a line so we could flush the toilet.

Director Richardson:  Why, why would you need two lines from two meters to flush a toilet.

Mrs. Poe:  Because that line was going this way – way up to the house and the fifth wheel was way over there.

[This seems strange since the meters were all located in the same starting place so the distance or direction is immaterial.  Why not simply “T” off from the planned residential line for the 5^th Wheel toilet and save pipe and use of a second meter?]

Director Richardson:  But that meter never had a service charge on it cuz it was never, never had consumption.

Mrs. Poe:  One of the meters I know had some meter on it

Director Richardson:  But you see where I’m coming from here not being privy to (inaudible)

Director Skoien:  Well she always had service charges on them right?  Her three meters

Director Richardson:  But no consumption

Director Skoien:  Yeah, OK

Director Richardson:  So how could you run a toilet with no consumption?

Mrs. Poe:  Whenever, whenever water ran through those lines

Director Skoien:  Well I don’t know about the consumption

Mrs. Poe:  that, those bills were paid.  We never had a late charge, we never had dumb charge, we never had

Director Richardson:  No, I understand you paid your bills, yeah.

Mrs. Poe:  yeah

[I have no doubt that the Poes or their sons paid their bills because failure to do so would have resulted in disconnection and removal of the meters, which again, may have produced an investigation as to how they were originally installed.]

Director Richardson:  Unfortunately it looks like on paperwork the bill paying was going to three separate properties.

Mrs. Poe:  No, it was not going to, stop it, it’s not three separate properties.  Three different people in a family.

[OK, then why weren’t the three meters registered to that one family APN where the “family subdivision” was to take place?  Again, was Poe’s son John Terry the other third original party associated with the Shaw property?]

Director Richardson:  No I understand what you’re saying but there’s absolutely no documentation to that affect.

Mrs. Poe:  Oh yes there is, there was twenty years of bills.  There’s twenty years of bills

Director Richardson:  With your APN number on those meters?  No, I don’t believe so.  There are three separate APN numbers

[Again, I do not doubt for a second those bills were paid because if they WERE NOT the meters would have been pulled just as it was suggested in the CSD payment request for the extension and annexation follow-up. They would have lost water service because Outside MIDPOU (Outside Merced Irrigation District Place of Use restrictions) properties are not charged an availability fee – they are not entitled to Lake McClure water and have no obligation to pay availability charges.]

Mrs. Poe:  No there’s not, show me, show me

Director Richardson:  I told you I don’t have it, you should have asked me that last meeting when I was up there at the map I had them.  (MRs. Poe talking in background)

Mrs. Poe:  (inaudible) and I want to know who, I want to know who, if I have to get a lawyer, who put those numbers on there without our permission?

[A possible clue to the answer might involve who had the meters installed and why?  Who would benefit from “misinformation in the files” to obtain those meters?]

Director Richardson:  Well I’d like to know too.  Well I would think it would be the people that had something to gain which would be water connection to properties that were outside MIDPOU, would be my first, would be my first guess, and the fact that maybe a realtor was involved using three different names might be another clue.

[Basic question: Who stood something to gain?]

Mrs. Poe: But why did it never show up on our bill or something?

Director Richardson:  Because there were three separate properties.

Mrs. Poe:  And why would she use Mrs. Shaw’s name?

[I have no idea whether Martin/Morasci/Madden, Mrs. or Mr. Poe, Mrs. Poe’s sons (John Terry, Michael Terry or Hank Pattison) or someone in the CSD office (or all of them) were responsible for misusing someone else’s APN to facilitate the meter installations.] 

Director Richardson:  Maybe because she’s out of the area, and didn’t know what was going on

Mrs. Poe:  All I know is

Director Richardson:   I don’t know, I agree with you, I agree with you 100% there needs to be an investigation, I agree.

[There are still people in the area who know the facts of this situation and Wes Snyder is one of them.]

Mrs. Poe:  All I know is we are an honest family, we’re not trying to screw anybody out of anything

Director Richardson:  Right

Mrs. Poe:  We did the right thing, we paid a woman’s bill that we shouldn’t, I wish now we hadn’t.

[But that action would certainly have resulted in the meters being removed by CSD long ago.]

Director Richardson:  I don’t know why you would agree to go into business with someone you’ve never even met?

[I still have a problem with this information.  Reminds me of another curious point, why would ANYONE purchase property for a considerable sum of money without confirming they could even get water?  Just doesn’t make sense.]

Mrs. Poe:  Because, well we didn’t, we, because, like I said at the other board meeting, we just are, thought everybody was as honest as we are.

Director Richardson:  Well that’s a dangerous thing to think.

Mrs. Poe:  Yes it is, it is sad.

Director Richardson:  Yes it is

Mrs. Poe:  It’s a sad thing and I don’t know who put those names, they never came in the bill, nothing.  That was like all a secret from us, boy.  I don’t get it.

[Bills are generated from the information contained in the office records.]

Director Richardson:  It’s amazing that you paid standby fees for all those years and not use those meters.

Mrs. Poe:  We didn’t pay a standby fee

Director Richardson:  I mean a monthly service charge, excuse me.

Mrs. Poe:  We, we called once and asked them if they could disconnect them and we were told no.

[Why would you accept “NO” for an answer?  You said the family had abandoned the idea of subdividing your 41.43 acre parcel and your husband’s medication was very expensive, why continue to pay the monthly service fee?  Did the CSD refuse to disconnect because the water service was an “exception to the rule” to begin with?  Or that the annexation never took place?  How would CSD bill an availability charge to an Outside MIDPOU which has no obligation to pay for water they cannot obtain?  Were the requests to pull the meters presented by Directors Ross and Skoien in January the result of Mrs. Poe becoming aware that the Martin/Morasci property was to be sold and she would lose her opportunity to be reimbursed for the line extension? (The meter registered to the Martin property could have easily been relocated to the Martin water box.)]

VP Kinsella:  OK times, OK, times up.

Director Skoien:  Lew I’m sure you’ve seen this, this is one bill on, I think it’s ninety, I can’t tell it’s dark

Director Richardson:  Is that from Mr. Nichols?

Director Skoien:  No, no, it’s for her and it’s

Director Richardson:  From Mr. Nichols?

Director Skoien:  Huh? 

Director Richardson:  Is it from Mr. Nichols?

Director Skoien:  No, it’s our bill, from our CSD

VP Kinsella:  Thank you Mrs. Poe

Director Richardson:  Oh, oh OK

Director Skoien:  What we billed them, and it states a bunch of stuff and it’s twenty-nine hundred dollars, sixty eight to her, and then it says, for Martin about the same amount of money, and it says Martin service hookup excludes meter fee.  Now this was all in that packet that I was asking about the last time and I actually called you at home and left you a message but you never called me back.

[Honestly, I am not comfortable talking on the phone with directors who have misrepresented the facts of this situation from the beginning, besides, there’s the issue of a potential serial meeting – Brown Act violation.]

Director Richardson:  No, no I

Director Skoien:  That I had found this because

Director Richardson:  Did you listen to the tape of the January meeting also where you said there was a meter on the Morasci

Director Skoien:  Ah no I didn’t, I didn’t listen to it, I figured you would but

Director Richardson:  You know I did

Director Skoien:  No, I

Director Richardson:  No I understand, you’re saying you meant only a meter box

Director Skoien:  Exactly

Director Richardson:  No I understand that

Director Skoien:  and when I said hookup, no meter

Director Richardson:  Yeah but there is a pressurized line to the box

Director Skoien:  Yes, yeah, a meter could go in there right, but yeah, that’s one of the things that I was going to ask you, the other was I found this stuff and I did misspoke, or misspeak or whatever you want, cuz I

Director Richardson:  And I didn’t, I didn’t jump up and call you a liar did I?

Director Skoien:  Ah, yeah you did

Director Richardson:  No I said you misrepresented it

Director Skoien:  Well let’s just say you didn’t vapor lock as much as you did earlier today in that room

[This “vapor lock” comment refers to the Closed Session meeting.] 

Director Richardson:  yeah, vapor lock, yeah.  Well that’s the difference between you and I, I won’t call you a liar in public, you know, and I’ve never called you liar at all

Director Skoien:  OK let me, let me finish my point

VP Kinsella:  Get back to the issue

Director Skoien:  For the record, you make it hard to apologize, for the record, I did misspeak because where I got this, the married thing from was also in that packet

[OK, you misspoke about confirming Emery’s story there was a meter on the Martin/Morasci property and now you apologize for also accusing me of stating one of Poe’s sons was married to one of the property owners who had a meter registered to their property.  OK, fine.  Better slow down and get your facts straight before accusing someone in an open meeting.]

Director Richardson:  Right

Director Skoien:  and it says Hank Pattison, parentheses Donna Morasci/Martin wife

Mrs. Poe:  (inaudible) who did that?

Director Skoien:  and it says Syndie Marchesiello utility billing, but that’s what I had read and by reading it, and I’ll tell you, I get confused reading all this crap sometimes, the agendas, and

Secretary Reeves:  Let me know when your For The Record Stops

Director Skoien:  no, no I, the For the Record is still on because

VP Kinsella:  You’ve got to change the tape right?

Secretary Reeves:  No

Director Skoien:  I con, I confused where I read it, sometimes actual information that comes in our Board Packet Lew does post on the blog, you know, he’s not creating it, he may post it, and I was wrong where I had read this, that’s all I’m saying for the record.

Director Richardson:  Well I appreciate that, thank you

Director Skoien:  But this came out of this office, and this bill also came out of this office and what I might say just on top of it doesn’t solve anything but this CSD was very, very negligent I think way back in the day because this should have been legally billed to separate people, not let this lady take care of it, it should have billed

[Negligence of the CSD or intentional deception to gain water connections to Outside MIDPOU properties without confirmation of the information provided?  Seems everyone else is subject to accusations of wrongdoing except the people who clearly stood something to gain.  The Billing Officer only reported what was contained in the files.]

Director Richardson:  That’s assuming one story is believed over another which could possibly be

Director Skoien:  About the tunneling?

Director Richardson: No, no,no, the tunneling I understand,

Director Skoien:  that’s the billing I’m talking about

Director Richardson:  but, but what I agreed with Mrs. Poe about is a definite serious investigation needs to take place here especially with the possibility that there was inside maneuvers within the CSD.

[The SO GOSIP just want everything to be “water under the bridge”, forget about the past, ignore glaring contradictions regarding how and why those meters were installed; just go along with the program presented by Ross & Skoien and give everyone what they want, whether entitled or not.   Everyone seems to forget those properties were never annexed as agreed and required.  How could Ramona Shaw even know she was supposed to annex if monthly service bills were sent to and paid by Poe’s son instead?  How could that property be annexed without the property owner’s knowledge?  It could not.]

Director Skoien:  But that’s all on Morasci

Director Richardson:  Morasci I believe is the way to

Director Skoien:  OK, Morasci

Director Richardson:  but it also involves Shaw because (multiple voices) the two meters were registered to the other

VP Kinsella: OK, what else, hold it, hold it, Charise?

Secretary Reeves:  I just want to make one comment because Mark as referred to as Marchesiello, everything that has been presented by staff is what was found in files, all of this occurred prior to

Director Skoien:  I was just reading what was on this paper

Secretary Reeves:  any, any of us being here

Director Skoien:  Right, right absolutely

Secretary Reeves:  So, in reference to an investigation of going back to figure out what happened, you have nothing because there are no staff members here that were here at that time

[There were employees at that time who could still be contacted to substantiate our CSD records.  But yes, that list with time, is growing increasingly shorter.  This is another reason the SO GOSIP hate this website —-documentation as to past statements and actions of disingenuous individuals.]

Director Ross:  Or board members

[Recall that it was Wes Barton who first asked if the two meters installed were related to the Poe matter and Ross stated they definitely were not?]

Secretary Reeves:  Or board members, very true, I just want that absolutely clear because Ms. Marchesiello brought what was in the files, she did not create it, she did not do it, she provided what was there and that’s as much as this staff can do.

[Same old story.  Always want to blame someone else or “shoot the messenger” who provides unpleasant or contradictory information.]

Director Richardson:  Right

Mrs. Poe:  Just real quick

VP Kinsella:  OK, one last comment, go ahead

Mrs. Poe:  Ahum, Charise anything that’s on file of those, of the bills I had to bring at that meeting that was a couple of years ago whenever it was, those bills came from me bringing them, they couldn’t tell me what happened to a lot of my files, and stuff, luckily I had this in a different box.  I mean what I do have today.  So, I mean, I just don’t understand why that once that was approved and all that we went through, that that property had water if nothing else under the grandfather law.

[If this were all a simple mistake that would be one thing, but wrongful behavior – even if committed twenty years ago, should not be rewarded.  Everything about this matter seems inappropriate right up to the fact that then Board President Emery Ross was deeply involved in this case and has been clearly linked to some highly suspicious activity.]

VP Kinsella:  OK

Mrs. Poe:  So,

VP Kinsella:  We’ll have to be doing a little more checking on this thing.

Director Richardson:  Can we take a break or something?

VP Kinsella:  Yeah, let’s take a ten minute break.

Wes Barton:  Ok, before you do, go to break can I say something?

Director Skoien:  Yeah that will makes us really, that will make us really want a break

Wes Barton:  Mrs. Poe I would appreciate your staying for (inaudible)  I’ll make it short,

Mrs. Poe:  OK (inaudible)

Wes Barton:  Ah you challenged me earlier Lew about what do you do to solve problems, OK?  One of my favorite authors is a guy by the name of Steven Cubby he had seven habits.  Hopefully some of you have read it, one of his habits was start with the end in mind, OK?  We’ve got a guy here that wants to buy property, he wants to get a hookup, he wants to get water and was related to the Poe poll, the Poe property so we need to start at that point.  We’ve got a new customer.  Then we need to say OK, what do we have to do to get the water there?  OK?  It doesn’t mean argue over fifty years ago

[Sorry Mr. Barton but I think you are starting off with the wrong premise, we do not have a new customer, we had a potential new customer but the meter registered to his property that was paid for and installed by the Poes, was also removed by the Poes.  The property is OUTSIDE THE DISTRICT, OUTSIDE MIDPOU, AND WAS NEVER ANNEXED AS ORIGINALLY AGREED.  I believe Mr. Schartz stated he had already purchased the property with the impression he could receive water from the CSD.  His understanding of the water situation is a buyer-seller disclosure matter that should have been made perfectly clear to him PRIOR TO PURCHASING THE PROPERTY.]

Director Skoien:  It means take a meter there and hook it up  

Mrs. Poe:  Amen

[Naturally Poe would be happy with such action because the new owner will pay what the previous owner owed Mrs. Poe (gosh, isn’t this exactly what the people demanding refund of their reconnection fees say is wrong?  Making a new owner pay for the debts of the prior owner?) and the new owner would be happy because he can get CSD water to an outside MIDPOU property even though it further taxes our only ground well used for surface water transfers required by MID.  That’s another issue all together.  Some of the same people who advocate expanding use of the Ranchito Well to provide water service outside the MIDPOU have commented that the Ranchito Well test (to determine capacity) may have lowered the water table which could make the CSD liable for damages.  GOOD GRIEF!  NO MATTER WHAT IS DONE – THERE WILL ALWAYS BE COMPLAINTS AND THREATS FROM THIS GROUP!]

Wes Barton:  it means what do we have to do, it means what do we have to get there, OK?  And then take it back the next step if you have to, what do we have to do to solve that problem?  What do we have to do to solve that problem?  Within four or five steps we’re going to have these people with water.  Is it going to solve the problems we got here on this board?  No.  But let me throw something at you, in my being involved with this board OK?  We’ve given away money because of bad contracts with Deerwood, ah we were talking about today giving away money because of bad contracts with the county, so unless we’re talking about forty-fifty thousand dollars OK?  If we have to write off something that was way back when to solve the problems that we’ve got in this district, to get the water in there, OK?  I’d say let’s get the water in there and figure out all this other stuff in house and decide if we have to write some of it off whatever, but let’s let’s take a look at what’s what’s really important in this whole thing and that is get the water in there and then we’ll solve the problems and go through the investigation afterwards.

[Do I understand correctly?  The principle of the matter is subordinate to the amount of money lost?  Whether $40,000-$50,000 or something lessor or greater, a principle, a rule or policy should trump the monetary value at stake.  Turn our heads to ethics and regulations when convenient or easy to facilitate an easy solution? How can you reward possible wrongful activity then go back and investigate later?  You cannot un-ring a bell or stuff a Genie back in the bottle.]

VP Kinsella:  OK, ten minute break.

Secretary Reeves:  OK, at 4:44.

[Short discussion by Director Ross of email by Dan Tynan regarding updating policies]

Back on record 4:55

Item o. Information concerning Poe meter removal.

 

Director Richardson:  Yeah, just a couple of things, ah Director Ross how did you come into possession of the letters? 

[Why would the then Board President be personally handling “evidence” regarding this matter?  Why were those letters not mailed to the CSD Billing office in an envelope with a postmark?  Ross was advised on Friday January 14^th, 2011 the two meters he wanted removed from the Poe property required such a request from the property owners, yet instead, he presented at the January 18^th meeting two letters from Mrs. Poe’s sons John Terry and Hank Pattison dated January 14^th requesting meter removals from certain accounts – not the registered property owner.] 

Director Ross:  I’ll wait till you finish OK?  Cuz this is not a cross examination or like a deposition, you, you (inaudible) your questions out and then I’ll answer when you’re done.

[Director Ross is absolutely correct.  He is not required to answer my questions or any ratepayer’s questions for that matter.  If he chooses not to explain his contradictory statements, personal involvement, or peculiar behavior regarding this, and other matters, that is his personal decision but he should not be surprised that such a refusal by an elected public official, trusted to represent the interests of others, will only generate more legitimate questions.] 

Director Richardson:  OK, well

Director Ross:  When you’re all done I’ll try to make notes

Director Richardson:  OK well then, then my statements

Director Ross:  I’ll try to remember what you say

Director Richardson:  Well I’ll tell you what let’s do this For the Record, and I’ll get you a copy of it

Secretary Reeves:  OK

Director Richardson:  of everything said.  Ah regarding the Poe investigation as you entitled your May 3^rd email which was sent to all directors and not to the billing office, that was one of my questions, why it wasn’t sent to the billing office?  Ah, I also question why an investigation was conducted by you when only three months earlier you stated that directors were not to ever investigate.  Ahum, that the clarification email contains a number of errors, and again I’m curious of how you came into possession of two letters allegedly written by Mrs. Poe’s two sons to have the meters removed, why they weren’t just mailed into the office?  Ahum, and why it was never clearly brought up until a request for information regarding the statements of January 18^th that Marin and Morasci were in fact the same people and evidently, if you can believe Google and a Department of Real Estate License Check she also goes by Donna Madden and has a ah, cease and desist order for doing business in real estate.

Director Skoien:  M-A-D-D-E-N Lew?

Director Richardson:  Yes, M-A-D-D-E-N, all first names of Donna, and I don’t know why the, the investigation and subsequent email would even be necessary since you stated you were very familiar with Donna Morasci and who she was involved with.  Let’s see, and I’m particularly concerned that Director Ross is the only person that has ever seen a meter on the Morasci and Shaw property when there are no records of it ever being installed or existing and why photographs were taken of the three meters on the Poe property and not one of the meter on Morasci’s property.  Ah, the other question I had you’ve already cleared up Director Skoien, that it was a mistake, you didn’t mean to say meter you meant to say meter box, but regardless, where you stated that I had misunderstood something, I didn’t misunderstand anything I heard you quite clearly, what you said you misstated

[Why is it that Emery Ross seems to be the only person to have seen that Magical Mystery Meter and is so personally involved in this matter?]

Director Skoien:  Yeah I said I misspoke

Director Richardson:  Yeah and so that’s no problem, that’s no problem

Secretary Reeves:  We’re still in the middle of For the Record so,

Director Skoien:  OK

Director Richardson:  Ahum

Director Skoien:  I’m with ya

Director Richardson:  The information that Mrs. Poe shared today is extremely relevant and important if it means that any records in our office have been tampered with to someone’s benefit or not, and my biggest question I guess would be, if you observed a meter on Morasci’s and Shaw’s property and then later discovered them to be missing, why a utility of CSD equipment wasn’t reported to the Sheriff’s office?  That’s it.

[There’s a big boo-boo on my part…..left out the word theft after utility!  Well, never been much of a public speaker, but the question remains.   According to Ross a meter was there, then it was gone and he was surprised.  WHY DIDN’T HE REPORT A UTILITY EQUIPMENT THEFT?]  

Director Ross:  That it?

Director Richardson:  That’s it.

Director Ross:  OK, thanks.  I’ll get back to you someday.

[Now there’s a mature answer to some serious questions that doesn’t instill much confidence in his integrity.  Sure won’t be holding my breath for his answers.  Every director on this board represents the customers of this district and has a duty to fairly and honestly perform their job.  It is extremely frustrating to attend these “Gladiator Pit Meetings” only to face the SO GOSIP and their spurious accusations and complaints.  Naturally I realize there are hundreds and hundreds of customers too busy with their own lives in this struggling economy to attend meetings, OK, but I also believe that makes it even more imperative that those individuals elected to such positions do a COMPETENT JOB OF REPRESENTING THOSE WHO ARE NOT INFORMED OR INVOLVED.  Maybe Emery Ross can be a smart-ass and refuse to answer relevant questions now, but hopefully someday a  proper authority with jurisdiction will be able to “Crack that Nut”, but until then, I will keep asking legitimate questions whether answered or not.]

 I’ll tell you about that meter though, OK?  The meter, ah, I was driving along, I said to Betsie let’s check this meter out, and this was long before all this stuff started.  I stopped, had a small flashlight, we’re in I think my truck, go on over open the box up saw what I thought was one of those old rectangular meters.  So I said you know what there’s a meter in there, that’s weird there’s not supposed be a meter because we only knew there was three, up there, OK? 

[OK.  Got it.  I was curious as to how Mr. Ross would logically explain contradictory statements as to whether he did or did not observe a water meter on the Martin property (not to mention the Shaw property.)  Does this sound remotely reasonable to you?  …..  Just driving around one night and suddenly having the inexplicable urge to look into someone else’s water box just to see what was in there?  Seriously, I wonder, since “this was long before all this stuff started”, how many other meter boxes has Emery inspected at night?  Has, or will he, be inspecting YOURS?  Good grief.

OK in keeping with the Halloween spirit, submitted for your approval is a little Halloween story.  Don’t be too afraid…… 

(Imagine creepy music playing in the background) …..Could Emery Ross be responsible for the numerous reports of a “dim flickering light” in isolated areas around these rough and rugged foothills?  Could this explain the jingle jangle ring of All Terrain Vehicle Tire Spurs (ATVTS) through the dense under brush, tall grass while creeping Oak tree shadows move by a pale moonlight?  A twig snaps!  A coyote howls and an Owl glides past a foreclosed home.  A Scorpion rests on a rock during an evening prowl for food and a Tarantula’s legs pick their way over a cowboy boot.  OH!  The excitement of it all!  Could he be, dare I say – THE PHANTOM BOX INSPECTOR?

Can you imagine the courage and dedication it must take to perform such nighttime meter box inspections when the elusive “Rancho Santa Teresa Monster” lurks in that very area?  In a June 2007 Foothill Express article entitled “Eyewitnesses describe very large, very hairy animals” Emery Ross in his own words describes the horrifying experience with the creature that bears his ranch name: 

“Very late on a moonless night, while checking on a cow we call Cleo, who had just had a calf, I encountered a very large, hairy, light gray animal.  The animal came within 12 inches of me and the ATV I was on, so it was easy to determine its size.  The animal was 40 inches tall and about the length of a Honda Foreman ATV or about seven feet long.  When the animal walked, it had a very smooth, almost floating gait.  I saw this animal two months ago and was surprised when the Foothill Express got a call from someone else who saw it recently.  It was sighted three miles from where I saw it.”

http://www.foothillexpress.com/columns/ranching/2007/0607-ranching.html

Only 12 INCHES away?  Could it have been sitting in his lap undetected?

WHAT’S MY COVERAGE DOC?

I do wonder however if SDRMA (Special District Risk Management Authority) would cover a director’s injuries resulting from a monster attack while out meter box inspecting at night?

What about a Rattlesnake bite, or a fall down one of those roadway cliffs?  How about a lead pellet in the posterior from an angry or frightened property owner?  Fortunately, he was accompanied by his wife, witness, and lookout, but still the thought of meeting up with that monster conjures all sort of horrible images and a short Halloween news report ……..

LATE BREAKING KLCR NEWS…….Government officials in Lake Don Pedro California are baffled with the recent unearthed remnants of a cowboy costume discovered near the scene of an apparent violent attack.  An unconfirmed Federal Wildlife spokesman described the scene as “gruesome” and that “an obvious violent struggle had taken place”.    Other unconfirmed sources report tattered pieces of a blue rhinestone incrusted embroidered western shirt, chunks of a large black Stetson hat, and fragments of a hand stitched “wild rag” were strewn about the grisly scene.  Forensic wildlife experts quickly ruled out a Bear or large cat attack but reluctantly commented “the responsible species is unknown at this time”.  Extensive evidence was collected at the location for later laboratory analysis along with detailed photographs of what appeared to be a fresh and very large footprint in moist soil near a leaking water connection a short distance away.   Officials refused to speculate on when the attack might have occurred.  An unidentified source relayed that a scratched message in the rock hard Don Pedro soil was possibly a final clue left by the, as of yet unknown, victim who used the broken piece of a silver spur to carve the words:  “I found it”.  

NOW BACK TO THE MAGICAL MYSTERY METER TOUR]

So I came home and I said look up the outside place of use and so, they’re all numbers, so I said no you’ve got to go back and look for names, so we went back and looked at names and I said you know what?  There’s no, there’s no, there’s no record of her having a meter, it was long before you even came into the picture and so then I, I think I asked Charise, I think at another meeting I said is she on availability or is she on standby?  And I said that three times, in three meetings and Charise never answered, but over here, I can tell you this that in Syndie’s memo she states exactly what I state here she says there’s a meter, if I can find it here, ah let’s see, ah, where is that, see if I can find it in this memo from Syndie, let’s see, the adjoining lots have not been paying availability, which is dated five-eleven, that answered my question that I keep asking, Syndie said that, because they have meters attached to them.  That’s all I have to say.  You figure it out.  Syndie’s, Syndie’s records not mine.  Syndie’s memo and the other three meters belong to her, they’re her meters, they’re not Morasci’s, she said that property, Syndie’s letter, that they haven’t been paying availability cuz they got a meter.

[Got a better idea — why don’t you explain what you’re doing?  And here’s a big clue:  The two meters on the Poe property were registered to two other parcels south of the Poe property – that’s why the two properties to the south were not paying an availability fee because according to the records they were already paying a monthly service fee for the meters registered to those properties.  Besides how can CSD charge an availability fee to an Outside MID Place of Use Property that has no legal obligation to pay such?] 

Secretary Reeves:  I’ll, can I respond to that one? 

VP Kinsella:  Sure

Secretary Reeves:  I’m going to clarify and take a stab at this, but that would probably be because in our Springbrook system when Syndie looked at it, it was listed witih

Director Ross (interrupting):  I’m not saying anything about Syndie, I’m just reading (inaudible)

Secretary Reeves:  the APNs of Morasci, Pattison is how it was, and Shaw and

Director Ross:  But it confirms the fact that I

Secretary Reeves:  that’s why she would say, no they have meters because in our system they had them under the other two APNs

Director Ross:  Well whatever, it says here they had meters so they didn’t pay availability, so they weren’t paying availability that means that that lot must have had a meter, because why aren’t they paying availability, those meters belong to her, they don’t belong to Morasci or Shaw

[Records to Emery, Records to Emery, come in Emery……… Records to Emery, can you hear me Major Ross?  Can you hear us Major Ross?    Urgent message from Earth Command reads as follows:

The two meters for which Mrs. Poe’s sons (Hank Pattison and John Terry) were paying monthly service charges for years were registered to other properties owned by Mrs. Martin and Mrs. Shaw due south of the Poe property.]

Director Richardson:  Mrs. Poe’s sons were paying the monthly service charge

Director Ross:  Yeah, well I don’t

Director Richardson:  Right, but they were registered to the two other properties

Director Ross:  Yeah,

Director Richardson:  Right, that’s what we’ve been saying

Director Skoien:  That’s what the APNs saying, she says no

[STOP THE INSANITY!  WHAT MAKES MORE COMMON SENSE?]

Secretary Reeves:  That’s what he’s been saying

Director Richardson:  Right, when has CSD ever installed multiple meters on a lot that hasn’t been subdivided?

Director Ross:  She was

Director Skoien:  Well, back then, when they say

Director Richardson:  I haven’t found one example

Director Skoien:  Listen, listen, hear me out Lew, back then when you think what would happen under the highway could have happened like then now?  And all that work to get it under there, we want to sell you water just like you know, I know Wes Synder went all around and we’ll give you water, yeah, yeah, yeah well that’s three meters.  Sell, sell, sell

Director Richardson:  I know, but not for one property, there were three properties

Director Skoien:  Yeah but back then, back then,

Director Richardson:  There are three properties not one.

Director Skoien:  No, no, back then who knows?

Secretary Reeves:  We don’t know

Director Ross:  I know of a lot, it’s just like parcel that has seven meters, has seven meters and it’s not subdivided, he has a guarantee, the Sturtevent property has a guarantee of seven meters, he’s, and and there’s a record

Secretary Reeves:  I’m going to guess that was a special deal because we have a tank

Director Ross:  Yeah, because of the tank

Director Skoien:  Yeah

Director Ross:  So he has seven meters and it is not subdivided.

Director Skoien:  So who knows what went on back then?

[That’s precisely why records are maintained — to keep track of what happened in the past.]

Director Richardson:  Well we’re going to have to find out.

Director Ross:  That was in exchange for giving him an acre for the, for the tank, which serves his house.

[The guarantee of supplying seven water meters as part of a deal to obtain an acre of land upon which to construct a large water tank is a considerably different fact pattern than three meters on one parcel with one registered to a consuming property and the other two registered to neighboring unimproved lots which are Outside MIDPOU, outside the District Service Boundary and were never annexed as originally agreed.  Apples and oranges.]   

Director Skoien:  All I know is, I don’t want to speak for, well Mr. Schartz is coming up, so I’ll just, I’ll just wait. 

VP Kinsella:  OK, anybody else have anything else on this?  Onward and upward.

 

[Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive.

Sir Walter Scott, Scottish Author & Novelist (1771-1832).]

 

My best to you and yours, Lew 

BROWN “BAT” VIOLATIONS

 

Yes indeed, the last LDPCSD Meeting on October 21st, 2011, actually scheduled as a Personnel matter, only provided another opportunity for a handful of the SO GOSIP (Same Old Group Of Special Interest People) to YET AGAIN intentionally disrupt a public business meeting. 

Considering the season and the absurd nature of their arguments and complaints, guess one could say they are “hollow-weenies”  🙂 

Before addressing this most recent display of counterproductive activity, let’s see if we can get through some more information from the last Regular Monthly Meeting on October 17th, 2011.  

  

“LEW’S VIEW” CONTINUED

Regarding the

REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING OF THE

LAKE DON PEDRO COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT

Monday, October 17^th, 2011 1300hrs

NOTE: Verbatim transcriptions were based on analog and digital recordings.

Here are some brief descriptions of agenda items, Board decisions, and pertinent verbatim transcriptions.

XXXXX

3.  DISCUSSION/ACTION

c.Conference with Legal Counsel – Potential litigation Government Code Section 54956.9 (b)(3)  Number of potential cases: two

REPORT OUT OF ACTION TAKEN DURING CLOSED SESSION:  The Board unanimously declined the claims by Mr. Hoover and Mrs. Agee for reimbursement of monies.

d.Interim General Manager’s Report: D Tynan.  Water loss, SCADA system difficulties requiring equipment replacement, eye wash station repaired, Ranchito Well testing continuing – must wait for stabilization, communication equipment for field operators, started “Blow Off” project for the plant – waiting for other components to finish [equipment enables discharging of “bad water”],  and continuing the color coding of fire hydrant pressures within district.

e. Treasurer’s Report: C Reeves, Treasurer/Secretary to the Board.  Unanimous Board approval to read and file October Treasurer’s reports for reporting period September 2011 and to pay Department of Public Health bill, and scheduling the Audit Presentation for the Regular Meeting on November 21^st.

f. Consent Calendar.  Approve, read and file of the consent calendar.

Special Meeting Minutesfor July 25^th, 2011 not approved.   Kinsella, Richardson aye, Skoien Nay, and Emery Ross abstain.  [Due to verbatim transcript portions of Minutes]

Board approval of Special Meeting Minutes, August 4^th, 2011; Regular Meeting Minutes August 15^th, 2011; Special Meeting Minutes August 26^th, 2011, and correspondence.  Vote:  Directors Kinsella, Skoien and Richardson aye, Director Ross nay due to verbatim transcript.

g. Wastewater Meter Reading.  IGM Tynan follow-up report on bill containing the error with meter reading.  Representative from Public Works failed to attend meeting as scheduled.  Discussion of the 10% interest [$4,500/mo] on the balance due being waived for this month; public suggestion of shutting off water to the plant; how the previous meter read in gallons not traditional units of 748 gallons; and the majority of the bill regarded meter placement cost not water consumption.  Director Ross suggested IGM Tynan talk with Public Works again and bring it back to the Board.  Directors Kinsella and Richardson advocated putting everything in writing to establish a paper trail.  Kalvin Gile stated he spoke with “them” about the matter and “they” were interested in resolving the matter but maybe not for the whole amount.  Board consensus to have Charise Reeves compose a letter to Public Works, for IGM Tynan, reiterating the matter with another month of interest waived until our next board meeting and requesting their attendance of the November 21^st, 2011 (since the last two board meetings were missed) with their response to the billing with copies to the Board of Supervisors and County Counsel.  Board approval to waive the fees pending an answer.     

Kalvin Gile was late for the meeting and asked questions concerning information in Treasurer’s Reports for preceding years.   

h. One Day a Month for Policy.  Request by IGM Tynan to dedicate one day per month for a meeting to work on policies.  Special Meeting set for November 14^th, 2011 @ 10am – 1pm to start policy updating beginning with Personnel.

i. Counsel/Mediator.  IGM Tynan to discuss having counsel or a mediator at each meeting.  Meeting with a mediator before and after the next regular monthly meeting [in public so as not to violate the Brown Act] to conform and meet Grand Jury recommendation.

j. Request from Wes Barton – Follow-up on September Discussion.  Discussion regarding follow-up to his letter and presentation in September including a new letter to the Board of Directors.  

Wes Barton:  Still on the budget, and actually it’s also the answer to the mediator job too, you know, if we were all focused on doing the same thing we don’t need a mediator and our biggest problem is that we’re not all focused on the same thing.  We’re back to the budget and using the budget.  The budget is a, the budget that we’re using is just, we’re showing five years, basically five years, it may be going to get changed again in a little bit because there was a couple of corrections with the ah, the ah, ah retirement monies and things of that nature.  But it is basically a five year plan of just showing numbers without saying what we’re doing, how we’re solving the problems we have, etc., OK?  I’m not, I’m not complaining about what is in the budget, I’m complaining about what is not in the budget, OK?  And in the budget we say at the end of five years ah we’ll have something like $970,000 worth of cash.  But what it doesn’t say is that the five year plan, that was put together and has never been rejected by this board, said we were going to spend a million-two on capital assets, CALPEX capital projects, and this budget says of that million-two we’re now only going to spend 417 so if we had a, a need for a million-two that means we’re deferring $800,000, that’s still going to have to be done.  And you old timers that have been around here remember what all this got started with getting some financial statements and doing, trying to do some of the right things, was we had like ah, Bob Kent used to say, needed a million dollars a year for 50 years for all the capital expenditures, bu (inaudible) We definitely have major capital expenditures that need to be done.  If you go back from 2005 I think it is through 2010 we were averaging $185,000 a year capital expenditures and still we were crying that we didn’t have enough money for the capital expenditures, but now we’re saying we’re only going to spend 400?  So, yep, something’s wrong with those numbers we are going to need more capital expenditures sometime during this next five years.  If you take the million two, you back up the 417 which is what we’re budgeting that means you’re a shortfall of $802,000.  OK?  That’s $802,000 out of 970,000 you say we’re going to have.  Ah, if you take your PERS retirement and ah, Charise you can correct me if I’m wrong on this, but I think with the corrected numbers at the end of 2015 if you add that $168,000 a year in, over the last five years plus the 208 you end up with $833,000 ah, which once again, is another $833,000 that we’re saying that we have that liability, it’s going to have to be paid, we’re going to further discuss this later on, because I’m still not personally, I’m not satisfied with that number, but that’s where we’re at right now.  Ah, the ah, then we have ah, ah, one of the premises with this was so we had money in case of emergencies and cash flow to balance out the fluctuation from one month to another.  Bartle and Wells recommended 25% which is another $460,000.  OK?  Now if you take $460,000 plus $800,000, plus $800,000 you’re over two million and, that we need, even if we don’t spend it, theoretically we should be restricting the $973,000 by two million, OK?  And actually that’s a million in the hole, OK?  Point of this is that the budget, if you take a look at the budget, we’re saying OK, we’re going to increase our costs over the next five years by something like, ignoring interest, by something like $255,000, we’re going to increase our revenue over the next five years by something like $300,000 so for all intents and purposes what we’re saying here is for the next five years we’re just going to basically do the same thing we’ve been doing for five years that has gotten us into this same problem.  OK?  And that does not satisfy me, I just had my rates increased a 100% and if at the end of this five years we’re still in the hole another million dollars, I’m going to get my rates increased another 100%, doesn’t make sense to me, just does not make sense to me.  So that’s what I mean by what isn’t said in this budget.  Now we’ve got price cost issues, we’ve got less than half of the people that are paying the bulk of the money, OK?  We need to solve the problem of the unimproved lots paying additional money.  Now, is it double like we were talking before?  I don’t know.  Is it half of what we were talking before?  I don’t know, but it’s a hell of a lot more than what we’re getting right now.  Ah, that has to be addressed, there are several different ways to address it, it’s in my three or four letters that I’ve got here so, the board has it, I’m not going to go into the details.  Cost to operate, yeah it’s fine, I’m not picking on you, but to make Dan give up his $100 pants OK, when he’s also going to have to meet people and things of that nature isn’t going to get us out of the hole.  What’s going to get us out of the hole is to set and look at every job we do, OK?  And look at it and say, is the customer, does the customer requires us to do this job this activity?  Does the government require us to do it?  Ah, is it something we have to have to keep the place clean and neat?  And, basically if it isn’t, let’s get rid of it and you’re going to end up finding out, back in the days of consulting, we used to go into an operation knowing that we were going to find 30 or 50% of the cost was waste.  OK?  Because it wasn’t satisfying the customer, it wasn’t meeting requirements, it was just things that grew over a period of time that you didn’t need.  That’s where you’re going to decrease your costs.  Simplify, get rid of activities and the ones you have to have in the end, automate them make them work better.  That’s where the moneys at, its work, but that’s what’s got to happen if we’re ever going to bring these costs down and get them back anyway shape, closer to 2005 plus you know, the, excuse me the CPI, ah, Capital Expenditures we’ve basically already talked about that, ah.  Disclosures of risk and liabilities for the next five years.  You know, and business interruption, I’m going to combine these two together.  I honestly believe, and I believe if you use common sense and you say we have not been spending the money to correct our capital items, we’re going to have some major break downs, OK?  When we have major break downs how are we going to get out water?  What is our emergency plan to get our water?  Well as far as I know we don’t have an emergency plan to get our water.  And I’m not talking about are we insured to come out here and rebuild the treatment plant I’m talking about how am I going to get my drinking water and how it’s, what’s it going to cost me to get it?  What’s our plan?  To the best of my knowledge we don’t have a plan.  Ah, new business opportunities, we’re going to talk about some of those in a few minutes.  You know we beat some of these folks to death when all they’re wanting to do is get some water and we’ve got three or four major items, the SOI we don’t know what our SOI is, that Sphere of Influence. We don’t know what the usage, the ah MID usage system is, ah, we got, we got all kinds of issues like this that we’re assigned to talk about resolving but we don’t have a plan to resolve them.  When I talk about a plan what I mean is, is what are we going to do?  When are we going to do it?  Who’s responsible for doing it?  Who’s measuring it as we go along and do it?  OK?  That’s a plan, that makes things happen.  That makes commitments, now some people think that if we make commitments we don’t do it we’re going to get sued, that’s bull crap we’re getting sued every day for not doing these things.  You know, this is, this is what’s not in the plan that we’ve got to have in the plan.  Ethics, the last one.  Ah, you know, if we’re not trustworthy OK?  If we can’t be trusted we can’t do any of this crap, you know, it’s all bull if we can’t be trusted we can’t do it and obviously we’ve got major trustworthy issues.  This board has known about, I don’t care what you do with, with Dan, OK?  Dan’s a figurehead over here that caused a problem.  Here’s my problem here’s what the board has got to do.  This board has not recognized that we’ve been paying an employee under the table, employee or employees under the table, this has been going, that ah, well it may have stopped but it has been, the board has known about it, ahh, since August the 4^th or 5^th, the board has never stood up and said, made a statement, that yes we love under payments, under the table payments, we, we, that’s the greatest thing that could happen to us or no we’re not going to have this crap.  We, we’ve got now, we’ve got ah, ah, two employees that are upset with each other, ah, their accusing of discrimination.  A discrimination if we’re paying one man under the table and not paying anybody else under the table, sure as hell a discrimination.  We’ve got legal failures from the labor law we can’t pay a guy part time and, and, and out of the payroll and part time out of contracts, ah, the overtime issues would be involved in that, ah, the SDRMA contract that’s our insurance contract I’m sure we’ve violated it by doing this.  Ah the IRS, we violated ah we probably got fiduciary ah, and ah, ah issues in this, once again the board has not addressed it….Bill, Bill, I got my time please, ah…

VP Kinsella:  Yeah but you’re treading on things that have no bearing on this, particularly Dan’s operation, what he’s doing

Wes Barton:  I, I said that Don, Dan I don’t care about, I want, I address this to the board, very explicitly addressing this to the board.

VP Kinsella:  OK

Wes Barton:  Dan is your problem OK?

VP Kinsella:  Tell me about it

Wes Barton:  My problem, my problem is that the board is sitting here and they’re not even acknowledging anything wrong has happened.  Let me finish, you guys, you guys want the routine let me finish mine then I’ll be, I want to hear because that’s what I’m here for today, is I want to see some commitments made on these things.  Ah, OK, that’s basically it, what I want, you know, this board, you know, I know that in 2008 when I came on and believe me I wasn’t successful, but the purpose of coming on was to turn this CSD around and we’re not turning it around.  Ah, did this ah, well let’s see, ah that’s basically it, that’s close enough.

Director Lew Richardson:  I just had a question for you.

Wes Barton:  Yeah, yeah

Director Richardson:  I’ve read your material numerous times and I agree with a lot of what you say but what we witnessed this morning – if this board cannot even appoint one qualified applicant for one open position- how in the heck are we going to address these other major problems?

Wes Barton:  Well, I, I..

Director Richardson:  I mean seriously.

Wes Barton:  I could tell you what I would have done as a consultant, OK?  And I tried to do it but you guys didn’t, we didn’t want to do it

Director Richardson:  I’m not talking about before I’m talking about (cross talk) what happened right here today (cross talk)

Wes Barton:  I’m talking about right now

Director Richardson:  I’m talking about right now too, we can’t even get a qualified person on the board, it’s a game play (cross talk)

Wes Barton:  And we’ve got the same thing going on with the Federal government right now, OK?  We’ve got the same damn thing, we’re talking here, we’re talking about (inaudible) are we going to try to put some kind of real sweet thing in here for the short term or going to look at this place and correct it for the long term.  These short term things won’t work, we’re going to have to correct it for the long term, the long term you’re going to have to start with understanding what the hell this business is and what we’re going to accomplish over the next periods of time.  OK?  That’s the only way to do it, and it gets back to the like the ah, I talked about you know, what are you doing?  Why are we doing the things we’re doing?  Get rid of the things we’re not supposed to be doing, get this cost down to where it belongs to do only what we have to do.  OK?  That’s the way you do it, and only then, then when you do that agreement OK?, you’re agreeing on something, not personalities, not the, not the, ah, you know trying to protect my butt, or not trying to ah, ah, what’s my next ah, ah, government job going to be?  You know, serving this, serving this area right here, do this, get it down just to a handful of very simple things that you got to get done, OK?  And focus on those, get rid of all the other crap.  And that’s the way you’re going to do it.  Now, you’re not going to do it by bringing in a mediator, OK?  And I don’t care if you’re bringing in a mediator, believe me, that’s up to you guys, it doesn’t matter, it aint going to happen by bringing in the mediator, it’s going to happen by you guys getting on base heading in the same train, heading north, and everybody going in the same direction.  That’s the only way it’s going to happen.  OK?  And I don’t know how you do it with the, with your bunch, ah, yeah I bailed, OK?  Because I knew the people that were going to come on here wasn’t going to change our board with what we had at that time and there wasn’t anything I could do.  OK?  Ah, so I can’t answer you unless you want to do it the right way, you want to do it the right way?  I’ve offered to help before, I’ll offer to help again.  But you don’t do it by just sitting here arguing.  OK?

Director Richardson:  I, I, I agree with you, but again I submit what we witnessed here today.

Wes Barton:  Well then, we’re going to raise my rates

Director Richardson:  because you’re putting the cart before the horse

Wes Barton:  I don’t think so, then we’re going to raise my rates and everybody elses in here 100% in five years

Director Richardson:  I don’t want mine raised either.

(inaudible) 

VP Kinsella:  No I don’t have a question

Wes Barton:  Oh I thought you did.

Director Ross:  I don’t, not a question of you, it’s a comment (inaudible) ah, I asked Raymond about this under the table situation.  I just looked through all my papers I bring everything (inaudible) it’s not here, I was going to read the memo, he says what happened between him and somebody else is between them, it has nothing to do with us.  Right?  Now, if he’s paying somebody (inaudible) that’s (inaudible) that’s our legal opinion.

Wes Barton:  Did you, did you ask, when you talked to Raymond (inaudible, cross talk)

Director Ross:  I just said it was an email

Wes Barton:  Raymond, Raymond, did I, is there any issues with the labor laws? 

VP Kinsella:  There are all kinds of issues

Wes Barton:  There’s all kinds of problems here. 

Director Ross:  Well I asked him, I said, let’s say that one employee is blackmailing the other employee, that’s a legal, that’s a law enforcement issue, I, I haven’t raised a bunch of questions it right?  But if he pays somebody it has nothing to do with this board. 

Multiple voices

Wes Barton:  (inaudible) then just stand up Emery and say (inaudible, cross talk) stand up in this community and say, OK, that if the chemical company (inaudible) starts sending $50 back to ah Mark, or to ah, ah, Charise, that’s OK with us so long as we’re getting the chemicals we want.

Interim General Manager:  It came out of my pocket

Wes Barton:  No wait a minute, or, say to the folks here, that if we had a general manager, that wants to start paying one of his employees under the table OK, but not the others, OK, that’s OK with us, stand up and be proud of it and tell the people in this community that you think doing that kind of thing is a great idea.

Director Ross:  I never said that.

Wes Barton:  And that’s all I’m asking

Director Ross:  I said I asked Raymond if it was, if it was legal or illegal or a problem.  Raymond said it is not, it’s no concern of this board (inaudible, multiple voices)

[NOTE:  This discussion continued for quite a while.  Essentially, Interim General Manager Dan Tynan, out of his own pocket, paid a $25 reward to employees who discovered illegal connections within the district.  He also admitted to paying one employee a bonus, also out of his own pocket, for saving the district between $10,000-$15,000 dollars in ordering parts and repairing one of our largest leaks that had existed for many years because the employee went above and beyond his normal employment duties to tackle the job.   When Bill Kinsella heard about the “under the table payments” as they have been characterized, Dan Tynan was advised it wasn’t a good idea and rewards for theft detection or incentive payments immediately ceased because of potential problems with the labor code and IRS and they have not occurred again.   The discussion also included an accusation by Ruth Smith that Bill Kinsella exceeded his authority as a director by telling Tynan that using his own personal funds was not a good idea and should have been done through a board decision.]

Consensus of board to move Item L – Yosemite-Mariposa Regional Water Management Group: Presentation by Pat Garcia, representative of the Yosemite-Mariposa RWMG and approval of the updated MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) and M – Tuolumne-Stanislaus Integrated Regional Water Management Planning Group, Approval of the updated MOU, forward on the meeting agenda.  Charise Reeves was approved by the board to be the representative for both organizations.  Unanimous Board Decision to appoint Charise Reeves as the CSD representative to these two groups and sign the MOUs. 

XXXXX

NOTE:  The next BLOG REPORT, regarding the October 17^th, 2011 meeting, will start with Item N: Request from Mrs. Poe, Michael and Theresa Terry:  Request by Mrs. Poe in response to questions raised at the September 19^th, 2011 Board Meeting. 

[This is a controversial case, where two meters were removed upon request by Mrs. Poe and later her two sons, was based on information obtained from individual investigations and presentations to the board by former President, now director, Emery Ross and former Vice President, now Director, Mark Skoien.  CSD records do not appear to support the fact pattern as presented to the Board at the initial January 18^th, 2011 meeting or subsequent meetings for that matter.]  

My best to you and yours, Lew

 

or, …”like the relentless dripping leaks from 40 year old Blue Bell pipe, these are the days of our CSD”……  Perhaps….”All my customers?”  Well, regardless of whatever illustrative soap opera title might be used for comparison,  there is never-the-less “the continuing saga of Lake Don Pedro”.

Obviously, the good thing about verbatim transcripts is the fact they document in time an individual’s statements, opinions, or perspective on a given issue which is therefore not subject to misinterpretation or misrepresentation by others.  The bad thing is they take so long to prepare.  But even then the SO GOSIP (Same Old Group of Special Interest People) incorrectly complain that “Minutes” of meetings should not be posted on this site prior to being approved by the board.  Minutes?  Approval by the board?  Oh Please.   [The amazing part about that particular complaint is the fact it was made by a previous board secretary of the LDPOA who surely knows the difference between “Minutes” and a “Transcript”.]  Board approval of an individual’s opinion based on facts and publicly presented material at board meetings?

Interesting it is how these folks are essentially complaining that:

information presented in a public meeting should not be offered to the public for review and consideration in formulating their own opinions as to what is happening within this Services District and community.

The other major complaint is that I, as an elected official, must abandon my personal opinion and remain silent as to what I BELIEVE to be unethical and inappropriate activity based on facts and publically presented information by those claiming to represent the public’s best interests.

Seems to me if ANYONE should be upfront and forth coming about their personal perspective and opinions it would be a public official who has taken the responsibility (and an Oath of Office) to serve the public’s best interest.   

DRAW BACK OF BEING ON A BOARD

Reading the 2010-2011 Grand Jury Final Report was a very conflicting experience.  On one hand it was reassuring to know there was an official government panel of citizens who confirmed the serious problems many of us have recognized and took action, but on the other hand, the offending entity was “THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS” as a whole.   Didn’t matter that such activities were conducted without support from a minority of members, it was a “BOARD DECISION” and all must share equally in that report.  Sorry, but that sucks!   What if three directors decided to intentionally violate the law?  Still a Board decision and all directors, whether involved or not, are saddled with being part of that board.  [Recall the old expression that a chain is only as strong as it’s weakest link?  What about multiple “weak links”?]

“THE GRAND JURY SAID YOU CAN’T BLOG ANYMORE!”

That’s another cry of the SO GOSIP advocacy group which I have very carefully considered.  What did the Grand Jury Recommend exactly? 

“R-5: Board members should stop publishing documents that do not promote or represent the Districts interest as a whole”

First of all, I am not the only director that posts material on a website, however, I am the only one that stands behind what is written and presented with my own name, not the cowardly “anonymous authors” who are personally unaccountable for the garbage they attempt to pass off as truth.  Garbage like that isn’t taking a legitimate position, it’s just another spineless ANY MOUSE squeaking disinformation behind their shield of ANONYMOUS.    

Second, I believe the qualitative statement “that do not promote or represent the Districts interest as a whole” is the key here.   Does incorrect and/or intentionally fabricated information presented to the public at board meetings promote the district?  I don’t think so, but how was this answered by our CSD attorney?

“This recommendation cannot be implemented because it is directed at “Board members” and not at the District.  The District does not have jurisdiction or control over individual Board members exercise of their free speech rights and any attempt to do so would be an illegal prior restraint on speech.  This does not mean that free expression may not, under some conditions, give rise to liability or potential liability of the speaker for libel, slander, invasion of privacy, or under other legal theories.  The First Amendment and free speech is not always a complete defense.”

Seems pretty straight forward – expressing your opinion is permissible so long as you do not violate someone else’s rights.  Duhh. 

GETTING RECALLED AGAIN BY THOMAS PORTER ANYWAY

Tom Porter was able to recall the LDPOA Board of Directors because he didn’t care for the direction the Association was headed — working for the members and providing the truth in their blossoming NEW DISCOVERER newspaper.  Porter didn’t like it –  Poof!  Gone!   [Has anyone else noticed that apparently the owners’ association is going to skip another yearly election meeting?   Gee, maybe elections are completely unnecessary now that we have a Board of Directors approved by Thomas Porter?   Things are running so smoothly, maybe their terms will be extended for life?]  There’s no reason to believe Porter won’t use his influence to do the same with the Lake Don Pedro Community Services’ District Board of Directors eventually. 

No sense in remaining quiet while Porter Supporters continue to misrepresent the facts to customers for their leader’s own profit driven interests.

MONEY IS A TREMENDOUS MOTIVATOR

Always has been, probably always will be.  Sure isn’t a level playing field when volunteers motivated by what is best for the community are pitted against real estate and land development interests with vast sums of money and influence.  Heck, everyone wants their property values to go up but that is not what is happening.   The uncontrolled development in this area has not helped everyone’s property values and it isn’t too hard to understand the point when homes that were once priced at several hundred thousand dollars are going for a quarter of that price or less.   Such a housing environment is beneficial for those with the hard cash to pick up such deals but not so good for those foreclosed on or the other established homes in the area.

DON’T BE SURPRISED

Have you noticed any of the 400+ bills in Sacramento pending approval in the very near future?  Some look like they were specifically tailor made to address issues in Lake Don Pedro.    When I ran for a position on the board I believed local control of our water was extremely important and with hard work and dedication could be retained, but must now honestly admit to wondering if it is still possible.   Perhaps it would be better if the County were to assume control.  No doubt costs will go up to all consumers, but the County might be less susceptible to the special interest influence that has dominated this area for decades. 

Of course it could also be argued that the county also has been subject to such negative special interest…..remember all those “land developer convenience roads” constructed in our subdivision that did not meet 1991 State Responsibility Area Fire Safe roadway standards?  What’s happening now?   A new fire fee of $150/year for homes in a SRA area.   How long will it remain $150/yr?  Will those roads be brought up to standards with these new funds or will they remain as further problems for the future?  I think we all know who will actually end up paying for such serious digression from established regulations.   But I also imagine government agencies, like people, learn from their mistakes. 

Stay tuned…..I think a lot is going to be happening around here relatively soon.  Remember the quote by Buddha?

Three things cannot be long hidden, the Sun, the Moon, and the Truth! 

Until then –

My best to you and yours, Lew

REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

LAKE Don Pedro Community Services District

9751 Merced Falls Road

Monday, September 19^th, 2011 1300hrs

(209) 852-2331

 

Prepared by Lew Richardson from analog and digital recordings.

My best to you and yours, Lew

 

CLARIFICATION NOTE:  Just after taking a meeting break Kalvin Gile continued to advocate for a committee formation to investigate his White Pages printouts of telephone use at the water plant for four months.  Board Secretary Charise Reeves clearly reminded everyone present we were on break and should not discuss the matter until resuming the meeting.  Evidently, when I was absent from the board room, Mr. Gile had suggested that Dan Tynan and I be on his committee with Director Skoien and members of the audience fully supporting the idea.     

  XXXXX   1659HRS   RESUME MEETING     XXXXX

 

Vice President Kinsella:  Are we back on the record?

Board Secretary Charise Reeves:  OK, ah you call it back on and I’ll (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  Ok, let’s get back on

Charise Reeves:  4:59

VP Kinsella:  Kalvin I’m not ignoring you

Multiple voices

VP Kinsella:  Say again?

Kalvin Gile:  That answer makes me happy.   And I’ll do it any day of the week, I’ll even give up golf. 

VP Kinsella:  Kalvin Gile would like to have a board member, ah sit down with him to go over the phone bill.  Ah, you can do it too Dan

Interim General Manager Dan Tynan:  I have, I’ve gone over it, and over it

Director Mark Skoien:  Well he requested you and Lew, because, he thinks you’d be good at

Director Lew Richardson:  Who?  Mr. Gile?

Director Skoien:  Yes

Director Richardson:  No thanks

Director Skoien:  You don’t want

Director Richardson:  I’ve got some other things that I am pursuing.

Director Skoien:  No, but I mean you don’t want to sit with Dan and him and look over the phone?

Director Richardson:  Not particularly.

VP Kinsella:  OK

Director Richardson:  I think it’s taking too much time for whatever’s been hoped to be achieved out of it.

VP Kinsella:  OK

Director Skoien:  Well Dan what do you feel?

IGM Tynan:  I feel I’ve spent enough time on it.  I have, this Friday, at 5:00 to be in Mariposa.

Director Skoien:  Right, what about, what about policies in the office are they going to be changed, I mean, you think it’s under control?

IGM Tynan: I think, actually I think this report shows that we’re all doing our jobs, you know, we’re calling customers, we’re calling suppliers, uhm, like I said I had that meeting Friday at 5 o’clock after work and I’m giving them all the information, the tapes, everything

VP Kinsella:  Go ahead Dan – Lew 

Director Richardson:  We’re there any porn sites, dating sites, anything like that on there?

IGM Tynan:  None

Director Richardson:  Thank you.  That’s good.

VP Kinsella:  OK, Coralane?

Coralane Porter:  Oh don’t you have a something before…

VP Kinsella:  You have a sentence to say?

Coralane:  Oh, OK it’s connected to the Wes Snyder which is below the Creation reactivation of CSD committees (multiple voices-inaudible) 

Charise Reeves:  OK, where are we at?

Director Richardson:  Well, we’re jumping committees.

Charise Reeves:  Yep

Coralane:  Yeah you’re

Charise Reeves:  We’re on M, if we’re not doing anything on the phone calls. 

Unknown:  yep

Unknown:  Yep

Charise Reeves:  You need to decide, are you doing anything with the phone bill issue or are you moving on to committees?

VP Kinsella:  I really don’t want to do anything until after we’ve, get a result from the Grand Jury, so my recommendation and if the board thinks otherwise, my recommendation is ah thank Mr. Gile for his offer and to decline at this time.   Anyone have a problem with it, any board member have a problem with that?  OK.  Thanks Kal we’ll just wait until we hear from the Grand Jury I guess.  OK, Coralane are you

Charise Reeves:  No we’re on page (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  Yeah I know the committees, yeah

AGENDA ITEM M: CREATING/REACTIVATION OF CSD COMMITTEES (15 Minutes) Request – By D Tynan.  Request – By Director Richardson for the creation and/or reactivation of CSD committees with emphasis on an MID committee to facilitate communication regarding outside MIDPOU properties

[Standing Committees:  Finance: VP Kinsella and Charise Reeves – No current issues, waiting for selection of replacement director.  Operations: VP Kinsella and Director Skoien.  Personnel: VP Kinsella and Director Richardson.  Public Relations: VP Kinsella and Director Richardson.  Temporary Advisory Committees:  M.I.D.: VP Kinsella, Director Richardson and Wes Barton.]

AGENDA ITEM N: MID LICENSE AND McCLURE DAM RELICENSING (15 Minutes)  Request – By Wes Snyder to again discuss creating a committee and sending someone as a District representative to the relicensing meetings

 [Coralane Porter spoke on behalf of Wes Snyder who was unable to attend due to a medical issue.  Porter proposed the creation of an ad hoc committee to work in conjunction with the MID Committee.   VP Kinsella suggested submitting a letter of interest but Peggy Waltz didn’t believe it necessary since they were only to be an ad hoc committee.  Porter advised the three people interested in the committee were Ron Hunt, Peggy Waltz and Coralane Porter.]     

AGENDA ITEM O: REQUEST FROM WES BARTON – When is CSD’s plan not a plan? (15 Minutes) Request – By Wes Barton to discuss his letter to the Interim General Manager

 [Wes Barton reiterated his financial, operational, and ethical concerns about the board and district, pages 88-89 of the packet.  Emphasis on CIP projects and amount spent versus anticipated savings.]

 AGENDA ITEM P: RESPONSE TO WES BARTON’S REQUEST (15 Minutes) Request – By Dan Tynan to discuss his response to Wes Barton’s letter

[IGM Dan Tynan responded with a list of completed and planned projects, many already previously identified by CSD engineers as priorities.  Tynan defended the AMR upgrade due to the lost revenue that will be recovered because of many old and under reporting meters and that many of the CIP projects were required by the State so as to continue operations.]

AGENDA ITEM Q: METER INSTALLATION BIDS (15 Minutes) Request – By D Tynan to discuss bids received for the AMR – Meter Installation project and possible approval of this item as part of this year’s CIP budget

[Three responses to bids, drafted by the CSD attorney, for installation of water meters and electronic sending units were read.  Two were not sealed.   Notices clearly required how the bids were to be marked and sealed.  Research needed regarding legal options for re-advertising the job.    By Board direction, Staff will contact attorney (who had already left the meeting) for advice on how to proceed.  Motion by VP Kinsella to decline all bids; Second Ross; Vote: Kinsella; Ross and Richardson;  Skoien Nay. 

AGENDA ITEM R: ON CALL ALARMS (15 Minutes) Request – By D Tynan to modify policy 2010 – Hours Worked

[Alarms frequently going off due to failures in SCADA system.  Discussion regarding a revised formula in policy for overtime compensation rate for responding to multiple alarms during a short period of time.   Repair parts for the SCADA system on order.  Charise Reeves suggested doing a financial analysis of the problem prior to any change by the board.  Matter tabled until next month.]

DIRECTORS COMMENTS – None

Adjourned 6:15  [1815hrs]

 PARTIAL TRANSCRIPT OF THE 

REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

LAKE Don Pedro Community Services District

9751 Merced Falls Road

Monday, September 19^th, 2011 1300hrs

(209) 852-2331

 

Prepared by Lew Richardson from analog and digital recordings.

My best to you and yours, Lew

XXXXXXXXX

Public:  Yeah, I had it up (inaudible)

 

Wes:  Before you said some of these dates on some of these things that are really controversial that the facts are not,  they haven’t been discussed in enough detail you could sit down and have a sensible discussion, (inaudible)  why don’t you have these meetings in a special meeting instead of regular meetings? You just, you know, it burns down the whole, the whole operation, and sets it up so that the attitudes of the people then are, are, are poor, ah everything is just wrong on it, I’m not, I’m not trying to be critical, you know, its just that this would be a good policy to, if it’s a tough deal go to a special meeting.

VP Kinsella:  I would like, I would to have a special meeting on this one, but let’s get through this first and then ah, discuss, director’s comments I think would (inaudible).  Where Did Charise go?

Director Richardson:  Ah, outside

(Background talk as some leave meeting room)

(Multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  Thank you, (inaudible) Charise was just there

Director Skoien:  She’s getting some information from that guy….

Multiple Voices

VP Kinsella:  Say again

Victor: Take a break

VP Kinsella:  Ah, not another one

(Background voices in audience)

VP Kinsella:  All set?  OK we’ll go back up to Item G, it’s on page 56.  Advertise for the board.

XXXXX     STOP TRANSCRIPT     XXXXX

SORRY, BUT THIS BLOW BY BLOW VERBATIM TRANSCRIPT OF THE MEETING IS TAKING WAAAAAY TO MUCH TIME TO PREPARE AND THERE ARE SOME OTHER PRESSING MATTERS THAT NEED IMMEDIATE ATTENTION. 

(No doubt reading such long and monotonous material isn’t all that much fun either.)  In an effort to make this as accurate as possible I have been using three pieces of equipment to do this transcription stuff: a digital hand held recorder, a computer –  for better quality sound playback, and an audio cassette tape player to listen to the official CSD audio recordings.   Usually the hand held digital will pick up audience participation better than the board recording equipment because when audience members do not come up to the podium it is very difficult to understand everything said due to the distance from the microphone, normal background noise and the inevitable multiple voices at the same time.   This process is much too slow considering the whole point is to get accurate and timely information to LDPCSD customers so they might better understand what is happening within this Community Services District. 

The most reasonable course appears to be to only transcribe those portions necessary to clearly understand some of the reasoning behind particular discussions and/or decisions made in these public meetings.   So, with that in mind, agenda Items not transcribed will be listed just as they were on the original meeting agenda with a brief summary of action taken (if any) enclosed within brackets [ ].  OK, here we go: 

XXXXX     RESUME MEETING     XXXXX

 

 

AGENDA ITEM G: FILLING BOARD VACANCY (10 Minutes), Request – To approve steps required to fill the Lake Don Pedro Community Services District Board of Director’s vacancy

[BOARD APPROVAL TO POST VACANCY NOTICE:  VOTE UNANIMOUS]

AGENDA ITEM H: WASTEWATER METER READING (15 Minutes), Request – By D Tynan to follow up on bill containing the error with wastewater meter reading

[Continuing process to obtain payment – subject will return on next month’s agenda]

AGENDA ITEM I: RESPONSE REGARDING DISTRICT PHONE CALLS (15 Minutes)  Request – In response to a Board request, analysis and response to complaint by Kalvin Gile about District phone calls

TRANSCRIPT OF AGENDA ITEM I:

VP KINSELLA:  Item I, response regarding district phone bills, Charise are you going to do that or is…?

Charise Reeves:  Dan is

IGM Tynan:  Actually, yeah, I was going to start off when Charise finished up with the (inaudible)

VP Kinsella: It’s going to be a bifurcated thing?

IGM Tynan:   Yes, ah, after spending about 75 hours going through Kalvin’s, Mr. Gile’s, report, found a lot, a lot of mistakes.  So, called about every number a lot of them, we do have customers that live in Colorado, we do have customers that live in ah, Oregon, ah, I’ll just go over a few things.  An 11 o’clock phone call was from an on-call employee that was calling a past employee for technical support; the plastic surgeon phone call that’s one number away from, what was it?  Colorado pipe, Charise?

Charise Reeves:  Mountain States

IGM Tynan:  Mountain States Pipe, it’s one number off, honestly miscalled.

VP Kinsella:  So it was a misdialed

IGM Tynan:  It was a misdial, yeah.  And we, Charise can, she did a very described report on it and like I said there are a lot of mistakes, OK Charise.

Charise Reeves:  OK, Dan had asked me to go over this, the, the results of this.  First off everybody received this, and this spreadsheet and this is what was going out in part two of the packet, for those of you who never got part II, it ended up being 52 meg when we scanned it in and the email said “no way”.  Ahum,

VP Kinsella:  Would you like you’re comments for the record?

Charise Reeves:  Oh yes, I’m going to read the staff report for the record.  So everybody’s got this, I took the phone bills and went directly to, and then tried to re-create what Kalvin had come up with, but I’ll read, I’m going to read this staff report for the record because this was made such a big deal as far as the, how it was presented so that community members can all hear the response as well.

Unknown: What page is this?

Charise Reeves:  OK, this is on page 72:

Background:  On May 18^th, 2011 Interim General Manager Dan questioned several phone calls on the monthly telephone bill.  In the office at that time was Financial Administrator C Reeves and Director Keefe.  By the end of the day, the District had received a Public Records Request from Kalvin Gile requesting 4 months of telephone records.  The issue of having a problem with use of District phones had never been brought to the Board as a problem.

On July 12^th, 2011 at the Special Board Meeting for the Budget Presentation, Kalvin Gile presented his findings.  The item was not on the agenda yet his 5 minute limit was waived, and he was allowed to discuss accusations against staff as part of the budget discussion.  He presented a packet with the phone records duplicated.  Normally when items are passed out at Board meetings, a copy is put with the packet for the District’s records.  Kalvin told the Directors these were his personal copies, and they could not keep them.  The Secretary was not given a copy for District records, even upon request.  The Interim General Manager was given a copy with the statement, “I’ll hang you if this gets out.”

Office staff was attacked with little or no mention of plant staff contributing to the phone calls.  There are phones in the office, the plant, and the Boardroom building.  All staff members make phone calls.  In particular, staff member Marchesiello was specifically targeted with her husband’s reverse lookup address and phone number being passed out to the audience and multiple mentions of calls to New York and Ohio where she has family.  This is just one more example of the hostile work environment found at the District.  Per Dan Tynan an email to Interim General Manager Dan Tynan and Board Members from staff member Marchesiello was sent due to concerns of a public member representing himself as a distric – as a representative of the District.  This email was sent prior to Kalvin’s presentation and is included following this report, with her consent.  It has raised questions how a public member/Kalvin received this same email that was addressed only to the Interim General Manager and Board Members and whether or not this was why she was targeted in the meeting.

Staff was directed by Director Keefe to research this issue.  Multiple staff member have put in over 75 hours to research this issue to defend the accusations made.  Staff duplicated the phone records, compared them against Kalvin’s document given to the Interim General Manager, and researched phone numbers.  True, if taken as presented, the issue is “alarming”.  However, upon further research, many of the items stated are not accurate.  Staff is allowed two 15 minute breaks and a 30 minute lunch each day, and the District does not incur any additional charges for the calls in question.  He found that there were never more than one hour of calls in a single day indicated by any single employee.  Many employees volunteered the numbers of their family as part of the research.

Findings:

The District has 3,195 lots or possible customers.  A large majority of our customers are residential customers, not businesses.  We document some customer’s phone numbers, home and work, which were those verified as customers.  However, many customers will leave alternate or business numbers for staff to return calls.  Kalvin questioned the number of cell phones called.  Many residential customers use cell phones, and may not even have a land line.  It is not unusual.  Return phone numbers are not always documented in their file.

Kalvin stated he found 705 unlisted numbers.  Staff found only 314 after comparing the lists and doing additional reverse lookups in the yellow pages.

Kalvin stated 302 calls were less than 60 seconds indicating staff was calling people and saying “call me back”.  The actual breakdown was 1,428 calls for 60 seconds or less including 157 faxes, 774 calls from the SCADA system, and 6 from the 800 number, leaving 491 other calls for 60 seconds or less.  Of these, only 44 were identified as calls to family members/girlfriends, and many were after hours, most likely informing them they were still working and would be late.

Kalvin was not initially aware that the 713 phone calls made to a single number were to the on-call pager, and once staff informed him of this, he suddenly changed direction and the SCADA system being broken became an issue.  The SCADA system makes a call to the pager upon an alarm being triggered.  It hen makes additional calls every few minutes to phone numbers listed on the on-call rotation list.  This continues until the on-call operator acknowledges the alarm by pressing “1” on the phone, if reached by phone, or by pressing a key on the computer, if responding by computer.  The phone records indicate three phone numbers were called.  Upon research, it appears the total number of SCADA calls were 779, and they were for approximately 232 alarms.  True, this is still a large number of alarms; however, these occur at any time of the day including working hours over a 4 month period.  The Board of Directors have already authorized the replacement of the antennae as part of the twenty -, that should be 2012 CIP projects which may reduce the number of alarms, hopefully, eliminating those caused by locations going off-line.

Specific calls questioned:

McNamara Sports – purchased t-shirts and hats for plant staff

KOA Campgrounds – contacted regarding the Sanitary Survey

23 minute call to Illinois – staff contacted Fellowes Inc regarding the current warranty and possible repair of the office binder

The plastic surgeon in New York – obvious misdial:  the Plastic Surgeon’s phone number was 716-634-5555.  The call was made at 1:01 pm on 3/10.  The calls before and after were to Mountain States Supply, one of the District’s suppliers, with the phone number 719-643-5555 and were made at 12:58pm and 1:02pm on the same day. 

Calls to Dayton, OH were questioned – there were only 3 and 2 of them were for Wright-Patt Realty

Call to Hicksville, NY – there was a single 30 second phone call to a family member

2 calls to New York where the time zone was questioned there –both were faxes

The unknown trucking company – Staff volunteered information that the number questioned was her husband’s cell phone.  This was not unknown to Kalvin as it showed on a draft copy of his documents as Rich Reeves Trucking, and he contacted the number and verified with Mr. Reeves the number belonged to Richard Reeves Trucking.  He identified himself as doing a “cell phone audit”.  It would seem obvious that the number belonged to a family member as they both had the same last name. 

The call at 11:00 at night was an employee on-call calling for technical support.

77 Out of state calls:

10 were district bus – identified district business

34 were faxes

4 were customers

3 were in-coming to our 800 number

1 was an employee family member volunteered by S Marchesiello

1 was the obvious misdial to the plastic surgeon and

24 others were un – were other or unknown

During research it became obvious some customers leave their work number as some of the numbers verified included Armell & Hurtle, Balloon Enterprises, Mariposa County, realty companies, and Sonora Medical Center.

Kalvin questioned the massive amounts of employee time spent on phone calls when the District had just raised rates, increasing his water bill.  Yes, employees do use the phone.  It is a huge part of their job.  However, the amount of employee time spent on personal phone calls does not appear to have contributed to increasing the water rate.  Instead, a contributing factor might be found during Kalvin’s term on the District Board when two loans were accepted costing the District $194,154.05 each year for the past 5 years with $119,006.08 continuing through 2026 and litigation was initiated which has currently cost the District almost $75,000 in legal fees that can be directly connected and an additional $30,000 incurred between July 2008 and November 2008 for a total of $1,075,770.

Staff documented 2,149 phone calls during 4 months of operation

782 – District business calls easily identifiable including

195 – verified customers

186 – faxes

401 – technical support or businesses the District uses

779 – SCADA calls

78 – Business calls which may or may not be District related

141 –Personal calls to families/girlfriends

314 – Unlisted or unknown

8 to the 800 number for incoming phone calls

6 – obvious misdials based on calls before/after, and

2 –disconnected numbers

437 calls made on non-work days, of those 437, 426 were calls made out of the SCADA system,

11 were other calls, of those 11

1 was a fax

2 were business calls

3 were customers

4 were personal calls and

1 was other or unknown

462 calls were made before or after normal working hours being 7:30am to 4pm.  Plant staff is on call 24 hours a day.  The two salaried employees effectively are on a 24 hour time clock.  The other office person regularly works before and after normal “office” hours of 7:30 to 2:30, so calls made before and after work hours are not unusual.

A 116 of these calls were made within 1 hour before or after working hours

390 calls out of the 462 were calls made out of the SCADA system

72 were other calls, of those

5 were faxes

26 were business calls

4 were customers

1 was the 800 number in-coming phone calls

19 were personal calls to family and girlfriends

17 were other and unknown

Errors found on Kalvin’s spreadsheet:

125 entries were listed in Kalvin’s document as unlisted but upon a reverse lookup in the yellow pages were found and documented

59 entries had the wrong phone number

15 entries had the wrong date

17 entries had the wrong time

7 entries had the wrong length

19 calls were missing all together

268 entries were incorrectly coded tan which meant they lasted 60 seconds or less

449 entries were incorrectly coded green which meant they were made before or after hours which were 86 Mondays, 124 on Tuesdays, 93 on Wednesdays, 71 on Thursdays and 75 on Fridays

Final statement, for those who do not trust the research of staff members, staff would be more than willing to allow anyone to come to the office and compare the spreadsheets put together by Kalvin and staff versus the phone records.  In addition to that was the email sent from staff member Marchesiello to Interim General Manager Dan Tynan and Directors, and it states Good morning Dan and Directors, please note the attachment was typed at home and not on company time.  Her email states,

IGM Tynan: Charise, we don’t have to (inaudible) read (inaudible)  

(Multiple audience voices disapprove of reading email)

Charise Reeves:  OK

(Multiple voices)

Director Richardson: Well can you put it in the record and just put it in the record for the next time.

(multiple voices)

Charise Reeves:  Can do

NOTE:  THE EMAIL WAS CONTAINED WITHIN PAGES 77-79 OF THE “BOARD PACKET” (105 pages). SUCH PACKETS ARE MADE AVAILABLE FOR ATTENDEES OF MEETINGS.

 

There have been instances in my past employment here at LDCSD where I willfully ignored negative actions and efforts of both my fellow employees and board members, in the interest of getting along and getting the job done.  A new occurrence has arisen which I cannot privately ignore.  Because of this incident I am extremely upset.

 

This letter is being sent to you as a response to an incident that occurred Friday June, 17^th, 2011.  Although the incident happened on June 17^th the true beginning occurred while I was on vacation.

 

While on vacation my system Connie Latronica, phoned me, concerned she asked me if “everything was ok.”  She explained that she had received a call, at her home, from Dan Tynan, he identified himself as being from the District and he asked who she was, and whether she was at a residence or business.  Not understanding why he would be asking her questions, or who he was at the time, she ended the call.  When Connie informed me of this conversation, I told her I was due back to work the next day and I would find out what that call was about.

 

The next day, I immediately approached Dan and asked if there was a problem.  He informed me he had been reviewing the phone bill and in the presence of Charise, and Vicki Keefe he stated that there where many calls to the same number.

 

I then explained to Dan that that number belonged to my sister Connie, and that each morning, while I am working, I call Connie to see what is going on with a relative who is suffering some severe health issues.  I further explained if he checked he would see that the duration of each call was very few minutes and in some instances only 30 seconds.  At that point he said there was no problem and I believed all was well.

 

Dan has been there many times in the office while I made these calls.  He said he had problems with someone being on the phone a lot and he wanted to see if the calls belonged to them.  I have worked at the district for eight years and I have seen and am well aware, of the detail included on our phone bills.  If I was trying to be deceptive, I would have not used the company phone, but would use my cell phone, as some employees have done.  The cell phone issue, being problematic, has caused Dan to install a loosely enforced policy, forbidding cell phones at work.  In eight years of work I have never brought my cell phone to the office.

 

I do not believe I was doing anything wrong in my making these short telephone calls.  I did not interrupt my work.  In fact most days I do not take the two 15 minute breaks which are allowed by law, I am a self motivated worker and I pride myself in doing a full day’s work, each and every day!!

 

Shortly after my conversation with Dan a former Board member and current rate payer (Kalvin Gile) requested a copy of that phone bill.  I believe this was done through an email to Charise, but I cannot say for certain at this time.  This made me curious, wondering how a public member would have heard about the phone bill.  I did ask both Dan and Charise if either of them had anything to do with Kalvin knowing about it.  They both told me no.  When Vicki stopped by the office, I asked her in front of Dan as well.  Her reply was “what phone bill?”  I stated “the one Dan mentioned the other day when you were in the office.”  I don’t believe an answer was given.

 

This is one of my concerns, how and why did someone feel it necessary to get a former board member, and current rate payer involved in intercompany office matters.  Who authorized this?

 

I did suggest to Charise, that attorney Ray Carlson be contacted to make sure we can give a public member a copy of the phone bill.  This was not done not for my own benefit, as I had volunteered they were my calls, but rather to protect the District.  Ray’s response was “yes”.  Kalvin did indeed receive a copy of the phone bill.  In fact, I cannot say for certain but if you look at our general ledger account you may see that Kalvin was not charged, nor paid for these copies as any other rate payer would do.

 

Following this, Dan had let me know Kalvin was questioning the phone bill, and he informed Kalvin that certain numbers represented calls made by me.  I asked again if this was a problem, he again stated “no”.

 

Later, Dan told me Kalvin had requested him to research more of the numbers on that phone statement.  I don’t believe a public member can direct the General Manager in this manner.  I asked, again if there was any issue with my calls and again Dan said no!

 

Friday June 17^th I received a call from my sister stating that a man named Kalvin Giles keeps calling her house.  He stated “we are investigating some phone calls they had received.”  She asked him who is “we”?  He told her “Kalvin Gile, from the District.”  As I stated my family is dealing some personal family health issues, and my sister was quite upset about these continuous calls and in addition concerned for me.  I told her I would handle the situation so she would not have to be harassed anymore.  I immediately phone Kalvin at home and told him the number that he has been calling is my sister’s home, and I already dealt with Dan about this, I should not be explaining this to him and I told him to stop.  I stated I thought this was taken care of.  He said he would stop calling, though his demeanor was smug and condescending.

 

In summary:

 

I don’t know why after I fully explained a series of very short calls to my General Manager, a public rate payer continued to call a telephone number already identified.  I am sure it is legal to have the telephone statement; however I am not so sure it is legal for a private person to use those telephone numbers.  If Mr. Giles is working for the board or the District, when did that begin and who authorized it and can a rate payer assign work to a General Manager?

 

Why are there so many leaks to individuals of district business?  Who is responsible for all these gossipy leaks and what is the motive for doing so?

 

Let’s have 100% honesty and transparency, if you have issues lets air them, but please stop this silly game playing.  I expect no further annoyance to my family members, and would appreciate a timely response and action to the issues in this letter. 

 

Cynthia L Marchesiello

 

BACK TO THE SEPTEMBER 19^th, 2011 BOARD MEETING

 

Director Richardson:  Wow, sure seems like an awful lot of time was actually wasted by our employees because of an accusation by Mr. Gile that evidently was based on pretty much erroneous information –

Kalvin Gile:  Mr. Chairman

Director Richardson:  I ah, I’m speaking right now, you’ll have your turn.  You know, when you brought this up, it should have never been allowed to begin with, and you were attacking employees basically making accusations they weren’t doing their jobs, they were costing this district money, and because of that, we have incurred a loss.  We have lost a lot of work hours, and like I said, for the record, I’d like the response, is there is any – would you consider it appropriate for an apology for that? 

Public:  No

Kalvin Gile:  Mr. Chairman can I ask for a two minute break   

VP Kinsella:  Wait a minute, wait a minute, are you finished?

Director Richardson:  Yes

Kalvin Gile:  he asked me a question and I want to provide him with an answer

VP Kinsella:  OK, you can do that now, I wanted to make sure he said

Kalvin Gile:  (inaudible) out in the car, the car right outside the front door.  Victor, you want to give me a hand?  It’ll take me longer

(Multiple voices, conversations- waiting for Mr. Gile to bring boxes of material into board room.  Ray Carlson questions property location of Poe on map.)

Kalvin Gile: It’s easier, actual printed white page in reverse, page by page for each, each phone call that was made. 

Director Ross:  I didn’t hear you Kal

Kalvin Gile:  These are the phone records, each phone number that was called a white page phone print, please don’t do that (laughter).  The district uses used Yellow Pages, I used White Pages, if there’s a difference, did I make mistakes?  Probably.  Is the district more accurate than I am?  Maybe, maybe not.   

What happens when each phone call was made is there’s a printed phone number white pages.  Are you right or are you wrong?  Can you prove it?  I’ve got them to prove I was right.

Director Ross:  What does that mean Kal?

Kalvin Gile:  It means that when you reverse, you put a phone number in its going to come back and tells you who it belongs to, if it’s a land line it just says land line, if it’s a page it just says land line, if it’s a FAX it just says land line.  There’s no way for me to know, or anyone else to know what it is, you can’t determine by going, at least to White Pages and looking it up, but there is one, two, three, four, and there’s three here, four more

Director Ross:  What?  Boxes?

Kalvin Gile: White Pages

Director Ross:  And how many in a box? 

Kalvin Gile:  Ah, the total was on the ah, the

Director Ross:  (Inaudible) the sheet

Kalvin Gile:  …presentation, so whatever, whatever

Director Ross:  (Inaudible)

Kalvin Gile:   was put on there was one brought down

Director Ross:  This sheet here that you did

Kalvin Gile: Yeah that sheet there.  In addition that sheet is marked draft work product.  Everybody’s familiar with what draft work product means? 

(Multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  Oh Boy

IGM Tynan:  You give us information and then we’re not supposed to do anything with it?

Kalvin Gile:  No, I give it, I didn’t pass it out to the board because it’s draft, it’s work product.  I give it to you you were the Ge, Interim, (inaudible) might as well say General Manager, Interim General Manager, your, my view, your biggest responsibility was finding out it has any merit.

IGM Tynan:  It was so wrong.

Kalvin Gile:  Well I’m telling you, there there are errors, no question

IGM Tynan:  There was a lot of errors, that’s, that’s ah

Kalvin Gile:  There is,  additional, ah, I just printed out one copy of the 572-8002 it tells me

IGM Tynan:  That’s a, that’s a pager

Kalvin Gile:  I understand that

VP Kinsella:  Well, what do you want, what do you want to do with these boxes?

Kalvin Gile:  I’ve got documentation that says you are inaccurate.  You have documentation that says I’m inaccurate, I’ll agree that I probably made mistakes.

Director Richardson:  How much did it cost the CSD with what you’re saying?  Your estimate?

Kalvin Gile:  How much is it costing the CSD and I disagree with the philosophy: ah we pay the phone bill and it didn’t cost anything, my foot it doesn’t cost anything. 

IGM Tynan:  Out of four months

Kalvin Gile:  Listen to me. 

Director Richardson:  Out of four months how much do you think this cost?

Kalvin Gile:  Let me finish.  Please, I didn’t interrupt you.

Director Richardson:  Sure, sure

Kalvin Gile:  The four months, now you made me lose my train of thought, ah, ability to state that it didn’t cost us anything because it’s paid for anyway, if you applied that to the truck out there that means anybody can drive that truck because it’s paid for anyway.

IGM Tynan:  No

Director Richardson:  No, I’m just trying to figure out what this, what this will cost us in relation to what you say…

VP Kinsella:  OK, OK

IGM Tynan:  IF you take four months and times them by eight employees, or seven employees, and they get one hour break a day, which they never did, I did not find one day where they went over an hour for a personal phone call.

Kalvin Gile:  That’s still inappropriate, you cannot make one personal phone call

IGM Tynan:  If they are on 15 minute break

(Inaudible, multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  There’s no reason, there’s no reason…

Kalvin Gile:  (inaudible) on their phone, their building, their light switch, but you should not be doing it on company time. 

VP Kinsella:  OK, OK, when did you not make a personal phone call on company time? 

Kalvin Gile:  I owned my own business it didn’t matter. 

(Cross talk)

VP Kinsella:  I’m just asking 

Kalvin Gile:  I didn’t

VP Kinsella:  Well if you don’t, never mind

Kalvin Gile:  Going on, let me finish the presentation since you brought this subject up, I didn’t bring it up.  I was perfect perfectly willing to work through it, here are draft work product and it’s marked.  These are our

Charise Reeves:  (Inaudible)

Public:  Point of order, point of order

Director Ross: Who’s asking a point of

Director Richardson:  Somebody had a point of order, or something?

Public:  Yeah

IGM Tynan:  Again, this is the same, this is the same stuff

Kalvin Gile:  Wait a minute let me finish

Public:  I don’t believe the two of you should be discussing while he’s making his presentation

Director Richardson:  And you folks shouldn’t be talking about that either so, let’s, let’s give him his undivided attention

Kalvin Gile:  This document being district work hours are from 7:30am to 4pm after that and before that we’re paying overtime to (inaudible).  You shake your head no?

Charise Reeves:  Well, for myself

Kalvin Gile:  I can’t speak to you

(Multiple voices)

Kalvin Gile:  This is just a list of before and after the work day,  

VP Kinsella:  OK, you’ve made, you’ve made your point I think Kal

Kalvin Gile:  I, I can I finish making?

VP Kinsella:  Not much longer

IGM Tynan:  (inaudible) comes in early sometimes

(Multiple voices)

Charise Reeves:  Yeah, I need a copy for the records

VP Kinsella: OK, any questions from the floor?

Victor:   I have a question, who authorized those phone numbers to be given up to Giles?

IGM Tynan:  I spoke with, at first Raymond and then I spoke to the D.A., cuz this had gone to the DA.

Victor:  You understand that it is a misdemeanor to give that information? 

(Multiple voices arguing) 

IGM Tynan:  Ah the DA, said, the DA said I could.

(Multiple voices disagreeing)

Victor:  Yes it is.  Call any company and (inaudible)

Public:  The content is what is protected not the number

(Arguing between audience members)

Public:  What you do with them.

Unknown:  Raymond?  Legal opinion?

Kalvin Gile:  IS the content protected or is the number?

Raymond Carlson:  A bill is the bill, it’s just like my legal bill, that’s a public record, that’s the way I look at it.  So somebody made a public record request for all the bills from XYZ company, attorney, phone company, whatever, that, that those are public records.

Victor:  It is not counselor.  I called, I called Tuolumne Utility District and I said could I get the phone numbers for four months from your…. do you have a subpoena?  You need a subpoena counselor.  And also, if somebody complains to the State Bar I wonder what they’re going to be answering?

Raymond Carlson:  Well, I mean, I’m just telling you what I,

Victor: You need a subpoena counselor (inaudible)

Raymond Carlson:   what I, gave my answer. Pardon?

Victor:  You need a subpoena (inaudible)

Raymond Carlson:  I’m not going to argue with you about it.

Victor:  (inaudible) not argue with me, but you do need a subpoena

(Multiple voices)

Public:  Clarify this a little bit, records for this place are different than records for a private business.

Victor:  I’m talking about Tuolumne Utility District

Public:  Well, that’s a public district

Victor:  Yes, same as this one

(Multiple voices arguing and stating no)

Victor:  Yes

VP Kinsella:  OK, OK, you had a question?

Public:  I have a question for the lawyer on this, somebody taking this data it’s kind of like yelling fire in a theater when there’s no fire, don’t they have a responsibility to respect the privacy and not be actually using that data just as if I took my shortwave radio and tuned in on something I wasn’t supposed to hear, it’s legal for me to hear it, but not to go out and run my business on it.  (Inaudible)  Are there further restrictions in getting this data, from the, from the CSD?  The data that

Raymond Carlson:  Once a number is in the bill, and the bill was a public record it’s part of a public record.

Public:  OK, and there’s no further protection?

Raymond Carlson:  No, I mean we’re not talking about what was said in the phone, you know, the phone conversation, I mean, we’re not talking about anything like that, we’re talking about it’s just like, it’s just like what people, what people get paid in a public agency is a public record, I mean we might think that’s a private matter, but that’s actually publically a report, it is publically discloseable and has to be disclosed.  So I mean if somebody makes a call on a district phone to the Mountain State Pipe and Supply their phone number is on there that, that, it gets into the phone bills, or phone companies’ bill the bill gets sent, that’s a public record.  I mean Victor doesn’t agree but you know, that’s OK we don’t

Always agree on every

(Inaudible – Multiple voices):

Victor:  (Inaudible) talked with several law enforcement company and I talked to the district attorney in different counties and the answer is this is (inaudible) confidential information and it’s a misdemeanor, quote end of quote.

Raymond Carlson:  Ok, I don’t know how a phone number is confidential infor…that’s like saying your address is confidential, is your phone number confidential?

Victor:  Yes it is

Raymond Carlson:  Why?

Victor:  To give to somebody?

(Multiple voices, cross talk)

Raymond Carlson:  If the district called you because you didn’t pay and your phone number got into the district records, is that confidential?

Victor:  If it’s given to telemarketers or anybody else, yes it’s confidential.

Raymond Carlson:  Anybody can make a public records act request

Victor:  (inaudible)

Raymond Carlson:  Is there an exclusion of the public records act (multiple voices)

Victor:  You need a (inaudible) counselor

Raymond Carlson:   OK, I’m not going to argue with you

VP Kinsella:  OK, OK, OK

Victor:  Better not argue with me because you’re going to be talking with the state bar

Public:  (multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  Any question from the floor, Peggy?

Peggy:  I don’t have a question just a suggestion, can the two of you sort of make a happy medium somewhere, in the sense of saving time because you’re never going to make any (inaudible) out of this

VP Kinsella:  This is an obvious fishing expedition and I don’t go for it.

Public:  (Inaudible)

Peggy:  Well, I mean, I’m sure there’s some responsibility on both parts (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  OK

Public:  (inaudible) do a Rodney King-cant’ we all just get along?

VP Kinsella:  What is the question?  Lew?

Director Richardson:  Mr. Gile, what put you onto this?

Kalvin Gile: This gentleman said in the meeting on the 16^th if you read it and bemoaned the fact that the telephone situation was out of control to the district

IGM Tynan:  Cell phones

Kalvin Gile:  Well I didn’t hear the cell phone – I heard telephone, is out of control in the district.  In my business, we, as I explained in the first presentation, we did a track on, if you want to make a call we didn’t, we didn’t restrict you, you dialed a number and the telephone company separated that number to the call you made and management got a report back.    

Director Richardson:  OK, so, so you think with everything you have here, you have evidence of substantial waste to the CSD?

Kalvin Gile:  I have evide, of a substantial abuse.

Director Richardson:  Abuse?  Ok

Kalvin Gile:  Not about waste, abuse.  I see this as abuse.

Director Richardson:  OK, abuse.

Kalvin Gile:  My, my people

Director Richardson:  Your people?

Kalvin Gile:  Yeah, when I,  a 113 of them

Director Richardson:  113

Kalvin Gile: They’d use the phone, we restricted the phone

VP Kinsella:  OK, what are, what are we going to do with this?

IGM Tynan:  Ah Bill?

VP Kinsella:  Yes

IGM Tynan:  Actually I have to go to the, to the Grand Jury on Friday and I’m very glad and willing to talk with them about this

Kalvin Gile:  Well they’re very willing to talk to you about it too

IGM Tynan:  Yeah I’m glad they are, I really am

Kalvin Gile: (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  This is an issue for the Grand Jury?   

(Multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  Ahh for

Director Richardson:  You’re kidding me?

(Multiple voices)

Victor:  Dan, you may not discuss anything that you talked to the Grand Jury.

IGM Tynan:  Oh I know

Victor:  (Inaudible)

IGM Tynan:  I can’t say, I can’t say what is said once I meet with them

Victor:  Right

IGM Tynan:  Once I meet with them I can’t say anything

VP Kinsella:  No wonder nothing gets done, geez we’re fighting forest fires for crying out loud.  Alright, any other comments, Charise, what’s your pleasure?

Charise Reeves:  Ah, the next item is Kathy Agee

AGENDA ITEM K: REQUEST FROM KATHY AGEE (15 Minutes) Request – By Kathy Agee to request a response to her claim

[Kathy Agee is still attempting a refund for the meter reconnection fee she paid to obtain water with a portion of her argument evidently based on the California Constitution.  The CSD attorney will study and research new material presented at the meeting by another individual also requesting a refund and will report back at the next meeting on October 17^th.  The attorney advised he was confident with his first opinion that no refund was required to be made.  Ms Agee stated for the record that even if the attorney confirms his original opinion a refund is not required she intends to pursue the matter further.  Agee also reiterated her opinion that a director should not publish information about the CSD on a website and that she would still like me to resign as a director.]

 

AGENDA ITEM L:  COUNSEL/MEDIATOR (10 Minutes) Request – By D Tynan to discuss having counsel or a mediator at each meeting

[Continued research into obtaining a mediator for meetings as recommended by the Grand Jury.  The attorney suggested contacting JAMS, Judicial Arbitration/Mediation Service, but cautioned it could run approximately $3,000 a meeting.  Public suggestion that a legal type mediator may not be needed thus reducing the expense.]

 

XXXXX     1650 HRS  MEETING BREAK      XXXXX

 

 

 

PARTIAL TRANSCRIPT OF THE 

REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

LAKE Don Pedro Community Services District

9751 Merced Falls Road

Monday, September 19^th, 2011 1300hrs

(209) 852-2331

 

Prepared by Lew Richardson from analog and digital recordings.

My best to you and yours, Lew

 

XXXXX     RETURN FROM RECESS     XXXXX

 

Vice President Bill Kinsella:  OK, we’ll reconvene the meeting now, it’s 1451.   OK, unless, I’ve had a request just at the break, and unless the board objects, I’d like to move Item J, Request from Mike Schartz up to the current topic.

Director Emery Ross:  What page?

VP Kinsella:  Any complaint, Mark?

Director Ross:  What page?

Director Skoien:  No I have no problem.

VP Kinsella:  Ahh, page 80

Director Ross:  80?

VP Kinsella:  Yeah

Secretary Charise Reeves:  What do we have board consensus or a motion?

VP Kinsella:  Board consensus, OK, Mr. Schartz, it’s all yours

Mike Schartz: Ahh,

Secretary Reeves:  Can you come up to the podium please

Director Ross: Can we get some backup from staff on it or something or what?

Director Skoien:  If we have any

VP Kinsella:  Mr., are you Mr. Schartz?

Mr. Schartz:  Mr. Schartz yes.

VP Kinsella:  Mr. Schartz has asked ah for time to plead his case to get a water meter and water on your property is that correct?

Mr. Schartz:  Yes sir.

Director Ross:  Before he speaks though could we get some background from staff so people know what he’s talking about

VP Kinsella:  Well you know about it, you know more about it than I do

Interim General Manager Dan Tynan:  I believe it is the Poe property

Director Ross:  You, he may know more than all of us, I don’t know.

Director Skoien:  The Poe property?

Mr. Schartz: It was the Martin or Morasci  property

Director Ross:  I guess nobody knows so go ahead

Director Richardson:  That already has a meter though

Mr. Schartz:  It has a box for a meter

(Unknown) It has a box

Mr. Schartz:  But there’s no meter

Director Richardson:  Mark you said it had a meter

Director Skoien:  No, not that property

Director Ross: Not that property

Director Skoien:  No way, never

Director Richardson:  Well, we’ve got a big problem here

Director Ross:  No you don’t have a problem

Director Skoien:  The line is in, but it never had a meter in the box

Director Richardson:  You said, January 18^th, there was a meter on the Morasci property

Director Skoien:  No, no

Director Richardson:  And it

Director Skoien:  there were three on Poe

Director Ross:  There’s a box there

Director Richardson:  This is going to show why we need verbatim transcripts because I’m going

Director Skoien:  No

Director Richardson:  That is exactly what you said

Director Skoien:  No there’s a meter box and a line on Morasci

Director Richardson:  You said it had a meter

Director Skoien:  No,

VP Kinsella:  Direct the questions to Mr. Schartz

Director Richardson:  Is there a meter on the property?

Mr. Schartz:  No sir

Director Richardson:  OK, great.

VP Kinsella:  Has there been a meter on the property that you’re aware of?

Mr. Schartz:  To my knowledge, no.

Director Richardson:  Oh Boy.

Mr. Schartz:  But there has been a pipe put under the road and the box is there (inaudible)

Director Skoien:  Yeah the service line is there

Mrs. Poe:  It’s been there for years

Director Richardson:  Right, there-

Public:  (inaudible) vacant lot basically?

Director Ross:  Yeah, same kind of thing, a lateral

Director Richardson:  When was the ah pipeline put in do you know?

Mr. Schartz:  I believe it was in the 80’s, early 90’s, late 80’s  (background talking)

Director Richardson:  90’s.  Early 90’s.

VP Kinsella:  Ahum…

Director Skoien:  There

VP Kinsella:  Go ahead

Director Skoien:  Just to maybe clear Lew up, their box, if you go up that driveway that goes to Poe, its, as your looking up to the property, its on the right of the driveway, and there’s a fire hydrant there, Poe’s were all on the left, up the hill (multiple voices) up the hill remember?

Director Richardson:  Both you and Mr. Ross said that ah, the Morasci property had a meter that was separate from the two that were removed from the Poe property

Director Skoien:  had a meter box

Director Richardson:   the Poe property, no

Director Skoien:  had a service

Director Richardson:  No you said meter

Director Skoien:  Well if I said the word meter it was a mistake cuz I always knew there was no meter in there but the service is there

Director Richardson:  Well that’s what I thought until I went back over the ah transcript and then ah, Director Ross on May 3^rd in an email to apparently to try and clarify things, says, Morasci’s name does not appear on CSD outside place of use report, but a meter is on her property –

Director Ross:  Misspoke

Director Richardson:  he later says the same holds true for Shaw.

Director Skoien:  I don’t know anything about Shaw

Director Richardson:  Well you know, I tell you what, let’s do your thing and then I’d like to do a little thing also that I think is going to go right to what your question is

Mr. Schartz:  My question is I’d like to request service

Director Ross:  And he’s outside place of use

VP Kinsella:  He is outside place of use

Director Ross:  Yes he is

Ray Carlson:  You talking MID place of use or the district?

Director Ross:  MID’s pla, well yeah, it’s not in the original subdivision just is

Director Richardson:  And he’s outside the service district boundary as well

Director Skoien:  Just like Poe is

Ray Carlson:  And the MID place of use?

VP Kinsella:  It’s outside MID

Director Ross:  The thing is, there is a lateral and always been a lateral there.

Director Skoien:  Yeah

VP Kinsella:  It’s it’s my understanding that ah there’s a water line that’s close to your piece of property?

Mr. Poe:  Yes

Mr. Schartz:  There’s a meter box about 25 feet from my property line.

VP Kinsella:  OK, and the lady that owns that wants you to pay a portion of that, the cost for that, is that correct?

Mr. Schartz:  Well my understanding is, it was an agreement between Sandy Poe and Donna Morasci back in the 90’s to split that fee and then when it come time to pay for it after all the work was done, Donna Morasci backed out on it.  Leaving that box, the meter box empty with no meter in it until I’m coming along now to request a meter to be put in it.

VP Kinsella:  Oh boy

Director Richardson:  Oh boy

Mrs. Poe:  And I have a letter from the previous board stating no one would get water until we are reimbursed our cost and that I believe

VP Kinsella:  You’re Mrs. Morasci?

Mrs. Poe:  I’m Mrs. Poe

VP Kinsella:  Oh, OK (laughing) I’m sorry

Mrs. Poe:  And I have a, there is a letter Syndie has it on file, I have a copy of it in my, in the truck, but no one could be, get water on, now his property until we are reimbursed because she literally took us to the cleaners.

Director Richardson:  So have you been reimbursed?

Mrs. Poe:  And so this

Mr. Schartz:  She will be reimbursed

Mrs. Poe: and all this

Mr. Schartz:   as soon as I’m allowed water

Mrs.  Poe:  you know, the water company at that time, whoever was there, ripped up my driveway took a line over to her, we had to pay to have it asphalted again, and put that in place for her, for that property it’s already in place, but, she just, at the board meeting I came to, when I requested why she hadn’t paid the contractor which was a man named Ken Nichols, and the water company, what was left on the water company bill, she said my name was on anything was it? And we were left with all that to pay.  Our kids had to help us and then, ahum, you know, it, all this, just, didn’t make sense to me that, you know it’s in place, this has been all approved years ago, and so now that he has bought the property, which she did a little finagling around him, ahum, now all this was in place since 1990 or before, and now he’s requesting, all he wants is water.  All he wants is water.

VP Kinsella:  Hang on a second, Emery had his hand up

Director Ross:  Well, the boar, this board strictly does policy, so first of all is there a policy that addresses this?  That, that we can fall back on?  (Multiple voices) Is there a policy that addresses this?  And if not we need to make a policy for these kind of situations so that everybody is treated fairly and it’s always the same and we don’t have to go through this.  So, we set policy, we don’t have one, let’s have one, and get it over with, but the problem is gonna come down to as we’ve read on Lew’s blog, he signaled his intentions about this, it’s outside place of use, and he’s going to have a problem with it.  Even if there was a meter there.

VP Kinsella: OK, are you done?

Director Skoien:  Just a little bit more back ground, this cost for your information Lew was them boring the highway,

Mrs. Poe:  That’s right

Director Skoien:  they had to bore the highway the deal was, you get water, she gets water you split the cost of tunneling the highway and I don’t know who did that, but anyway, in an old board packet there was a bill that showed the exact cost and how much was going to be Morasci or Martin or whatever her name was

Director Richardson:  Around $7,000, wasn’t it?

Director Skoien:  So, and that was going to be split, I don’t know if it was down the middle or not but I know there were some more costs

Mrs. Poe:  It was 13 almost 14 thousand

Director Skoien:   She was gonna help pay, she was going to help pay for it

Mrs. Poe:  Oh yeah

Director Skoien:  And she never paid, but the way it sits now I think it’s just an operation issue, I mean the line is there, it’s been paid for (Mrs. Poe talking in background) whether or not at the time or not that’s how you settle it, it sounds like you got a little bit of help to collect your money by the district saying no one will get water until you got your money, I don’t know how that came about, but you know, I don’t, that’s between, well that’s what you said right?  That they told you

Mrs. Poe:  (inaudible) meeting right after she made that statement to me, we lived in Lancaster at the time, we made a special trip up, went to a board meeting here, and we were told because she had not paid the water company for her half

Director Skoien:  right

Mrs. Poe:  we agreed with a letter stating, in fact they volunteered the letter, because we said, we knew eventually we were going to be retiring up here

Director Skoien:  Right, right

Mrs. Poe:  and we did not want to have a bad name with the water company the minute we stepped foot on our property, so they, we agreed to pay the water company her half

Director Skoien:  right

Mrs. Poe:  which we didn’t have to

Director Skoien:  No I understand, I know you got ripped off that way

Mrs. Poe:  And in return they gave us a letter stating then to protect us, that

Director Skoien:  that it would be collected eventually if someone wanted water

Mrs. Poe:  that there would be water given to that property after that, our situation was taken care of

Director Skoien:  OK, so now that’s a private matter between you two?

Mrs. Poe:  Exactly

Director Skoien:  OK

Director Ross:  and this is 1980 something

Director Skoien:  Yeah, so that’s why I think it’s just operations, whatever your normal policy is, the man’s had the service line, doesn’t matter this man or whatever, the property has had the service line put in by this company

Mrs. Poe:  Yes

Director Skoien:  this district, and it was paid for

IGM Tynan:  Being outside place of use that why (multiple voices)

Director Skoien:  and now, and now he wants the meter, I don’t

IGM Tynan:  Being outside place of use that’s why I brought it to the board

Director Skoien:  Right, right so I think it’s more of an operations deal and I don’t see a problem with it really, but

Director Ross:  Well the question

Director Skoien:  Naw, the one question I have is where are the avail, why, I don’t know if there’s any records of even availability being paid by the other owner, but

(Multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  have to research that, but ah, Dan?

IGM Tynan:  I was just going to say another question would be the well, we’re actually getting that tested. Start testing that tomorrow with Elizabeth Binkley, ahm, that’s outside place of use, we’ve got to also make sure that well has the capacity for the outside places of use that we’re doing to keep the contract with MID.

VP Kinsella:  Emery you had a question?

Director Ross:  (Inaudible) I mean, we need to have a policy about connecting (multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  That’s not the issue now (multiple voices)

Director Ross: Wait a minute, wait a minute let me finish, we need a policy because that’s what this is about, is him being outside place of use and we’ve got Jesse Figuroa who wants to hook up, the district has to say either we hook up people or we don’t, based on something this is what he’s asking for, a decision.

IGM Tynan:  Yeah it’s actually the well

Director Ross:  Raymond (multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  I would like to get counsel’s opinion because if I remember correctly you said no connections outside place of use, MID place of use.

Ray Carlson:  You’re not supposed to have, well if you have any connections outside the place of use you have to be able to supply them with water other than Lake McCLure and that means the Ranchito well.  And so, the problem comes if you keep expanding these places that are outside the MID Place of Use will some point come in time, or maybe that point has already come in time, when the Ranchito well cannot supply those, that, that, that’s where you run the problem of running afoul of your, of your contract with MID, and then the other thing you have is, you have a situation where ah you have some parcels that are actually outside the district boundaries.  The District boundaries and the Merced Irrigation District place of use are not one of the same, they vary at different points.  So now we’re talking about the service outside district boundary and there’s a section in the law that governs LAFCO that says you can do that but before you do that you have to have an agreement that is approved by LAFCO to allow that to happen, so those are two different things, you’ve got potential service outside the district boundaries and service outside the MID Place of Use.  Now you’ve got some places that are outside the district boundaries that have been served with water since this water company began as Sierra Highlands back in the 60’s – 70’s and those would be grandfathered in because that section about LAFCO I’m talking about is something that was passed in relatively recent years.  But if you, you know, if you want to do it now, currently, everything has, all these factors have to be factored in and adhered to.

VP Kinsella:  Thank you,

Director Ross: (inaudible) say something

VP Kinsella:  (inaudible)  Mark

Director Skoien:  Well, I think this shou, is the ultimate grandfathered in, the work, the water was promised by the CSD in whatever year, the work was done and paid for, the man bought a piece of property thinking on the basis of getting water the line is there, there’s no reason for him to think OK I won’t be able to get water, and its, its paid for from way back, and if anything should be considered grandfathered in I think this situation is one.  I’d say, go put a meter, I mean that’s my opinion.

VP Kinsella: Lew?

Director Richardson:  Ahum, I’d like a little leeway here.  I don’t think there’s any way we can consider your situation without revisiting the Poe issue and what was discussed in that. 

MRs. Poe:  What’s the Poe issue?

Director Richardson:  Ahh, the Poe issue regarding the removal of the two meters from your property.

Mrs. Poe:  OK good I’m glad you brought that up

Director Richardson:  Yeah, because we need to clear some things up because there seems to be different, now let’s see here I’ve got a couple of tags in here somewhere,

Public:  Are you talking about MID or District?

Director Richardson:  I’m talking about the MID contract with license 11395 which provides us water and uhm  (cross talk by Mrs. Poe)

Public:  But are they outside place of use are they in the district outside place of use are they MID or

Director Richardson:  They are outside MID Place of Use, for you folks that can see, I don’t know how many of you can see this, this blue line represents the MID Contract 11395.  We can use water legally inside this area, that’s where it was meant for and for the golf course, that’s what the contract specifically says.  Now what has happened through the decades as people have added on they violated the contract with MID which exposes them to some pretty severe fines, I’ve heard $25,000 a day, that’s why they snapped us in 1992 and said no Lake McClure water will go to these outside place of use properties.  That’s why the Ranchito well was drilled to offset these 36 we have now, which include of all things, a fire station, an elementary school, a goat ranch, and a cattle ranch, none of the things envisioned in the water license of domestic use.  OK, these are the properties we’re talking about right here.  As you can see they’re outside the water license, now to get a better view of what’s going on, you can look at this one (turns page on display board) here’s our license, it goes on up, this is all in the license down here is within the license.  So we start off with, I made these cute little colored cards here, these are all outside MID POU.  Now, Mr. Ross, Mr. Skoien and to a lesser part Vicki Keefe indicated there were three meters on the Poe property.

Director Ross:   Correct

Director Richardson:  And Mrs. Poe wanted to remove two of them

Director Ross:  Correct

Director Richardson:  is what we were told

Director Ross:  Correct

Director Richardson:  we were also told that it was meant to subdivide that 41 acre parcel, for her two sons who were going to build homes.  Is that correct?

Mrs. Poe:  You finish. (laughter)

Director Richardson:  Well, you could answer them one by one, OK, but that’s what this board was told, that there was going to be a subdivision for those.  Now during that time, January 18^th former president Wes Barton directly asked Emery Ross if the situation involving Morasci had anything to do with the issue of the Poe meters.  Ross said it had absolutely nothing to do with Morasci.

Director Ross:  That’s absolutely correct. 

Director Richardson:  OK

Director Ross:  It has nothing to do with  (Director Skoien interrupts)

Director Skoien:  other than the fact that she owed her money (multiple voices, cross talk)

Director Richardson:  other than she owed her money

Director Ross:  Her removal had nothing to do with Morasci (multiple voices)

Director Richardson:  OK, and this is where you come in, because this is evidently the same property

Mrs. Poe:  No it’s not

(multiple voices)

Director Richardson:  OK, you’re down on this one now.  Now this is the line, this is the water line that goes under the highway, right?

Mr. Schartz:  Yes sir

Director Richardson:  OK, now, other things that were said, I’ve got a bunch of notes here, ahh, we were told by Mr. Ross

Director Ross:  When I looked at that meter box there was a meter in there somebody took it out.

Director Richardson:  Well, that’s interesting

Director Ross:  Somebody took his meter out, there was a meter when I looked

Director Richardson:  That’s interesting

Director Ross:  Yep, probably you took it out.

Director Richardson: (Laughing) Oh Emery, you are so silly.

Director Ross:  (inaudible)

Director Richardson:  Ah, on January 18^th ah, Mr. Ross stated that Mrs. Poe’s property, let’s move these here, was completely surrounded by BLM land.  As you can see, there’s BLM land to the north, BLM land to the East, it is not here where the highway is, or to the south, so that first statement was absolutely incorrect.

Director Ross:  I don’t think I said that

Director Richardson:  Well I’ve got the transcript of the tape

Director Skoien:  Well what’s it got to do with Poe’s meter (multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  Let, let him finish

Director Ross:  What’s it got to do with this (inaudible)

Director Richardson:  Later on Mr. Ross stated next to Poe is Martin.

Director Ross:  Yes it is, yes it is Martin

Mrs. Poe:  Yes

Director Richardson:  But we found out later, four months later, after a request for information, that Martin and Morasci are the same people

Unknown:  No they aren’t

Director Ross:  Yeah they are

Director Richardson:  in that same meeting

Director Ross:  Yeah they are the same

Director Richardson: Ok, let’s see here, you said they purchased the meters only for this property which I have a hard time with since the two meters were registered with Pattison and Terry which are properties down below Poe.

Mrs. Poe:  No they’re not

Director Ross:  They’re not

Director Richardson:  Well they are in the paperwork in the office, those meters are registered to those properties

Mrs. Poe:  That’s true, they’re registered to my property

Director Richardson:  No

Mrs. Poe:  Yes

Director Richardson:  No, the meters

Mrs. Poe:  Yes, yes, yes

Director Richardson:  Well, then you need to go into the billing

Mrs. Poe:  Can I do my illustration?

Director Richardson:  Hang on a bit (inaudible) give it all to you.  Now ah, let’s see here, surrounded by BLM, now Mark Skoien from his investigation out there said there’s a meter box on the other side of the driveway for another piece of property

Director Skoien:  Right, no meter in it

Director Richardson:  Mr. Ross said that belongs to Martin

Director Ross:  True

Director Richardson: and we know that Morasci is Martin

Director Ross:  True

Director Richardson: And then later, let’s see here, ah the request for information for Mr. Ross, four months later, because during that meeting you were representing that there were two different people one called Martin here, and one named Morasci whose property was west of Poes.

Director Ross:  I’ve known her for longer than I’ve known you and she’s always had those two names

Director Richardson:  You said that, but still it does not change the fact

Director Ross:  I may have misspoken

Director Richardson:  Well you’ve misspoken a number of times

Director Ross:  I may have and so have you

Director Richardson:  No I haven’t  (Multiple voices, cross talk, laughter from audience)

Director Richardson:  Now, you say that Morasci’s property is west of Poe’s is that true?

Director Skoien:  West

Director Ross:  What was the question?

Director Richardson:  You stated at the January 18^th and later in the May 3^rd email that you sent to directors and not to the billing office, that Donna Morasci’s property is west of the Poe property

Director Ross:  I believe that direction is west, yes (background talk) maybe it’s south, maybe

Director Richardson:  This is north

Dierctor Ross:  Yeah

Director Richardson:  This is west (multiple voices) this is south

Director Ross:  OK, it’s south of the

Director Richardson:  OK, so that was wrong as well

Director Ross:  Which direction does HWY 132 run?

Director Skoien:  If you go by the

Director Richardson: It’s west

Director Skoien:  the highway running  (multiple voices)

Director Richardson:  Here’s the north symbol, east is over here, west is over here, so, your statements about the names, the property, and its location were all erroneous.  OK, what else have we got here, you know, there’s an awlful lot to this but the big thing is

Director Ross:  Question is does this man get water

Director Richardson:  Beg your pardon?

Director Ross:  IS he going to get water?  That’s what he’s asking.

Director Richardson:  First we need to figure why this was misrepresented to the board on January 18^th

Director Skoien:  Because of a compass heading?

Director Richardson:  No it’s not just a compass heading, it’s making one person two people, someone that he says he’s known all his life and he couldn’t remember her name, and this may not even be the venue for this, to be quite frank, it may not be,  maybe for another agency to look at

(Multiple voices)

Director Skoien:  Here we go to the Grand Jury again

Director Richardson:  And you state, you state, that those two meters removed from Poe had nothing to do with Morasci because she has her own meter.

Director Skoien:  Has her own box with a line,

Director Richardson:  You both said she had a meter (Multiple voices, cross talk)

Director Skoien:  I don’t know if I said meter, (inaudible-multiple voices)

Director Richardson:  That’s all I’m going to say, I’ve got the evidence

VP Kinsella:  Let’s not argue here, if you want to make a point that’s fine, but don’t speak over anybody else…

Director Richardson:  Ladies and Gentlemen this is exactly why verbatim transcripts are necessary when people purport the truth and it is not the truth

Director Skoien: (interrupting) you can always go get a rebat, verbatim transcript, if I said meter

Director Richardson:  First you said box, then you said meter

Director Skoien:  OK, and I also stated that when I opened that box

VP Kinsella:  Welcome to the funny farm

Director Skoien:  Wait a minute let me finish, that I opened the box there was no meter in it

Director Richardson:  You did not say that Mark

Director Skoien:  Yeah, I did (background talking, multiple voices)

Director Richardson:  You better watch what you say when you’re interviewed

Director Skoien:  OK, I, I said that there was a line there and there was a meter box it had no meter in it when I looked in it, there was three meters going up the Poe’s house, OK? 

VP Kinsella:  I’d like to move back to Mr. Schartz

Director Skoien:  Ok, could I finish my point here, point of order here please, I would suggest if you’re going to do all this little investigation with all these little colored cards, you might have included why there were years of no availability paid to this office and why this office allowed that?  That’s all I got to say.

VP Kinsella:  Mr. Schartz

Mr. Schartz:  Was Donna originally allowed a meter to be put on her property?  I’m assuming yes because the pipe was put in correct?

Director Skoien:  I have no idea if she ever got a meter

Director Richardson:  Ah, that was something that I think Mr. Ross would be more familiar with because he was the one that made the motion about enforce, having CSD enforce your contract, and I think that was in 199 –

Director Ross:  Check with Wes Snyder

Director Richardson: 90-something, it was your motion, you’ve spearheaded this thing since the beginning.

Director Ross:  And Syndie kept mixing stuff up saying it was surrounded by BLM and you included that to me, she, you look at the staff report Syndie

Director Richardson:  NO, no, no there you go again Emery, no, no, that is not correct.

Unknown:  No, no

VP Kinsella:  OK, let’s

Director Richardson:  You don’t know what you’re talking about

VP Kinsella:  OK, let’s ah, Mr. Schartz

Mr. Schartz:  My point is, is if if Donna Martin or Morasci was allowed a meter box to be put in all she had to do was pay the money due and she could have got the meter, correct?  That’s what I’d like to do right now, make it fair and square with her, make it fair and square with you…

Director Richardson:  But we can’t do that now

VP Kinsella:  Raymond, comment?

Ray Carlson:  I think it’s (interrupted by Mrs. Poe)

Mrs. Poe:  So they bored through my driveway for nothing, we bored across that highway for nothing.

Director Richardson:  Well you have water don’t you?

Mrs. Poe:  Yes

Director Richardson:  Well then it wasn’t for nothing

Mrs. Poe:  But it was meant for two properties

Director Richardson:  But we were told by this gentleman and this gentleman that it was for one property

Mrs. Poe:  No, then it was for Martin at the time  we were doing it as a joint adventure only she didn’t pay for the joint adventure

Director Richardson:  Right, right, but we were told all three meters were to serve your property

Mrs. Poe:  Let me (inaudible – cross talk between Poe and Skoien)

Director Skoien:  Yeah, Morasci is the fourth meter Lew

Mrs. Poe: I’d like to illustrate something

Director Skoien:  Lew, Morasci is the fourth meter

Mrs. Poe:  cuz I’m coming in defense of my sons

Director Richardson:  Sure

Mrs. Poe: Alright

Director Skoien:  They were planning on building up there

Mrs. Poe:  And I’m not good at this folks, OK, here’s my property  (drawing on dry erase board), that’s my property, we had dreams like all of you have dreams, our dream was put a house over here on the hill for us, my husband and I; and my youngest son was going to put a home over here as we got older he could help take care of us; and the other boy was going to put a home over here so they could share in that responsibility.  OK, this is Terry, this is Pattison both of which are my sons.  When they wanted to do this and we were told by the water company you better get your meters because they’re going to go up substantially.  We told the boys we can’t be responsible, as the parents we always were, you gotta pay for yours, you gotta pay for yours, and without the water ever being turned on, these boys have paid a water bill for years.  These are my boys.  OK.  My sons.  Well the dream has gone to hell.  My husband has Alzheimer’s.  Right now we are paying six and seven hundred dollars for his medication because we’re in the famous doughnut hole.  OK?  With him being in that condition they’re not ready to retire yet, they still got kids in school and college, what am I gonna do?  Make my sons give up their life for us?  SO, we’re paying on three water meters, all the hell I wanted was, come take two of them out, we can’t afford them anymore.  I can barely afford this one.  I don’t even get two thousand a month do the math, you think I’m not going to get those pills for that man that worked all his life for me and four boys, he’s almost 85 years old, well you betcha I’ll keep getting those pills no matter how, what I have to go without.  That is the whole issue on those.  In the rumors I’ve heard, Hank was married to Martin or Morasci or whatever you want to call her, really?

Director Skoien:  That’s what you stated that Lew

Mrs. Poe:  My son had nothing to do with her.  Terry, that’s John, which right now that son, that beloved son of mine is critically ill needing a liver, not because he drank hisself to death, because of a damned gene his father had, it’s called the alpha one look it up on your computers, Alpha one under the ZZ.   He’s got cirrhosis right now he just turned 50.  I’m going through hell right now with all this and they have her with Shaw.  I don’t know who Ramona Shaw is, she has showed up on our papers for years.  The woman’s got to be old as dirt if she’s even still alive.  So this is bogus.  This is bogus.  My son Hank is married and has two sons, Martin she wouldn’t like him anyways.  (Laughter)  I’m being honest, OK.  Now I’m sick of my sons being drug through the mud and then we were told when we wanted to get water with Martin, well you gotta bore under that 132 Highway, wasn’t cheap.  We were told by the water company this is what we’ll do, this is what we’ll do, they tore up my driveway to put that stupid box over here for her, which she never paid me for, my driveway is the one that’s got the patch in it, and now you’re gonna tell me that box can’t be filled?  I mean, give him one of my meters you took out.  I didn’t care about that, I didn’t care about, this was the dream has gone.  Our dream of what we wanted for us and our kids, it’s gone.  You know, and to refuse him with a line that we –  is already been there it’s in place, I don’t understand

Director Richardson:  Mrs. Poe?

Mrs. Poe:  When did it come, when does it come we can’t call up and ask the water company for water?

Director Richardson:  Mrs. Poe?

Mrs. Poe:  I mean,

Director Richardson:  I have a question for you.  Those two meters for your sons why are they registered to two separate APNs under their names.

Mrs. Poe:  They’re not

Director Richardson:  I think you need to check the records in the office

Mrs. Poe:  Well they shouldn’t be,

Director Richardson:  because these two sons

Mrs. Poe:  they paid those water bills

Director Skoien:  What does it matter Lew?

Public:  Does it matter?  Does it really matter, I mean what is all this about ….

Director Richardson:  Of course it does (multiple voices-cross talk)

Director Skoien:  No it doesn’t (multiple voices-cross talk)

Public:  (inaudible) water, here’s (Richardson-Skoien continuing) a man that has bought a piece of property

(Multiple voices, cross talk)

Director Skoien:  Exactly

Public: that a board from a long time ago who knows when

Director Richardson: No not that long ago

Public:  Approved to have this line come in

Mrs Poe:  I don’t understand, Honest to God I don’t understandhow you can sleep at night. 

Director Richardson:  No I, I can understand it, I don’t much either

Public: The request wasn’t from Poe the request was from Mr. Schartz about a line that was already there, that’s already been paid for, that like you said should have been ultimately grandfathered in for your

Mrs. Poe:  Exactly

Public:  a (inaudible) a long time ago.  (background voices)  Ah Lew have you looked back to see what the board transcripts were back then?

Director Richardson:  We’re trying to get that information, what we have, what we have got though, is that those meters were registered to two other properties.

Public: OK, it doesn’t, but  

Director Richardson:  And it was misrepresented to the board and to the public by you, Vicki Keefe, and Mr. Ross.

Director Skoien:  No it wasn’t wait a minute

(Multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  OK

Director Ross:  Mrs. Poe, Mrs. Poe did you ever split your property?

VP Kinsella:  Hey, hey

Mrs. Poe:  No

VP Kinsella:  Let’s keep it down, let’s

Director Ross:  She never split her property

VP Kinsella:  Hang on a second

Mrs. Poe:  It’s never been split

VP Kinsella:  Let’s not

Director Richardson:  I understand that

VP Kinsella:  Everybody will have their chance to state and say what they want to (background talking) so just one at a time please.  (Public talking in background)  OK, now Mark

Public: So no investigation was done to (inaudible) I’m sorry I didn’t ask (inaudible) was,…

VP Kinsella:  (Laughing) I’m going to turn you in

Sheri: (Laughing) Turn me in

(Background talking)

Director Skoien:  First of all, if you say I misrepresented it, that’s your opinion, I represented this exact story that you just heard, isn’t that true when I told you about the family plan gone wrong, and second of all, I never represented anything that had to do with that meter on the other side of the driveway, I just wanted to get Mrs. Poe’s two meters gone, cuz she explained the story to me.  I did look in the meter box and tell you that there was not a meter in there.

Director Richardson:  That is not what you said.

Director Skoien:  Yes it is what I said.

Director Richardson:  OK, I’ve got the tape

Director Skoien:  OK, get the tape

VP Kinsella:  OK

Director Skoien:  I may have said meter instead of box but

Director Richardson: No, first you said box, and then when the question was getting closer and closer to what meters they were, you threw in and there’s a meter in it and (multiple voices-cross talk) and then Emery Ross did the same.
Director Ross:  (inaudible)

Director Skoien: Wait let me finish

Director Richardson:  Those are your own words

Director Skoien:  No, no

Director Richardson:  they are not my words

(Audience background talking)

Director Skoien:  Point of order I’m talking, I never said there was a meter in Morasci’s box, you might have said, you might have got confused cuz there were three up on the hill, and you can check the tape, but

Director Richardson:  I tell you what folks I’ll bring it here next meeting

 

Director Skoien:  OK you bring it next meeting

Director Richardson:  and you can hear your own words

Director Skoien:  but you also ought to count, be accountable for yourself, because you in the past have said that Morasci was married to one of her sons.

Director Richardson:  I never said such a thing.  I don’t know who any of these, I met you one time

Director Skoien:  that doesn’t matter

Director Richardson: (To Poe)  I met you once

Director Skoien:  Lew –

Director Richardson:   it does matter you just accused me of something that is absolutely incorrect

VP Kinsella:  Alright, alright,

(Background talking)

Director Skoien:  Now, ok you bring the tape

(Gavel)

VP Kinsella:  We’re getting off the subject

Director Skoien:  if you bring the tape Lew I may have said meter instead of box but I always said there was never a meter, because I went there to look and get a number off it, and there was no meter in that box, ever when I opened it.

Director Richardson:  Both of you did.

Director Ross:  No, I looked (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  Now listen, listen, I don’t care what

Director Richardson:  In fact Emery

Director Skoien:  I don’t know when he looked

Director Ross:  I looked (Inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  Mr. Schartz is waiting for a decision

Director Richardson:  That’s the problem all this has to do with that property

Director Ross:  No it doesn’t

Director Richardson:  And Mr. Ross not only said it, but put it in writing

(Multiple voices)

Director Ross:  (inaudible)  I saw a meter in there  (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  OK, hang on a second

Director Richardson:  So you saw a meter and you didn’t?

Director Skoien:  I never saw a meter

Director Ross:  He looked at it after I did.  When I looked at it, a week or two later he looked at it.

Director Richardson:  Well then we’re dealing with a crime now aren’t we?

Director Ross:  I guess you are (Inaudible)

(Audience talking in background)

Director Skoien:  I think we’re making it more complicated than it is

VP Kinsella:  Hang on a second

Director Skoien:  You know, I

Director Richardson:  I’m sorry

Director Skoien:  that’s just my opinion

VP Kinsella:  Hang on, Victor?

Victor:  I have a question, what would happen if the district puts a water meter on his property?

VP Kinsella:  We could be in violation of the MID contract

Victor:  Who is going to sue you guys?

VP Kinsella:  Huh?

Victor:  MID is in deep trouble right now, they’re going to ignore it

Director Skoien:  There’s no violation

Victor:  Even if there is they’re going to ignore it

VP Kinsella:  Is counsel, hang on a second, as counsel said you’ve got three different ways to go on this thing, you have to get permission from all three, am I correct?

Ray Carlson:  Well I think if you could, if you could, if you could if you know you can supply your outside place of use, ah water uses with your non lake McClure water, right now your only source of non Lake McClure water is that well and as I understand, you’re in the process of very shortly doing a test on that well to make sure we know, you know, how viable it is, and based on its history it looks like its probably a pretty reliable well and the water level is pretty high here, etc., and so forth, so if all of that ah turns out the way we think it is now, then presumably that well will have an ab, be able to be run enough to supply all your outside place of use places ah, or maybe you’ll only be able to some of them, we don’t know yet.  So that’s one thing, the other thing is whether it is the business of outside the district itself and that as I said requires ah approval from LAFCO.

VP Kinsella:  OK,

Ray Carlson:  SO those are the two things that as far as the boundary line issues are concerned.

VP Kinsella:  And then we also have the MID contract

Ray Carlson:  No that’s what I was just talking about

VP Kinsella:  Oh, OK

Ray Carlson:  In other words the MID contract recognizes that you can serve outside as long as you’ve got the water to serve outside.

VP Kinsella:  OK

Director Skoien:  So if the well is sufficient then, do you have a problem with it?

VP Kinsella: WE

Director Skoien:  With him getting a meter Lew?

Director Richardson:  I have a problem being told the truth in a meeting.

(Audience groaning)

Mrs. Poe:  Forget all that

Director Richardson:  Oh just forget it?  We just lost a director because of that.

Director Skoien:  I told the truth Lew

(Audience grumbling)

Director Skoien:  I may have said meter instead of box,  but I know I never

Director Richardson:  And I know what you support (responding to audience member)

VP Kinsella:  Sheri wants, Sheri wants the floor

Victor:  You mean the deck?

Sheri:  Uhm I think probably what the board needs to do, I mean Lew if you did so much research, I’m surprised that you wouldn’t have researched what the board decided when this all originally happened because I think that’s where its going to come back to because Mrs. Poe had already paid to have all that work done so what would be the repercussions, if water isn’t provided to them after all that service was done and it was agreed upon way back then.

VP Kinsella:  OK

Secretary Reeves:  Where this stood as far as motions and stuff that the board had done, in January the Board had unanimously agreed to remove the two meters.  In May the board went into closed session on four different issues and came out, reported out, that Poe’s was to be relooked at because there were some issues and it was never brought back.  Now I don’t know whether there was a huge packet of information provided at that time, uhm, I don’t whether this has brought Raymond

Director Skoien:  (Interrupting and talking over Secretary)  Yeah I think there’s issues with the APNs asn’t there Lew? 

Secretary Reeves:  yeah, had to do with APNs, if this is brought back Raymond, because the board talked to you for counsel regarding that one, can any of that information be brought back in open session?

Ray Carlson:  You can talk about it in open session if you want, I mean it’s ah

Secretary Reeves:  The question being the APNs, it’s because, I, just kind of hearing, the APN was originally specified to his property it makes it really simple.  If he had had a meter already and it was incorrectly removed, then he already had the meter, and shouldn’t have been taken out as being part of Poe.  Now I’m not, I’m just saying I remember something being said about APNs because if I’m thinking right there’s something in the records that showed those as being part of Martin Pattison APN and the Terry Shaw APN,

Director Skoien: Yeah

Secretary Reeves:  I’m just, I’m just saying

Mrs. Poe:  Yeah, I know

Secretary Reeves:  what I remember seeing

Mrs. Poe: It was just funny when I heard that

Director Skoien:  No I remember the list of the APNs and I don’t know how they

Secretary Reeves:  and that’s why, wait, and that’s why the board was supposed to come back to that issue because if they were truly listed as being on the other properties this is kind of a non-issue because of the fact that he would already have a meter that was just pulled and could be put back in –

Director Skoien:  All I know is when  

Secretary Reeves:  It was incorrectly pulled

Director Skoien: there was still three meters in place at Poe’s, only one of them being used obviously the one that went to her house, there was no meter in the meter box on the other side of the driveway cuz I

Secretary Reeves:  I’m just letting you guys know where you as a board stood on this matter.

VP Kinsella:  OK,

Director Skoien:  Now when, or if, or how long before it got removed no way for me to know

Director Ross:  I would, I saw it, you know I had a question for Charise

VP Kinsella:  Sure

Director Ross:   this property whatever you want to call it, was it, was it paying $47 then?

Secretary Reeves:  I don’t know that’s not a question for me

Director Ross:  OK, cuz that’s really the key, were they paying 47 or were they paying availability?  That’s been asked many times even back then, and it’s never been answered

Secretary Reeves:  Well then it needs to maybe come back next month, with some additional research done on who was paying what specifically and get the APN numbers, you know, the research into that to get it resolved once and for all as to what APN those properties were tied to, or those meters have been tied to.

Director Ross:  And it’s still outside place of use.

Secretary Reeves:  Yeah but if the meters were there, then that’s a different issue

VP Kinsella:  Go ahead

Director Richardson:  Mr. Schartz, were you advised of this before you purchased the property?

Mr. Schartz:  I bought the property under the impression that Donna was approved for water, she just never paid her half of the fees, to get the water pipeline under the road so all I had to do was pay that back fee and I could get a meter no problem.

Director Richardson:  OK, so you actually bought the property from Morasci?

Mr. Schartz:  Correct, with the impression..

Director Richardson:  And she did explain to you

Mr. Schartz:  yes

Director Richardson:  that you would have to pay somewhere around $7,000 to get water?

Mr. Schartz:  Yes

VP Kinsella:  Ruth, hold on for a second? Victor you had a question?

Victor:  Yes I had a question, do I understand the district has a contract with MID for 5,000 acre feet of water?

Director Ross:  Correct

VP Kinsella: ahead

Director Richardson:  5,160

VP Kinsella:  He can answer that

Victor:  I don’t think any problem with that lady going to have any problem dealing with such a minute thing, they going to have major problems right now they need all the help in the world with their proposal to build the dam, I think they likely might ignore the whole darn thing.  Why don’t you guys give him the water for Pete’s sake?

Mrs. Poe:  It’s more money every month. Give the guy water

Director Richardson:  Well,

Mrs. Poe:  Revenue

Director Richardson:  again, as, as we’ve already discussed we have to see what the sustainable capacity of the Ranchito well is hopefully it going to be very good because,

Victor:  (inaudible)  I’m sorry

Director Richardson:  Victor please, hopefully it will be good because we’ve been artificially recharging with discharge water millions of gallons for decades that goes out there to Kassabaum flats, but the fact of the matter is, the water license was meant for the subdivision and the golf course.  Now, the more we increase that Ranchito well if it ever goes dry we are now in the ground well business.  And I don’t know how the majority of all our customers, even the absentees that pay their fair, they pay their fair share, well actually they don’t , ahum, but they do pay (laughing) they can’t even vote they have no say in anything, it seems to me if this surface water treatment plant is going to venture off into what MID and the State Water Board considers ground water substitution for surface water transfer you’re talking a lot of money.  And you think you’re rates are bad now, get into ground water substitution.

VP Kinsella:  Ruth?

Ruth:  Yes, if, if this lady paid for the work to be done, digging across the highway and across her driveway to you, I’m saying CSD not personally to you,

VP Kinsella:  I wasn’t in town

Ruth:  Pardon me?  And if he can’t get water don’t you owe her a lot of money plus interest? 

Director Richardson:  That’s a private contractual agreement.  CSD shouldn’t be involved in that what-so-ever.

Mrs. Poe:  They charged me, they’re the ones that told me exactly what I had to do.

Director Richardson:  But you asked them to do it did you not?

Director Skoien:  he means the agreement you had with the neighbor across from you

Mrs. Poe:  We went to the water company because we were contemplating a well.

Director Richardson:  Right, but your agreement was with Mrs. Morasci right?

Public:  But who did she pay the money too?

VP Kinsella:  She paid the money to us, then you went after Morasci

Public:  Right

Director Richardson:  So you have a law suit against Morasci?

Public:  No against the water board

Public:  Against this water board she has

Director Richardson:  Why?

Public:  Because they took her money

Public:  Right

Director Richardson:  We took money to put in a line

Public:  Right

Director Richardson:  To serve her home

Public:  Right

Public: Right

Director Richardson:  OK, end of story. 

Public: and a (inaudible)

Director Richardson:  The rest of that is a matter between you and Morasci

VP Kinsella:  OK

Mr. Schartz: You took that money also to fulfill the Morasci property

Director Richardson:  Morasci wasn’t receiving water.

Mrs. Poe:  Only because she didn’t have a meter it was for her also

Director Richardson:  Sounds like you didn’t have,

Mrs. Poe:  supposed to be

Director Richardson:  sounds like you didn’t have a very good friend.

Mrs. Poe:  You know what, you know what, our, my husband and my problem?  WE think everybody is as honest as we are, and it’s taken us all these years to figure out they’re not.

Director Richardson:  Believe me, I’m figuring it out every single day

Mrs. Poe:  No I don’t think you are.

Director Richardson:  Oh I am, when you can read it in black and white what someone says then a month later they contradict what they said

(Multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  Let’s ahh, let’s go back to the board, I’m going to end the discussion, we’ve beat this thing to death.  Ah, back to the board, what’s the pleasure of the board?

Director Skoien:  Well maybe, I, I,

VP Kinsella:  I think we need more research on

Director Skoien:  I would put a, I would put a meter, but ah, real quickly, if Lew’s research, I think it was before, I agreed it’s a personal you know, you got charged so much, they made a personal deal that the neighbor should pay, that’s a private deal

Mrs. Poe:  That’s  between (inaudible)

Director Skoien:  But I think there was an old receipt in a board packet where it was split now I don’t know if it said Morasci, there was in that old board packet maybe when we were in the closed session

Secretary Reeves:  closed session

Director Skoien:  there was, wasn’t there a receipt that I think Wes Snyder signed it, that had broke it down separated it, do you remember that?

Director Richardson:  And it said they had to annex in before anything could happen, but that annexation never took place

Director Skoien:  well that’s a different issue, I agree, but isn’t that, wasn’t that breakdown for one property owes that much and Mrs. Poe owed the other, wasn’t that what that receipt was?  Do you remember?  It was in, it was in the pac, it was in the paperwork.

Director Richardson:  Well if it is really shouldn’t be discussing it from a closed session

VP Kinsella:  I don’t think, I don’t think we could make a real decision because there’s so many questions here.

Director Skoien:  Well I personally think you make it more complicated than it should be but

VP Kinsella:  Well, I’d like

Director Skoien:  whatever the board

VP Kinsella:  I’d like to get it resolved

Director Richardson:  Well I think we should if nothing else, wait to see what, how the Ranchito well tests out, maybe it will come out with such

Director Skoien:  Well that

Director Richardson:  flying colors another connection wouldn’t really make any difference

Director Skoien:  Yeah, that’s not a bad idea

Public:  when is that going to take place?

Director Richardson:  That’s starting tomorrow

Director Skoien:  Three what?

VP Kinsella:  Ten days isn’t it?

Director Skoien:  Three tests?

Director Ross: Thirty days isn’t it

IGM Tynan:  No, no, it’s a ten day test and next month we’ll have Mr. Figueroa and some other gentlemen (inaudible)

Director Skoien:  And we’ll have that information by then?

IGM Tynan:  Yeah, so we can also put

Director Skoien:  that might be a good idea too

VP Kinsella:  So would you, give me a recommendation, what do you guys want to do? 

Director Skoien:  Let’s ah put it off till the well results are in?

Director Ross: Raymond says you can’t hook up

Director Richardson:  And, and further research on the Poe matter

VP Kinsella:  How does that sound to you?

Director Ross:  What did you say (inaudible)

Unknown:  We’ll try and find those receipts

VP Kinsella:  (Laughing) it’s a mess

Director Skoien:  they were separated

Public:  That’s sad, that’s sad Michael

Director Skoien:  And I think Wes Snyder signed it

Public:  So sad

Director Richardson:  Well it’s sad that you’re caught up in something that started a long, long, long time ago.

Mrs. Poe:  It’s a shame the, the water company should have just told my husband and I from the get-go, no we’re not going to service you, dig a well.

Director Richardson:  Right, well (multiple voices)

Mrs. Poe: That was our big mistake (multiple voices)

Director Richardson:  That’s right

Director Skoien:  they needed customers back then

Director Richardson: Mrs. Poe you are absolutely correct, (Poe taking in background) if previous boards had abided by the license contract

Mrs. Poe:  We were hoodwinked

Director Richardson:  Yeah, yeah I think you were (multiple voices)

Director Skoien:  they were just trying to sign up customers

(Multiple voices)

Director Richardson:  I think you were, a lot of people were.  You know, we had customers in here who told us they felt like they were forced into the district.  (multiple voices-cross talk)

Mrs. Poe:  (inaudible) that’s like how we were forced into three meters

VP Kinsella:  (inaudible) it be a better

Secretary Reeves:  Bill is it consensus of the board then to put this off until the Ranchito well results are in

Director Skoien:  I think so

VP Kinsella:  Emery?

Director Ross:  I’m not saying anything because he said he’s going to the Grand Jury

Director Richardson:  I never said such (multiple voices-cross talk)

Director Ross:  Yes you did

Director Richardson:  there we go again, there we go

Director Ross:  I’m not saying anything

Director Richardson:  There we go

Director Ross:  I will not say (inaudible, multiple voices)

Director Skoien:  I would agree to wait

VP Kinsella:  OK, Lew would you agree to wait?

Director Richardson:  I, I would agree to wait ah for the Ranchito well testing out but I think we also need further research in our billing office to find out exactly what happened with these properties.

Secretary Reeves:  OK

VP Kinsella:  It’ll be three, three

Director Ross:  What?

(multiple voices continue from audience)

Secretary Reeves:  Consensus reached to wait, put this on next month’s agenda after the well results,

VP Kinsella:  Right

Director Skoien:   the well tests

VP Kinsella:  And ah, director Ross, ah you want to abstain?

Director Ross:  Yeah

Secretary Reeves:  OK, and then as far as ah, as far as, ah the other issues, is there any direction the board was supposed to resolve this with Poe and he, Director Richardson is wanting to have stuff put in is that on this next agenda as well, or is that a done deal? 

Director Skoien:  There’s nothing to resolve with Poe is there?

Director Richardson:  Oh yeah there is.

Director Skoien:  Why?

Secretary Reeves:  To determine

Director Richardson:  We’ve got contradictory statements here

Public:  (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  OK, let’s let’s ah put it back on the

Secretary Reeves:  OK, so that some of that, that’s information that was in closed session regarding APN numbers and stuff like that brought to open session?

VP Kinsella:  Yeah, questions on that too

Director Ross:  I wasn’t at the closed session

Secretary Reeves:  Well then that will give you information as well Emery, so that everybody (multiple voices)

Director Skoien:  different APNs  (Multiple voices, cross talk)

Director Skoien:  would there be some kind of official (inaudible-multiple voices) property subdivided Lew?

VP Kinsella:  Say again?

Director Skoien:  Wouldn’t there be some kind of official (inaudible, cross talk, multiple voices)

Director Richardson:  There are three separate parcels

Director Skoien:  Well I know you’ve got three different APNs  (inaudible, multiple voices) subdivided

Director Richardson:  Three meters were on Poe’s property two of them (multiple voices)

Secretary Reeves:  Hey guys, guys (Whistles) get back to the meeting, Mark are you OK with that being on the agenda as well, consensus

Director Skoien:  I have no problem

Secretary Reeves:  to bring back the information

VP Kinsella:  OK,

Director Skoien:  making it too complicated

(multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  Hey Sheri, hang on, hang on a bit,

Secretary Reeves:  We’re back to the, so Mr. Schartz, you’re, you will be on next month’s agenda on the 3^rd Monday at one o’clock

Mr. Schartz:  OK

Secretary Reeves:  so that we should have the well results back in by that point.

VP Kinsella:  We should have more information for you and do a better investigative action on it

Mr. Schartz:  Should I leave contact information with Syndie?

Secretary Reeves:  Yes please, if you could leave a phone number because I had left you a message, in fact some of the paperwork is in there for you I don’t know if you ever got voicemail

Mr. Schartz:  I did but I didn’t know who it was

Secretary Reeves:  OK, uhm, let me walk outside with you for a second

VP Kinsella:  Ruth I shut it down are you talking about, want to talk about this one again?

Ruth: Well I just wanted to make a comment she, she said that there might have been a meter there and it was pulled in error

VP Kinsella:  That’s why we have to find, that’s what we got to do, we got to get more information on it.

Director Ross:  I saw a meter when I looked at it I was surprised when he said there wasn’t.  (inaudible) Then I went back with him there wasn’t a meter.

VP Kinsella:  OK, let’s get back up here.

Public: (multiple voices)  Bill, Bill,..

VP Kinsella:  I didn’t see you raise your hand earlier.

 

PARTIAL TRANSCRIPT OF THE 

REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

LAKE Don Pedro Community Services District

9751 Merced Falls Road

Monday, September 19^th, 2011 1300hrs

(209) 852-2331

 

Prepared by Lew Richardson from analog and digital recordings.

My best to you and yours, Lew

 

XXXXXXXXX

 

Vice President Kinsella:  CONSENT CALENDAR, starting on page 38, Sir?

Director Ross: Vice President, Charise, I’m having trouble ah, my, all my stuff is like blacked out, I don’t know what you’re doing but I wish you wouldn’t do that anymore.  (multiple voices)  I can’t read it

VP Kinsella:  It’s just highlighted

Secretary Reeves:  It’s highlighted and it’s highlighted in grey, yours in in blue, ahm, it had been suggested in one of the ah..

Director Ross:  Why don’t you change the type face?

Secretary Reeves:  things to make it more, stand out more

Director Ross:  change the type (inaudible)

Secretary Reeves:  I was just trying to make it easier  (multiple voices)

Director Ross:  I asked Mark, he said his was blacked out, I thought it was just somebody did it to me, but it’s all of them so… it’s hard to read it

Secretary Reeves:  OK

Director Ross:  It’s probably good (multiple voices)

Secretary Reeves:  In the original, it was pretty easy to look at, but in the copy it’s not quite so easy

VP Kinsella:  Do we have any questions from the board on Consent Calendar?

Director Ross:  Well it’s about minutes right?

VP Kinsella:  Yes, special meeting minutes, regular meeting minutes—special meeting minutes of July 25, special meeting of July 12, and regular board minutes of July 18^th

Director Skoien:  You’re taking them separately here right?

VP Kinsella:  Yeah you have to do them all, singularly  (Multiple voices)

Secretary Reeves:  You can do them all together or you can do them separately if you need, whatever

Director Richardson:  Can’t you do them all together unless you pull anything?

Secretary Reeves:  Ah-huh

VP Kinsella:  Do you want to consolidate all three?  OK then I’ll accept a motion for

Director Ross:  No, no, make a comment, making a comment on page 44, back to these ah verbatim transcriptions, ahm, I don’t like it, (laughter)  wish it wouldn’t be there and I would like it not to happen any more, you know, I don’t know why we have to have them.  You said you don’t have time to do policies but you got time to do this, I look back here, Dan said he was going to bring policies to us in, let’s see in August I think and I haven’t seen policies but we have time to verbatim transcriptions that the board isn’t even asking for, as far as I know.  Hasn’t been a board direction.  That’s my comment.  And I won’t approve anything with verbatim transcription, only minutes.

VP Kinsella:  Lew?

Director Richardson:  Well ahh, as far as I know the verbatim transcripts started, ironically almost one year before the February 22^nd one, and it was the whole meeting was a transcript requested by president, I believe he was president, Barton at the time because of your threatened law suits and taking information to the FPPC, the district attorney and all that, and there were no big complaints about it at that time.

Director Ross:  Well president Barton,  Mr. Vice President, said we’re going to shorten notes, minutes and we’re not going to do that any more, and I remember he asked for that (laughing) and I, at the time I thought gee that’s not so good but it was OK, it worked out, they were minutes instead of verbatim transcriptions.  I mean they don’t have time to do the one thing that we’re are, are, are, are charged to do which is policies yet we do, you know, who does these verbatim transcriptions?

Secretary Reeves:  It’s me and the only thing that is verbatim is the director’s comments

Director Ross:  I understand that

Secretary Reeves:  and anything for the record

Director Ross:  How long does it take?

Secretary Reeves:  Ah this one took me about, let’s see it was a three and a half hour meeting, on that particular one,

Director Ross:  Just the verbatim

Secretary Reeves:  Just the verbatim portion?  (inaudible) and hour, hour and a half.  I type pretty fast.

Director Skoien:  You do it off a tape right?

Secretary Reeves:  Yes.

Director Skoien:  Well, I got no problem read and file July 12^th and July 18^th, but I don’t like the verbatim either because its they’re always behind you know, a meeting or so behind, you know, when we see them here, and I can’t remember every word that was said and I don’t like the fact that I’m depending on someone else to print them correctly, not that you’re doing them wrong Charise, it’s just that mistakes happen.  I’d rather have just minutes and it’d save you some time in the office which I’m sure you won’t mind, and I think it would be just more compact.

VP Kinsella:  Lew?

Director Richardson:  Well I.. (multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  Are you finished?

Director Skoien:  Yeah

VP Kinsella:  OK, Lew

Director Richardson:  I would agree with that except for the fact when ah what things are said in meetings, if they’re not factual I think the individual should be held to their words.

Director Skoien:  Well you always have the tape you can present, if that, if that case comes up

Director Richardson:  What?  Replay the tape for the audience?

Director Skoien:  Well, you could do that or you could, have a

Director Richardson:  A transcript is much more effective to do that because in the next meeting then everybody can read what was said, and if somebody objects to having their words printed where everybody could read them they shouldn’t say them in a public meeting.

 

Director Skoien:  I think if you had an issue you could, couldn’t you get your tape, state your issue, put it on the agenda, and the other person could do the same, and then you could deal with it.

Director Richardson:  What?  Have tape wars?  (Laughter)

Director Skoien:  No, I mean, get, get the transcript made, if, if you have an issue, if you have an issue

Director Richardson:  But that’s the whole point

Director Skoien:  it don’t have to be issue transcript every time

Director Richardson:  But that’s the whole point, if there’s an issue at the time that’s controversial and two people are speaking their positions you don’t want somebody else to try and paraphrase what their saying,

Director Skoien:  exactly

Director Richardson:  use their own words so there’s no misunderstanding of what they’ve said

Director Skoien:  Exactly, that’s why, if somebody is questioning you, or you’re questioning somebody, you take the tape, you transcribe it, you’re not depending on someone else in the office being paid by the ratepayers to do it for you, you’re doing

Director Richardson:  And I do do that

Director Skoien:  OK, yeah, I’m sure you do, but the thing is, it doesn’t have to be done every meeting

Director Richardson:  Of course not

Director Skoien:  So I, if there’s an issue, then you do it and then bring your issue to the board.

VP Kinsella:  Charise, are you done? 

Director Skoien:  Yeah

Secretary Reeves:  The reason I went to the verbatim on the director comments was because there’s, first off, there is no topic identified in director comments, so it can be about anything and everything, two, we’ve had some very heated, the director comments have taken a route they should not have taken, director comments should be comments stated, no discussion, end of comment, three, with the route that the comments have gone, I did not want to be responsible for trying to interpret what you guys were trying to say.  Because

Director Skoien:  But that’s exactly what you’re doing by putting them in here

Secretary Reeves:  No, I’m, it’s it’s, by putting verbatim it stands on its own, you guys, what each one has said and I really didn’t want to do these this way but because I had done them verbatim up to this point I wasn’t going to change.  We went back to director comments two times in that meeting, and Vic, I, I believe I gave Vicki kind of a, a, a motion or nod or something because at one point she did say remember director comments are comments only.  OK, so I did not want to be accused of skewing anything one way or the other, that’s why you’ve got verbatim.

VP Kinsella:  OK, I think

Director Skoien:  wastes your time

VP Kinsella:  Go ahead Emery

Director Ross:  Well if you go back far enough, I’ve been coming to these meetings since 92, ah, there weren’t director comments.  That’s what we’re doing right now, there doesn’t need to be a jab session at the end where you take jabs at each other.  I think it should be eliminated, it started with the last board, ah, at the very end of their tenure because of the problem we had with the ahh, general manager.  Before that if you go back into antiquity you will not see that, you will not see any director comments, we’re making right here today, we comment all day long, if you’ve got something to say, say it, don’t take little jabs at the end when it’s over.  That’s my opinion.

VP Kinsella:  I think that if you have the verbatim there is no room for anybody to interpret what you’ve said, the reader can form their own opinion.  Mr. Carlson I’m going to put you on the spot.

Raymond Carlson (CSD Attorney):  OK

VP Kinsella:  Just a general comment on it, verbatim transcripts

Ray Carlson:  Ah generally minutes should be of, the purpose of the minutes is to have an act of record of action of the board, motions, resolutions, any decision everything else goes in the realm of discussion, audience discussion, board discussion, etc., etc.  and ah normally in most districts, city counsels, etc., those things are not included in the minutes because the minutes are not a verbatim transcription.  The only time you have a verbatim transcription is if you have some kind of on the record hearing and this district doesn’t have those but an example would be ah, in a county where somebody is trying to get a conditional use permit they’ll have a hearing on conditional use permit, on that permit and they’ll have, a, that may be short it may be long depending on what the project is but they usually have a ah, certified shorthand reporter come in and take the whole thing down in case there’s an issue about what happened.  That doesn’t usually happen here because this district is not a land use, it doesn’t have the authority to grant land use approvals, it has the authority to provide our your water service but not to say you can build this or you can build that, that’s that’s for the county.  So you don’t have by the nature of things this district would not have on the record hearings so, it’s within discretion of the board as to how long or how short they want to have the minutes, I mean they can be, they can be as short as saying, you know, just having each agenda item, you know, discussion, motion, you know, carried, you know, and who voted for what or they can be longer than that up until you know, you can transcribe the whole tape I mean (laughing) so, it’s a matter of decision ah, my view is that the shorter the better because they’re shorter, if anybody wants to go back and listen to the tape I think there was a policy when the prior management was here that the tapes were only kept for 6 months

Secretary Reeves:  There’s no policy on that

Ray Carlson:  OK, so now they’re kept forever?

Secretary Reeves:  I have no idea.  I have not gotten rid of, rid of any, and I know some of the ones regarding going back since I’ve been here (cross talk)

Ray Carlson:  Yeah we don’t want to get rid of any…

Secretary Reeves:  (inaudible) situation, are still here.  I don’t know what happened to them with the prior secretary.

Ray Carlson:  At one point in time there was a 6 months limit on tapes, that basically got ended when there was a change over, ah, and so all the tapes are available for anybody to go back and look at, and even if, even if you or I made a transcription somebody could say well we’re not, you know, qual, we’re not certified transcriptionists so if you really wanted to have a transcript of a particular meeting, to deal with a particular point that had come up, the best way to do it would be to have an outsider, you know it costs money, but you’d have an outside certified ah transcriptionist make the transcription and then that would be the transcription, if, if the board decided they wanted it.

VP Kinsella:  OK

Secretary Reeves:  Quick ques, quick question…

VP Kinsella:  Sure

Secretary Reeves:  Raymond, ah in several of the uhm online courses that I’ve taken and talked to people, when someone states FOR THE RECORD though, that goes into the minutes in full correct?

Ray Carlson:  Ahhh

Secretary Reeves:  Because they want it as part of the record in the minutes and I’ve been told that by multiple sources

Ray Carlson:  Well, I mean you can do it that way, I don’t, I don’t personally believe that that’s the case ah because that way people who are in the audience control what what goes, if they want to submit a written document that’s fine, that’s the best way to do it.  I don’t believe that’s a legal requirement, I mean it may

Secretary Reeves:  that’s what I’ve been told by several sources, so

Ray Carlson:  Yeah, it may be what they’re saying but I mean, if you look in the, I’m messing around because I spilled some coffee, I apologize, ah, let me see if I can find the exact, there’s actually a code section that addresses this and it basically says, ah,

Director Ross:  Charise, as far as I’m concerned on that resolution, for the record meaning, you know, I said it, you don’t have to make a big deal out of that, you know (inaudible)

Secretary Reeves:  No, because we do have times when (Ross cross talking)

Director Ross:  another word for it, but

Secretary Reeves:  item that we want for the records being included in the minutes

Ray Carlson:  OK, here, here’s what it says in the code for records of the board, the board of directors shall keep a record of all its actions including financial transactions, so that’s pretty broad.  That might mean the very brief type of minutes I talked about, it might mean a blow by blow transcription of everything that’s ever said at the whole thing, or something in between.  So that’s a matter for board decision.

VP Kinsella:  Which section is that in Ray?

Ray Carlson:  That’s Government Code Section 61045, subdivision E

VP Kinsella:  E as in Edward?

Ray Carlson: Echo, as in Echo

VP Kinsella:  OK, I go back to my police training…Edward (laughing)  OK

Ray Carlson: I use the phonetic alphabet

VP Kinsella:  OK, any additional comments?  Any comments from the floor? 

Public:  I have a question.  Did the board, ah, has the board directed Charise to to, ahh, put these transcripts down, like what we were just talking about, was that requested by the board for her to do it that way?

Secretary Reeves:  No, this began when the board, I’m trying to think of a polite way to say this, when we had so much interaction with the board on February 22^nd, and I, or actions against me, were at the heart of it, (talking in background) and I chose not to try and interpret what anyone was saying.  Rather than do that I (inaudible) verbatim for the director comments, hoping that one, and I’ll be very honest here, that one when everybody saw their words in print that maybe they’d get back to director comments where they should, the way they were originally started, and two, that way I was not putting words in to anybody’s mouth, it was whatever anybody had said and because of our board being the way it has, I had continued to do exactly that because I don’t want to get in the middle of it and I had a split board.  I had two, two and abstain, where this particular topic has, has been an issue and I’m not making that decision.  IF the board directs me Charise, you’re not to do verbatim comments from this point forward on director comments, I will stop doing verbatim comments, if the board says for now on you’re going to do it, then I will do it until they tell me otherwise.  But I was, I was not personally going to put myself in that position.

VP Kinsella:  Yes

Public:  Well I was noticing in the Grand Jury report that they suggested that you not do verbatim, the grand jury.

Secretary Reeves:  And we don’t do verbatim on anything except that one little piece, just because it was the topics were going all over the place.

Public:  But why would it be your decision to do it

Secretary Reeves:  It’s not, the board can change, the board can direct me one way or the other

Public:  But you’re doing it without them telling you one way or the other, so it’s your decision.

Secretary Reeves:  They can change it.

VP Kinsella:  It, it was one of the things that I, showed a lot of concern on this, so if you want to blame anybody blame me because I was the one that said, I don’t want anybody to misunderstand what I said.  If I said the Moon is made out of Blue Cheese, that’s what I said and I’ll stand behind it, and I would, I should be responsible for that, for that kind of a comment and ah, I think it’s just simple, if I made the statement, I stand behind it, and I don’t want anybody to interpret what I said.  So, I’ll take the heat on that one.

Public:  OK, I was just wondering that (inaudible)

Director Ross:  But of course one board member cannot direct her to do anything

VP Kinsella:  No I, I, that’s right, and I, my comment to Charise was I want my words said, or stated properly in true content.  So, took the heat off her, OK.

Public:  I was going to say that ahum, it seems like if ah the minutes are a record of the board’s actions, as district counsel has said, you don’t need to even put any of that in there, just say director comments were made period, without saying what they were, and if someone wanted to listen to the tape they could (inaudible) it’s not part of the action the board has taken so I don’t see why it should be an issue of having  it (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  OK, any other comments?  Ruth.

Ruth:  Yes I have one, ahum,

VP Kinsella:  Is it related to this?

Ruth:  IT’s related to the minutes being approved.

VP Kinsella:  OK

Ruth:  I, I noticed that ah, the August 25^th Minutes were on the internet, is one director, which is Lew, acting alone by putting these minutes on the web before they have been approved by the board

Director Richardson:  They’re not Minutes

VP Kinsella:  Let me ask you, let me ask you a question first Ruth, was this on LDPCSD?

Ruth:  No

VP Kinsella:  It was not.

Ruth:  It was not

VP Kinsella:  Lew?

Ruth:  I didn’t think the Minutes could be out to the public until they were approved by all of the board members.

Secretary Reeves:  The Minutes that are on the LDPCSD.org, say these have not been approved yet.  There are no minutes on the district’s website

Ruth:  No it isn’t on the CSD website

Secretary Reeves:  And I have not put them out there anywhere else

Director Richardson:  Could I answer that?

VP Kinsella:  Go ahead

Director Richardson:  Ah Ruth, first of all they’re not Minutes.  They’re a transcription of everything that was said within the meeting, without any comment on my part, and I think that’s good because as you know there are hundreds, and hundreds of customers that never come to these meetings and they have no idea what happens at these meetings.

Ruth:  Ah, huh

Director Richardson:  So I think that is in the best of the district as a whole to understand what is transpiring at meetings that affect them and their finances.

Ruth:  But you put, ah on there this is verbatim

Director Richardson:  Ah, huh

Ruth:  and, and that, what I’m questioning is how can one director put these out there before they are approved by all the directors?

Director Richardson:  I could come in here with a video camera and set it right there on a tripod and film this entire proceeding, it is a public, public meeting, and it’s geared to educating, see, evidently you looked on the blog, well did you have a good understanding of what happened at the meeting?

Ruth:  Well I was here.

Director Richardson:  Oh, OK, well a lot of people aren’t, a lot of people aren’t, they don’t have the time or they live in Colorado, or whatever, but they’re not minutes.

Public:  This might go back to your January that you didn’t do your committees, because policy number 4060 requires that you put a planning committee, an ordinance committee, personnel committee, and finance committee, and public relations committee and there’s policy that backs up that public relations committee, you can look that up because it’s  

VP Kinsella:  That, that will be coming up, the first committees will be coming up

Public:  (inaudible)

Director Richardson:  That’s coming up

Public:  It’s coming up how?  What do you mean?

Director Richardson:  Today, it’s on the agenda

VP Kinsella:  It’s in, it’s on the agenda

Public:  I noticed that the, what you’re calling it is not these, what you’re calling your committees, it’s not what’s on policy, they’re different but we’ll, I wait till we get there.

VP Kinsella:  OK, any further comments from  

Director Skoien:  I have one

VP Kinsella:  Well wait a minute

Director Skoien:  I’m sorry

VP Kinsella:  Any further comments from the audience?  Mark

Director Skoien:  I just want to say, that Lew said he puts the verbatim transcripts on his blog without any comment from him, well, you usually do have some comment

Director Richardson:  The prior blog did

Director Skoien:  Well

Director Richardson:  the new one does not

Director Skoien:  underneath

Director Richardson:  if there (cross talk) if there, yeah, I will post

Director Skoien:  but it’s on the blog

Director Richardson:  I will post what is said in this meeting (cross talk – Skoien) as best I can from two recorders analog and digital, I do the best job I can to get every word, sometimes I can’t hear it because of the cross talk or the inaudible stuff, and that’s posted singularly.  Afterwards I can add a comment to it.

Public:  Does the whole board, do they do, do they know that you’re doing that, do they approve of everything because that’s what policies state

VP Kinsella:  Can’t control it

Director Richardson:  I, I’m an individual, I’m a United States citizen I have my right to Free Speech and I did not give (cross talk interruption) up (cross talk) and I did not give that up when I became a director.

VP Kinsella:  Clem?

Clem:  I was going to say he has responsibilities being a board member, not to be doing these things. 

Director Richardson:  Where does it say that?

Clem:  When you became a board member

Director Richardson:  Where does it say that?

Clem:  limited some of your writing

Director Richardson:  Where does it say that?

Public:  In the policy number there

VP Kinsella:  We’ve deviating from this thing.  OK

Public:  You’re pushing it under the rug

VP Kinsella:  What?

Director Richardson:  Actually in a little bit, I think it will be clearer to you.

Public:  OK

VP Kinsella:  Any other comments, back to the board.  Do we read and approve the consent calendar for July 12^th, July 18^th, and July 25

Secretary Reeves:  and all correspondence

VP Kinsella:  Say again?

Secretary Reeves:  and all correspondence

VP Kinsella:  and correspondence.

Director Skoien:  I think you should separate them.

VP Kinsella:  OK

Director Skoien:  I mean that’s just me.

VP Kinsella:  Director Skoien says they should separate them

Director Skoien:  I mean, I won’t approve July 25 I’ll just come out and say it,

VP Kinsella:  OK well, let’s do it this way then, why don’t we cut down a little bit here, July 12 and July 18 read and file?

Director Ross:   Isn’t it more, Charise isn’t more than read and file, or is it read and file?

Secretary Reeves:  It’s read and file

Director Ross:  OK (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  I need a motion, somebody want to make a motion to read and file?

Director Skoien:  Well make your motion, on, state the dates.

VP Kinsella:  July 12^th, and July 18^th

Secretary Reeves:  and correspondence

VP Kinsella:  and correspondence, thank you, I keep forgetting correspondence

Director Richardson:  I’ll second it

VP Kinsella:  Any comments from the audience?  Back to the board, call for the question, all in favor?

Director Ross:  What are the two dates?  12 and

Secretary Reeves:  12 and 18

VP Kinsella:  12 and 18 and correspondence.  Unanimous

Director Richardson:  Unanimous

VP Kinsella:  Special meeting July 25, do I have a motion to accept, read and approve

Director Richardson:  I’ll make the motion to read and approve July 25^th

VP Kinsella:  25

Secretary Reeves:  43 (referring to page number)

VP Kinsella:  I’ll second it, any comments from the floor?  Back to the board, I’ll call for the question, all in favor of read and file Special Meeting July 25, all in favor?  Aye

Director Richardson:  Aye

Director Ross:  I’d vote for it if the ah, direc, the ah, transcriptions were removed otherwise no.

Director Skoien:  Nay

VP Kinsella:  Well what is your vote Emery?

Director Ross:  I would vote for it if she, if you agree to take the direct, transcriptions out, otherwise, no.

VP Kinsella:  OK

Director Richardson:  It fails

VP Kinsella:  Motion failed

Director Richardson:  We’ve got something for the next year’s audit

Secretary Reeves:  What, what does the board want me to do with these minutes?

Director Ross:  Bring them back next month, keep bringing them back I guess.  Like we did before

VP Kinsella: I think we have to bring it back twice don’t we?

Director Skoien:  Do you have a problem with her taking the verbatim out?  As a motion?

VP Kinsella:  Yeah, I do.

Director Skoien:  Well then I guess we’re a stale (cross talk)

VP President:  that’s me, but (cross talk)

Director Ross:  (inaudible) reason to bring it back, there’s no reason to bring it back

Director Richardson:  Well it might be good to show good effort that we tried.

Director Skoien:  Well, I’ll make a motion, that July 25^th Special Meeting minutes have the verbatim transcripts removed and brought back to the board, is there a second?

Director Ross:  I’ll second it, but I think you probably got to separate it (inaudible)

Director Skoien:  Why?

Director Ross:  Ok, go ahead, (inaudible) back to the board just to vote yes for that, if you say, with the transcripts (inaudible) vote no, because (inaudible)  I second the motion.

VP Kinsella:  Call for the question, all in favor? 

Director Ross:  Aye

Director Skoien:  Aye

Director Ross:  Gee, what a surprise, surprise, surprise.

Director Skoien:  OK, we made the effort just like you said

Director Richardson:  I meant next month (laughing)

Director Skoien:  Won’t be no different

Director Richardson:  That’s right, it probably won’t be different for quite a while (cross talk)

Director Skoien:  (inaudible) chance to change it

VP Kinsella:  OK, so that motion failed

Director Ross:  No big deal.

VP Kinsella:  Say again?

Director Ross:  No big deal, do it next time.

VP Kinsella:  I kind of expected it

Director Ross:  Oh yeah

VP Kinsella:  Page 53

Secretary Reeves:  54 actually, no you’re right

VP Kinsella:  Say again?

Director Richardson:  53

Secretary Reeves:  You’re right, sorry

Director Ross:  Which page?

Secretary Reeves:  53

VP Kinsella:  Oh that’s the Grand Jury letter

Secretary Reeves:  that’s tied with the resignation

VP Kinsella:  Yeah, when I get

Secretary Reeves:  Yeah, OK 53 is correspondence, 54 is the

Director Richardson:  Reorg

VP Kinsella:  When I get a letter from a government agency that says greetings, (inaudible) look for the door

Director Ross:  Charise, what page are we on?

Secretary Reeves:  54

VP Kinsella:  54.  Page 54 is the written resignation of Director Keefe.  Page 55 is Mr. Carlson’s letters to the presiding judge of Mariposa County Superior Court and ah, and the Board of Supervisors, and Dan Tynan.  WE don’t need a motion for that do we?

Secretary Reeves:  Ah I think you probably should (cross talk)

VP Kinsella:  probably be neater and cleaner to have a motion

Secretary Reeves:  because we

Director Skoien:  Motion for what?

Secretary Reeves:  approved the response to the Grand Jury and as part of her, ahm I know you, the board had asked, or at least members of the board had asked for an addendum to that once everything was finalized with the DA, and that’s why it’s in here as part of (inaudible) reorg and vacancy because it’s all tied to her resignation.

VP Kinsella:  Any comments from the board?

Director Skoien:  I don’t understand why, wh, why we have to have a motion on this (cross talk)

Director Ross:  What is, what are we trying to move?  (cross talk)

VP Kinsella:  It’s a letter from Mr. Carlson to ah Judge Walton, acknowledging that Director Keefe had resigned her position, do you

Director Ross:  Raymond, do we need a motion for that or not? 

Director Skoien:  We don’t need a motion for that

Ray Carlson:  Yeah you should, so that there’s a record

VP Kinsella:  It’d be neater and cleaner

Ray Carlson:  that there was authority to send it

Director Ross:  Well, what does the motion want to say?

VP Kinsella:  That we approve the letter that Mr. Carlson wrote to ah Judge Walton, copies to the Board of Supervisors and Mr. Tynan

Ray Carlson:  I mean it hasn’t actually been sent yet, but you’re authorizing me to send it.

VP Kinsella:  Yeah, that’s what the motion is going to be.

Director Ross:  I can, I can so move if you would like, that long motion that probably can’t repeat, cuz it was too long

Secretary Reeves:  It was to approve the letter Mr. Carlson wrote to Judge Walton, Dan Tynan and Mariposa County Board of Supervisors

VP Kinsella:  OK, Emery, you going to make the motion Emery?

Director Ross:  I made it, I said so moved.

VP Kinsella:  Second?

Director Richardson:  I’ll second it.

VP Kinsella:  OK, open to the floor, any comments from the floor?  Victor?

Victor:  I don’t see any need for it, (inaudible) they have the court transcript, there is no need for the attorney to spend his time and district money attending to the letter

Public:  But he’s already  (cross talk, multiple voices) might as well send it (laughing)

Victor:  It’s in the court transcript already

VP Kinsella:  It hasn’t been sent yet, it has not been sent

Victor:  I know that

VP Kinsella:  it’s an extra 42 cents

Victor:  No, there’s also billable hours

VP Kinsella:  Any other comments (multiple voices)

Public:  Did you officially accept her resignation?

VP Kinsella:  Say again?

Public:  Do you need a motion to officially accept her resignation?

VP Kinsella:  No the resignation was sent and accepted, we don’t need a resolution for that, we do need a recommendation or a vote to send a letter to the Superior Court Judge.  OK, back to the board, all in favor of the motion to have Mr. Carlson send, sign and send the letter to …..all in favor?  Unanimous.  Onward and upward. 

Director Ross:  Page number?

Secretary Reeves:  You’re still on 54

VP Kinsella:  Board vacancy,

Secretary Reeves:  No, board reorg, president, vice president, (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  Yes, yes (inaudible)

Secretary Reeves: It’s just, there’s nothing specific to (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  What page is that?

Secretary Reeves:  It’s still on the same pages. Bill we’re still talking about reorganizing, (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  OK,

Secretary Reeves:  Because we have no president

VP Kinsella:  Right, Board Reorganization, ah, board comments?

Director Ross:  I have one.  Why don’t we discontinue along this path until we get this third person, that’s what we did the last time if you recall.  Wes ran it, you can run it as VP, you’re doing a fine job.

VP Kinsella:  I (inaudible) problem with that.  Mark

Director Skoien:  I got no problem with that.

Secretary Reeves:  We have a

Director Skoien:  It’s going to end up that way anyway

Director Richardson:  Probably so

Secretary Reeves:  (inaudible)

Director Skoien:  by the time you count the votes

Secretary Reeves:  Do we have a motion to do so?  Emery do you want to

Director Ross:  I make the motion, go ahead

VP Kinsella:  No, you want to make the motion

Director Ross:  I make the motion that we continue as we are until the new person is appointed and then (inaudible) who the president is.

Director Skoien:  I’ll second it

VP Kinsella: OK

Director Skoien:  Since it’s going to come out that way anyway (laughter)

VP Kinsella:  (laughing) There’s nothing like a foregone conclusion is there?

(Multiple voices)

Director Ross:  You’re doing fine just keep

VP Kinsella:  I’m not worried about it

Director Richardson:  So if it doesn’t pass, it’s the same thing anyway.

Director Skoien:  Exactly

(Multiple voices, Laughter)

VP Kinsella:  Anybody (laughing) have any comments from the audience?

Public:  Just a funny one, maybe you don’t need that fifth one you’re doing very well.

(Laughter)

Director Richardson:  There’ll be some other things coming up.

VP Kinsella:  Since we have no comments from the audience, ah, the motion is to leave things the way they are

Director Ross:  Bill I had a comment when you’re done

VP Kinsella:  Say again?

Director Ross: I have a comment when you’re done

VP Kinsella:  OK.

Director Ross:  Bill as as the vice president ah, there isn’t a president so you can establish these committees because you’re actually running it right now, you don’t need a motion to have committees, if you want to have committees, have committees.  Now it’s your elective.

VP Kinsella:  Well

Secretary Reeves:  We’ll get there

Director Ross:  Officially it is

VP Kinsella:  Well we’re not

Director Ross:  That’s who, that’s who you come up with a committees and you assign people to them, you don’t need to vote on it or anything like that,

VP Kinsella:  I know that

Director Ross:  OK, (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  I know that, but the motion is that you said you wanted to leave things alone? 

Director Ross:  I think we voted.

(Unknown) No you haven’t voted yet

VP Kinsella:  No

Director Ross:  Oh we didn’t?

Secretary Reeves:  No you haven’t voted yet, we’ve still got the motion on the floor.

Director Ross:  OK

VP Kinsella:  (inaudible) All in favor to leave it alone

Secretary Reeves:  Until there’s, until we get a third

VP Kinsella:  the way it is?

Secretary Reeves: third seat.

VP Kinsella:  Huh?

Secretary Reeves: Until we get the third seat filled.

VP Kinsella:  Yeah

Secretary Reeves:  So what’s my vote?

Director Ross:  I guess it’s (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  One, two, three, four

Secretary Reeves: OK, I’ll

VP Kinsella:  No sense

Secretary Reeves:  Yours is a yes OK?

VP Kinsella:  Why go through a second one?

Secretary Reeves:  OK

Director Richardson:  I guess you could have thrown a no in there just for fun- the excitement of it all.

Public:  Charise is the (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  OK

Secretary Reeves:  It’s supposed to be, let me go look (inaudible) it’s kind of warm

Director Richardson:  Cuz there’s people in here now, brings up the temperature.

Public:  Have a break, there’s still so much…

VP Kinsella:  You want a break?

Public:  Please, could you call a recess?

VP Kinsella:  OK, unless, unless ah there’s any ah complaint, we’ll have a 15 minute recess.

Public:  OK, thank you.

Director Richardson:  Time, 1427

 

XXXXX     RECESS     XXXXX

PARTIAL TRANSCRIPT OF THE  

REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

 

Prepared by Lew Richardson from analog and digital recordings.

My best to you and yours, Lew

 

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

 

Vice President Bill Kinsella:  Good afternoon welcome to the September 10^th … 19^th …. September 19^th 2011 business meeting of the Lake Don Pedro Community Services District.  WE have director Ross, Director Skoien, Director Richardson and me present, that makes a quorum.  We have Charise Reeves the Secretary and Dan Tynan our Interim General Manager and we have the CSD attorney Ray Carlson present.

Director Keefe resigned from the board, her resignation was accepted and we wish her well.  It would be inappropriate at this time for me or anybody else on the board to comment on her resignation.  I encourage the CSD rais-ratepayers to express their concerns about business items not on the agenda.  Personal attacks on any director or district employee is discouraged.  If a speaker does attack any director or employee they will be warned to cease, if the speaker insists on continuing the attack I will recess the meeting 15 minutes, upon reconvening the meeting the speaker will still have the opportunity to speak, but if they continue the attack on the, if they continue their attack I will adjourn the meeting for 48 hours and reconvene the meeting at a time and place consistent with the Brown Act.  I would prefer that we not have to go that way. 

Director Emery Ross: No Pledge of Allegiance today?

Vice President Kinsella:  I’m going to do that right now.  Ruth will you lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance?

Ruth:  Yes

[Audience, staff, and Board recite]   I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty, and justice for all.

Vice President Kinsella:  Thank you.  The floor is open for Public Comment.  [None]  I have some information that I just recently received that Wes Snyder had a stroke and is in the hospital.  I cannot tell you what hospital because I don’t know.

Director Ross:  Merced

Vice President Kinsella:  Where?

Director Ross:  Merced

Vice President Kinsella:  OK, there’s a man more in tune with what’s going on

Director Ross:  Last Thursday

Vice President Kinsella:  Say again?

Director Ross:  Last Thursday.

VP Kinsella:  OK, do we have any people from the audience that would like to make a comment? 

Coralane Porter:  I just want to, I’m Coralane Porter, and I just want to make a comment when Wes’s name comes up on the agenda, that I was just going to speak for him, since he couldn’t be here, just a small little thing about..

VP Kinsella:  You would like to speak for him?

Coralane Porter:  Yea, because he can’t be here

VP Kinsella:  No problem, no problem

Coralane Porter: So I mean that’s further in the in the meeting

VP Kinsella:  Yea sure,

Coralane Porter:  of course

VP Kinsella:  IF we have no comment from the floor, from the floor we’ll continue on with the meeting.  There is no Vice President’s Report because I didn’t make one.  Interim General Manager’s Report, Dan?

Interim General Manager Dan Tynan: OK, as you see, what I wrote was ah, we’ve been unable to do pipe bursting this month, we had to just do the repair bands we were trying to replace the entire lines.  Dave and Justine ah, were getting behind on leaks because it’s that time of the year, so they went back to putting repair bands on them until the Fall when we can start replacing the lines.  Ahum, we weren’t about to flush any hydrants this month, this last month due to the high consumption of water use, so we’re back on that this month painting and flushing the hydrants.  Our water loss this month was pretty substantial because our transducers that give a signal to our SCADA system they failed, it failed.  So our SCADA system was saying it (inaudible) 17 feet when the tank was at 32 feet and over flowing and we had no way of knowing this.  SO we had to change two of the transducers at Sturtevent and Lazo so now they’re up and running again we can read our SCADA and trust it and we’re good to go.  I met with ah, Olin there our chemical chlorine bleach they came out and gave us some really good suggestions of how we could be safer for the employees and what steps we can take and I followed the steps that he had suggested and as I was doing that I noticed a (inaudible) a bottle that we flush our eyes with and it had expired in 1998.  So we replaced that bottle, so, and ah that’s pretty much it. 

VP Kinsella:  Any questions from the floor?  Any questions at all? 

Director Lew Richardson:  I have one

VP Kinsella:  Lew

Director Richardson:  Hey ah Dan I noticed on page 1 of the report there’s no usage outside filed MID Place of Use.

IGM Tynan:  I apologize, I missed that, I’m sorry.

Director Richardson:  No, no It’s alright I was just curious because ahm looking at the other sheet it looks like there was like one thousand five hundred and fifty-seven  point seven ah units used.

IGM Tynan:  Yes that’s true

Director Richardson:  And also there were ah there’s no meters with no consumption this month shown which probably really matter because in the last nine months we’ve averaged 1408 anyway and we’re 1409 now, but I was just curious why those weren’t there.

IGM Tynan:  Yea I’m sorry, I forgot to put those on my report.

Director Mark Skoien:  Ahh, when you mentioned this, talking about the eye wash station?

IGM Tynan:  Yes

Director Skoien: Did, brought up a, member when we were looking at the septic, when you called me over when what’s his name brought the camera?

IGM Tynan:  Yeah

Director Skoien:  And we were searching down that water that was coming in there?

IGM Tynan:  Exactly

Director Skoien:  And we went to the eye wash station and it was plumbed with raw water

IGM Tynan:  Raw water, yes

Director Skoien:  Did you ever change that?

IGM Tynan:  No we’re going to have to change that

Director Skoien:  It’s never been changed?

IGM Tynan:  It hasn’t bee changed yet, it’s a huge project, but we’re going to have to change that, we

Director Skoien:  That’s what I was asking about because I remember trying to do that right away and that’s

IGM TYNAN:  The guys know not to use that right now, we have the eye wash bottle, but we do have to get that replaced, they know it’s raw (inaudible)

Director Skoien:  Remember we closed everything off and it was raw water (inaudible) eye wash

IGM Tynan:  Why it was plumbed like that there’s no reason

Director Skoien:  That needs to be fixed

IGM Tynan:  Yeah, we’ll get that fixed

VP Kinsella:  Any other questions?

IGM Tynan: I just

VP Kinsella:  Yeah?

IGM Tynan: had a comment, ah let me see what page it is on, it’s just a little correction I need to make, on page 14 it says treatment chemicals, however staff does not, is not sure why chemical usage did not increase due to increase in the water treated, we do know why that happens, it’s called water lake turnover.  When the lake turns over, it changes our Jar Test, we have to do a Jar Test and it demands more chemicals because there’s more organics in the water.  So I just wanted to make a correction on that.

Director Ross:  Dan, are you sure it’s 14 cuz that’s the Treasurer’s Report (inaudible)

IGM Tynan:  Yes  (background voice)

Board Secretary Charise Reeves: Disclosure on the chemical account

IGM Tynan:  Yeah, we do know why (multiple voices) it does that, the lake turns over

Director Skoien: Yeah, I had a note about that too, but doesn’t that make you use more?

IGM Tynan:  More chemicals yes because you have more organics in the water

Director Skoien:  But you wrote up you didn’t understand why

Secretary Reeves:  No, I wrote, I wrote that up because Dan was (multiple voices) when I was doing this he wasn’t in to ask and the packets were going out, so I wasn’t sure why July had more chemical use compared to August when we pumped a lot more water in August than July.  Got it backwards.

IGM Tynan:  In July the lake turns over, August and July, which ate up more chemicals.

Director Skoien:  Yeah but it says usage did not increase

IGM Tynan:  For August right?

Secretary Reeves:  Chemical usage I would have, I would have expected from a financial perspective that if we pumped more water in August that our chemicals would have been higher in August.

Director Skoien:  Right, that’s why I had the question mark here

Secretary Reeves:  And he’s saying that because they needed to use more chemicals in July because the lake turned over, that (multiple voices )

Director Skoien: ..the amount in August was normal

IGM Tynan:  Yeah, yeah that’s why it went down because in July when it turns over, when a lake turns over from hot water to cold water it has more organics and it eats up more of the poly, polymer.

Director Ross:  You sure, what what number is this like O&1 1 5 what what number are we talking…?

Director Skoien:   521, the last three numbers, like the seventh one down or something, one, two, three, VP Kinsella: water treatment chemicals

Director Ross:  I see

Director Skoien:  Eighth one down

Director Ross:  I got it, thank you

Secretary Reeves:  It’s my job from a financial perspective to identify any things that look odd financially.

VP Kinsella:  Any other questions?  OK.  Intake presentation, are you going to do that Dan?

IGM Tynan:  I haven’t in the past but I can.

VP Kinsella:  Say again?

IGM Tynan:  I , I can yeah.  Oh I’m sorry, Randy should be here, I told him we would be here about quarter after, let me run and get Randy real quick.  We got through this a little faster than what I expected. 

VP Kinsella: Like going through a mine field (Tynan avoiding audience chairs while walking outside)

VP Kinsella:  OK this is Randy Gilgo he’s going to give the presentation on intake treatment, right?

Randy Gilgo:  The question being why intake, the float pump is not set up?

IGM Tynan:  Why we can’t work on it at this time

Randy Gilgo:  Because its underwater (laughter)

VP Kinsella:  This is proper, previous planning right?

Randy Gilgo:  (Drawing diagram on the dry erase board) (inaudible) look like this, up here is our intake, our pumping station, pipes going to the lake like so, the float pump      get down to here, 12 inch pipe to our filled in waters and no matter what level the lake is we just continue to add 20 foot sections of piping on the end of this pipe and continue to suck water

But right now the water level is up here and everything we need to work on is down here.

VP Kinsella:  Can I ask you to tell people where we’re getting the water from?

Randy Gilgo:  Where we’re getting it from?

VP Kinsella:  Yeah

Randy Gilgo:  Lake McClure

VP Kinsella:  You’re going to describe the intake presentation, where’s the water coming from and where does it go?

Randy Gilgo:  It’s coming from Lake McClure to the raw water storage tank back here

IGM Tynan:  You wanted to know where it’s pulling from?

VP Kinsella:  Well there are some people here who may not know

IGM Tynan:  Yeah, Randy can show that one real quick

Randy Gilgo:  If you were actually sitting on a boat looking at our intake system, you’ve got two pipes, well casings that come down like so, and they’re flanged at the bottom, and there’s a pump down in here, and a pump down in here, and again this being the shore line our building up here, these, this would be say pump 1, and pump 2, these also have connecting tubes all the way down to the bottom.  Pump 2, if you guys ever see the intake setup, has risers on them with baskets and valves, this is exactly what we can’t fix right now because we’re running off of this bottom basket that’s open, the rest of these are closed and not functional.  The bottom one is, and that’s what we’re pulling off of now until the lake gets back below the lowest point and we can get back to these connections and re-hook up these valves (inaudible)  right now water level being probably right about here, everything for about 120 feet or so is still under water.  So as far as intake repair and everything getting done for the CIP part of this, until nature takes its course and that lake gets empty again and we’re in a drought, we’re at a stand still.  Unless we go under water.

IGM Tynan:  Could you also explain how the electrical cord for the float pump, we can’t get to it, it’s under water also.

Randy Gilgo:  Now this being the intake set up, next to this we have a big giant flexible pipe that has its own pump over here and it’s connected here and right now its just dead, sitting there.  The electrical for this pump, to hook the whole pump up, snakes like this down this hill and is sitting down here, again under water.  It’s sitting down here somewhere probably a 150 feet under water and we can’t get to that until the lake levels are low enough also to launch our float pump and to hook this electrical up to it because, let’s say these are the shore lines of our lake and our intake setup is here, if we were trying to drag that electrical cord and the tubing for our float pump at a level where its at now it would stretch clear across the lake over here.  We’d have to shut down the lake, because we’d be right down the middle of the lake we’d have a big pipe going across.   Basically until the water gets low enough again or we’re in another drought situation, there’s nothing we can do unless we go under water.

IGM Tynan:  Thanks Randy.

VP Kinsella:  Questions?  Anybody have any questions?  Wes.

Wes Barton: Randy? 

Randy Gilgo: Yeah

Wes Barton: Ah a couple couple of questions.  The ah on the barges you have pumps, OK, Motor pumps, one I think is 150 one’s a

Randy Gilgo: One is a 75, that one (inaudible, multiple voices)

Wes Barton:  75 and 150 is it?

Randy Gilgo:  Right

Wes Barton: Yeah, OK.  Now do those even run, do we know if those run?

Randy Gilgo:  Yeah

Wes Barton:  The 75 we know will run.

Randy Gilgo:  They both run but the 75 we do not use.

West Barton:  OK so, that, so

Randy Gilgo:  the 75 doesn’t (multiple voices cross talk) have near enough power (inaudible, multiple voices, cross talk)

Wes Barton:  So the myth of it never being tested is baloney both of them run.

Randy Gilgo:  Correct

Wes Barton:  OK, ah, second question, on that flex pipe.  We cut that all apart a year or two ago and put it back into pieces

Randy Gilgo:  No, we cut one end of it off and ordered more pieces

Wes Barton:  OK, so, it isn’t just one big long pipe now

Randy Gilgo: No its still one big long pipe, what we did, what we did, was the pipe that was existing out there again,  staked down the hill like so, and as the water levels went down we just stretched that pipe out and straightened it, well, the way it hooks out here where our floating pumps are, there’s an attachment called Valtalic Clamp, well in order for us to get more length on this in case the lake level did get come to a river say, and we’ve lost capacity because we couldn’t reach any farther, what we did, is we cut this end off, clamped it, and we purchased extra sections of 20 foot sections, so now if the lake level gets even farther down and let’s say, where our pump station is sitting at now it was literally just a mud pit in the deepest part, you know we can continue to have 20 foot sections bolted together instead of just snaking the pipe down now we can actually add sections to it and get 20 feet, 40 feet, 60 feet or pipe if we need to to get farther down into- hopefully it doesn’t get that

Wes Barton:  I misunderstood I thought we actually cut the big too so that we could better handle it

Randy Gilgo:  All we did was cut the end of it off and I’m just to, just to

Wes Barton :  Are those pieces still there, because before water went up you could see them, (multiple voices)   Ah, one last question, ah, as the lead plant operator are you responsible for the intake?

Randy Gilgo:  I guess that would be up to the boss, I don’t know (multiple voices)

Wes Barton:  (multiple voices-cross talk) definitions (inaudible) duties are

IGM Tynan:  I wouldn’t think so, Randy is in charge of the plant and that’s something I’d be responsible for, with Randy’s help because he’s ops,  I’ve never even (inaudible)

Randy Gilgo:  I’m assuming it wouldn’t be directly my responsibly but me being (inaudible, cross talk, multiple voices)

Wes Barton:  I’m not questioning, I’m not questioning your capacity, (inaudible – from audience)

Randy Gilgo:  Well probably, like I said, I don’t think it’s exactly my responsibility but because I was here the longest and know more about all this than Dave does.

Wes Barton:  Not arguing with you…(laughing) (inaudible) to go home, thanks.

VP Kinsella:  Any other questions?

Director Skoien:  What, ah, when the water goes down to where you can hook up the pumps and if there’s, how much time do you have, say the pumps didn’t work and you needed to work on them, so, how much time do you have or I guess it would be feet of water, I mean, can you get there to see if they all work before they’re needed is what I’m getting at?

Randy Gilgo:  Yeah, the float pump is launched at, I believe, a lake level of 730, 720 somewhere around there and it’s not used until around 690-700 feet so

Director Skoien:  OK, and this elec

Randy Gilgo: …30 to 40 feet of leeway and (cross talk)

Director Skoien: so you have some time to work on it if it, you hooked it up and it didn’t work?

Randy Gilgo:  Right

Director Skoien:  So that electrical part of it is basically all you need to see if it works, you don’t need to hook up all the pipe?

Randy Gilgo:  We could just hook up electrical and it will blow right out of the side

Director Skoien:  Right, so, how feasible it is, is it to raise that electrical cord so you can when you had time and you wanted to float barge you could do it sooner, that’s , I know it’s probably not that simple, but.

Randy Gilgo:  Well the two biggest things is number one, its, its under who knows how many feet of water?

Director Skoien:  Right

Randy Gilgo:  On top of that who knows how many feet of silt, debris, and rock and everything else that’s underneath, so what we do is when the lake level gets low enough we go out there, find what ever we can of it and start pulling it out of the ground, digging it up and figure out where, you know, it could be 100 yards that way, it could be right underneath our feet,

Director Skoien:  Well that’s what I’m getting at, can, when you finally can get to it, could that be raised so, at another year we could get to it sooner

Randy Gilgo: Hard part about it being is like, it’s the weight of the wire, its probably a good hundred pounds for a five foot section, you’re talking something that’s 300 feet long, so it’s really kind of, we just depend on, well we can find the end

Director Skoien:  right

Randy Gilgo: You know what I mean, its trying to move

Director Skoien:  So it’s not that easy to change where the end is and then anchor it up higher so you could do something sooner ahead of time?

Randy Gilgo: Had we planned for this, and we would have known  OK the waters rising, you know, we abandoned all of our projects down there, had we known OK, just to button up the last little stuff we did there, when we got there we were in two feet of working area, by the end of that day we were working under water  that’s how quick the lake came up that day.

Director Skoien:  So right now you got about 40 feet of elevation when you can hook it up and before you need it?

Randy Gilgo:  Yeah, its launched at a certain lake elevation and it’s not used until

Director Skoien:  I’d like to see that higher, but if it’s a hazel

VP Kinsella:  Say again?

Director Skoien:  I said I’d like to see that higher so you can tell if the thing works, more ahead of time, you know, but I don’t know how easy that is to do.

Wes Barton:  Mark just brought up (inaudible from audience) ah did, I’m trying to remember back now, didn’t Binkley’s , ah, is this one of the things that Binkley was questioning on ahh, the timing of ah, purchasing any, some of the motors and pumps, because what they were saying is that whether its finicky and so consequently, it took a fair amount of time to be able to replace motors if they needed them

IGM Tynan:  Three months (multiple voices)

VP Kinsella:  Yeah she did but then the level rose in the water and she said it’s not a priority right now.

Wes Barton:  Ah OK, I thought the last letter they sent they were still suggesting that we get it and have it on hand (multiple voices, cross talk) better to get it and spend the money and use it for something (inaudible, cross talk)

IGM Tynan:  Well actually that came from also Brenda she answered that, she spoke with Elizabeth and Elizabeth pretty much agreed because we could buy that pump we could be without drought for five

years, mean while we have a pump that the warranty (cross talk)

Wes Barton: You’re all in agreement now?

IGM Tynan:  Yeah, we’re all in agreement.

VP Kinsella:  Any other questions for Randy or Dan?  I guess not, thanks Dan, Randy.

IGM Tynan: Thanks Randy

VP Kinsella:  TREASURER’S REPORT we’re talking, it’s starting on page 10

Secretary Reeves: Starting on page 10, ahm, to big things that I’ll just point out is that, one, we had our the auditors did come to the office for about three days and they were in the process of getting that report completed, and once it is we will put them on the agenda to come and present to the board.

VP Kinsella:  OK

Secretary Reeves:  Ah we ended, ended the month with just under $300,000 total, uhm, July and August are always our months when we go through a lot of cash because we pay out three of our five largest ah bills for the year.  So this month we paid out the MID payment and the Muni Loan payment and those alone are $28,000 and $59,000.  The good thing was that we did not have to take any money out of the LAIF account, we had enough money in the working capital account to pay all of the bills this month which is the first time that has happened in a very long time so we’re making progress and least with our cash flow.  AHm, those were the two main points I wanted to point out, are there any questions regarding anything in the Treasurer’s Report?

VP Kinsella:  Ok, go ahead

(Public):  Charise, how often are you billed from MID?

Secretary Reeves:  We are billed twice a year

(Public):  So you just now got the, that is the amount of money for…?

Secretary Reeves:  That was for January through June

(Public): OK, 59 or the other one?

Secretary Reeves:  No the 28

(Public):  OK, and that’s how much an acre foot?

Secretary Reeves:  That is,  it just went up, well, that was $133.85 I believe for January through June, it just adjusted, ah, with the index, and I want to say it went to $137.34 give or take, it wasn’t quite as big of a jump, we had ten dollar increases in the past and now we’re based on that ind, on the index.

(Public):  And when will those increases end this year?

Secretary Reeves:  I don’t believe there is a termination date on that, but I haven’t really studied that contract.

(Public):  Alright, thank you.

VP Kinsella:  Lew, you had a question?

Director Lew Richardson:  Just real quick, a couple of meetings ago we discussed this auditor coming and any potential ramifications of not having all our minutes approved..

Secretary Reeves:  Yes

Director Richardson:  Did we find out if that affects us one way or another?

Secretary Reeves:  It does, ahm, she said financially and operationally everything looked good, she had no adjustments for me to make, uhm, there were no errors that they pointed out.  The two things that are kind of on the radar that I expect to come back to us is the fact that the policies have not been completed, or that she’d seen any major progress towards those which is something they pointed out both last two years, and the unapproved minutes, uhm, definitely will have an impact and could potentially make a very negative audit because she has to disclose that.

Director Richardson:  And that goes to what the State Auditor?

Secretary Reeves:  That goes to the State Auditor to our loan holder’s uhm, as soon as it’s complete.

VP Kinsella:  Would that audit have any impact on our credit worthiness?

Secretary Reeves:  It could, definitely, plus we go forward you have to provide them with copies of the audits uhm I know in the past when I had questioned things, you know because I had been concerned if we had something major happen and we had to go for a loan, I’ve been told that because the board had been willing to do the increase and make the hard decisions that that would definitely be taken into consideration – that we were trying to move in the right direction.  Uhm, but obviously if you have a bad audit it could definitely have some impact.

VP Kinsella:  OK.  Any other questions from the floor?

(Public): I noticed a couple of ah checks made out to Sally Punte?

Secretary Reeves:  She did our notary services for the delinquent ah billings that went to the tax rolls.

(Public): Payment for service

Secretary Reeves:  Yes payment for services and you’ll also see this next month another one because she notarized both signatures on the McDonough/Clark contracts.

(Public): OK, no problem.

(Public):  Will she be the notary forever?

Secretary Reeves:  No, I mean

(Public): Are any of you in the office a notary?

Secretary Reeves:  Right now it’s not cost effective for us to go, either Syndie or myself to do, we actually, it’s cheaper for us to just have, pay somebody notarize a signature.

VP Kinsella:  Do you know what the cost is to get a notary?

Secretary Reeves:  It’s several hundred dollars, you know, we could go through the the schooling, you need the course that you need, supplies, and all of that, I don’t know exactly, I didn’t look into it fully but when I talked with Sally just in general about those costs it just, for something we only do for once a year.

VP Kinsella:  Go ahead

(Public):  When will the audit report be available for the public?

Secretary Reeves:  I don’t know yet, they have not given me a date, I’m guessing it’ll be, it will hopefully be next month, I’m hoping.

(Public): (Inaudible) It might be out before December?

Secretary Reeves:  Pardon me?

(Public): It might be out before December?

Secretary Reeves: Oh yeah, it will definitely be out before December.

(Public):  Thank you

Wes Barton:  I think you made a comment, I think was just an over sight, that ah, post employment insurance and the GSB..

Secretary Reeves:  Yes

Wes Barton:  45

Secretary Reeves:  That has noth

Wes Barton: that will be an adjustment

Secretary Reeves: That will be I, yeah, there have been no adjustments as of to date but there is the GASB45 postretirement benefit entry needs to be made.  I’ve been waiting for James Morda and Company did an actual valuation for us because last year we just used a tool that the auditors had provided and for $1,000 we were able to have a full evaluation done and to make it more accurate and it, the liability that we logged last year, what we, compared to last year we’ll be much lower for that.  We just got it back so that will be in your packet next month, I’ll put it on there, I have to make that entry and provide that to the auditor as well and then, so yes

Wes Barton: you talking about you’re ah investment LAIF fund, about not having to take any money out of it ah, in July-August you had some $56,000 for meter sales, (inaudible), transfers, I don’t know the exact amount for the meters, but by policy, is that supposed to be restricted?

Secretary Reeves:  We have not received those funds.  That is the waste water, because it’s so large the waste water billing, that they corrected last month, and I had to double check (inaudible)

Wes Barton:  $45,000 (inaudible)

Secretary Reeves:  Yes, yes, so that has not physically been received, its been

Wes Barton:  We have set, we being CSD, has set a new policy that we now recognize two types of meter costs.

Secretary Reeves:  Yes

Wes Barton: The Capital Expenditure, the the new meters, I think is what the policy originally referred to, and not the, the ah, re-metered, have we clarified that policy?  Is all the meter money to go into the restricted or unrestricted…

Secretary Reeves:  We, we now have two separate accounts OK?  One is the reconnection fee account, one is the capital facilities fee account, now in the past we have been using the money from the capital facilities as part of the budget because of the loan on the tank, because that tank loan increased our capacity by 2/3s, so that allowed us to, so

Wes Barton:  I’d say that’s stretching it, but that’s neither here nor there (inaudible) but that’s not my question, is the money (multiple voices) restricted fund is still the same money are we putting the money, if we do a new meter that money should go into a restricted fund.

Secretary Reeves:  Up until, like I said, that that’s what I’m saying, I’m not budgeted for the new meters at this point, is going towards the loan payment, that’s where we specified that, when we hit that amount where we finally get that paid, yes, every bit of money should be going directly into the LAIF

Wes Barton: And then the re-setup meters (inaudible) also a restricted fund or not?

Secretary Reeves:  As of this point it has not been, and that’s something that probably needs to be addressed (multiple voices, cross talk)

Secretary Reeves: Yes we have not addressed that issue

Wes Barton:  That should go along with the increase in that price.

VP Kinsella:  Charise, did you want to ask Raymond about the ah water treatment bill?

Secretary Reeves:  When we get to that item

VP Kinsella:  OK

Secretary Reeves:  We can do it at that point

VP Kinsella:  OK, any other questions from the floor?  Ruth?

Ruth:  I have a couple of questions on ahum the Treasurer’s Report, uhm,

VP Kinsella:  What page?

Ruth:  Uhm, 14, on ah, the gas, oil ah for the vehicle.  Ahum, I’ve noticed that ah, our vehicles are being used for a lot of personal use, so uhm, I just wondered if we could get that back down in any way, because uhm, they’re being used to shop at the grocery store and ah, for different things, that ah, that’s one thing, the other question is, ahm, when you did a Prop 218 ah you told us you were going to cut expenses you laid off the part time girl, ah, so that ah, and you started closing the office on Wednesday and every day at two o’clock so that you could get your work done with no interruptions.  I notice that almost every time I come over here or I call, the part time girl is here, so I’d like to know what’s happened there?

IGM Tynan:  She works about two days a week and usually it’s at the beginning of the month, towards the end of the month and beginning of the month, she helps out Syndie which is a lot of times overloaded because it’s the end of the month with billing and she does a great job, but usually the first part of the month and the end of the month she does pitch in about two days a week, with Syndie.

Secretary Reeves:  In addition Ruth we did include in the budget a little bit of her time in particular for vacations and sick time but also the board had made in their motion, was to use her as needed.  We did include in our budget a limited number of hours for her, for the year, that uhm still kept our expenses for overall personnel lower. 

IGM Tynan:  And also she only works, usually about four hours

Secretary Reeves:  She works, if she works it’s like 9:30 to 2:30, or 10:30 to 2:30, so it’s just a short walk in there in order to process payments, deal with the phone, and while Syndie  was working on availability, ah, she had to use her more so because for Syndie, that is a huge crunch time and things were changing on a daily basis, so you would have seen her in the office more in the last two months then she had been in there before.   As for the gas, ah, we use to include something in the packet regarding mileage and stuff and at some point we had stopped that, I don’t know if the board wants to go back to that or

VP Kinsella:  There’s only one place to buy gas around here except diesel, and ah, Dan was going to look into a couple of gas tanks

IGM Tynan:  Yeah, we’ve pretty much put that on hold, the fire department, and ah the gentleman had left that I was working with, and until they have a new replacement in, I really can’t work with anybody until they fill that spot.  But they totally stopped work on the fire department and there’s nobody up there right now in Mariposa that I can work with until they fill that spot.

Secretary Reeves:  Does the board want me to start putting something in here regarding fuel consumption, it was considerably higher ah this month than it has been in the past

VP Kinsella:  I’d like to see us go to a different gas station, $4 a gallon that’s pretty…

Secretary Reeves:  I don’t know if it’s usage or if its cost because, last, our costs were pretty high as far as per gallon too.

VP Kinsella:  But of course that’s me. 

Secretary Reeves:  That’s up to the board. 

VP Kinsella:  What’s the pleasure of the board, the question was asked, do you want ah mileage per vehicle?  Revert back to that?

Secretary Reeves:  Because our policy says you’re supposed to have the on call person driving with the vehicle.

VP Kinsella:  Hang on a second.  Emery?  Your thoughts?

Director Ross:  Well, it was in there, why isn’t in there any more, we made a decision to take it out, right?  It was in, and now it’s not there we probably decided to take it out.

VP Kinsella:  We did agree

Director Ross: We agreed to take it out?

VP Kinsella:  Yeah, not to put that in, of course if you want it back in, we’ll (inaudible)

Director Ross: It’s just work for them

VP Kinsella:  I think

Director Ross:  Whatever they want to do

Director Skoien:  It’s just more work

VP Kinsella:  Lew?

Director Richardson:  It’s just more work.

Director Skoien: Just ah,

VP Kinsella:  So leave it the way it is?

(Unknown):  Just ah try and regulate the personal use the best you can.

IGM Tynan:  I know some guys on the way home will stop by the market, after..

VP Kinsella: Does the on-call man have the car, ah, truck?

IGM Tynan:  Yes he does, yes.  And like I said sometimes when they get off from work, four o’clock around that time, they’ll stop by the market and get a few groceries on the way home.

VP Kinsella:  Carolyn?

Carolyn: Ahm, well I noticed on here, on the 18^th, Dan’s (inaudible) 18^th, the 21^st, the 25^th, then again on the 2^nd, he purchases gas.

VP Kinsella:  What page are you talking about?

Carolyn:  Ah page 30.

VP Kinsella:  Page 30.

Carolyn:  Is that a service truck we’re talking about?

IGM Tynan:  That’s a Ford and I did make deposits, quite often or have to go to Lowes and pick up a few things at Lowes for the shop, ah I do drive a lot more, probably more than the other guys do because I have to go to job sites, each job site they’re at, so, I do drive more than the other guys do.

(Public):  Do you drive this car as your, for your personal car?

IGM Tynan:  No I do not.  No I do not.

VP Kinsella:  Just for clarification, when you see here, one here, (inaudible) fuel Dave, that was the operator of the vehicle at the time, it doesn’t mean that Dave uses that vehicle he was operating it at the time, that’s all.

(Public):  I (inaudible) counting Dave I was talking about where it says Dan, there’s

VP Kinsella:  Naw, I just wanted to point out that, if there’s any confusion, it’s the operator of the vehicle’s name that shows up there when he gets gas

(Public):  thank you

IGM Tynan:  WE all use these vehicles, you know, whoever fills it up at the time, fills it up at the time, not, it’s not personal use car, I just use that car

(Public):  I noticed on page 30 that there’s an employee that’s been reimbursed $80.99 and a hundred dollars

Secretary Reeves:  That actually was taken out of the paycheck (background talking) per the credit card policy, however, when auditors were here, ran that by them again and we have been informed, as of yesterday, that is an illegal policy.  Now when she brought it up I was told to immediately give them back those funds, all of it except 599 was given back to him.  599 was an actual personal expense that was put on his card.

IGM Tynan:  And I have pulled that person’s credit card,

Secretary Reeves:  That, that by the, that credit card policy will have to come back to the board because it has been deemed illegal.

IGM Tynan: (Inaudible) I believe I sent you an email

VP Kinsella:  Can we make that next month?  (multiple voices)  Next month?  OK.  Mark?

Director Skoien:  Well that policy never came to the board, that was something Dan..

IGM Tynan:  No, it came to the board

Director Skoien:  Yeah, it came to the board (inaudible)

Secretary Reeves:  The board approved that one

(Multiple voices)

Secretary Reeves:  One other thing I will point out because you’re asking about expenses and such, ah, Dan did reimburse the District for the cargo pants.

IGM Tynan:  (inaudible)

Secretary Reeves:  For a hundred-seventeen, that was in disclosures as well.

IGM Tynan:  And it’s not really an admission of guilt I just got (inaudible) talk about something else than pants.  (laughs)

Director Skoien:  Naw I was just, I, I don’t understand the the approval of minutes being their always a little behind, this you know their a couple of meetings behind, what that has to do with the audit?

Secretary Reeves:  Hum?

VP Kinsella:  The approval of the minutes,

Secretary Reeves:  Oh,

VP Kinsella:   what..

Secretary Reeves:  Oh,..bec

VP Kinsella:  ….impact to the auditor?

Secretary Reeves:  According to the auditor the board, approving minutes has to do with your fiduciary responsibility to the District.  You can ask her alo….she will give you in more distinct answer when she comes and does the presentation.

VP Kinsella:  Like a little more definitive answer than (multiple voices)

Secretary Reeves:  Or…

Director Skoien:  I don’t see what one has to do with the other, but..

Director Ross:  Well it’s a financial audit, (multiple voices, laughter) you have to wonder about that but

Director Skoien:  Yeah it’s financial and that, well whatever.  Ok and a couple of other questions

Secretary Reeves:  OK

Director Skoien:  I like to, this on page 13 the accumulated depreciation

Secretary Reeves:  Yes

Director Skoien:  the amount was higher, you just don’t say what the items were I was just curious.

Secretary Reeves:  Ahm, one was for Jar Testing equipment and one was, it was back in ’09, oh the computer server and during the audit as I was giving them the depreciation information I happened to notice that two items had no depreciation.  So I went and double checked and realized that when they had been installed as fixed assets there’s one little tiny box that says depreciate, yes or no.  And they had not been checked.  So ahm, fixed that and it caught up the depreciation for those two items.

Director Skoien:  Then I got one other one, on the overtime pay?  It says overtime pay for the month was due primarily to extra work needed for availability billing?

Secretary Reeves:  You’re talking about the office?

Director Skoien:  Isn’t that done every month?  Availability billing? 

Secretary Reeves:  No, the availability billing is what is submitted to the counties in August, that, we

Director Skoien: (cross talk) So it’s not something that’s done every month?

Secretary Reeves: Syndie does that once a year

Director Skoien: (inaudible) extra?

Secretary Reeves:  Once a year she has to go through, she physically has to touch each and every account for our lots

Director Skoien:  OK

Secretary Reeves:  and prepare every single thing and then of course as the realtors are changing at the last minute, they contact her and I think she was getting phone calls every day, she’d have to go back and readjust everything up until the end, because they were trying to, I would assume, that they try not to get them on the tax rolls.  So we had, she had a lot of changes and I know this is something that every year she usually puts in several full Saturdays in order to make that happen this year it was even more difficult since we did not have the extra person in the office because in the past, you know, we had other staff, full time staff there, to kind of backup and keep her up a little bit. 

Director Skoien:  OK and one on page 16  (multiple voices) Oh I’m sorry

VP Kinsella:  Go ahead (inaudible)

Director Skoien:  ah just a couple more, ah the request for action?

Secretary Reeves:  Yes

Director Skoien:  request authorization to pay legal services bill in July in the amount of $1,220?

Secretary Reeves:  Yes

Director Skoien:  Due to a directors previously questioning the content.

Secretary Reeves:  Yes on page

Director Skoien:  This is more because of questioning the content?

Secretary Reeves:  No, no, no it’s the same one but back, back on page 15 there were three different incidents where Director Keefe had contacted the attorney and Director Kinsella had questioned that and asked to bring back information.  I brought back information last time specifying the amount that was particular to to her’s as well as other director interaction

Director Skoien:  So it didn’t change it?

Secretary Reeves:  No, and that I was asked to clarify even further.  Basically was it personal or was it district related, so as you can see on page 15 it says according to counsel conversations were on procedural aspects of grand juries and he explained those procedural aspects based on his firm’s experience in Kings County involving the city and city manager.  And since it had been questioned I withheld payment until the board approved that payment.

Director Skoien:  One more

Secretary Reeves:  OK

Director Skoien:  Partly for Dan, ah, on 28 the bill to Lawson, what work, I didn’t know what they had done?

IGM Tynan:  What’s that?

Director Skoien:  The work that, the bill to Lawson 1175, eleven hundred and seventy five dollars for the backhoe, was that…  it’s on 28

IGM Tynan:  Oh Lawson’s Backhoe

Director Skoien:  Yeah

IGM Tynan:  Ah Charise, was that for the uhm that wasn’t for the dump truck was it?

Secretary Reeves:  No.  That was for sand and gravel..

IGM Tynan:  Oh sand and gravel, OK  (multiple voices)

Director Skoien:  Not hole work?

IGM Tynan:  No, no

VP Kinsella:  Are you done?

Director Skoien:  Yes

VP Kinsella:  Kathy?

Director Skoien:  For this

Kathy: I, I, just ah back to the question on part time help in the office.  I didn’t quite understand if uhm part time help do, does the district pay vacation pay for part time help and health?

Secretary Reeves:  No, they receive no benefits, two of them however, have qualified for PERS, but that was included in the original budget, I’ve always budgeted everybody for PERS, rather than because, before we never had part timers, when we added part timers I just included that as, it was such a minute amount that we just continued that, but no they do not receive sick time they do not receive vacation time, or any health benefits or anything, so.

Kathy:  Thank you

VP Kinsella:  Any other questions?  Emery?

Director Ross:  Page 36 ah Mr. Vice President, ah, for the record, Resolution 2011-4 is back in here again, it said that I voted against the budget, when in fact I made the motion, so for the record, ah I voted for it and so did the entire board.

Secretary Reeves: That will be put on the record.

Director Ross:  Thank you.

Secretary Reeves:  You’re welcome.

VP Kinsella:  Any other comments – questions? 

Secretary Reeves:  OK, so my requests are one, that we do a read and file of the September Treasurer’s report and two, authorization to pay the legal services bill for July.

VP Kinsella:  I’ll entertain a motion for that

Director Ross:  (inaudible)

VP Kinsella:  Second

Secretary Reeves:  Two different motions

Director Ross:  OK

VP Kinsella:  You want to include both motions in the same one?

Director Ross:  No, we can’t do that  (inaudible-multiple voices)

Secretary Reeves:  Have to be separate

VP Kinsella:  That’s right  (multiple voices) do it right

Director Ross:  (inaudible) exactly what she wanted (inaudible)

Secretary Reeves:  For the first one I’m requesting (Director Ross cross talk) is

VP Kinsella:  Read and file September

Secretary Reeves: Yeah

Director Ross:  OK, I’ll make a motion to read and file September

VP Kinsella:  Do I have a second?

Director Richardson:  I’ll second it

VP Kinsella:  Any comments from the floor?  Back to the board.  Call for the question, all in favor? 

ecretary Reeves:  Unanimous, carried

Director Ross:  Second motion is?

Secretary Reeves:  Request authorization to pay the legal services bill for July in the amount of $1,220.50

Director Ross:  So moved

VP Kinsella:  Second?

Director Skoien:  I’ll second it

VP Kinsella:  Mark second, questions from the floor?  Back to the board, all in favor?  Unanimous again.

Secretary Reeves:  Unanimous

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