The BWD Board of Trustees held their regular monthly meeting yesterday, Thursday, December 16, at Wellsville Village Hall. Present at the meeting was Board President Mike Ryan, Board Members Bob Wines, Cal Carney, Jack Call, Gene McGaffick and Tim O'Hara. Also attending was District Manager Al DeAngelis, Legal Adviser Fred Emmerling, Fiscal Officer Tony D'Angelo and Office Manager Tracy Allen. Trustees Chuck Bibbee, Dave Lloyd and Rick Williams were absent.
After approval of the minutes of the previous meeting the Board went into Executive Session for 17 minutes to discuss the resignation of an employee. No comment was made or action taken when they returned. However we learned that Office Manager Tracy Allen, pictured above, has submitted her resignation, effective at the end of the month, for employment elsewhere. Allen has been with BWD for five years and was appointed Office Manager this past September. The BWD Personnel Committee is suppose to meet this morning to further discuss the matter. That meeting was suppose to be behind closed doors with no action to be taken until they can bring it before the full Board.
Gene McGaffick reported the Finance Committee met on December 15. It was discovered a couple of expenses were listed on the wrong charge of accounts and that has been corrected. McGaffick recommended the Treasurer's Report be accepted.
Tony D'Angelo advised the Board during the Operation's Report that he believed the November collections was the highest ever in the history of the district. Board Member Cal Carney commended D'Angelo for the good job, especially with tracking wages. Carney remarked that the reporting method makes it much easier to follow wage costs.
There was no report for the Engineering Committee but McGaffick inquired on the progress of the proposed Frederick Heights project. District Manager DeAnelis responded that BWD is ready to proceed as soon as they get the go ahead from USDA. The USDA engineer is currently reviewing the specifications and it is hoped that word will be received no later than the first of the year if not before. DeAngelis advised, that as soon as word is received, BWD is ready to advertise for bids.
For the Insurance Committee, Chairman Jack Call reported that as of March 1, 2011, BWD will no longer be part of the cooperative insurance coverage through Columbiana County. For better rates on health coverage the district has joined in with the County for at least the last 15 years. At last month's meeting Call reported there would be a 9% increase in insurance cost through the County.
Call explained that the County's insurance broker, Morris Financial Group, had notified authorities in Lisbon that BWD is not eligible for the coverage. To be eligible an employee must work for the County at least 30 hours per week and be issued at W2 or Form 1099 from them. Form 1099 is given to contractors that do work for the County. Other than that no other explanation was given for something the County has been doing for over 20 years. Call noted that Port Authority officials were also notified. Call advised that the District Manager is currently seeking bids for new coverage from a couple of different companies. Coverage is provided by Athem Blue Cross/Blue Shield.
Bob Wines reported that an extremely old printer that prints checks is malfunctioning. The Computer Study & Purchase Committee is researching for a new one. D'Angelo said it is skipping pages. It is believed that the printer has been around as long as BWD.
Al DeAngelis reported that leak detection testing for Salineville will be started in January. The CDBG has determined that the new road to the Salineville water storage tank required by Ohio EPA has to be put out for bid. It was not included in the original bid but left over funds from the Salineville Part B bid will be permitted to be used to pay for the road construction. RCAP is taking care of all the necessary steps required by CDBG and the District's engineering company is putting together a bid package.
In his Operation's Report DeAngelis noted that the contractor is addressing final punch list items for Part B of the new Salineville Water Line project. He also noted that the Ohio EPA wants the decommissioned Salineville Water Treatment Plant torn down. Since that is the Village of Salineville's property the matter will have to go to the Village. DeAngelis observed that BWD has no legal authority to tear down the old plant. Since going on-line with the water district the plant is no longer used and lines feeding into Salineville's water system have been removed.
There were three Center Township Trustees in the audience that addressed the Board about getting water in their part of the County at the north end of Lisbon. Trustee Joe Csonka served as spokesman asking if the District had any plans to expand in that area. Csonka was accompanied by fellow trustees Ken Schreffler & Greg Shiva.
DeAngelis advised the Trustees that County officials have worked out a deal with the City of Salem to tap into their 20” diameter line that runs through Center Twp. They are currently working on finding funding sources to proceed expanding the water system. Getting a reliable source of water to the County Jail is one of the top priorities. Mike Ryan noted the 20” line holds a tremendous amount of water and the County will need more customers than just the jail. They could expand to the Robert Bycroft Center and the Juvenile Center facilities and possibly a State garage. Cal Carney said it would take 50,000 gallons a day moving through that line to keep the water fresh. The chemicals used to treat water begin breaking down in stagnant water.
Csonka then asked if there would be any legal problems if the township purchased water from Salem. An agreement was signed in 1998 stating that Center Township would deal exclusively with BWD. Ryan responded that would not be a problem. Carney remarked the water would be bought from the County and McGaffick noted BWD is the County's water district. Csonka said that twice in the past the Township was stopped from going after another source because of the deal. Bob Wines told Csonka that it is pretty much a matter of funding. Being a regional water district, BWD would furnish water anywhere it was feasible. Ryan said that the law states that if BWD can not provide service within six months from the date of the agreement the Township is free to buy anywhere. Csonka said that is the best news he's heard in a long time and they will contact County officials.
Being no new business the meeting adjourned at 9:42 AM with President Ryan wishing his fellow Board members and BWD employees a Merry Christmas & Happy New Year. The next scheduled meeting is Thursday, January 20, 2011, at 9 AM at Wellsville Village Hall.
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