Chairman DeLia called the meeting to order at 5:03 PM and opened with the Pledge of Allegiance.
Roll Call:
Present: Bruce Brodsky, Vincent Coyne, Elis DeLia, Mark Ford, Scott Mahardy, Frank Mutolo, Bette Szesny and Eric Kane. Absent: Rocco Arcuri, Denny Bova, Mitch Ford and Scott Williams. Also Present:Richard Goodney, Phil Tangorra, Jim Korfonta, Scott Gorgas, Anne Milograno, Jim Mack, Maureen Ray, Long Gu and Ken Bobrow, Esq.
Chairman DeLia presided and Suzanne Harmon took the minutes.
Chairman DeLia welcomed Mr. Eric Kane from the Town of Schuyler to the MVWA Board.
Approval of the December 21, 2015 Minutes
Motion made by Mr. Ford to approve the minutes.Seconded by: Mr. Brodsky
Vote:(8) Ayes (0) Nays (0) Abstain (4) Absent - Motion Carried.
Resolution: Award of Professional Services Contract to Thew Associates for Survey and Mapping Services Associated with the Phase 1 Raw Water Main New Pipe Bridge
Phase 1 of the project involves a new 230 ft. long Pipe Bridge across the West Canada Creek Gorge to replace the existing 80 year old South Bridge and several hundred feet of new 54” water main, temporary line stops, new valves and connections to existing mains on each side of the Gorge. Field survey, mapping and additional easements are required for the design and construction of the new Pipe Bridge.
Thew Associates, Utica, NY has previously performed surveys in the same area for Brookfield Power Corp. and the Engineering Dept. has recommended utilizing Thew Associates on a sole source basis for this work because of Thew’s relevant and unique experience. The Engineering Dept. has recommended the Professional Survey Firm of Thew Associates to perform the survey and mapping at a cost not to exceed $18,500.00. The funds shall be paid out of the Capital Improvement Fund.
Motion was made by Mr. Coyne to approve the resolution. Seconded by: Mr. Mutolo
Vote:(8) Ayes (0) Nays (0) Abstain (4) Absent - Motion Carried.
Resolution: The MVWA is Accepting Part 1 of the Short Environmental Assessment Form and issuing Notice of Intent to Establish the MVWA as “Lead Agency” Pursuant to the State Environmental Quality Review Act Relative to the Pipe Bridge Project
The MVWA proposes to replace the South Bridge water line with a new 230 ft. long pipe bridge across West Canada Creek. Pursuant to SEQRA the Authority caused to be prepared Part 1 of an EAF dated January 25, 2016 for the project. The project is an “Unlisted Action” and therefore coordinated SEQRA review is optional. The Chair of the Authority is hereby authorized to transmit a Notice of Intent to Assume Lead Agency to the involved agencies, along with a copy of Part 1 of the EAF, indicating that a Lead Agency must be agreed upon within 30 calendar days of the date the Notice is mailed to it, and that absent a written objection from the Involved Agencies, the Authority will establish itself Lead Agency relative to the project. The resolution shall take effect immediately.
Motion was made by Mr. Mahardy to approve the resolution. Seconded by: Mr. Mutolo
Vote:(8) Ayes (0) Nays (0) Abstain (4) Absent - Motion Carried.
Committee Reports:
Finance: Mr. Korfonta stated that the monthly report is for the year ended 12/31/15.Revenue for the year exceeded its budget.Consumption was better than the prior year and favorable in cash flow. The audit will be conducted in the first part of March and then filed with the State Controller’s office.
Executive Director’s Report
- Mr. Becher stated that there was a letter in your binder in response to the draft audit that the MVWA received from the Office of the State Comptroller. Mr. Becher, Mr. Korfonta and Mr. Goodney met with the editorial board at the Utica OD. The purpose of the meeting was to provide proper contacts so when the audit comes out they have a full understanding of everything that took place. Mr. Becher feels that they focused on the MVWA water losses because they could not find any other problems. The audit will be made public within the next week or two.
- Mr. Becher stated that the MVWA had an incident over the weekend at the Water Treatment Plant. Several gallons of fluoride leaked from a tank onto the floor of the treatment plant. Some of it escaped through floor drains and got into the sludge lagoons and into our back washing filters. At this point, it has been remediated. The Utica Fire Department, Rome Fire Department, Lee Fire Department, Utica Hazmat team and Prospect Ambulance responded. The water supply was never imperiled and never got outside of normal parameters. There was no danger to the water supply and no employees were injured. The treatment plant was operated remotely until the area was cleared. The MVWA does not think there were any environmental consequences and we are working closely with the DEC. This incident is under investigation right now and will not know anything for a couple of days.
Chairman DeLia asked for a motion at 5:19 PM to go into Executive Session to discuss Server Virtualization and Disaster Recovery and a personnel matter.
Motion was made by Mr. Ford. Seconded by: Mr. Brodsky
Vote:(8) Ayes (0) Nays (0) Abstain (4) Absent - Motion Carried.
Went into Executive Session at 5:22 PM
Motion was made by Mr. Brodsky to come out of Executive Session at 6:00 PM. Seconded by: Mr. Mutolo
Vote:(8) Ayes (0) Nays (0) Abstain (4) Absent - Motion Carried.
Motion was made to approve the Resolution: Server Virtualization and Disaster Recovery by Mr. Mutolo. Seconded by: Mr. Brodsky.
Vote:(8) Ayes (0) Nays (0) Abstain (4) Absent - Motion Carried.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:05 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
__________________________
Suzanne M. Harmon, Secretary
Mohawk Valley Water Authority