DEERFIELD REGIONAL STORM WATER DISTRICT
REGULAR DISTRICT BOARD MEETING
Landen Station, 3292 Montgomery Road
Loveland, OH 45140
June 12, 2007
President Walter Daniels called the meeting to order at 6:40 P.M.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG
ATTENDANCE:
Those present at the meeting were:
Board Members: Walt Daniels, Tim Greive, and Susan Berger
Attorney: Eric Luckage, Esq., Albers & Albers
Technical Consultant: Jamie Coleman, Ph.D., and Jeff Macomber,
of Camp,Dresser, McKee
Administrative Assistant: Cathy Herrick
Public: Fred McCarnan
At this time, President Daniels, turned the meeting over to Vice-President, Tim Greive, to discuss re-appointment to office of Board Member #3, being Mr. Daniels’ current position and with said position’s term of office expiring on February 16, 2007.
SPECIAL ORDERS:
Re-Appointment of Board Member #3.
Ø Action Taken/Required: Tim Greive made a Motion, seconded by Susan Berger that the District Board of Trustees hereby selects, appoints and qualifies Walter Daniels to the position identified as “Board Member #3 of the District Board of Trustees and said appointment be effective June 12, 2007, and continue for the remainder of the term of Board Member #3, expiring February 16, 2010. Vote: Mr. Greive, Yes; Ms. Berger, Yes; Mr. Daniels, Abstained.
Eric Luckage then explained the process associated with election of the District Board members and formation of the District saying by petition to the Warren County Court of Common Pleas, Deerfield Township’s Board of Trustee were given the authority to elect members of the District Board to serve a term of three (3) years respectively to conduct the business and serve the Township in the activities and goals of and as the Deerfield Regional Storm Water District. Mr. Luckage added, the action taken at this meeting was necessary, as the Deerfield Township Trustees had failed to appoint a successor to the District Board of Trustees, within the three (3) month expiration date of said term of office of Member #3, which in this case was February 16, 2007, and now being well past the (3) month termination date, it had become the duty of the District’s Board of Trustee’s to select and appoint a replacement for said Board Member #3 as setout in the original Charter of the District.
Election of Officers: In light of the above action, the Board entertained a motion to qualify the positions of the Trustees and by agreement, asked Mr. Daniels if he would be interested in continuing to serve as the President of the Board of Trustees. Mr. Daniels said he would be honored to do so and added he had found serving as a board member had not only proved to be a very educational but, was an interesting and challenging experience which he very much enjoyed and looked forward to continuing to serve within the community and working with the District, its Trustees and also with Deerfield Township.
Ø Action Taken/Required: Tim Greive made a Motion, seconded by Walt Daniels, to re-elect the Deerfield Regional Storm Water District Board of Trustees’ officers to serve in their current positions of President, Walter Daniels, Vice-President, Tim Greive, and Secretary-Treasurer, Susan Berger through the term of said offices which ends on February 16, 2008. Vote: All Yes.
Mr. Greive then turned the meeting back over to Mr. Daniels to proceed.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
The Board reviewed the Regular Board Meeting minutes of May 8, 2007 and the Special Meeting minutes of May 16, 2007, resulting in the following motion:
Ø Action Taken/Required: Susan Berger made a Motion, seconded by Tim Greive to accept and approve the minutes from the Regular Board Meeting of May 8, 2007, and of the Special Meeting of May 16, 2007, as written. Vote: All Yes.
Treasurer’s Report: Susan Berger presented the treasurer’s report as shown on a copy of the income and expenses versus budget report and a reconciliation summary of the District’s current receipts and disbursements through May 30, 2007. Ms. Berger advised the Board of one outstanding transaction being the re-payment of the loan amount due to Deerfield Township in the sum of $20,000.00. She reported she had taken the check to the Township and received an acknowledgment from them of payment in full of the promissory note but thought possibly due to upcoming move of the township administrative offices, the transaction had not yet cleared the bank.
Ø Action Taken/Required: Walt Daniels made a Motion, seconded by Tim Greive, to approve and accept the Treasurer’s Report as presented. Vote: All Yes.
Ms. Berger then presented the bills for May as follows:
Payment of the Bills:
· Warren County Water & Sewer, Inv. #07-059 in the sum of $238.25;
· Treasurer of State, Inv. #BILL0000000011192 in the sum of $73.20;
· Albers & Albers Inv. # 10395, in the sum of $5,518.55;
· Cathy Herrick, wages & mileage for May in the sum of $457.20;
· Cathy Herrick, reimbursement for postage in the sum of $23.80;
· Cathy Herrick, reimbursement for office supplies in the sum of $22.18.
Ø Action Taken/Required: Susan Berger made a Motion, seconded by Walt Daniels, to approve and pay the invoices as presented. Vote: All Yes.
COMMENTS FROM GENERAL PUBLIC:
Public member, Fred McCarnan, of 7626 Butler-Warren Road, was invited to address the Board at this time. Mr. McCarnan advised he was in receipt of the report from CDM regarding his on-going complaint regarding storm water runoff from the new construction around his property. He also voiced his opinion that he was not satisfied with the outcome of the engineers’ findings and that the problems still persist. Ms. Berger reiterated the content of the letter sent to Mr. McCarnan stating that there was really nothing that could be substantiated regarding his allegations of pond erosion, elevated water levels in the pond and that the County made every effort during pre-construction planning to allow only minimal drainage to occur that may lead to some storm water run-off resting in his pond. She did suggest he take steps that were offered to him, as hiring a private contractor to lower the outlet structure of the pond to help keep the pool level at a permanent lower level. The Board expressed their ongoing interest in his concerns but said there were no further avenues of assistance available for them to offer to him at this time.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS AND GENERAL ORDERS
CDM Update: Dr. Coleman gave each Board member a bound copy of the proposed Illicit Discharge and Elimination Plan and although this was a finalized copy, he was still checking with Larry Weis and the Deerfield Township Fire Department to be sure they were alright with the added changes. Ms. Berger asked if we were to send a copy of this plan to the OEPA with the District’s annual report. Dr. Coleman advised, a copy should be sent to the OEPA but, said a copy can also be posted on the website and then just be referred to for viewing when submitting the annual report. Ms. Berger advised, she had not had adequate time to review the content of the entire plan and requested the Board table approval of this document until the next regular meeting so she could do so.
Ø Action Taken/Required: By agreement of the Board of Trustees, the final approval of the District’s Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination Plan shall be tabled and presented for consideration at the next regular Board meeting in July.
Dr. Coleman reported on several pending matters. With regard to the Greenfield Place subdivision, Jamie said they are waiting for a decision as to how the homeowners association might want to proceed. They are either going to take responsibility for the necessary fix or possibly decide the individual homeowners will need to each be responsible for any work on their own properties. He said he has not yet heard their decision. Mr. Greive asked about another recent concern from a resident of the Greenfield Place subdivision claiming they had a sinkhole. Dr. Coleman reported after investigating the situation, he discovered the claim was unfounded. Another complaint was forwarded by Deerfield Township regarding drainage issues of the Heistler family residing at 9944 Coventry Drive, Mason, Ohio. As this location is near the Fields-Ertel Road area, Dr. Coleman said he had called Chuck Petty, Warren County Engineer and inquired as to what might be able to be done to address the drainage problems in this residential area. He said Mr. Petty informed him there were plans in the works to correct such drainage issues in the Fields-Ertle area and hoped to be completed in the near future.
Further, Dr. Coleman reported the outfall and septic systems mapping project was moving along and he gave the Board a copy of the septic system mapping which he had received from the Warren County Board of Health and advised the information will be added or incorporated into the mapping project currently underway and hoped to have a final copy within the upcoming week, provided there are dry weather conditions to complete the inspections.
Mr. Daniels thanked Dr. Coleman, Eric Luckage, and Jeff Macomber for participating in the recent presentation to the residents of the Greenfield Place subdivision adding they now have all the information and suggestions for fixing the problem and we will have to wait to learn of their decision as to how they wish to proceed.
Request for Assistance Form: Susan Berger created a form for community members to request assistance from the District with storm water related problems. The Board examined the document and felt it well served the purpose and was self-explanatory. Ms. Berger said it was available online at the www.admin@deerfieldstormwater.com email address but, only could be printed out and then sent in. She said she would like to make it available online whereas community members could fill out the information and submit the form back to the Board via email. In the meantime, it was suggested that copies be kept available at each Board meeting so attendees could complete and submit the form for review prior to addressing the Board.
Stream Keepers Project: Per request of the Board, Cathy Herrick had spoken with Diana Halligan regarding her presenting a proposal to the Board regarding the “Stream Keepers” project or making efforts to organize groups to help clean up and maintain the neighboring streams. Ms. Halligan replied she was not quite ready to make a presentation to the Board as she was currently involved in another project and would need additional time. It was discussed the District should try to team up with the regular Little Miami River clean up efforts and contact local home owner’s associations to inquire as to whether they would be willing to join the efforts in cleaning up the streams in their respective neighborhoods. Susan Berger mentioned she had received a list of all the local home owners associations from Fran Klatte and would share the information with CDM who could possibly make contact and inquire as to the interest of the residents in participating.
DFT/SWD Communications: Mr. Daniels advised he had talked with Dan Corey, President of the Deerfield Township Board of Trustees, a couple of weeks prior to this meeting and due to the Deerfield Township administrative offices being relocated, the Township Trustees had many irons in the fire at this time but, Mr. Corey suggested both Boards should meet soon and discuss visions they have for the Township and its future. Mr. Greive inquired if there had been any recent discussion regarding the purchase of the Vacs truck and commented he did not feel as though a Vacs truck would be beneficial in cleaning up leaves and debris. It was noted, Larry Weis had suggested a leaf sweeper rather than a Vacs truck. Further discussion was planned during communications with Deerfield Township after their move was completed.
Deerfield Township Administrative Office Move: Susan Berger informed the Board, she had spoken to Dan Evers, Deerfield Township Trustee, inquiring as to the feasibility of the DRSWD having office space within the Township’s new space. He informed her, the move was to take place on or about June 20, 2007, and he planned for there to be an area allocated for the District to store there files, equipment and a work area but was not sure at this time, where the space would be. The Township wanted to take into consideration the hiring of new employees and space they may need for this additional staff prior to making a definite commitment to the District. Mr. Daniels suggested waiting a little while to let the Township settle in and then check back as to available space and proceed at that time. It was also noted, the next regular meeting of the DRSWD Board of Trustees on July 19, 2007, would be held at the new Trustees’ Meeting Room located at 4900 Parkway Drive, Suite 180, Mason, Ohio.
NEW BUSINESS
Task Order No. 10: The Board review and discussed the revision of Task Order No. 10 as it was modified to include only sub-tasks 10.1, Illicit Discharge Inspections and 10.2 Home Sewage Treatment System Map Development. It was noted, Task Order No. 10, referenced prior work and was a follow-up to Task Order No. 6.
With regard to sub-task 10.1, Dr. Coleman reported the inspections had been nearly completed and sub-task 10.2, also was nearly completed but they had received information from Warren County Health Department containing needed information regarding the location of home septic systems and were planning to incorporate this information together with the data CDM had gathered and compile all into one report. Dr. Coleman added, the completion of these tasks were scheduled to be completed within a five (5) month period and should be finished as scheduled. Dr. Coleman also reported the costs for completing Task Order No. 10, was $27,200.00.
Eric Luckage inquired upon completion of the outfall inspections and mapping of the home sewage treatment systems, how often do these tasks need to be performed and updated. Dr. Coleman responded by saying the general permit from the OEPA, does not require this be repeated after the initial process. However, Dr. Coleman added, as we speak, the OPEA is re-doing and updating general requirements of Districts and are subject to change. Dr. Coleman also said the Auditor of State is examining the effectiveness of the BMP’s and measurable goals of the Districts and there may be some upcoming changes in requirements in that area as well.
Ø Action Taken/Required: Tim Greive made a Motion, seconded by Susan Berger, to approve Task Order No. 10 as presented between Camp, Dresser, & McKee, Inc. and Master Services Agreement and with the signature of Walt Daniels, President of the Board of Trustees of the Deerfield Regional Storm Water District. Vote: All Yes.
COMMENTS FROM BOARD MEMBER
Susan Berger reported she had spoken to Lois McKnight, Community Development Director of Deerfield Township who informed Ms. Berger of a committee or task force was being formed to assist in the development of a comprehensive plan for Deerfield Township and was hoping a member of the DRSWD Board would be available and willing to serve on the technical advisory committee. Ms. McKnight said a letter would be sent out soon regarding details of the formation of the committee to which the Board said they would further discuss this matter at that time.
Walt Daniels inquired of Dr. Coleman as whether he had ever connected with Lois McKnight regarding capturing new developments with the Township so ERU units could be assigned and storm water fees could be assessed. Dr. Coleman replied he had not yet made a connection with Ms. McKnight but would try again. Tim Greive asked when Dr. Coleman did speak with Ms. McKnight to see if she could provide a list of the newly developed properties within the past six (6) months. Mr. Daniels asked that this item should be added to the agenda for the next regular meeting to review and further discuss any findings.
Walt Daniels informed the Board a community member, Jim Sprinkle, had contacted him to discuss a drainage problem he has at his newly built home. Mr. Daniels said he spoke to Mr. Sprinkle concerning the problem he has on his property and said Mr. Sprinkle informed him he had already done some leg work and had also spoken to Chuck Petty, Warren County Engineer, regarding same but wanted to discuss the matter with the Board. Mr. Daniels said Mr. Sprinkle could not appear this evening but hoped to be available to address the Board at the July meeting.
Susan Berger asked if anyone had an idea for the upcoming edition of the Deerfield Digest as Fran Klatte, Public Relations Director for Deerfield Township was asking for input. Ms. Berger also discussed the idea of sending out residential surveys which Deerfield Township previously distributed during the past year and said by sending out these types of surveys and getting feedback from the community, it was a great aid in recognizing measurable goals and identifying areas which may need more attention.
Walt Daniels announced Dr. Jamie Coleman would be leaving his position at CDM to take on a new venture as a toxicologist in the field of human health assessments and risks and would no longer be working with the District. Mr. Daniels expressed appreciation on behalf of the Board and the District in Dr. Coleman’s efforts during the past several years and said it was truly a pleasure to work with Jamie both personally and professionally. Mr. Daniels stated that Jamie had greatly influenced the District’s growth and development and would be sadly missed. Mr. Daniels then introduced and welcomed, Mr. Jeff Macomber, of CDM who would be stepping in to carry on in Dr. Coleman’s position with the Board.
RESOLUTIONS Eric Luckage presented the following previously adopted resolutions: Resolution No. 2007-22, Approving the Treasurer’s Report as presented; Resolution No. 2007-23, Approving payment of the May bills as presented; Resolution No. 2007-24, Approving repayment of the Promissory Note to Deerfield Township in the sum of $20,000.00 and canceling the Intergovernmental Agreement with regard to same: Resolution No. 2007-25, Approving the expenditure of $55.00 to secure a booth at the Deerfield Day festival in September, 2007.
MOTION FOR ADJOURNMENT
Tim Greive made a Motion, seconded by Susan Berger, to adjourn at 8:30 P.M. Vote: All Yes.
Next Regular Meeting: July 19, 2007
The Deerfield Regional Storm Water District Board meets the second Tuesday of every month at 6:30 p.m., unless otherwise notified.
Attest:
_________________________________
Susan Berger, Secretary/Treasurer