REGULAR BOARD MEETING
AUGUST 10, 2004, 10:00 A.M.
TUMALO IRRIGATION DISTRICT
64697 COOK AVENUE
BEND, OREGON 97701
BOARD: Bill Martin, Bob Morrow, Steve Putnam, Jim Schlueter
STAFF: Elmer McDaniels, Shelby Smith, Jan Wickham, Ken Rieck, Bob Varco
ATTORNEY: Bill Hopp
ENGINEER: Kevin Crew
GUESTS: Roger Prowell, Patricia Gainsforth, Jeff Rola
Chairman Martin called the meeting to order at 10:00 A.M. and appointed Shelby Smith scribe.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Director Putnam made a motion to approve the minutes of the July 13, 2004 Regular Board Meeting and July 13, 2004 Executive Board Meeting, seconded by Vice-Chairman Morrow, motion carried unanimously.
APPROVAL OF VOUCHER LIST
Director Putnam made a motion that the August 2004 Voucher List be approved, seconded by Director Schlueter, motion carried unanimously.
CRESCENT LAKE WATER REPORT
Manager McDaniels said that Crescent Lake has 37,650 acre-feet. We should have about 25,000 acre-feet at the end of September.
VEHICLES
Director Putnam made a motion that the District purchase the vehicle as specified on the Advanced Truck Body & Equipment Co. estimate dated 7/29/2004 (see attached copy), seconded by Vice-Chairman Morrow, motion carried unanimously. Manager McDaniels said that the finance charge on a loan would be 4-1/2% to 5%. Since the Long-Term Fund is currently in a favorable position, Director Putnam made a motion that the vehicle be purchased for cash, seconded by Vice-Chairman Morrow, motion carried unanimously.
CITY OF BEND, ROGER PROWELL
Mr. Prowell said that, in terms of surface water diversion for the city, they have been taking 7-1/2 feet, or one-half million gallons a day, rather than their customary 2.4 million, due to some engineered hydraulic constraints that have come from realigning their intake lines. Therefore, the Oregon Water Resources Department will cut them back this year on surface water as Tumalo Creek goes down. Attorney Hopp said they need to lease the difference instream to avoid losing water rights they were not able to use.
Mr. Prowell provided copies of the Deschutes Water Alliance Formation and Pilot Water Bank Project Executive Summary to the Board (see attached copy).
-2- Minutes of Regular Board Meeting, August 10, 2004
WaterWatch is challenging the mitigation rules, because they feel the rules do not protect the lower Deschutes River flows. Patricia Gainsforth, with Deschutes Coordinating Group, talked about their conservation efforts..
RESOLUTION FOR MAIL-IN ELECTION
Director Putnam made a resolution that the 2004 Board of Directors election be held by mail, seconded by Vice-
Chairman Morrow, resolution carried unanimously.
BUREAU OF RECLAMATION LETTER
See attached copy of letter from Lynne McDonald with the Bureau of Reclamation, regarding alternatives to piping. Tumalo Irrigation District will need to conduct a SHPO consultation before any further piping can be done, and will need to contract with EWU for this work. Bob Varco asked if the remaining $125,000 of the $165,000 Bureau grant will have to be returned, because the consultation will not be completed before the grant extension deadline is up. Manager McDaniels said the Bureau has agreed to accept a request for another extension for the grant.
OWRC LETTER
See attached copy of letter from Oregon Water Resources Congress. Attorney Hopp said that Water for Life is willing to sit down with OWRC and talk.
NOXIOUS WEEDS
Manager McDaniels said we are receiving calls regarding the noxious weed problem. The District does not use any chemicals to treat this problem. There is a Federal ordinance that says you can’t spray chemicals within 50 feet of a waterway. Certain practices, such as overgrazing, contribute to the problem. Jeff Rola, with Soil & Water Conservation, is currently using goats to deal with noxious weeds. Mr. Rola said the landowners, districts, and various organizations must work together to deal with this problem.
NEW OWNER ACCOUNT FEE
Ms. Smith said a problem occurs when an owner with two tax lots sells one of them. The old owner pays his account fee. The District asks the title company to collect an account fee for the new owner. At what point in the year should we waive the new owner’s fee. The Board said the fee should be collected on the same basis as the due dates for the annual water billing, i.e., by March 1, the entire fee is due, by July 1, one-half the fee is due, after July 1, no fee is due.
LAIDLAW BUTTE
Manager McDaniels said Ed Fournier with Verizon has contacted him about adding another pole on Laidlaw Butte. The Board agreed that Manager McDaniels should continue discussions.
NEXT MEETING DATE
The next Regular Board Meeting will be Tuesday, September 14, 2004, at 10:00 A.M., at the District Office.
-3- Minutes of Regular Board Meeting, August 10, 2004
ADJOURNMENT
Vice-Chairman Morrow made a motion that the Regular Board Meeting be adjourned at 11:30 A.M., seconded by Director Putnam, motion carried unanimously.