COACHELLA VALLEY MOSQUITO AND VECTOR CONTROL DISTRICT

Board of Trustees’ Meeting

 

January 8, 2008

 

Call To Order:

President Duran called the meeting to order at 4:45 p.m.

 

Pledge of Allegiance:

Trustee Howell led the Pledge of Allegiance.

 

Roll Call:

Those present at roll call: President Duran, Vice President Fuschetti, Secretary/Treasurer Underwood, Trustees Henderson, Howell, Lock, Macknicki, and Trustee Nigosian. Also present were General Manager Donald Gomsi, Assistant to the General Manager Diane Glanz,  Finance Administrator David I’Anson, Administrative Assistant Anita Jones, and Information Systems Analyst Edward Prendez, and Legal Counsel Lisa Copeland. Trustees Baker, Walker, and Laflin were absent.

 

1.         Report by Shilts Consultants, Gerard van Steyn and Susan Barnes:

Shilts Consultants Gerard van Steyn and Susan Barnes reported on Proposition 218. A short question and answer period followed.

 

5:20-6:00 Break

 

Trustee Walker was present at the 6:00 p.m. return to session.  Trustee Baker arrived at 6:10 p.m. Scientific Operations Manager Branka Lothrop, Operations Manager James Saulnier, Fleet/Facilities Supervisor Schroeder, Field Supervisors Chamberlain, Teran, Boeing, and Wolfs arrived at this time as well.

 

2.         Confirmation of Agenda:

Trustee Henderson made the motion to confirm the Agenda. The motion was seconded by Trustee Nigosian and carried unanimously.

 

3.         Minutes

A.                 Approval of Minutes for December 11, 2007, Board Meeting.

 

Trustee Henderson made the motion to approve the minutes of the December 11, 2007, Board Meeting. The motion was seconded by Trustee Macknicki and carried unanimously.

 

4.         Public Comment:

None.

 

5.         Announcements:

General Manager announced that the staff has begun work on the 2008-09 budget.   The financial firm of Moreland & Associates has begun their review and additionally will assist with budget preparations.  General Manager Gomsi also announced that the solar panels are being installed and are two-thirds completed.

 

6.         Correspondence:

Correspondence included a letter from the City of Palm Springs reappointing Sharon Lock to the Board of Trustees.

 

7.         Approval of Expenditures for December 12-31, 2007, and January 1-8, 2008:

Trustee Henderson made the motion to approve the expenditures for December 12-31, 2007, and January 1-8, 2008. The motion was seconded by Trustee Underwood and carried unanimously.

 

8.         Committee Reports

A.               Finance Committee

Secretary/Treasurer Underwood reported as follows. The November 30th financials show the District had cash disbursements of $582,864, with cash receipts of $527,042.  The largest single receipt in November was the current secured property tax revenue from the County of Riverside for $259,698, and as of yesterday, the financial firm of Moreland & Associates had started working with staff evaluating the procedures and policies of the District’s finances. The Finance Committee met Friday, January 4th, and discussed the recommendation of an auditing firm.  The Finance Committee will schedule interviews of the firms at their next Committee meeting.  The Committee reviewed the staff’s budget process and timelines.  Trustee Underwood reported that Finance Administrator I’Anson has done a great job, as well as the District’s managers. The Committee is also looking at reviewing purchasing procedures and policies with Moreland & Associates and looking into the feasibility of using a credit card for paying utilities. Additionally, Trustee Underwood reported that the December Finance Committee minutes are in the Board Packet.

 

B.               Executive Committee

President Duran reported that the minutes from the Executive Committee meeting is on page 23 of the Board Packet.

 

C.                Strategic Planning Committee

Trustee Lock reported that there was nothing to report at this time.

 

D.                Personnel Committee

Legal Counsel Copeland reported that the items from the Personnel Committee will be discussed during Closed Session.

 

9.         Report of District Activities:      

A.                 General Manager

B.                District Programs; progress and events since last Board meeting. 

Reports by:

                                                            1.      Admin/Fleet/Facilities – Anita Jones

                                                            2.      Laboratory and Biocontrol – Branka Lothrop, PhD

                                                            3.      Operations – Jim Saulnier

                                                            4.      Community Outreach – Diane Glanz

 

Short program updates were given by General Manager Gomsi, Administrative Assistant Jones, Scientific Operation Manager Lothrop, Operations Manager Saulnier, and Assistant to the General Manager Glanz. Following the General Manager’s report, Trustee Lock stated that in the opinion of the City of Palm Springs, the General Manager’s report was a little misleading as it stated that the City of Palm Springs has $80 million in reserves. Lock stated that those reserves include restricted items, such as the airport, and that revised projections show those reserves as $9 million or less. The General Manager responded that the amount stated in the report was taken from the city’s pubic financial report and reflected the entire sum held in deposit by the City of Palm Springs. A discussion ensued. Scientific Operations Manager Lothrop corrected her report, page 40, to show three human cases of West Nile virus 

 

10.       Informational Items:

A.                 Entomology unit gets top national ranking – Article from TheReport.com

B.                Articles regarding the District’s installation of solar panels.

C.                Team Reports

D.                Semi-annual research reports from University of California Riverside and Davis for FY 2007/2008

E.                 2008 Holiday Schedule

 

As in board packet.  A discussion ensued on the procedures for Team Reports and the continued involvement and role of the Strategic Planning Committee.

 

11.       Consent Calendar:

A.                 Approval for Trustees desiring so to attend the Special District and Local Government Institute Governance Seminar February 7-8, 2008, in Palm Springs in an amount not to exceed $3,000.00 from Fund #6120.01.250 – Trustee Support.

 

B.        Approval for General Manager Don Gomsi, Jim Saulnier, Operations Manager, and RIFA Supervisor Phil Boeing to attend the Red Imported Fire Ant Conference, March 24-27, 2008, in Charleston, South Carolina.  Amount not to exceed $7,500.00 from Fund #6110.01.225 – Conference Expense – Operation Manager Saulnier

 

C.        Approval for Administrative Assistant Anita Jones to attend the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Annual Conference June 22-25, 2008, in Chicago, IL.  Amount not to exceed $4,000.00 from Fund #7600.01.225 – Staff Training – General Manager Gomsi

 

D.        Discussion and/or support for the research of Dr. Carroll and Dr. Reisen as endorsed by the Board of the California Mosquito and Vector Control Association (CMVCA) as studies of significant value to the Mosquito and Vector Control Association of California (MVCAC) in an mount not to exceed $5,100 from Account #8510.01.600 – Research Projects—Dr. Lothrop, Scientific Operations Manager

 

E.         Approval for General Manager Don Gomsi, Secretary/Treasurer Bruce Underwood, and Finance Administrator David I’Anson to attend the 2008 Annual VCJPA Workshop, February 24-26 in Aptos, in an amount not to exceed $3,000.00 to be taken from fund #6110.01.225 – Conference Expense and Fund #6120.01.250 – Trustee Support – Finance Administrator I’Anson

 

F.         Approval for Field Supervisors Rodney Chamberlain and Victor Teran and Vector Control Technicians Oldembour Avalos and Geneva Ginn to attend the Vertebrate Pest Conference, March 17-20, 2008, in San Diego.  Amount not to exceed $4,500.00 from Fund #6110.01.225 – Conference Expense – Operations Manager Saulnier

 

Trustee Macknicki made the motion to approve the Consent Calendar. The motion was seconded by Trustee Nigosian and carried with nine (9) approved (Duran, Fuschetti, Henderson, Howell, Lock, Macknicki, Nigosian, Underwood, and Walker) and one (1) opposed (Baker).

 

12.       Old Business:

A.                 Discussion and/or Recommendation on Appointment of Annual Auditor in an amount not to exceed $21,000.00 from Fund #6095.01.225 – Misc. Professional Fees. – Secretary/Treasurer Underwood, Finance Committee Chair

 

Trustee Underwood reported that the Finance Committee is going to interview two potential auditing firms within the next month and will make a recommendation to the Board at their next meeting.

 

B.                Update on status of remediation and capping of the Thermal facility and approval for General Manager to bid and contract with remediation and/or paving firms in an amount not to exceed $1,000,000.00. – General Manager Gomsi

 

General Manager Gomsi gave a brief report of the remediation requirements for the Thermal Facility. Trustee Henderson questioned how long it would take to bring the proposal report back to the Board. General Manager Gomsi stated that returning the matter to the Board for contract approval would possibly require an extension from the Regional Water Quality Board. A discussion ensued.

 

Trustee Baker made the motion to approve authorization to solicit bids, but requested that the General Manager present the proposals to the Board for contract approval and to seek an extension from the Regional Water Quality Board if needed. The motion was seconded by Trustee Howell and carried unanimously.

 

13.       New Business:

A.        Discussion and/or approval for the Operations Department to hire one additional Premises Inspector for the RIFA control program and an Operations Biologist to assist the Operations Department in conducting their field work and for the addition of a new position titled Vector Control Technician I for the Vector and Surveillance Laboratory in an amount not to exceed $51,000 from Fund #5101.1.500 – Field Operations – Payroll – Full Time and $27,000 from Fund #5101.01.400 – Lab – Payroll – Full Time.  Jim Saulnier, Operations Manager & Branka Lothrop, Scientific Operations Manager.

 

Trustee Henderson made the motion to approve Item 13A. The motion was seconded by Trustee Lock and carried unanimously.

 

B.        Discussion and/or approval to purchase an Argo Conquest Tundra from Points West Argo in an amount not to exceed $18,000 from Account # 8415.1.300 – Vehicle Capital Expenditure – Jim Saulnier, Operations Manager

 

Trustee Fuschetti made the motion to approve Item 13B. The motion was seconded by Trustee Henderson and carried unanimously.

 

C.        Discussion and/or approval for General Manager to contract with a project management consultant to begin the process of construction of additional ponds for the Biological Control Facility and other District improvements in an amount not to exceed $75,000 from Fund #8487.1.800 – District Building Capital – Miscellaneous Improvements – Don Gomsi, General Manager

 

Trustee Macknicki made the motion to approve Item 13C. The motion was seconded by Trustee Underwood and carried unanimously.

 

14.       Closed Session:

A.        Closed Session Pursuant to Government Code section 54957 –    Public Employee Performance Evaluation – General Manager

 

B.   Closed Session conference with legal counsel pursuant to Government Code section 54956.9 (b) (1) - 1 potential case

 

Returning from Closed Session Legal Counsel Copeland stated that there was no reportable action.

 

15.       Trustee Comments:

Trustee Lock requested that a Closed Session item be added to next months agenda regarding an updated on the Desert Hot Springs appeal and how much has been spent to date. Trustee Baker commented that he did not receive his agenda until today as it was sent to Desert Hot Springs City Hall when it is usually sent to his P.O. Box.  He wanted it sent to his P.O. Box. Administrative Assistant Jones responded that Trustee Baker had requested that it be sent to the City, and Trustee Henderson reported that she had overheard that as well. Trustee Baker responded that it had been a miscommunication and he would like future Board Packets delivered to his post office box. Trustee Underwood commented that prior to tonight he had not known that the Board agenda is available online five days prior to the Board meeting. General Manager Gomsi responded that it is available the Friday before the Board Meeting. A discussion ensued. It was determined that future Board agendas would be available online at 4:30 p.m. on the Friday preceding the Trustee Board meetings.  Trustee Duran announced that he had received an email inviting him to attend a February 6th City of Indio Council meeting to provide them an update on the status of the District’s first quarter goals as established at the October Strategic Planning Conference. Trustee Walker thanked Trustee Henderson for her positive comments on the UC Davis research and also thanked President Duran and offered him a small token in recognition of his good work.

 

16.       Adjournment:

The meeting was adjourned by President Duran at 7:20 p.m.