April 14, 2015 District No. 2 Meeting Minutes

MINUTES Of the MEETING OF THE COMMISSIONERS Of the BUFFALO RAPIDS IRRIGATION DISTRICT NO. 2 Terry, Montana APRIL 14, 2015 The Twelfth Regular Meeting of the members of the Buffalo Rapids Irrigation District No. 2 at Terry, Prairie County, Montana, was held on the fourteenth day of April, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. There were present and participating at the meeting: Barry Rakes Lance Kalfell Scott Sackman Also present and participating were: Raymond Strasheim, Secretary; Pat Davis, Treasurer. President Barry Rakes called the meeting to order, stating that all necessary and advisable business be conducted during this time and that notice had been received by each Board Member. Thereupon, President Barry Rakes announced that legal notice had been given and a quorum was present so that the meeting was legally and lawfully ready to transact business. The Minutes from the February 12 and March 11, 2015 Board Meetings were approved without corrections and, or additions, by Lance Kalfell seconded by Scott Sackman. All in Favor. Motion Carried FINANCIAL REPORT: Pat Davis presented current budget figures which included payroll and expenditures for March to all Board members by mail on March 12, 2015 for their review. Pat Davis presented current budget figures which included payroll and expenditures for April. A list of invoices to be paid was submitted and forms for the Prairie County Treasurer to transfer funds in the amount of $45,047.30, to cover payroll and invoices were signed. April 15th estimated payroll: $11,328.53; April estimated invoices check number 22756 through 22780: $22,390.24; April 30th estimated payroll: $11,328.53. Investment transfer was also signed to invest the remaining monthly District No. 2 cash balances in the amount of $506,883.00 with Prairie County Pool. On a motion made by Scott Sackman and seconded by Lance Kalfell the treasurer’s report was approved. All in Favor. Motion Carried. Pat stated to all present that she would be going to Billings for a meeting with Entre Technologies to determine how best to proceed with the updates required for the Databases that are used for Assessment reporting and water usage calculations. Pat informed the members of the Board that the District’s audit would be conducted starting April 20th for the 2014 fiscal year. MANAGER’S REPORT: Mr. Ray Strasheim notified the members of the District No. 2 Board that the District received a letter from the Bureau of Reclamation stating that they would be willing to lend assistance with updating or developing a water conservation plan for the District. The District will pursue the development of a water conservation plan and compile a draft that could aid in prioritizing and manage projects that may be used as a tool when applying for future grants. Ray and the employees of the District discussed and identified laterals/canals that could be converted to pipeline, and other projects that could be developed to benefit the District and promote water conservation or save energy. Ray also informed the Board that the Bureau of Reclamation sent maps to the District to identify lands that lie outside of the boundaries of the of Buffalo Rapids District No. 2. The Bureau of Reclamation listed what would be required by the District to include any land that lay outside of the stated boundaries. The Board decided to discuss the issue further before any final decisions were made. Mr. Scott Aspenlieder of Performance Engineering and Consulting spoke on behalf of Buffalo Rapids Irrigation District No. in support of House Bill 5. Mr. Strasheim stated that the Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) is continuing to be installed at the Shirley Pumping Plant, and is due to be completed very soon. Western Area Power Administration will energize the plant at the end of the week. On the week of May 4, 2015 representatives from Watertronics and Yaskawa will be present when the VFD is started. It was also determined by Allen Gierke and the crew that the seals that were installed in the Shirley Discharge lines last year worked very well and more were ordered to seal other problem areas in the lines. Ray also spoke with George Jordan of US Fish and Wildlife and stated that the fish screens will be started later in the season when the intake of the plant is cleaner. Ray informed the members of the District No. 2 Board that the pumps are to be installed at the Shirley plant later in the week. The crew has been burning ditches as weather permits. It has been an extremely dry and windy spring and the crew is being shut down by fire hazard restrictions. Fallon Lube tubes and bearing are done and ready to be installed at the Fallon River plant. The Fallon Relift bypass valve reconstruction is in the process of being completed. The Terry plant is ready for start-up, but channel leading into the plant will possibly have to be excavated again sometime during the year. Ray stated to the Board that Randy Robertson of the State Road Department and his supervisors from Helena will be in Fallon on April 20th to talk with the District concerning the drains and pipelines that are currently under state highways. The culverts that ensure the delivery of Buffalo Rapids District No. 2 water to its producers are in extremely bad condition and will need to be repaired to ensure water delivery for the District. Mr. Raymond Strasheim informed the Board that he may need to take a medical leave of absence starting immediately. Pat Davis and Allen Gierke will co-manage until further notice. The meeting was adjourned on a motion by Scott Sackman, seconded by Lance Kalfell. All in Favor. Motion Carried. ATTESTED: ________________________________ ____________________________________ Raymond Strasheim, Secretary Barry Rakes, President