Office of the Secretary Manager

Kittitas Reclamation District Board of Directors Meeting

June 11, 2019 Minutes

The Board of Directors of the Kittitas Reclamation District (KRD) met in Regular Session on June 11, 2019 at 1:00 p.m. Attending the meeting were Division Three Director and Chairman Fred Schnebly, Division One Director and Vice Chairman Mark Hansen, Division Four Director Larry Bland, Division Two Director Ed Wakkuri, Division Five Director Paul Weaver, Secretary Manager Urban Eberhart, Assistant Manager Kevin Eslinger, Treasurer Stacy Berg, Lands Clerk & RRA Specialist Keli Bender, Lands Clerk & RRA Specialist Sara Vickers, Legal Counsel Jeff Slothower. Also, in attendance were Roza Irrigation Manager Scott Revell, Roza Irrigation Legal Counsel Thomas Cowan and KRD land owner Janeice Jump.

The amended agenda was approved with the addition of two executive sessions for reasons consistent with RCW 42.30.110(1)(i):(i). The first Executive session would start when the visitors from Roza Irrigation arrive and the second would be prior to the conclusion of the meeting. The motion was made by Director Weaver and the second was made by Director Bland. The motion passed unanimously.

The minutes for the May 14, 2019 Board Meeting were approved with a motion made by Director Bland and the second was made by Director Wakkuri. The motion passed unanimously.

Public Comment: Land owner Janeice Jump inquired on the duration of the water supply for the irrigation season.

Water Master Report: As of June 11, 2019, the five reservoirs were at 81% capacity which was 90% of average. Precipitation for the reservoirs from June 1^st to date is 1.78 inches. Precipitation for the water year to date is 191.81 inches, or 92% of average. The proration level has been announced by the United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) at 74%. On June 3^rd the KRD proration started. At 11:00 a.m. on June 7^th storage control began. The KRD has been working internally with this years water supply statistics and the goal is to get the first cutting where it needs to be and we will then reduce the daily diversions to keep the irrigation season operating to mid-September if the proration does not worsen. The 2019 tributary supplementation has begun and as of June 6^th there is there is 6 cfs being placed into Little Creek, 3 ½ cfs into Tucker Creek, 15 cfs into Taneum Creek, and 15 cfs into Manastash Creek. Director Weaver asked for clarification on the lake levels. The USBR had made prior comments about how the lake levels were being drawn so Mr. Eberhart was able to answer the questions.

Maintenance Report: Mr. Eberhart reported that the maintenance crews are continuing the spraying, road maintenance and removing spoils.  

Secretary Manager’s Activity Report: The Senate and House Drought Joint Committee is hosting a meeting on June 26^th at Central Washington University. Senator Honeyford requested Roza Irrigation Manager Scott Revell and the KRD Secretary Manager Mr. Eberhart to provide a presentation on the impacts of the drought.

Last week there was a dinner celebration for the Yakima Basin Integrated Plan Workgroup in Yakima which commemorated the work and successes of the program.  

Legal Counsel Slothower and Mr. Eberhart attended the Aquavella Celebration in Yakima.

There was an original capital budget request for Yakima Integrated Plan funding of 42 Million dollars that was submitted during the last legislative session. One of the items in the request was to further work on the Upper Yakima System Storage Project. With the help of Lobbyist Bill Clarke, and the rest of the Integrated Plan team, the Integrated Plan was granted 40 Million dollars. Thanks to support for the KRD from our Yakima Basin Integrated Plan Partners there is funding allocated for KRD to continue to work on the Upper Yakima System Storage Study.  

WaterSmart Water Marketing Advisory Committee has met. The graduate students from the University of Washington will begin working in June on their portion of the research.

The Yakima Basin Focused Managed Aquifer Recharge Assessment is continuing and this phase is slated to be complete by this fall.  

With the successful KRD Tributary Supplementation Program continuing we are seeing positive results from the recently installed PIT Tag Arrays. The initial readings are showing multiple species of fish using the tributaries.  

The bid packet for the South Branch Phase I Reach 2-5 is will be ready for review from Jacobs Engineering in July. The funding available for this project is projected to range between 3 and 5 Million dollars.  

The scope of work for the South Branch Phase II Design which will be from Robinson Canyon Rd downstream to Manastash is expected in July. There is approximately 2 Million dollars in funding expected for this project.

A request has been submitted to the USBR for the North Branch Phase IIIB Construction.   

Director Wakkuri asked what the result was for Black Rock. Mr. Eberhart replied that the issue is no longer on the table. One of the goals of the Integrated Plan is to focus on in Basin Storage first.

Director Hansen inquired about the floodplains by design. Mr. Eberhart confirmed that the County was awarded enough funding to help purchase one of the properties that they were interested in.  

Treasurer’s Report: The Directors’ monthly payroll vouchers were presented for signatures. Summary Vouchers for the April 2019 expenses and the May 2019 payroll which included check numbers 43245-43329, direct deposit numbers 9901653 through 9901670 in the sum of $457,488.41 were approved with a motion made by Director Wakkuri. The second was made by Director Weaver, the motion passed unanimously.    

Old Business: Treasurer Berg presented the 2019 Foreclosure List and asked for direction from the board to determine when to move the process forward. The board discussed the foreclosure process and decided to forward the outstanding accounts to Legal Counsel Slothower.     

There was a lengthy conversation regarding the historic district zoning as well as the city zoning for the parcels that the KRD is currently occupying. The KRD will deliver a letter to the City of Ellensburg that will request that the zoning remain the same by June 30^th. This is an ongoing issue that the KRD staff will continue to monitor.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

New Business: The board discussed a one-year professional services contract for Bill Clarke. The contract includes a $4,000.00 monthly fee, monthly expense reimbursement of $100.00 for routine expenses and additional expenses will be payable upon submission of an invoice detailing the expenses. Director Weaver made a motion to approve the one-year professional services contract with Bill Clarke. A second was made by Director Bland, the motion passed unanimously.

Treasurer Berg presented the 2018 Financial Statements to the board and advised them that the audit is expected to begin before the end of the month.

Director Hansen made a motion to approve the first half payment for the USBR 2019 Construction Debt Retirement invoice for $53,371.02. The second was made by Director Wakkuri, the motion passed unanimously.

Director Hansen made a motion to approve the second half payment for the USBR 2019 Operation & Maintenance invoice for $301,203.24. The second was made by Director Wakkuri, the motion passed unanimously.

Director Bland made a motion to approve the certificate of records destruction. A second was made by Director Weaver, the motion passed unanimously.

Other Business: The Board adjourned to Executive Session at 1:50 p.m. for 5 minutes per RCW 42.30.110(1)(i):(i) there was a motion made by Director Wakkuri and a second made by Director Hansen. The motion passed unanimously. Executive session was extended for an additional 30 minutes. The Board returned to Regular Session at 2:25 p.m. with a motion made by Director Weaver, and the second was made by Director Hansen. The motion passed unanimously.

All business having been concluded the meeting was adjourned.

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Mr. Schnebly KRD Board of Directors Chairman

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Mr. Eberhart KRD Secretary Manager