Office of the Secretary Manager

Kittitas Reclamation District Board of Directors Meeting

August 7, 2018 Minutes

The Board of Directors of the Kittitas Reclamation District (KRD) met in Regular Session on August 7, 2018 at 1:00 p.m. Attending the meeting were Division Four Director and Chairman Larry Bland, Division Two Director and Vice Chairman Ed Wakkuri, Division One Director Mark Hansen, Division Three Director Fred Schnebly, Division Five Director Paul Weaver, Secretary Manager Urban Eberhart, Assistant Manager Kevin Eslinger, GIS IT / Water Quality Specialist Roger Satnik, Treasurer Stacy Berg, and Legal Counsel Jeff Slothower. Also, in attendance were KRD land owners Janeice Jump and Mark Charlton.

The agenda was approved with the addition of an executive session for reasons consistent with RCW 42.30.110(1)(i):(i). The motion was made by Director Hansen and the second was made by Director Wakkuri. The motion passed unanimously.

The minutes for the July 10, 2018 Board Meeting were approved with a motion made by Director Schnebly and the second was made by Director Wakkuri. The motion passed unanimously.

Public Comment: No comments

Water Master Report: As of August 7, 2018, the reservoirs storage is 123% of average. Precipitation for the water year to date is 239.73 inches, or 110% of average. A forecast was released for this area to experience an El Nino Pattern this fall and through the winter. The expectation is that there will be above normal temperatures with below normal precipitation.    

Maintenance Report: Mr. Eslinger reported that the pen stocks have been painted at the pumping plant. The maintenance crews have been spraying and mowing. Painting is also occurring at Easton Dam and the crews have been moving some dirt and doing road work on the Turbine Lateral.   

Secretary Manager’s Activity Report: Mr. Eberhart reported that the John Keys Tour was held on July 17^th and 18^th. There will be a second tour for the group on October 16 & 17^th. Several of the attendees requested to be a part of this tour because they were either working on KRD projects from their offices or had heard about all the unique and innovative things that the KRD is doing. 

Kittitas County Commissioner, Cory Wright was given a tour of KRD by Mr. Eberhart.

The Yakima Basin Integrated Plan Legislative Tour is scheduled for August 13^th. There will be House and Senate Members in attendance. The KRD portion of the tour will cover tributary supplementation, water conservation and water storage solutions.

Mr. Eberhart will be presenting at the Northwest Power & Conservation Council Meeting in Portland, OR on August 15^th. He will discuss current water issues associated with the Yakima Plan and the Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee Columbia Basin Partnership.

August 20^th, Mr. Eberhart will be in Portland, OR for a meeting with a Columbia River Group.

The Water Infrastructure for Improvements to the Nation (WIIN) Act KRD Storage Study program is continuing. The cultural and historic work for drilling has been completed and submitted to the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO). There is a team from Denver and Boise scheduled for a site visit the last week of August. If there are not any problems we will be taking core samples to be analyzed. There are additional sites in place if the current location does not work.

The documentation for the WaterSmart Water Marketing Project has been submitted and the KRD is waiting for a response. Once completed, the KRD will be setting up a separate agreement with Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) for matching funds.

The USBR published via their website a Yakima Basinwide Tributaries Programmatic Investigation Report for comment.

The KRD is in discussions with Tetra Tech on the North Branch Canal Lining Project Phase II.

The North Branch Canal Lining Phase III construction will be scheduled for this winter.

KRD has received $2,107,000.00 for the South Branch Canal Lining Phase 1 and South Branch 13.8 / Manastash Water Diversion Association (MWDA) Connection Design Contract Package.

The KRD is working with Ecology on a request to acquire funding for the Aquafer recharge study.  

At the Manastash Ridge Trail Pipeline Meeting there were Washington State Fish and Wildlife personnel in attendance. KRD is working with them and others to obtain funding to install piping in the area.

Treasurer’s Report: The Directors’ monthly payroll vouchers were presented for signatures. Summary Vouchers for the June 2018 expenses and the July 2018 payroll which included check numbers 42422-42514, direct deposit numbers 9901440 through 9901456 in the sum of $322,671.88 were approved with a motion made by Director Hansen and the second was made by Director Wakkuri. The motion passed unanimously.

Old Business: Treasurer Berg reported that there had been very little change in the 2015 Delinquent Accounts. There was one land owner who made a $100 payment. No other payments have been made. One land owner requested that the KRD Board of Directors consider waiving his legal fees and requested the opportunity to sell his water for the current water year. Legal Counsel Slothower was concerned about setting a precedence and did not recommend that these requests be granted. The Board concluded that they would not be willing to change this issue.

New Business: The KRD will be asking the USBR to help fund Aqualastic applications through WaterSmart. A motion was made by Director Hansen to approve the Resolution 2018-08 to request funding. The second was made by Director Schnebly, the motion passed unanimously.

Legal Counsel Slothower reported that KRD updated the Public Disclosure Policy to reflect some legislative changes. A draft of the policy was sent to the Attorney General’s office for review. The board chose to wait for the feedback from the Attorney General’s Office and then act on it.

Mr. Eberhart reported to the board that the KRD has published a public notice for a Vehicle call for Bids. There were also several auto dealerships who were asked to submit a bid. The public notice was published in the newspaper and on the KRD website.  

Other Business: The Board adjourned to Executive Session at 1:40 p.m. for 15 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. The Board returned to Regular Session at 1:55 p.m. with a motion made by Director Hansen and the second was made by Director Weaver. The motion passed unanimously.

All business having been concluded the meeting was adjourned.

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Mr. Bland KRD Board of Directors Chairman

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Mr. Eberhart KRD Secretary Manager