Meredith Clark

The joint session focused on collaborative water utility management, history, and operational coordination between the two entities. Key discussion topics included the overview of both organizations' water systems, the status and future milestones of the McKenzie River Water Supply Project, and mutual aid agreements. The boards reviewed strategies for managing PFAS contamination in groundwater sources, infrastructure resilience upgrades including seismic retrofits, hydraulic modeling for system optimization, and long-term capital facility planning.

The board discussed and approved several procurement matters, including bids for distribution transformers and a contract for cloud hosting and GIS migration support. The recruitment process for the General Manager position was reviewed, including timelines for finalist interviews. The meeting featured presentations on property and liability insurance renewals and an update on hydraulic modeling projects. Legal counsel provided an update on agreements with Rainbow, and the board received a 2026 legislative update. Additionally, the board discussed the Budget Committee recruitment process, upcoming city council items, and future agenda planning.

The meeting agenda includes an executive session regarding personnel matters and attorney-client privilege. The regular board meeting business includes the award of a bid for a mechanic's service truck and the review of the accounts paid listing. Public hearings and corresponding board actions are scheduled for the 2026 Fee Schedule, revisions to water policies regarding fire service use, updates to electric construction development charges, and approval of water rates for the self-service water meter station. The general manager's report covers topics such as the APPA Rally, hydrant mapping and maintenance, downtown development planning, developer services, board retreat scheduling, general manager recruitment, board policy updates, and telecommunications.

The board reviewed organizational memberships and sponsorship frameworks and discussed the current structure and history of in-lieu-of-tax payments made to the city. Updates were provided on the city payroll tax and revisions to employee meal gratuity policies. The board discussed restrictions regarding political advocacy on ballot measures by public employees. Additionally, the board reviewed the annual productivity incentive program, received updates on the Rainbow/SUB/City Urban Services Agreement and the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant for backup generators, and discussed a loan application for the water division's infrastructure projects. The meeting also included a report on the property management strategy, specifically regarding feasibility assessments for solar generation and battery storage facilities.

The joint session focused on the development of new intergovernmental agreements to coordinate joint operations. Presentations were given on the historical operations and future challenges for both organizations, specifically regarding water system boundaries, aging infrastructure, and the detection of PFAS. Discussion items included the planned McKenzie River Water Supply Project, ongoing engineering designs for PFAS treatment, seismic upgrades for reservoirs, and the procurement of backup power generators. Additionally, the boards reviewed their collaboration on the Springfield Drinking Water Protection Plan and updates to water management and conservation strategies.