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Home My WebLink AboutMINUTES Light and Power Committee 2000-08-10RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS /T0Wn of Estes Park,Larimer County,Colorado,August 10,2000 Minutes of a Regular meeting of the LIGHT &POWER COMMITTEE of the Town of Estes Park,Larimer County,Colorado.Meeting held in the Municipal Building in said Town of Estes Park on the 10th day of August,2000. Committee:Chairman Jeffrey,Trustees Habecker and Newsom Attending:Chairman Jeffrey and Trustee Newsom Also Attending:Town Administrator Widmer,Light &Power Director Matzke, Clerk O’Connor Absent:Trustee Habecker Chairman Jeffrey called the meeting to order at 8:00 a.m. CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS -SYSTEM UPDATE. Ruben Blackmon,General Manager/Charter Communications,was welcomed to the Committee and he updated the Committee on the cable system:Charter is restructuring for better service where 8 systems have been consolidated;the general mgr.’s entire focus is to improve service;upgrade construction should be completed within 6 weeks;working on correcting pole violations with regard to Town regulations; and they have hired 3 techs (Estes Park)and 2 office personnel (2 techs are on-call evenings and weekends).Plans include renovating the building,screening materials and becoming an asset and part of the community by helping supporting community events.With the planned installation of a “fiber backbone”,a clear signal should be available that should eliminate maintenance problems.Past cable system owners have made promises and not followed through,however,Mr.Blackmon urged citizens to call the office with service questions/problems as these issues will be resolved. Mr.Blackmon responded to the following:the primary reason the cable system goes off the air is due to the age of the system,thus Charter is upgrading the entire system. Design has been completed on the fiber system,the fiber ordered ($300,000),and it should be delivered this winter.High-speed internet access is currently being provided and tested.The joint-use Agreement will be honored,particularly concerning underground installations and pole clearances.Charter will provide a copy of the fiber design to Director Matzke. Town Administrator Widmer commented that the Franchise Agreement requires community programming and the signal quality from the Board Rm.is unsatisfactory; Charter was encouraged to continue working on this problem until it is resolved.Also,a public access channel is a legal requirement.Glen Smith,Tech/Charter Comm. reported that Channel 39 is available for public access,and he urged the community to contact Charter at 577-0199. Public comments were heard from Sue Baptista/Miles Cottages,who stated she was extremely dissatisfied with the cable service due to the miss-handling of their out-of service reports and the negative impact to their motel business.Gary Briggs,resident, added that Charter has an internal communications problem.Nick Molle’/Channel 8, stated that Charter has dramatically improved the system,and that piracy introduces myriad problems into the system of which Charter may be unaware of until they receive a service call and are able to identify the source. Concluding all discussion,Chairman Jeffrey expressed the Committee’s appreciation to BRADFORD PUBLISHING CO.RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Light &Power Committee —August 10,2000 -Page 2 all in attendance,and requested Mr.Blackmon give Director Matzke a report on the Miles Cottages incident.The Committee also requested Ms.Baptista advise the Committee at their next meeting. DEPARTMENT POLICY &PROCEDURE MANUAL -PROPOSED REVISIONS. Maximum Size for Standard Single-Phase Service.The existing standard has no maximum size for various types of electric service.Good engineering practice would be to limit the size of some types of service and transition to a more appropriate service for larger electrical loads where available. DisconnecUReconnect Charge for Large Service Users.The current combined disconnect/reconnect charge is $60.00.Staff is proposing that disconnects for large electric service users that require construction in addition to removal of the meter include a time and material charcie. Short-term Rental Deposit Policy.Staff is proposing that the owner of the property be required to provide a commercial deposit equal to the usage from June,July and August,with a minimum amount of $150.00.This change provides a more lenient deposit calculation for short-term rentals that generally occur during the summer season. The Committee recommends approval of all three Policy revisions as presented. FALL RIVER HYDRO PLANT RESTORATION PROJECT -APPROVAL OF INTERPRETIVE EXHIBIT CONTRACT. Assistant Mangelsen reported that the contractor began restoration 5 weeks ago,the project is on-schedule,proceeding well.Work has also started on the employee housing building. Chad Devore/Resource Connection has submitted a proposal to design and furnish the interpretive exhibits for the Fall River Hydro Power Plant Museum.The cost is $110,000.The Resource Connection is recommending that $28,000 be funded in 2000 to allow completion of design and ordering materials.The anticipated budget for interpretation was $125,000,and approval of this contract would necessitate the 2000 Fall River budget be increased by $30,000 to $430,000 to provide funding of $28,000 this year.The Committee recommends the exhibit contract be awarded to The Resource Connection for an estimated cost of $110,000,and that the 2000 Budget be amended during the mid-year corrections to include $30,000 for this contract. Museum Director Kilsdonk reported on a recent brainstorming session where education and preservation were the focus.Current issues,a Mission Statement and Goals for the plant should be drafted and presented at the next meeting.PRPA will sponsor the publication of a booklet for plant.Staff will write the booklet and PRPA will produce it, etc.,with proceeds aimed for support of the plant.The Project Team is actively looking for sponsors of programs and the like. Along with Larry Gamble/RMNP,the Team is also investigating the possibility of establishing a foot trail from the plant to the new Fall River Visitors Center.The Fall River Visitors Center is willing to display the booklet,and cross-promotional program will be established.The Committee commended the Project Team. Ass’t Mangelsen also briefed the Committee on the Olympus Hydro education lab being proposed by Richard Smart.Dr.Smart is pursing a grant and Mayor Baudek has executed a letter of support.Should the grant be approved,Dr.Smart intends to have CSU and CO School of Mines students work on the design.This plant could supply C RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Light &Power Committee —August 10,2000 -Page 3 approximately 10 residences with power. REPORTS. The Platte Rivet Power Authority (PRPA)experienced their best operating month in its history,and the Rawhide Plant is performing outstandingly well.PRPA recently approved Loveland’s Boyd Substation Project,supporting a slightly higher expenditure of $3.3 Million for an alternate route including additional underground transmission line suggested during public meetings.A Rawhide outage is planned 10/13 through mid- November to conduct preventative maintenance. The July Financial Report was unavailable,however,graphs were reviewed. Project Updates.When the cable for underground electric services on Mall Road has been completed,the overhead lines will be removed.The Contractor has started work on the old substation and the transmission lines should be removed within two weeks. The EVRPD has been advised of the necessity to close the Lake Estes Bike Path for approximately a week.Pursuant to a request,Staff is investigating the lighting of the Samson Statue. There being no further business,Chairman Jeffrey adjourned the meeting at 9:25 a.m. Vickie O’Connor,CMC,Town Clerk -APPROVED TOWN OF ESTES PARK BOARD OF TRUSTEES