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• <br /> out pipes faster to use more water, and that there was no more wear and tear from one to <br /> the other such as streets and roads; and therefore it didn't make sense to him to shift those <br /> infrastructure costs from base rates to usage fees, or to make them part of the tax levy. <br /> Mayor Roe suggested that the City of Roseville's model may become the model for other <br /> cities in the future. <br /> City Manager Malinen, from a CIP perspective, noted that were zero dollars in the Water <br /> Fund due to the result of past reliance on variable usage to generate monies; and when <br /> consumption went down and the City didn't get the money it expected, but still had repairs <br /> and maintenance of the system, the Fund couldn't accommodate it. City Manager Malinen <br /> noted that, with the base rate as it now is, those fixed costs area addressed annually and <br /> was making the Fund stable. City Manager Malinen suggested that the current plan not be <br /> undone until there was some history to determine if it was working as indicated by the CIP <br /> Task Force. <br /> Councilmember McGehee agreed that the system had been mismanaged for thirty (30) <br /> years. Regarding the automatic read meters (ARM) and ability to view water usage at any <br /> time, Councilmember McGehee opined that there was no need to defer installation of those <br /> new meters; and suggested borrowing internally from the Storm Water Fund Reserve to <br /> have those automatic meters installed throughout the city immediately rather than <br /> systematically installing them in phases over the next four (4) years. <br /> City Manager Malinen advised that if that schedule was accelerated, it may need to be <br /> contracted out; and asked that the City Council consult with Public Works Director Duane <br /> Schwartz about related issues in expediting that installation. <br /> Public Works Director Duane Schwartz advised that of the $1.6 million projected for this <br /> installation, approximately $300,000 would be for contractual help to finish the program <br /> over that period. <br /> Finance Director Miller added that if the expedited installation was done, it did not mean <br /> that the ARM system would be completed in-house at City Hall, since modification to billing <br /> customer accounts was required and the Finance Department was not equipped to process <br /> that now versus phased over four (4) years, requiring additional money for overtime to <br /> facilitate that additional workload. <br /> With Mr. Schwartz advising that the current phased-in project was for 2,000 installations <br /> annually, Mr. Miller advised hat to accelerate that to 8,000 installations in one year, would <br /> require significant overtime to accomplish, and require his reworking of the Finance <br /> Department Work Plan. <br /> Mayor Roe noted that there would also be the additional interest for any internal loan. <br /> Regarding a single tier usage rate, Mayor Roe requested more information from staff on <br /> options/requirements to accomplish this year or next year. <br /> Mr. Miller advised that, with a single-tiered usage rate, if that was the consensus, there <br /> would be a few things required (e.g. monthly billing). <br /> Since rates were now set, Mayor Roe asked that staff provide that information to the City <br /> Council later this year. <br /> 16 <br />