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305 <br />306 Member Kruse asked how the current rate structure determined and also asked <br />307 about non-residential rates. <br />308 <br />309 Mr. Culver responded he does not know how or why the 30,000 -gallon tier was <br />310 established. Many discussions were had in the mid -2000s about this. In the late <br />311 2000s, the base rate was ramped up. <br />312 <br />313 Member Misra noted that Commissioner Wozniak's previous comments were <br />314 important regarding consumption. She has looked at water usage, particularly in <br />315 the summer, and calculated that from 25,000 gallons up, about 50% of the water <br />316 usage comes from 25% of the users. That sort of information is important because <br />317 that speaks to a tiered pricing system. There are two points to the rates, to fund the <br />318 system and to encourage conservation, and both are important. She would like to <br />319 look at the tiers. <br />320 <br />321 Mr. Culver noted that the current and prior City Councils do not want to punish <br />322 larger households, where the per capita use of water is not egregious. Rather, the <br />323 household has six or more people in the home. <br />324 <br />325 Chair Cihacek clarified that the purpose of tonight's agenda item is to provide <br />326 information to the new Commissioners. <br />327 <br />328 Member Trainor commented on the high summer water usage, suggesting it would <br />329 be prudent for the City to pay individual attention to those home, even more so than <br />330 adding tiers. <br />331 <br />332 8. Public Works Overview <br />333 Mr. Culver provided a brief overview of the Public Works department, by staring <br />334 with various statistics about the City itself, the Public Works budget, and the Public <br />335 Works staff. The $900,000 Administration/Engineering operating budget is <br />336 supported by the general fund. The Civil Engineering position is almost fully <br />337 funded by fees from Falcon Heights. The right-of-way position is almost fully <br />338 funded by fees. The Streets division includes 10 full-time employees and most are <br />339 union staff. The $1.2 million 2018 operating budget is general fund supported, with <br />340 an additional $2.2 million in PMP/MSA CIP. <br />341 <br />342 Mr. Culver continued that the Storm Sewer division has 12 full-time employees <br />343 (shared staff with Streets and Administration), and the $2.2 million 2018 budget is <br />344 fee supported. The Sanitary Sewer division has 13 full-time employees (staff is <br />345 shared with Water), and the $6 million is fee supported. Central Garage has 2 full - <br />346 time employees and a 2018 budget of $183,000. The Facilities division has no full - <br />347 time staff but is managed by the Utilities Superintendent. Recycling has a .25 <br />348 employee (shared with Stormwater) with a $550,000 annual budget (which is utility <br />349 fee supported). He also highlighted the new asset management system, which ties <br />Page 8 of 9 <br />