NORTH COAST RAILROAD AUTHORITY (NCRA)
BOARD OF DIRECTORS REGULAR MEETING MINUTES
WEDNESDAY, JULY 18, 2001 AT
10:00 A.M.
���� �������The meeting was called to order at 10:00 a.m.
B.�������
ROLL CALL
Directors present:�
Vice Chair Allan Hemphill, Robert Simonson, Jake Mackenzie, Daniel
Opalach, and Leo Sears.
����������� Directors absent:� Chair David Ripple and Max Schlienger.
Also present:�
Executive Director Max H Bridges, Assistant Executive Director Douglas
Christy, General Counsel Christopher J Neary, Accountant Wade Fulton, Property
Manager Cyndee Logan, and Administrative Assistant Pamela Fishtrom.
Dir. Opalach, reappointed to the NCRA Board,
introduced Director Leo Sears, also appointed to represent Humboldt County.
Dir. Hemphill presented a plaque to General Counsel
Neary and commended him for his service to the NCRA Board of Directors since
September, 1993.
Dir.
Mackenzie moved approval of the Minutes; seconded by Dir. Simonson. Vote taken;
motion carried.
���������������
Dir. Mackenzie moved approval of the Agenda;
seconded by Dir. Simonson.� Vote taken;
motion carried.
E. ������� PUBLIC COMMENTS
Hanna
Burkhardt, Secretary for the Mendocino County Railway Society, presented a list
of questions which Mr. Bridges offered to answer via e-mail.
Kaye
Strickland, Chair of Citizens for Port Development, welcomed Dir. Sears and
advised the Board to keep the public well informed.
Bernard
Camerof informed the Board the tarps came off the Daylight cars and it appears
they are being vandalized.
1. ������Approve Personnel Rules and Regulations Handbook
Mr. Bridges suggested tabling this Item due to time constraints.�
Dir. Simonson
moved to table this Item; seconded by Dir. Mackenzie.� Vote taken; motion carried.
2.�������� Adopt Independent Contractor Procedures
Policy
Mr. Bridges suggested tabling this Item due to time constraints.
Dir. Mackenzie
moved to table this Item; seconded by Dir. Opalach.� Vote taken; motion carried.
3.�������� Consider Adopting Prevailing Wage Rates
for Public Works Contracts
Mr. Christy
recommended adopting prevailing wage rates as identified by the Department of
Industrial Relations.
Dir. Mackenzie
so moved; seconded by Dir. Opalach.�
Vote taken; motion carried.
����������� 4.�������� Modify
Travel Policy
Mr. Bridges recommended modification that allows reimbursement of mileage at the IRS� rate rather than that negotiated by the bargaining unit for State employees.
Dir. Mackenzie
so moved; seconded by Dir. Sears.� Vote
taken; motion carried.
5.������� Authorize Filing and Issuance of
Multi-County Agency Biennial Notice for Amendment to Conflict of Interest Code
Mr. Neary requested authorization to amend the Conflict of Interest Code to maintain� compliance with the Fair Political Practices Commission by deleting the reporting position of Chief Executive Officer and Marketing/Customer Service Director while adding the Officers and Shareholders of Northwestern Pacific Railways, Inc. LLC and NCRA�s Property Manager as Category 1 disclosure, and NCRA�s Assistant Executive Director and Capital Projects/Environmental Compliance Consultant as Category 2 disclosure.
Dir. Mackenzie
moved to authorize the filing and issuance of the Multi-County Conflict of
Interest Code; seconded by Dir. Simonson.�
Vote taken; motion carried.
6.
Adopt Budget for Fiscal Year 2001-2002
Mr. Bridges presented a proposed budget balanced with expected revenue sources, crafted by analysis of the previous year expeditures, and driven by NCRA�s Strategic Plan.
Dir. Mackenzie
moved to approve the proposed Budget for Fiscal Year 2001-2002; seconded by
Dir. Opalach.
7.
Authorize Increase in Maximum Allowable Contract Amount
to Vortex Diving Regarding Repair of Fenders on the Haystack Landing Bridge
Mr. Bridges asked for an increase in Vortex Diving�s maximum allowable contract amount to match estimated repair costs as was intended when NCRA received an increased loan amount from Northwestern Pacific Railroad Authority.
Dir. Mackenzie
so moved; seconded by Dir. Opalach.�
Vote taken; motion carried.
8.
Consider Attendance of Assistant Executive Director at
American Railway Engineering and Mainternace of Way (AREMA) Annual Conference
Mr. Bridges requested the Board approve $1500 to send Mr. Christy to this conference to maintain his rail-related knowledge, contacts, membership, and participation in AREMA.
Dir. Mackenzie
moved to approve the attendance of the Assistant Executive Director; seconded
by Dir. Opalach.� Vote taken; motion
approved.
�����������
9.
Joint Use of the REMCO Facility in Willits for Railroad
Storage and Maintenance � Presentation by Chris Burkhardt ��
Mr. Burkhardt proposed the railroad agencies involved in the NWP consider leasing or purchasing the REMCO facility for maintenance or storage.
G. ������ �LIAISON REPORTS
1.
Northwestern Pacific Railroad Authority (NWPRA) � Mr.
Bridges
Mr. Bridges reported NWPRA meets next Monday.
2.
������� Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit
Commission (SMART) � Mr. Bridges
Mr. Bridges presented the SMART Agenda for their meeting today.
3.�������� Legislation � Mr. Bridges
��������������� No
report.���������
4. ������Web Site
Mr. Bridges reported frequently asked questions are posted to NCRA�s web site.
5.�������� Cities � Dir. Mackenzie
Dir. Mackenzie reported the Sonoma County Transportation Authority (SCTA) circulated NCRA�s frequently asked questions.� Also, SCTA�s Chair asked him to participate in a meeting regarding SMART and the governance of passenger rail within the County.
�
6.�� ����� Passenger
� Dir. Hemphill, Dir. Opalach, and Dir. Schlienger
������������������������������� Mr. Bridges reported on the
Passenger Committee meeting preceeding this Regular Meeting:
�
An
inventory of passenger equipment was presented
�
A
discussion ensued regarding the disposition of passenger equipment
�
Mr.
Neary will prepare a process for sale of the Meecham cars
�
A
consultant will develop a policy for decisions on future passenger service
providers
�
The
remaining cars will not be offered for sale without further discussion with
NCRA�s passenger franchisee
�
Staff
was given direction to work on ownership issues of passenger cars, and
�
The
decision was made to offer no recommendation to the full Board yet.
7.��������
Mendocino Council of Governments (MCOG) Technical Advisory Committee �
Ms. Logan
Ms. Logan reported MCOG is working on the grant for
the Ukiah Depot, and will be posting fiber information on routes to their web
site.������������������������
8.
������Contractor � Northwestern
Pacific Railway Co. LLC (NWPY)
John Darling, NWPY Chief Executive Officer/ Chief
Financial Officer, reported:
�
traffic
continues to grow
�
although
ready, the delay in the inspection has allowed for reviewing documentation
�
shippers
are eager to see service restored
�
Joel
Torres, NWPY General Manager of Operations, has resigned, and
�
In
response to Dir. Opalach, Mr. Darling denied that Rail-Ways, Inc. may have its
bankruptcy converted to a Chapter 7 as opposed to Chapter 11.
H.������� STAFF
REPORTS
1.�������� Executive
Director Max H Bridges
Mr. Bridges reported he will be on vacation from
July 20 through August 8.� There was
discussion on dissemination of information through NCRA�s web site subscriber
list and media contacts, and on understanding an audit by Caltrans of projects
performed for them by NWPY.� Mr. Bridges
also reported the Environmental Assessment for the North End needs to discuss
the concurrent work driven by the Consent Decree.� The Department of Fish and Game offered to fly NCRA over the area
on August 15 to aid in projecting the impacts to be identified in the
assessment.� The resulting
quantification would aid the Federal Emergency Management Agency to prepare the
scope of work necessary to trigger initial biological assessments.
2.�������� Assistant
Executive Director Douglas Christy
����������� ����������� Mr. Christy reported:
�
NCRA
contracted with Vortex Diving to repair Haystack Landing Bridge�s fenders: work
should begin within 30 days
�
the
bid for rehabilitation from Windsor to Willits has been let; the opening will
be held July 31; Caltrans will review the lowest, responsible bid; a selection
will be made at the August 15 Board Meeting; work could be complete by the end
of the year
�
NWPY
is working on the segment between Petaluma and Windsor; there is a track
inspection at the end of July with a signal inspection possibly in mid-August;
opening could occur by the end of August.
�����
3.�������� General
Counsel Christopher J Neary
Mr. Neary reported on July 26 arbitration will occur
with the barge operator that struck the Haystack Landing Bridge.� NCRA will request a $250,000 contribution
toward the bridge�s repair.
�
4.
������Property Manager Cyndee
Logan
Ms. Logan presented a written report, and requested
a third member of the Board on the Property Management Committee.� Acting Chair Hemphill appointed Dir. Sears.
�
5.
������Accountant Wade Fulton
Mr. Fulton reported:
�
Caltrans
is finalizing their audit report of NCRA�s Proposition 116 work, and
�
The
financials and budgets presented are preliminary until the books are closed for
the fiscal year, and final documents will be presented at the August Board
Meeting.
���
Dir. Simonson remarked that dissemination of
information to the public should occur whether positive or negative.� Discussion ensued regarding apprising the
public and media, and there was concurrence that circulating the frequently
asked questions is a responsible approach at this time.�����
�
����� ������Regular Board Meeting � August 15, 2001
at 10:00 a.m.�������������������������
Eureka City Council
Chambers, 531 K Street, 2nd Floor, Eureka, Humboldt County, CA, USA
��������������� Dir. Mackenzie moved to adjourn; seconded
by Dir. Simonson.� Vote taken; motion
carried.
�����������
1.�������� Conference with Real Property
Negotiator � Ms. Logan
����������� ����������� Government
Code � 54946.8
����������������������� Fiber
Optics � Pacific Bell
The Board received a report from, and gave direction to, Ms. Logan.
2.
Conference with Legal Counsel Neary � Existing
Litigation
Government Code �
54956.9(a)
FCM Rail v.
NCRA
U.S. District
Court, East District Michigan, Case No. 98-74917
The Board authorized a settlement contingent upon California Transportation Commission approval for $188,167.51 with the agreement to accept an invoice for repair of the equipment for $23,832.49.
3.
Conference with Legal Counsel Neary � Anticipated
Litigation
Government Code �
54956.9(b)
Significant
Exposure to Litigation (Two Cases)
The Board directed and authorized staff to retain an outside Certified Public Accountant at an amount not to exceed $5,000 to perform a contract compliance audit of NWPY, to issue notice to NWPY regarding outstanding contract compliance issues, to create a contingency plan to minimize the potential for disruption in service, and to request delay of the track inspection scheduled for the end of July and the middle of August until NCRA receives the results of the contract compliance audit.