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OH, WE WERE BORN.[1. Call to Order.]
GOOD AFTERNOON.I WOULD LIKE TO INVITE EVERYBODY TO THIS 2023 WATER AND WASTEWATER RATE STUDY, UH, SPECIAL MEETING.
[2. Presentation and Discussion of the 2023 Water and Wastewater Rate Study.]
AN HONORABLE CITY MANAGER LIKE TO START US OFF WITH SOME SAGE COMMENTS? WOW.UH, WE'RE GONNA INTRODUCE CHRIS
AND WE'RE ESPECIALLY EXCITED OF CHRIS HERE TODAY.
UM, IT'S GOOD TO HAVE YOU BACK, CHRIS.
UH, CHRIS AND HIS TEAM HAVE BEEN LEADING THE EFFORT AS WE LOOK CONTINUALLY AT OUR RATES AND, UH, EFFORTS TO STAY AHEAD OF OUR INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS FOR
SO THIS IS PART OF OUR PROCESS TO COME BACK TO COUNCIL.
TO GIVE YOU AN UPDATE WHERE WE STAND, WE HAVE AN UPCOMING RATE THAT THE COUNCIL'S ALREADY APPROVED.
WHEN DID WE APPROVE THAT RATE INCREASE? LAST TIME IN 2020 BEFORE ME.
UM, SO WE WANNA GIVE YOU AN UPDATE AND SEE AND GIVE YOU A, A PROGNOSIS OF WHERE WE'RE GOING IN THE COMING YEARS.
SO, WITH THAT, CHRIS, WE JUST OFF MAYOR AND COUNCIL, CHRIS KNIFING, DIRECTOR OF WATER RESOURCES.
UM, VERY GLAD TO SEE ALL OF YOU.
UM, I'M GONNA INTRODUCE DAN JACKSON, AND, UH, HE'S WITH WELDON.
HE'S OUR RATE STUDY CONSULTANT.
HE IS DONE, SEVERAL OF THEM FOR US.
UH, BEEN WORKING WITH HIM FOR 15 YEARS ON RATES, SO HE'S VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE ON EDMOND'S RATES.
AND, UH, HE'LL, HE'LL DO THE PRESENTATION.
I APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE BACK FOR YOU TO TODAY.
UH, I AM DAN JACKSON, VICE PRESIDENT OF WILL, DAN.
I'VE GOT WITH ME, MR. ALEX VIC, WHO IS ALSO WITH, UH, WILL DAN.
UH, WE'RE THE ONES THAT, UH, DIRECTED THE, UH, THE LATEST RATE STUDY EVERY FEW YEARS.
THE CITY ASKS US TO GO OVER YOUR, UM, WATER UTILITY AND WASTEWATER UTILITY RATES AND FINANCES, AND TO RECOMMEND A NEW LONG-TERM RATE PLAN FOR YOU.
THESE PLANS ARE VERY IMPORTANT BECAUSE THE INDUSTRY IS CHANGING VERY RAPIDLY.
UH, THE CITY OF EDMOND IS GROWING AS, AND WITH THAT GROWTH COMES NEW EXPENSES, NEW RESPONSIBILITIES TO ENSURE THAT YOU HAVE SUFFICIENT WATER RESOURCES, NOT ONLY TO MEET CURRENT DEMAND, BUT TO MEET FUTURE DEMAND.
SO THESE KIND OF LONG TERM RATE AND FINANCIAL PLANS ARE IMPORTANT FOR A CITY TO ENTAIL, BECAUSE WE ALL KNOW THAT COSTS ARE GOING UP.
SO IT IS IMPORTANT TO MANAGE THOSE COSTS IN A WAY THAT MINIMIZES THE IMPACT ON YOUR RATE PAYERS.
WE DID OUR LAST STUDY A FEW YEARS AGO, AND AS A RESULT OF THAT, THE CITY ADOPTED A MULTI-YEAR RATE PLAN.
WE'RE GONNA REC, WE'RE GONNA RECOMMEND THAT YOU DO THE SAME THING TODAY.
UM, AND SO WHAT I'D LIKE TO DO IS I'D LIKE TO SPEND, UH, HOPEFULLY A LIMITED AMOUNT OF TIME GOING OVER JUST A LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND ON WHAT YOUR RATES ARE RIGHT NOW AND, AND WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE INDUSTRY.
THEN I'D LIKE TO TALK ABOUT YOUR CUSTOMERS AND YOUR VOLUMES, BECAUSE ANY LONG-TERM FORECAST IS HEAVILY DEPENDENT ON NOT JUST YOUR CURRENT NUMBER OF CUSTOMERS, BUT HOW MANY YOU THINK YOU'RE GONNA HAVE IN THE FUTURE.
THEN WE'LL TALK ABOUT YOUR COST OF SERVICE, AND IN PARTICULAR, YOUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN, BECAUSE THAT'S THE REAL DRIVER BEHIND A LONG-TERM RATE PLAN.
THEN WE'LL PRESENT TO YOU OUR RECOMMENDATIONS FOR A PROPOSED PLAN GOING FORWARD, AND THEN WE'LL OPEN IT UP TO QUESTIONS.
UM, WHENEVER, UH, I'M BASED IN THE DALLAS-FORT WORTH AREA, AND I'VE DONE WORK FOR ABOUT A DOZEN CITIES HERE IN OKLAHOMA, AS WELL AS CITIES IN ARKANSAS AND OVER A HUNDRED CITIES IN TEXAS.
AND WHENEVER I DO A RAPE, UH, PRESENTATION LIKE THIS, I ALWAYS LIKE TO START OFF BY TALKING A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE INDUSTRY, BECAUSE IT'S VERY IMPORTANT FOR DECISION MAKERS LIKE YOURSELVES TO UNDERSTAND THE DYNAMICS AT PLAY IN THE WATER INDUSTRY.
IT'S VERY COMMON FOR PEOPLE TO SAY, WHY SHOULD WATER COST ANY MORE TODAY THAN IT DID 25 YEARS AGO? AFTER ALL TASTES THE SAME COMES OUT OF THE, UH, TAP THE SAME WAY IT DID IN 1987.
SO WHY SHOULD IT COST ANYMORE? WELL, THESE ARE FAIR QUESTIONS, AND THE ANSWER CAN BE SUMMARIZED VERY SIMPLY.
IT'S A BUSINESS WHERE YOU PRODUCE A PRODUCT.
YOU KNOW, A GALLON OF, UH, A GALLON OF WATER SERVICE IS SIMILAR TO A GALLON OF GASOLINE.
IT'S SIMILAR TO A MCDONALD'S HAMBURGER.
YOU PRODUCE THAT PRODUCT AND YOU TRY TO OPERATE YOUR UTILITY LIKE A BUSINESS.
YOU WANT THE REVENUES THAT YOU GET FROM YOUR RATES TO COVER ALL THE COSTS OF PROVIDING THAT PRODUCT.
AND WHEN THOSE COSTS GO UP, YOU HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO PASS THOSE COSTS THROUGH TO YOUR ULTIMATE RATE PAYERS.
UM, BUT YOU DO HAVE ONE ADVANTAGE OVER BUSINESSES IN THAT YOU'RE NOT TRYING TO MAKE A PROFIT OFF OF THIS.
ALL YOU'RE TRYING TO DO IS RECOVER YOUR COSTS.
AND SO IF YOU SET YOUR RATES, IT'S SOMETHING THAT IS BELOW THE, WHAT YOUR COSTS ARE, THEN YOU'RE LOSING MONEY ON THE PRODUCT YOU'RE PRODUCING, AND THAT'S GENERALLY NOT VERY GOOD BUSINESS.
SO THE CITY OF EDMOND, IN MY EXPERIENCE OVER THE LAST 15 YEARS, HAS DONE A REMARKABLE JOB AT MAINTAINING, UH, THE BALANCE BETWEEN RATES AND INVESTMENT.
YOU HAVE A VERY HEALTHY WATER AND WASTEWATER FUND RIGHT
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NOW, AND THIS RATE PLAN THAT WE PRESENT TO YOU TODAY WILL ENABLE YOU TO CONTINUE TO MAINTAIN THAT FINANCIAL HEALTH.YOU'D BE AMAZED HOW MANY UTILITIES WE WORK FOR WHO'S, WHO'S UTILITIES ARE NOT FINANCIALLY HEALTHY.
AND SO I'D LIKE TO ALSO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE INDUSTRY IN GENERAL.
THE AVERAGE UTILITY HAS BEEN RAISING ITS RATES FIVE TO 6% EVERY YEAR OVER THE LAST DECADE.
AND THE AMERICAN WATERWORKS ASSOCIATION ANTICIPATES THAT WATER COSTS ARE GONNA TRIPLE IN THE NEXT 15 YEARS.
NOW, WHY IS THAT HAPPENING? WHY ARE COSTS GOING UP SO MUCH? WELL, PART OF IT IS DUE TO INFLATION.
LIKE I SAID, YOU OPERATE YOUR, YOUR WATER UTILITY LIKE A BUSINESS.
WELL, COST OF EVERYTHING GOES UP BY THREE TO 5% A YEAR JUST DUE TO INFLATION.
SO IT'S REASONABLE TO EXPECT THAT OVER TIME COSTS ARE GONNA GO UP.
BUT ALSO WHEN YOU LOOK AT OTHER COMPONENTS OF A WATER SYSTEM LIKE CHEMICALS, ELECTRICITY, INSURANCE, WORKERS' COMPENSATION, ALL OF THOSE ARE GOING UP AT RATES EVEN HIGHER THAN INFLATION.
AND VERY IMPORTANTLY, IT COSTS YOU MILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO BUILD A WATER SYSTEM TO BUILD THOSE TREATMENT PLANTS AND TO PUT THOSE LINES IN THE GROUND TO PUSH THAT WATER THROUGH YOUR, UH, CITY TO ENSURE THAT PEOPLE WILL HAVE ACCESS TO QUALITY WATER SERVICE AT ANY TIME OF THE DAY OR NIGHT.
AND LIKE ANY ASSET, THEY WEAR OUT OVER TIME.
AND SO YOU HAVE, YOU HAVE TO CONTINUALLY INVEST IN YOUR SYSTEM TO ENSURE YOU HAVE A GOOD QUALITY OF SERVICE.
BUT GUESS WHAT? NOT ALL CITIES DO THAT.
30 TO 40% OF CITIES CHARGE RATES THAT DON'T COVER THEIR COSTS.
NOW, WHAT THAT MEANS IS THEY'RE TAKING THEIR GENERAL FUND AND THEY'RE USING IT TO SUBSIDIZE THEIR, UH, WATER AND SEWER FUND.
NOW, IT'S NOT ILLEGAL TO DO THAT, BUT IT'S NOT NECESSARILY GOOD FINANCIAL POLICY.
WHENEVER YOU DO A COMPARISON OF RATES BETWEEN DIFFERENT CITIES, IT MAY NOT BE A TRUE COMPARISON BECAUSE THOSE, THOSE UTILITIES MIGHT NOT BE CHARGING A RATE THAT COVERS ALL OF THEIR COSTS.
WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THE INDUSTRY IN GENERAL.
WELL, LET'S TALK ABOUT THE CITY EDMOND AND EDMOND WATER UTILITIES.
YOU'VE HAD A GOOD COUPLE OF YEARS.
YOUR ACCOUNT GROWTH HAS ACTUALLY BEEN A LITTLE HIGHER THAN WHAT WAS, UH, FORECAST, BOTH IN THE 2020 STUDY AND LAST YEAR.
WHAT WOULD BEGAN OUR UPDATE, YOU HAD A GOOD, ROBUST GROWTH.
YOUR CONSUMPTION IS ALSO INCREASING.
2022 IS A VERY HOT YEAR, AS WE ALL REMEMBER.
I THINK WE ALL REMEMBER THE SUMMER OF 2022.
WE ALL KIND OF ANTICIPATED THAT WATER USAGE WOULD COME DOWN IN 2023.
AND IT DID BEGIN TO, BUT GUESS WHAT? THE LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS HAVE BEEN SO HOT, THE USAGE IS GOING RIGHT BACK UP AGAIN.
WELL, WATER'S A BULK COMMODITY.
THE MORE YOU SELL, YOU KNOW, THE BETTER IT IS.
I MEAN, IT, IT WATER'S AN INTERESTING BUSINESS.
YOU'RE IN THE BUSINESS OF SELLING A PRODUCT THAT YOU WANT YOUR CUSTOMERS NOT TO BUY.
YOU WANT PEOPLE TO CONSERVE WATER USAGE AND PEOPLE DO CONSERVE WATER USAGE, BUT WHEN IT GETS VERY HOT, THEY'RE GOING TO USE MORE WATER IN THE SUMMERTIME.
AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT'S HAPPENING THIS SUMMER AS WELL AS LAST SUMMER.
YOUR WATER, UH, USAGE HAS GONE UP BY 7% IN THE LAST YEAR, AND WASTEWATER HAS GONE UP BY 9%.
YOU KNOW, OPERATING COSTS ARE CONTINUING TO GO UP.
THEY'RE KIND OF GOING UP ABOUT WHERE WE FORECAST THEY WOULD.
BUT THE PRIMARY FACTOR THAT'S GONNA DRIVE THIS NEW RATE PLAN IS YOUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT SPENDING.
YOU KNOW, I WORK FOR SOME UTILITIES THAT HAVE INCREDIBLY LOW RATES.
THEY HAVE INCREDIBLY LOW RATES 'CAUSE THEY DON'T PUT ANY MONEY INTO THEIR SYSTEM.
AND SO THEIR SYSTEM IS THIS FAR AWAY FROM A CATASTROPHIC FAILURE.
IT'S KINDA LIKE SAYING, I CAN SAVE A HUNDRED DOLLARS BY NOT CHANGING THE OIL IN MY CAR.
YEAH, YOU CAN, BUT A YEAR LATER YOUR ENGINE'S GONNA BLOW OUT.
SO THE CITY HAS ALWAYS BEEN VERY PROACTIVE IN ENSURING A TOP LEVEL QUALITY OF SERVICE, AND YOU'RE GOING TO SEE FROM THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN THAT THAT CONTINUES TO BE THE CASE.
SO WHILE KEEPING RATES AS LOW AS POSSIBLE IS A VERY VALUABLE GOAL, YOU HAVE TO BALANCE THAT WITH THE NEED TO INVEST IN YOUR SYSTEM TO ENSURE A GOOD QUALITY OF SERVICE.
AND I THINK THE CITY OF EDMOND HAS ALWAYS DONE A GOOD JOB AT DOING THAT.
SO, UM, I'VE SEEN A QUESTION POSED THAT I DON'T KNOW THE ANSWER TO, SO I'LL ASK IT HERE, AND IF YOU DON'T HAVE THE ANSWER TO IT, HAPPY TO FOLLOW UP.
SOMETHING THAT RESIDENTS HAVE BROUGHT UP IS, YES, WE WANT TO CONSERVE WATER.
THEN WE ALSO HAVE, UM, AND I'VE USED THEM.
THEY'RE, UH, WE HAVE MULTIPLE NEW CAR WASHES IN TOWN.
I KNOW THE RESIDENTS ARE, HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF GAP ON IT OF WHAT DOES THAT, WHAT DOES THAT REPRESENT OR HOW DOES THAT IMPACT US? OR WHAT, WHAT DO RESIDENTS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THAT USAGE? OR, OR AS THEY'RE SEEING MULTIPLE NEW ONES POP UP IN EDMOND? WELL, THE, THE CAR WASH, THE NEW CAR WASHES THAT YOU SEE POPPING UP ARE A LOT MORE EFFICIENT THAN SOMEBODY WASHING THEIR CAR AT HOME BECAUSE THEY RECYCLE.
UH, THEY'RE TRYING TO KEEP THEIR WATER BILLS DOWN AND WATER USAGE DOWN.
SO GENERALLY THEY'RE RECYCLING THEIR WATER.
UM, I'M NOT GONNA NAME THE NAMES OF THE ONES THAT DO, BUT ALMOST ALL THE NEW ONES HAVE A WATER RECYCLING.
I MEAN, IT'S LIKE A CLOSED LOOP SITUATION WHERE YOU SEE THAT DROP AND THEN IT'S, SO ALL THE EXCESS LEAVES, BUT THEY'RE GENERALLY RECYCLING SO THAT THEY MINIMIZE THEIR AMOUNT OF LOSS.
SO, SO HOW DO WE BALANCE, FOR EXAMPLE, ON A, IN A CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT? SO WE HAVE A BUSINESS LIKE THAT THAT IS MORE
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WATER INTENSIVE.HOW, AND THEN WE HAVE THIS NEED TO CONSERVE.
SO JUST LIKE THE GENTLEMAN JUST SAID, IT'S LIKE WE'RE IN THE BUSINESS, WE'RE A PRODUCT WE NEED TO SELL, BUT WE'RE ACTUALLY ENCOURAGING CONSERVATION.
DOES THAT AN ENTITY LIKE A CAR WASH, GO THROUGH ANY TYPE OF ANALYSIS BEFORE IT'S APPROVED? WHERE WE'RE DETERMINING WHERE IT FITS IN THAT? IS IT A SUPER USER? IS IT A MEDIUM USER? IS IT ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE IT COULD BE A SUPER USER, BUT IT'S ACTUALLY IN PRACTICE A A TYPICAL USER? DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? YEAH, NO, IT MAKES SENSE.
UM, WE DON'T HAVE ANY APPROVAL PROCESS FOR THE TYPE OF WATER THEY USE, BUT OUR RATES ARE DESIGNED FOR CONSERVATION.
SO THE MORE YOU USE, THE MORE YOU PAY.
AND EVERY, I SAY EVERYONE, BUT MOST PEOPLE LOOK AT WAYS TO CONSERVE WATER JUST BECAUSE OF COST.
AND ANY BUSINESS IS GONNA WANT TO REDUCE THEIR COST, WHICH IS WHY THESE, UH, CAR WASHES START RECYCLING WATER.
AND THIS IS ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
IT, IT IS MORE COMMON NOW FOR THEM TO RECYCLE JUST BECAUSE THEY DON'T WANT ALL THIS EXPENSE LEAVING.
AND, YOU KNOW, THEY GET NOTHING OUT OF IT.
SO, AND, AND CHRIS, WHEN YOU SAY, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE CONSUMING MORE WATER, THEY PAY MORE WATER, IT'S NOT JUST, IT'S THE SAME AMOUNT PER GALLON.
THERE'S CERTAIN GRADUATED IF YOU START PAYING, YOU KNOW, ZERO TO WHATEVER IT IS, 5,000 GALLONS, IT'S THIS MUCH.
SO I WON'T SAY THE PENALTY, BUT THE, IT'S NOT A PER GALLON'S DISINCENTIVE.
IT'S NOT A SMOOTH, IT'S BIG JUMPS.
SO THEIR CONSUMPTION GOES UP, THEIR PRICING GOES UP, IS WHAT YOU'RE SAYING.
THE, I I MEAN, LIKE, TYPICALLY, AND I JUST SAW THIS THIS LAST WEEK 'CAUSE WE HAD A CITY EDMOND POST ON OUR CONSERVATION, WHICH I THINK WE'RE IN LIKE LEVEL ONE OR WHATEVER MM-HMM.
SO IF, IF A RESIDENT SEES THAT AND SAYS, THE CITY IS ASKING ME TO CONSERVE, SO I'M DOING A OTTER, EVEN THEN I HAVE FIVE NEW CAR WASHES GOING IN.
AND AGAIN, I KNOW NOTHING ABOUT HOW MUCH THEY CONSUME OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT.
THE QUESTION THAT I SEE OVER AND OVER AGAIN IS WHY IS ONE MESSAGE FOR CONSERVATION? AND THE OTHER ONE IS PERMITTING USE.
LIKE HOW DO WE, HOW DO WE RECONCILE THAT? I DON'T THINK ONE HAS TO DO WITH THE OTHER, BECAUSE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT AN EFFICIENT PROCESS VERSUS THE ALTERNATIVE BEING WASHING IT AT YOUR HOUSE AND LETTING ALL THE WATER JUST GO DOWN YOUR DRIVEWAY.
SO YOU COULD USE 500 GALLONS DURING A CAR WASH, 200 GALLONS, WHATEVER IT IS, AND THEN GO TO A CAR WASH AND MAYBE USE 20 GALLONS.
SO YES, THERE'S MORE CAR WASHES, BUT THEY'RE MORE EFFICIENT AT OUR WATER USE BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE GONNA WASH THEIR CARS REGARDLESS.
BUT IF THEY'RE GOING TO AUTOMATED RECYCLING, CAR WASH, THEN THEY'RE USING LESS WATER THAN THEY WOULD'VE IF, IF THEY WERE TO WASH THEIR CAR AT HOME.
SO, AND I, I, AS I WAS KIND OF JUMPING THROUGH THOSE HOOPS MM-HMM.
I THINK WHAT WE PROBABLY NEED TO WORK ON IS, UM, OBVIOUSLY YOUR INFRASTRUCTURE FOCUS AS YOU SHOULD BE, AND YOUR TEAM DOES THAT ALMOST BETTER THAN ANYONE.
AS WE ENGAGE OUR CITIZENS ON ANY TYPE OF RATE INCREASE OR CONVERSATION WITH THAT, I THINK WE'LL HAVE TO BE SENSITIVE AND CREATE COMMUNICATION THAT ADDRESSES SOME OF THOSE BASIC CONCERNS THAT WOULD BE HARD TO RESOLVE WITHOUT INFORMATION, WHETHER THAT'S THE GRAPHIC AND STUFF.
SO IF I'M ON MY DRIVEWAY AND I'M WASHING MY CAR, THE AVERAGE MIGHT BE X IF I GO THROUGH A MODERN, UH, CAR WASH, IT MIGHT BE Y AND IT ACTUALLY SAVES WATER.
I DON'T, I MEAN, I'M, BUT WHATEVER THAT IS, I'M JUST TELLING YOU, THERE'S A COMMUNICATION GAP OUT THERE IN REGARDS TO OUR CITIZENS UNDERSTANDING WHAT THEY'RE BEING ASKED AND THEN WHAT THEY SEE BEING DEVELOPED.
I THINK THERE IS SOME OF THAT, BUT A LOT OF IT WE ADDRESS ON OUR CONSERVATION UNIVERSITY THAT WE WORK WITH MARKETING ON.
SO IT'S ON OUR WEBSITE AND A LOT OF, UH, FACTS ON THERE.
UM, I DON'T KNOW THAT THAT SPECIFIC ONE IS, BUT, UM, WE'LL, WE'LL CLARIFY IT AS BEST WE CAN AS IT COMES UP.
BUT, UM, IT, IT'S A TOUGH ONE TO, TO GO CHASE EVERY, EVERY, UH, RUMOR OR, YOU KNOW, THOUGHT THAT PEOPLE HAVE OUT THERE.
BUT MAYBE IT'S A GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO PUT A LITTLE EDUCATION OUT ON THE MM-HMM.
THIS IS A GOOD SEGUE INTO DISCUSSING YOUR RATES THEMSELVES.
HOW DO PEOPLE PAY FOR WATER SERVICE HERE IN THE CITY? WELL, IF YOU'RE A RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMER, YOU PAY FOR WATER IN TWO WAYS.
YOU PAY A MONTHLY MINIMUM CHARGE, AND THEN YOU PAY A VOLUME RATE FOR EVERY THOUSAND GALLONS.
THIS CHART RIGHT HERE SHOWS THAT FOR A TYPICAL RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMER, VAST MAJORITY OF RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS HAVE A FIVE EIGHTH INCH METER.
THEY PAY A MINIMUM CHARGE OF $16 AND 5 CENTS, AND THEY GET THE FIRST THOUSAND GALLONS INCLUDED IN THAT.
BEYOND THAT, THEY PAY AN INVERTED BLOCK RATE BETWEEN ONE IN 10,000 GALLONS.
THEY PAY $7 AND 95 CENTS PER THOUSAND GALLONS.
IF THEY GO UP BETWEEN 11 AND 20,000 GALLONS, THEY PAY NINE 19.
AND BETWEEN 20,000 GALLONS AND ABOVE, THEY
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PAY $11 AND 48 CENTS.NOW, THE AVERAGE CUSTOMER, RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMER HERE IN THE CITY OF EDMOND USES SOMEWHERE AROUND SEVEN TO 8,000 GALLONS OF WATER A MONTH.
SO MOST CUSTOMERS PAY IN THE FIRST BLOCK.
IT'S ONLY CUSTOMERS WHO USE ABOVE THE AVERAGE WHO PAY THE BLOCK RATES.
AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT A CONSERVATION RATE IS DESIGNED TO DO, BECAUSE THE ABOVE AVERAGE USAGE IS CONSIDERED TO BE DISCRETIONARY.
NOW, ON THE, ON THE COMMERCIAL SIDE, THEY, THEY PAY BY THE SAME, SAME, UM, MINIMUM CHARGES.
IF YOU HAVE A LARGER METER, YOU PAY A LARGER MINIMUM CHARGE.
AND THEN ON THE, UH, ON THE RATES FOR, FOR THE NON-RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS, BETWEEN ZERO AND ONE AND 3000 GALLONS, THEY PAY $7 AND 95 CENTS BETWEEN THREE AND 10, 8 35, AND BETWEEN 10,000 AND ABOVE 8 95.
SO THE, THE BLOCK RATES ARE NOT AS AGGRESSIVE, BUT THEY COME IN A LITTLE BIT SOONER.
AND THE REASON IS THAT MOST COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS DON'T REALLY HAVE THE SAME ABILITY TO CONSERVE WATER THAT RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS DO.
RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMER COULD CONSERVE A LOT OF WATER BY WATERING THEIR LAWN ONCE A WEEK INSTEAD OF FOUR TIMES A WEEK.
MOST COMMERCIAL BUSINESSES, A LOT OF THEM USE WATER FOR BUSINESS PURPOSES, AND THEY DON'T HAVE THAT SAME ABILITY TO CONSERVE.
UH, ON THE WASTEWATER SIDE, THE CUSTOMERS PAY A, AGAIN, A MINIMUM CHARGE OF $22 AND 1 CENTS FOR A FIVE EIGHTH INCH METER, AND THEN THEY PAY A VOLUME RATE OF $5 AND 28 CENTS PER THOUSAND GALLONS BASED ON A WINTER AVERAGE, WHICH IS DESIGNED TO ENSURE THAT YOU DON'T PAY WELL FOR WATER THAT IS USED OUTSIDE THE HOME.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN IN TERMS OF WHAT PEOPLE PAY? WELL, AGAIN, IF YOU'RE A 5,000 GALLON USER OF 5,000 GALLONS OF WATER AND WASTEWATER SERVICE, YOU PAY HERE IN THE CITY OF EDMOND, YOU PAY $96 AND 26 CENTS A MONTH FOR THAT SERVICE.
IF YOU USE 10,000 GALLONS, THE BILL GOES UP TO $162 A MONTH.
THE, AGAIN, 70% OF RESIDENTIAL MONTHLY BILLS ARE 10,000 GALLONS OR LESS.
SO IT'S NOT AS MANY PEOPLE THAT USE ABOVE 10,000 GALLONS.
OF COURSE, THERE ARE SOME, BUT NOT AS MANY.
MOST PEOPLE PAY IN THE LOWER BLOCK RATES.
COMMERCIAL BUSINESSES, THE AVERAGE COMMERCIAL BUSINESSES USE ABOUT 40 TO 50,000 GALLONS A MONTH, AND THEY PAY ABOUT $950 A MONTH FOR THAT SERVICE.
LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR CUSTOMERS AND YOUR VOLUMES.
AS I SAID AT THE BEGINNING, YOU HAD SOME GOOD HEALTHY GROWTH THAT'S GOOD FOR A WATER SYSTEM.
MOST WATER COSTS ARE FIXED, SO THE MORE CUSTOMERS YOU HAVE, THE MORE ACCOUNTS YOU HAVE TO SPREAD THOSE COSTS OVER.
BUT IN 2017, THE CITY HAD ABOUT 29,583 WATER CUSTOMERS.
THAT NUMBER HAS BALLOONED UP TO ABOUT 33,000 IN THE CURRENT YEAR.
UM, THAT'S ABOUT FIVE TO 600 COUNTS A MONTH, UH, A YEAR.
WE'RE ANTICIPATING THAT THAT GROWTH RATE IS GONNA CONTINUE OVER THE NEXT 10 YEARS, SO THAT BY THE YEAR 2033, YOUR FORECAST HAVE ABOUT 38, UH, THOUSAND 279 WATER CUSTOMERS.
AND AS YOU CAN SEE, A SIMILAR NUMBER OF WASTEWATER CUSTOMERS.
'CAUSE JUST ABOUT ALL YOUR WATER CUSTOMERS HAVE WASTEWATER SERVICE AS WELL ON WATER CONSUMPTION.
THAT'S BEEN KIND OF INTERESTING BECAUSE IT WAS RELATIVELY FLAT IN 20 17, 20 18 ACTUALLY DROPPED A LITTLE BIT IN 2019, BUT IT HAS RISEN PRETTY STEADILY SINCE THEN.
MY THEORY FOR WHY THAT'S THE CASE IS THAT SINCE ABOUT 20 20, 20 20 WAS THE COVID YEAR.
SO THAT'S KIND OF A, KIND OF AN UNUSUAL YEAR.
BUT USAGE HAS GENERALLY BEEN INCREASING.
WE'VE HAD, I THINK WE'VE HAD WARMER THAN USUAL WEATHER.
WE CERTAINLY HAVE IN THE DALLAS FORT WORTH AREA OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS.
AND SO THAT WARMER THAN USUAL WEATHER HAS CAUSED WAT USAGE TO INCREASE.
AND AS YOU CAN SEE, WE'RE FORECASTING IN THE CURRENT YEAR, WE'RE FORECASTING THAT YOU'RE GONNA SELL 4.2 BILLION GALLONS OF WATER, AND WE'RE FORECASTING THAT THAT NUMBER IS GONNA HIT 4.9 BILLION BY 2033.
YOU WANNA KNOW WHAT'S ACTUALLY GOING TO HAPPEN.
WHAT'S ACTUALLY GONNA HAPPEN IS IT'S GONNA GO UP AND DOWN AND UP AND DOWN LIKE THAT.
IT'S GONNA HAVE MORE USAGE AND DRY YEARS, LESS USAGE AND WET YEARS.
ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS TELL ME WHAT YEARS IT'S GONNA RAIN IN AND WHAT YEAR IS IT'S NOT GONNA RAIN IN.
AND I CAN TELL YOU EXACTLY HOW MUCH WATER YOU'RE GONNA SELL
IN THE ABSENCE OF THAT, YOU HAVE TO JUST KIND OF GO BY TRENDS IN AVERAGES.
LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR COSTS.
WE REALLY WANNA FOCUS ON YOUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT COSTS.
YOUR OPERATING COSTS HAVE BEEN VERY STEADILY INCREASING.
I THINK YOU RUN A PRETTY TIGHT SHIP HERE AND YOUR, YOU KNOW, YOUR COSTS GO UP, INEVITABLY COST, EVERYTHING GOES UP BY 3% A YEAR.
SO YOUR OP, MOST OF YOUR OPERATING COSTS ARE GONNA CONTINUE TO GO UP RATHER, RATHER STEADILY.
BUT IT'S THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN COSTS THAT REALLY TEND TO DRIVE RATE PLANS.
AS YOU CAN SEE HERE, THE CITY HAS A PRETTY SIGNIFICANT CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN FOR ABOUT $400 MILLION OF CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT SPENDING.
OF THAT, THE LION'S SHARE OF IT IS GONNA BE WATER.
ABOUT 350 MILLION OF IT IS WATER, AND ABOUT 50 MILLION OF IT IS WASTEWATER.
THE BIGGEST SINGLE PROJECT IS GONNA BE THE MAIN PLANT PROCESS HERE OF $180 MILLION.
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UM, MOST OF IT WE ARE, WE ARE FORECASTING IS GONNA BE FUNDED THROUGH DEBT.OBVIOUSLY, YOU DON'T HAVE $400 MILLION IN THE BANK.
SO WHAT YOU NEED TO DO IS YOU NEED TO, YOU NEED TO PERIODICALLY ISSUE DEBT IN ORDER TO, UM, FUND THESE PROJECTS.
NOW, CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLANS IMPACT RATES IN THREE WAYS.
HOW MUCH DO YOU HAVE TO PAY FUND? WHEN DO YOU FUND IT, AND HOW DO YOU FINANCE IT? ALL OF THOSE DECISIONS ARE GOING TO IMPACT YOUR ULTIMATE RATE PLAN.
SO WHAT THIS CHART RIGHT HERE IS OUR ASSUMPTIONS FOR HOW MUCH DEBT YOU'RE GOING TO BE ISSUING LOOKS LIKE, UH, WE'RE FORECASTING OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS THAT YOU'RE GONNA ISSUE ABOUT $368 MILLION IN NEW DEBT BECAUSE SOME OF YOUR CAPITAL PLAN YOU'VE ALREADY ISSUED THE DEBT FOR.
AND SO, UH, UH, SO THAT'S WHY THIS IS LESS THAN THE $405 MILLION IN ACTUAL CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN SPENDING.
BUT AS YOU CAN SEE, ABOUT 43 MILLION OF IT WILL BE NEXT YEAR, ABOUT 111 MILLION IN 20 25, 60 4 MILLION IN 2026, AND THEN 148 MILLION IN 2027.
SO WHILE YOU'RE LOOKING TO ISSUE $368 MILLION, A LOT OF IT OVER 200 MILLION OF THE 368 MILLION ISN'T GONNA HAPPEN FOR A FEW MORE YEARS.
NOW, THE OTHER THING THAT YOU CAN DO AND THAT YOU ARE PLANNING ON DOING WHEN YOU ISSUE THE DEBT IS THE DEBT TERMS ARE GONNA BE A LITTLE BIT LONGER AND YOU'RE GONNA HAVE INTEREST ONLY FOR THE FIRST COUPLE OF YEARS.
WHAT, UH, SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS YOUR ANNUAL PAYMENTS WILL BE LOWER IN THE FIRST FEW YEARS.
AND THAT'S A GOOD THING BECAUSE SINCE YOU HAVE A LOT OF ROBUST GROWTH HERE, THAT GIVES YOU SEVERAL YEARS TO ACQUIRE NEW ACCOUNTS THAT WILL, UH, HELP SHARE IN SOME OF THE FUNDING OF THE CAPITAL PROJECTS THROUGH THEIR PAYMENTS OF THE DEBT SERVICE.
VERY GOOD FINANCIAL POLICY, AND IT WILL HELP BENEFIT ALL OF YOUR RATE PAYERS.
THIS IS THE FORECAST WATER COST OF SERVICE FOR THE NEXT 10 YEARS.
IT'S A BAR CHART THAT'S COMPOSED OF THE FOLLOWING ELEMENTS.
THE BLUE PORTION OF EACH BAR IS YOUR OPERATING COSTS.
THE RED PORTION IS YOUR CAPITAL OUTLAYS, AND THOSE ARE LOW.
THOSE ARE LOW TICKET CAPITAL EXPENDITURES, THINGS LIKE TRUCKS AND, UM, COMPUTERS AND PUMPS AND STUFF.
THAT IS A CAPITAL EXPENDITURE.
YOU DON'T, YOU DON'T SELL A BOND TO BUY A TRUCK.
YOU JUST GO OUT AND BUY THE TRUCK.
THE GREEN PORTION IS YOUR TRANSFERS.
THE, UH, THE, THE KIND OF, OH, WHAT DO YOU CALL THAT? GRAYISH TOPI, I GUESS THAT'S CURRENT DEBT.
AND THEN THE DARK PURPLE IS YOUR ANTICIPATED FUTURE DEBT.
AS YOU CAN SEE, YOU'RE IN THE 2024 YEAR, YOU'RE, YOU'RE DESIGNATED TO SPEND KIND OF A LARGER AMOUNT OF CAPITAL OUTLAYS THAN YOU WOULD ANTICIPATE IN 2025.
THAT AMOUNT IS GONNA GO BACK TO NORMAL.
AND THEN IN 20 26, 20 27 AND 2028, YOU CAN SEE THAT THE NEW DEBT IS GONNA START TO KICK IN.
BUT WHAT THAT DOES IS THIS GIVES YOU A FOUR TO FIVE YEAR WINDOW WHERE YOU CAN A, DO LIMITED RATE ADJUSTMENTS AND B, LET THAT NEW GROWTH COME IN.
HECK, YOU'RE LOOKING AT HAVING A TWO TO 3000 MORE ACCOUNTS FOUR YEARS FROM NOW THAN YOU HAVE TODAY.
AND THAT WILL, AGAIN, ALL THOSE ADDITIONAL ACCOUNTS MEANS THAT THE RATE ADJUSTMENTS ARE GONNA BE MORE LIMITED, GOOD FINANCIAL PLANNING.
BUT AS YOU CAN SEE IN THE LATER PARTS OF THE YEAR, THAT THE DEBT WILL START TO KICK IN A LITTLE BIT MORE.
THIS IS WHY YOU DO LONG-TERM FINANCIAL PLANS, BECAUSE YOU KNOW, YEARS IN ADVANCE WHEN THESE IN EXPENDITURES ARE GONNA OCCUR AND WHEN THIS DEBT IS GONNA COME DUE, AND YOU CAN PLAN ACCORDINGLY.
ON THE WASTEWATER SIDE, IT'S EVEN MORE MODEST BECAUSE YOU'RE ONLY LOOKING AT 55 TO $60 MILLION IN NEW WASTEWATER DEBT.
SO WHILE YOUR WASTEWATER COSTS ARE ANTICIPATED TO INCREASE OVERALL OVER THE NEXT 10 YEARS, IT'S MUCH MORE MODEST.
RIGHT NOW, YOUR CURRENT, IN THE CURRENT YEAR, 2024, YOUR WASTEWATER COST OF SERVICE IS EXPECTED TO BE A LITTLE BIT OVER $30 MILLION, AND IT'S SUPPOSED TO HIT MAYBE 35,000,010 YEARS FROM NOW.
SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS COSTS ARE GONNA GO UP, BUT YOUR RATE ADJUSTMENTS CAN BE VERY, VERY MINIMAL.
I HAVE A QUESTION ON THE, THE SLIDE BEFORE THAT ONE.
SO, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE BASICALLY SAYING, OKAY, WE GO INTEREST ONLY THAT ALLOWS US TO ADD MORE ACCOUNTS WE'RE ANTICIPATING MM-HMM.
AND WE KNOW WE'RE GONNA HAVE NEW GROWTH.
UM, MOST OF THAT GROWTH, YOU KNOW, IT'LL HAPPEN CITYWIDE, BUT THERE'S DEFINITELY POCKETS THAT ARE GONNA GROW JUST BECAUSE OF THE, WHAT WE KNOW IS HAPPENING AND EAST EDMOND AND, UM, THAT, MY GUESS IS IF SOMETHING IN WARD ONE GETS CONNECTED TO WATER, IT'S LIKE, SAY THE LAST LOT IN TIMBER RIDGE THAT FINALLY GETS SOLD, THERE'S A MINIMAL COST TO HOOKING THAT UP TO THE SYSTEM.
THE GROWTH THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IS PREDOMINANTLY NEW BUILDS MM-HMM.
SO WHEN WE SAY THAT NEW GROWTH AND IT'LL BE ABLE TO PAY FOR THAT, HAVE WE BROKEN IT OUT BY TYPE OF GROWTH OF THE CAPITAL INTENSIVE GROWTH THAT'S GONNA BE HAPPENING VERSUS THE EASIER HOOKUP STUFF.
DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? UM, I, I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE GETTING AT THE, THE KEY QUESTION BEING, WHO PAYS FOR, FOR THE GROWTH? WELL, THE
[00:25:01]
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN IS NOT ALL GROWTH RELATED.PART OF IT, OR A SIGNIFICANT PART OF IT IS FOR REPLACEMENT AND MAINTENANCE, UH, OF THE EXISTING SYSTEM.
PART OF IT IS GROWTH RELATED, AND THE CITY DOES HAVE IMPACT FEES.
YOU KNOW, THOSE IMPACT FEES ARE USED TO HELP OFFSET THE COST OF FUTURE GROWTH, AND THAT WILL HELP LIMIT YOUR DEBT.
BUT THE OTHER THING THOUGH IS THAT WHEN YOU SET RATES, YOU DIS, YOU ASSIGN CUSTOMER CLASSES AND A CUSTOMER CLASS IS CITYWIDE.
SO YOU CAN MAKE THE ARGUMENT THAT A CERTAIN CUSTOMER IN A CERTAIN AREA MAY NOT BENEFIT AS MUCH FROM A CAPITAL EXPENDITURE TAKES PLACE IN ANOTHER PART OF THE TOWN.
BUT THE PROBLEM WITH THAT ARGUMENT IS THAT IT GETS, IT OPENS UP A WHOLE CAN OF WORMS. A CITY DOES NOT CHARGE MORE TO A CUSTOMER WHO LIVES ACROSS TOWN FROM THE TREATMENT PLANT THAN IT DOES TO THE CUSTOMER WHO LIVES ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE TREATMENT PLANT.
EVEN THOUGH THEORETICALLY IT COSTS A CITY A LOT MORE TO SERVICE A CUSTOMER WHO'S MUCH FURTHER AWAY FROM THE PLANT.
'CAUSE OF ALL THAT DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM LONG AGO, THE AMERICAN WATERWORKS ASSOCIATION SAID, YOU KNOW, WE HAD, THERE ARE GONNA BE DIFFERENCES, GEOGRAPHIC DIFFERENCES IN A CITY.
SOME PEOPLE MAY LIVE ON A HILL, OTHER PEOPLE MAY LIVE IN, IN A PLANE.
SOME PEOPLE MAY HAVE MORE CAPITAL NEEDS IN A CERTAIN AREA OF TOWN.
YOU KNOW WHAT, WE'RE NOT GONNA GO THERE.
WE'RE GONNA SAY IF YOU'RE A RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMER, YOU PAY THE SAME RATE WHEREVER YOU LIVE IN THE CITY.
BECAUSE THE ALTERNATIVE IS, IF YOU TAKE THE ALTERNATIVE ARGUMENT TO ITS LOGICAL CONCLUSION, YOU WOULD HAVE TO CALCULATE A SEPARATE RATE FOR LITERALLY EVERY PERSON IN THE CITY.
NO CITY'S GONNA EVEN, SO MY QUESTION IS LESS MM-HMM.
INFRASTRUCTURE, GET THEM ON THE SYSTEM COST.
SOME WOULD BE NEXT TO NOTHING AND SOME WOULD BE SIGNIFICANT.
SO I GUESS MY QUESTION IS, I JUST WANNA UNDERSTAND IF WE'VE DONE THE ANALYSIS WHEN WE SAY WE'RE ADDING X AMOUNT OF ACCOUNTS, KNOWING THAT THEY'RE NOT EQUAL IN THEIR DIRECT COSTS TO CAPITAL COSTS TO THE CITY, ARE WE ACCOUNTING FOR A CERTAIN PERCENTAGE BALANCE OF THESE ARE ACTUALLY GONNA COST X AND MAKE UP THIS PERCENT AND THESE ARE GONNA COST Y AND COST THIS PERCENT? UN UNFORTUNATELY, THAT'S JUST NOT THE WAY IT'S TYPICALLY DONE IN THE BUSINESS.
BECAUSE AGAIN, THERE ALL RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS ARE CONSIDERED TO BE ONE CLASS.
AND YES, THERE ARE GOING TO BE DIFFERENCES IN A GIVEN CUSTOMER.
CUSTOMER LIVES AT THE END OF A CUL-DE-SAC CUSTOMER WHO LIVES UP A HILL.
THERE ARE GOING TO BE GREATER COSTS TO CONNECT THAT CUSTOMER THAN THERE ARE OTHER CUSTOMERS.
AND SO THE INDUSTRY LONG AGO SETTLED ON THE IDEA THAT YOU WOULD JUST TAKE AN AVERAGE COST FOR EVERYBODY.
SOME ARE ABOVE THE AVERAGE, SOME ARE BELOW THE AVERAGE.
AGAIN, IF YOU LOOK AT, IF YOU LOOK AT INDIVIDUAL RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS, EVERY HOME IS GONNA HAVE A DIFFERENT DEMAND ON THE SYSTEM.
LET'S SAY YOU HAVE A HOME THAT HAS A HUSBAND, WIFE, AND FIVE KIDS, THEY'RE GONNA EXERT A MUCH GREATER DEMAND ON THE SYSTEM THAN A HOME WITH A COUPLE WHO'S AN EMPTY NESTER OR A COUPLE WITH NO KIDS, BUT THEY BOTH PAY THE SAME RATE PER A THOUSAND GALLONS.
SO FOR THAT REASON, A CITY THAT TRIES TO BIFURCATE ITS COSTS TO EVERY INDIVIDUAL CUSTOMER BASED ON, YOU KNOW, THAT CUSTOMER'S POSITION AND THE AMOUNT THAT IT WOULD COST TO HOOK UP THAT CUSTOMER, THAT'S REALLY GETTING INTO AN AREA THAT CITIES JUST DON'T GO INTO.
UM, THE ONLY, SO, SO GEOGRAPHICALLY WE UNDERSTAND THAT THE EASTERN PART OF OUR STATE IS MU OR EAST STATE CITY IS MUCH MORE HILLY LIKE MM-HMM.
SO IF WE'RE HAVING A PREDOMINANT GROWTH HAPPENING THERE, WHICH WILL CAUSE US TO HAVE TO HAVE DIFFERENT INFRASTRUCTURE WHEN WE COUNT THE NUMBER, WE HAVE TO HAVE CONFIDENCE IN THAT.
THE RATE WE SET PER THE CUSTOMER'S ADDED WILL COVER THE INFRASTRUCTURE COST PLUS PROVIDING THE SERVICE SAFELY AND EFFECTIVELY AND MAINTENANCE IN IT.
I GUESS I'M STILL AT THIS QUESTION AND I HAVEN'T RESOLVED IN MY HEAD, WHICH I CAN RESOLVE LATER IF WE NEED TO HAVE A DEEPER DISCUSSION, IS WE ARE ACCOUNTING FOR THE MORE INTENSIVE CAPITAL COSTS FOR NEWER BILLS.
AND YOU CAN ALSO DEAL WITH THAT THROUGH YOUR IMPACT FEES.
YOU CAN SAY THAT TIER OF THE CITY YOU'RE IN THIS AND THAT DOES SCOTT, AM I, AM I CORRECT AS TO THAT'S ONLY CAPITAL THAT DOESN'T EXIST TODAY, AND THAT'S PART OF THE PROCESS THAT WE'RE GOING THROUGH? YEAH.
WE'RE ABOUT READY TO START AN IMPACT FEE.
ANALYSIS THIS WEEK, WE'LL, WE'LL DO INTERVIEWS FOR A CONSULTANT, BUT THERE'S DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RATES, WHICH IS CAPITAL AND OPERATING COSTS AND IMPACT FEE IS SIMPLY CAPITAL.
YOU'RE, YOU'RE CALCULATING THE IMPACT FEE IS GONNA
[00:30:01]
CALCULATE, HERE'S WHERE THE LINE ENDS OR HERE'S THE CAPACITY OF THE, OF THE SYSTEM.WE NEED TO GROW IT BECAUSE YOU'RE HOOKING ON WHAT'S THE COST TO EXTEND IT OUT TO THAT AREA, CHRIS? WELL, THE, SO LINE EXTENSIONS AND ALL THIS NEW INFRASTRUCTURE LINE RELATED TO GET TO NEW DEVELOPMENTS AS PAID BY DEVELOPERS, WE ARE NOT BUILDING WATER AND SEWER LINES OUT TO NEW DEVELOPMENTS.
IF WE ARE BUILDING PAST TO CONNECT UPLINE, THEN WE'LL PUT A PAYBACK DISTRICT SO THAT WE CAN COLLECT OUR MONEY BACK FROM FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS.
UM, YOU KNOW, BUT THAT'S A RARE INSTANCE.
UH, WE HAD AN OPPORTUNITY AT AROUND 33RD, 9 35 TO DO SOME WASTEWATER WORK LIKE THAT, BUT THAT'S NOT OUR TYPICAL, WE, SO WE DO HAVE A PROCESS IN PLACE NOW.
AND I GUESS THE QUESTION ON THE TABLE IN THE REVIEW IS, IS IT AT THE RIGHT RATE FOR THE TYPE OF BILL TO COVER THAT COST FOR THE CITY? WELL, IT, SO TO DAN'S POINT, EVERY RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS USE WATER.
LITTLE MORE, LITTLE LESS OLDER NEIGHBORHOODS COST US MORE BECAUSE WE'RE SPENDING, YOU KNOW, SAY $5 MILLION A YEAR, REHABILITATING LINES DEALING WITH LEAD SERVICE LINES, ALL THESE, ALL THESE PROGRAMS. SO OLDER HOUSES HAVE A HIGHER COST, BUT WE DON'T PUT THAT OVER TO NEWER CUSTOMERS.
SO WHEN WE LOOK AT THE BIG SYSTEM COST, IT'S WATER TOWERS.
EVERYBODY'S GOT BENEFIT, UH, WATER, PLANT WATER WELLS THAT EVERYBODY'S GOT BENEFIT, UH, BENEFICIAL USE OF THOSE.
UM, THE WATER PLANT IS NOT, NOT GROWING AT PURELY A GROWTH, UH, PURELY FOR GROWTH.
IT'S EITHER WE SPEND A LOT OF MONEY ON SOMETHING WE, WE CAN'T EXPAND OR WE EXPAND IT.
AND WE CHOSE TO EXPAND IT, YOU KNOW, YEARS BACK.
SO THE 30 MILLION GALLON A DAY PLANT IS REALLY A 20 MILLION GALLON A DAY, YOU KNOW, ROBUST CAPACITY WITH AN EXTRA 10 BUILT ON SO THAT WE CAN BUILD FOR A PEAK, UH, YOU KNOW, WHICH WE'VE HAD TO CAPACITY.
IT'S LIKE POWER GENERATION WHERE YOU HAVE TO HAVE ENOUGH, YOU'VE GOTTA HAVE SOME EXTRA ON, YOU'RE HOTTEST AND COOL TO DAY.
WE CAN HAVE ANOTHER CONVERSATION.
I'M JUST, I'M JUST TRYING TO BAPTIZE MY BRAIN AND ALL THIS STUFF.
IT'S EVERYBODY HERE BECAUSE IT'S, IT'S COMMON AND, AND EVERYBODY'S WONDERING THE SAME THING, SO MM-HMM.
WELL, I'D LIKE TO, UM, IN, IN THIS FINAL PORTION OF THE PRESENTATION, WE'D LIKE TO PRESENT TO YOU THE ACTUAL RATE PLAN ITSELF.
I FIRST WANNA PRESENT TO YOU THE RATES THAT WE RECOMMEND, AND THEN I'LL PRESENT TO YOU THE MORE IMPORTANT CHART, AND THAT IS WHAT THE IMPACT WOULD BE ON AN AVERAGE, UH, RESIDENTIAL RATE AND COMMERCIAL RATE PAYER.
UM, BUT I WANNA START WITH THE SUMMARY CHART.
THE, THE CITY RIGHT NOW IS IN THE FINAL YEAR OF THE PREVIOUS RATE PLAN THAT FINAL YEAR.
UH, YOU HAVE PREVIOUSLY ADOPTED A 5% WATER RATE INCREASE THAT WILL BE EFFECTIVE ON NOVEMBER 1ST, 2023.
WE RECOMMEND THAT YOU AMEND THAT PLAN AS FOLLOWS, LEAVE THIS ADOPTED PLAN, UH, RATE ADJUSTMENT ALONE AND IMPLEMENT A 3% WASTEWATER RATE ADJUSTMENT.
WE THEN RECOMMEND THAT YOU IMPLEMENT A 3% WATER RATE ADJUSTMENT IN 20 24, 20 25, AND 2026 WITH A 2% RATE ADJUSTMENT FOR WASTEWATER FOR EACH OF THOSE SAME YEARS.
UM, WHILE IT'S NEVER EASY TO ASK RATE PAYERS TO PAY MORE, WHAT YOU'RE GETTING IN RETURN FOR THIS IS THE ABILITY TO ISSUE OVER $300 MILLION OF ADDITIONAL DEBT.
AND THAT IS DUE TO A COUPLE OF REASONS.
IT'S KIND OF REMARKABLE THAT YOU ARE GONNA BE ABLE TO ISSUE THAT MUCH DEBT WITH RATE ADJUSTMENTS THAT ARE THIS MINIMAL.
PART OF THE REASON THERE, THERE ARE A BUNCH OF REASONS FOR THIS.
PART OF IT IS THAT YOUR WATER AND SEWER FUND IS IN VERY GOOD FINANCIAL CONDITION RIGHT NOW.
SO YOU CAN ABSORB THIS ADDITIONAL DEBT YOU'VE DONE, YOU'VE MADE VERY DIFFICULT DECISIONS IN THE PAST TO SET YOUR RATES WHERE THEY NEED TO BE TO COVER ALL OF YOUR COSTS.
AND YOU'RE REAPING THE BENEFIT OF THAT NOW BECAUSE IT'S GONNA ENABLE YOU TO DO ALMOST $400 MILLION OF DIRECT INVESTMENT IN THE STREETS AND ALLEYWAYS OF THE CITY OF EDMOND THAT WILL FOR ASSETS THAT YOU'LL DIRECTLY BENEFIT FROM AT A MINIMAL ADJUSTMENT TO YOUR RATES.
UM, MANY OTHER CITIES FACED WITH THESE KIND OF, UH, DEBT ISSUANCES WOULD BE LOOKING AT MUCH, MUCH HIGHER RATE ADJUSTMENTS.
SO WE ARE RECOMMENDING A 3% WATER RATE ADJUSTMENT AND A 2% ANNUAL WASTEWATER RATE ADJUSTMENT.
UM, I'LL SHOW YOU THE RATES THEMSELVES AND THEN AGAIN, I'LL SHOW YOU THE, UM, IMPACT ON RATE PAYERS.
THIS IS YOUR CURRENT WATER RATE STRUCTURE RIGHT NOW.
THIS IS THE ADOPTED, UH, RATES THAT ARE DUE TO BE EFFECTIVE IN NOVEMBER OF THIS YEAR.
YOU CAN SEE YOU'D BE INCREASING YOUR BASE CHARGE BY ABOUT 80 CENTS, UM, FOR A FIVE EIGHT INCH METER AND A PROPORTIONALLY HARD, HIGHER IMPACT FOR YOUR LARGER METERS.
AND YOUR USAGE CHARGE WOULD GO UP BY ABOUT 40 TO 60 CENTS PER THOUSAND GALLONS FOR EACH OF YOUR RATE TIERS.
WE THEN, YOU CAN SEE, UH, SLIGHTLY LESS INCREASES IN EACH OF THE NEXT THREE YEARS.
[00:35:01]
A 50 CENT INCREASE IN EACH OF THE, UH, FOLLOWING YEARS ON THE FIVE EIGHTH INCH BASE CHARGE WITH ADJUSTMENTS OF ABOUT 20 TO 30 CENTS PER THOUSAND GALLONS IN EACH OF THE, UH, TIERS ON THE WASTEWATER SIDE, UM, A 3% ADJUSTMENT IN 2023 MEANS THAT YOUR BASE CHARGE WOULD GO UP BY ABOUT 60 CENTS FOR THE FIVE EIGHT INCH METERS.AND AGAIN, PROPORTIONATELY HIGHER INCREASES FOR THE LARGER METERS WITH THE USAGE CHARGE GOING UP BY ABOUT BETWEEN 15 AND 20 CENTS PER THOUSAND GALLONS.
AND THEN OF COURSE, YOU WOULD SEE SIMILAR INCREASES FOR EACH OF THE NEXT THREE YEARS.
NOW WHAT DOES THIS MEAN IN TERMS OF WHAT PEOPLE PAY? WELL, THIS IS PROBABLY THE MOST IMPORTANT CHART IN THE ENTIRE PRESENTATION BECAUSE THIS SHOWS WHAT THE IMPACT WOULD BE ON YOUR RESIDENTIAL AND YOUR NON-RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS.
IF YOU ARE A RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMER AND YOU USE 5,000 GALLONS OF WATER AND SEWER SERVICE A MONTH, RIGHT NOW YOU PAY $96 AND 26 CENTS FOR THAT SERVICE.
THIS NOVEMBER, YOUR AVERAGE BILL WOULD GO UP BY ABOUT $3 AND 84 CENTS.
NOW, THIS IS JUST WATER AND SEWER.
THIS DOESN'T INCLUDE, UH, SANITATION OR STORM WATER OR TAXES OR ANY OF THOSE OTHER LINE ITEMS ON YOUR BILL JUST FOR BASIC WATER AND SEWER SERVICE.
BUT THE INCREASE WOULD BE ABOUT $3 AND 84 CENTS.
IF YOU'RE A 10,000 GALLON USER RIGHT NOW, YOU'RE PAYING $162 AND 41 CENTS UNDER THIS PLAN.
YOUR BILL WOULD GO UP BY $6 AND 62 CENTS IN NOVEMBER OF 2023.
IN, IN SUBSEQUENT YEARS, THE ADJUSTMENT WOULD BE ABOUT TWO AND A HALF PERCENT WOULD BE ABOUT BETWEEN TWO AND A HALF AND $4 A MONTH EACH YEAR AFTER THAT.
ON THE COMMERCIAL SIDE, OBVIOUSLY COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS TEND TO USE MORE WATER.
A UH, A 20,000 GALLON USER RIGHT NOW PAYS $526 FOR THAT WITH A TWO INCH METER.
THEIR BILL WOULD GO UP BY ABOUT $21 A MONTH UNDER THIS PLAN, SAME PERCENTAGE, ABOUT 4%, AND THEN TWO AND A HALF PERCENT EACH YEAR AFTER THAT.
SO, UH, THE BOTTOM LINE IS THIS.
YOU'LL BE HAPPY TO KNOW 'EM TO MY LAST CHART.
OBVIOUSLY, IT'S NEVER EASY TO ASK FOR A PAYERS TO PAY MORE.
UH, NOBODY WANTS TO PAY MORE FOR ANYTHING AT ANY TIME FOR ANY REASON.
SO IT'S VERY IMPORTANT WHENEVER A RATE PLAN LIKE THIS IS DISCUSSED IS TO OUTLINE WHAT DO YOU GET IN RETURN FOR THAT.
WHAT ARE THERE ACTUALLY BENEFITS OF IMPLEMENTING A NEW RATE PLAN? IT'S HARD TO BELIEVE THAT THERE ARE.
HOW COULD THERE POSSIBLY BE A BENEFIT FROM ASKING PEOPLE TO PAY MORE? WELL, THERE ARE CERTAIN BENEFITS.
ONE OF THE BENEFITS OF ADOPTING THIS RATE PLAN IS THAT, IS THAT YOUR WATER FUND WILL CONTINUE OR WILL BE ABLE TO FULLY FUND ALL OF THE OPERATING COSTS.
YOUR OPERATING COSTS ARE GONNA GO UP WHETHER YOU ADJUST YOUR RATES OR NOT.
AND SO IF YOU IMPLEMENT THIS PLAN, YOUR COSTS WILL CONTINUE TO BE FUNDED BY YOUR RATES.
IT WILL PROVIDE FOR THE UTILITY FUND TO CONTINUE TO BE SELF-SUFFICIENT.
AS I, AS I'VE SAID SEVERAL TIMES IN THIS PRESENTATION, YOUR UTILITY FUND IS IN VERY GOOD SHAPE RIGHT NOW.
BUT A FUND THAT'S IN VERY GOOD SHAPE CAN BE IN VERY BAD SHAPE VERY QUICKLY.
IF YOU DON'T STAY ON TOP OF THESE COST INCREASES, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT BASICALLY COST OF LIVING INCREASES FOR EACH OF THE NEXT THREE TO FOUR YEARS.
'CAUSE THE ANNUAL INFLATION RATE IS THREE, IS BETWEEN THREE AND 5% RIGHT NOW.
AND THAT'S RIGHT WHERE THE RATE ADJUSTMENTS ARE.
AND YOU'RE GETTING ON TOP OF THAT, NOT JUST THE INCREASE IN THE O THE ABILITY TO FUND YOUR OPERATING COSTS, BUT IT'LL ALSO ENABLE YOU TO INVEST $400 MILLION TO MAINTAIN, EXPAND AND OVERHAUL YOUR WATER SYSTEM.
AND TO CONTINUE TO ENSURE THAT A TOP LEVEL OF SERVICE IS PROVIDED.
IT'LL ENABLE YOU TO CONTINUE TO PROVIDE SAFE DRINKING WATER EFFECTIVE TREATMENT OF, OF WASTEWATER SERVICE.
SO WHILE IT'S NEVER EASY TO ASK GREAT PAYERS TO PAY MORE WHAT THEY GET IN RETURN FOR, THIS IS A WELL-FUNCTIONING SYSTEM THAT HAS THE ABILITY TO MEET CURRENT DEMANDS, FUTURE NEEDS, AND WILL ENABLE TO ENSURE THAT WATER RESOURCES ARE AVAILABLE FOR ALL YOUR CITIZENS.
WE HAVE A PHRASE IN TEXAS, UH, THAT IS WHISKEY IS FOR DRINKING AND WATER IS FOR FIGHTING OVER WATER IS GOING TO BE ONE OF THE KEY ISSUES OF THE 21ST CENTURY.
AND THOSE CITIES THAT HAVE CONTROL OVER THEIR WATER RESOURCES WILL HAVE CONTROL OVER YOUR FUTURE.
YOU HAVE CONTROL OVER YOUR WATER RESOURCES THANKS TO THE DECISIONS THAT YOU'VE MADE IN THE PAST.
AND THIS PLAN WILL ENABLE YOU TO CONTINUE TO MAINTAIN THAT.
WITH THAT, I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY OTHER QUESTIONS YOU HAVE AT THIS TIME.
ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS? I DON'T HAVE A QUESTION.
YOUR, YOUR REPORT WAS SHORT, SWEET, AND TO THE POINT, BUT IT WAS ALSO VERY INFORMATIVE, SO THANK YOU FOR THAT.
WELL, HE'S HAPPY TO BE UP HERE 'CAUSE IT'S HOT DOWN THERE RIGHT NOW.
YOU I DO HAVE A, I'M GLAD YOU DID MENTION IN THE VERY BEGINNING, YOU ALSO GREAT REPORTER, REALLY APPRECIATE IT BECAUSE YOU, YOU, YOU PUT IT IN, IN WORDS THAT PEOPLE CAN UNDERSTAND.
AND WELL, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE HERE GET IN AND, AND STAFF GET ALL THE TIME IS THAT COMPARISON.
[00:40:01]
MM-HMM.I JUST SAW WHERE ONE OF EL RENO, THEIR WATER'S GOING UP 10%.
I I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S THIS YEAR OR NEXT YEAR, BUT THEY'VE HAD IT IN THE PAPER THAT THEY'RE GONNA INCREASE THEIR WATER RATE BY 10%.
BUT HOW DO YOU KNOW, I GUESS FOR EASE OF US, WHEN WE HAVE THAT CONVERSATION WITH OUR CONSTITUENTS, UM, THE RIGHT VERBIAGE TO USE TO HELP SHOW FROM A THAT APPLES TO APPLES COMPARISON? UM, SURE.
UM, EVERY CITY'S WATER SYSTEM IS GOING TO BE DIFFERENT.
AND JUST BECAUSE A CITY'S RATES ARE LOWERED, THAT DOESN'T MEAN THAT THEY HAVE A BETTER QUALITY OF SERVICE.
IN FACT, THEY PROBABLY HAVE A WORSE QUALITY OF SERVICE.
THE LOWER THE RATE IS IN, IN ALL LIKELIHOOD, THE LESS QUALITY THE SERVICE IS BECAUSE IT MEANS THEY DON'T HAVE THE MONEY TO PUT INTO OPERATING, MAINTAINING, AND EXPANDING THEIR SYSTEM.
AS I SAID EARLIER, I WORK FOR SOME CITIES HAVE INCREDIBLY LOW RATES BECAUSE THEY LITERALLY DON'T PUT ANY MONEY INTO THEIR SYSTEM.
IS THAT A BETTER WAY TO RUN A WATER SYSTEM? YOU HAVE MADE HERE IN THE CITY OF EDMOND OVER THE 15 YEARS THAT I'VE HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF WORKING FOR YOU? SOME VERY DIFFICULT DECISIONS TO SET THE RATES AT A, AT A, AT A LEVEL THAT WILL ENABLE YOU TO HAVE THE TREATMENT PLANT.
YOU HAVE TO HAVE THE WATER SOURCES, YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO MEET CURRENT AND FUTURE DEMAND.
UM, AND ALSO KEEP IN MIND THAT JUST BECAUSE ANOTHER CITY'S RATES ARE LOWER THAN YOURS, THAT DOESN'T MEAN THAT THEY RUN A MORE EFFICIENT SYSTEM.
IT MIGHT MEAN THAT THEY'RE SUBSIDIZING THEIR WATER SYSTEM AND EVERY DOLLAR OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND THAT GOES TO SUBSIDIZE A WATER SYSTEM IS A DOLLAR THAT YOU DON'T HAVE FOR POLICE, FIRE ADMINISTRATION, PARKS AND OTHER CITY SERVICES.
SO IT'S NOT VERY GOOD, UM, QUALITY.
SO, I MEAN, I KNOW PEOPLE TALK ABOUT RATE COMPARISONS AND I KNOW PEOPLE LIKE TO GIVE THEM, BUT THEIR USEFULNESS IN, IN MY OPINION AS SOMEBODY WHO'S DONE THIS FOR 30 PLUS YEARS, IS VERY, VERY LIMITED BECAUSE THERE'S NEVER AN EASY WAY TO COMPARE TO.
UM, AND YOU KNOW, AGAIN, WHAT WOULD, WOULD YOU RATHER HAVE CHEAP WATER AND AN UNRELIABLE SYSTEM? UH, I THINK A LOT OF, A LOT OF PEOPLE WOULD SAY, YEAH, WE WANT THAT CHEAP WATER, BUT WAIT TILL THEY GO AND TURN THAT TAP ON AND NOTHING COMES OUT OF IT.
THEY'RE GONNA FORGET ABOUT THE CHEAP WATER PRETTY QUICKLY AND THEY'RE GONNA BE VERY UPSET ABOUT THE FACT THAT YOU DON'T HAVE A RELIABLE SYSTEM.
OH ONE, CAN I MAKE ONE FINAL COMMENT? I BELIEVE OKLAHOMA CITY IS GONNA BE IMPLEMENTING SOME PRETTY SIGNIFICANT RATE INCREASES TOO.
FROM WHAT I'VE HEARD, WE DON'T WORK FOR OKLAHOMA CITY.
IF WE DID, THEY PROBABLY WOULD BE.
BUT, UM, BUT I THINK I, I THINK I READ SOMEWHERE, CHRIS, IS THAT RIGHT? YEAH.
THEY'RE, THEY'RE DOING SOME PRETTY SIGNIFICANT RATE INCREASES RIGHT NOW.
SO A COUPLE, COUPLE OF QUESTIONS.
UM, ONE IS, AS WE BUILD OUT THIS SYS SYSTEM AND SINKING A LOT OF DOLLARS IN IT AND INCREASING OUR CAPACITY, OBVIOUSLY THE WAY THAT WE CAN HELP FINANCE A SYSTEM IS THROUGH ADDITIONAL CUSTOMERS.
DO WE HAVE, OR ARE WE IN ANY CONVERSATIONS, UH, THAT MIGHT PROVE FRUITFUL IN REGARDS TO PROVIDING ANY TYPE OF WATER SERVICES TO, UH, DEER CREEK? UH, ARCADIA GUTHRIE WOULD COME TO MIND.
WHERE ARE THOSE CONVERSATIONS AT AND AND COULD WE GET SOME FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE IN THOSE REGARDS? UM, SO A FEW THINGS.
UH, WE HAVE AN AGREEMENT WITH LOGAN COUNTY, UH, TO SELL THEM WATER AND THEY'RE JUST FINISHED UP BUILDING THE LINE AND PUT THE METER IN.
AND TO MY KNOWLEDGE, IT'S, IT'S READY TO GO.
I DON'T KNOW THAT THEY'VE CALLED AND SAID, HEY, WE'RE READY TO TURN IT ON NOW.
THEY JUST WENT INTO, UH, SEVERE RESTRICTIONS 'CAUSE THEY DIDN'T HAVE WATER.
SO SOMETHING ON THEIR END MAY NOT BE RIGHT.
UM, AND WASTEWATER, SAME THING.
YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT WHO CAN WE SERVE, WHAT BASINS CAN WE SERVE FORM AGREEMENTS, THAT'LL BE FUTURE DISCUSSIONS.
UH, AND THEN WE DO SERVE A LITTLE BIT OF OKLAHOMA CITY, UH, 33RD AND POST AREA ON THAT GUTHRIE, THAT LINE THAT HAS BEEN INSTALLED IN THE METERING THAT'S BEEN SET ARE LIKE, WE LITERALLY JUST WAITING FOR THE CALL.
DO WE KNOW THAT THEY WANT EVENTUALLY A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF, I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE RIGHT TERM QUBIT FOOT FLOW RATE LIKE? YES.
SO THEY HAVE THE ABILITY TO PURCHASE UP TO HALF A MILLION GALLONS A DAY.
THAT'S WHAT WE LIMITED LIMITED THEM TO IN THE CONTRACT.
JUST BECAUSE OUR INFRASTRUCTURE'S NOT ALL, UH, BUILT OUT YET.
AND WE DON'T WANT TO SACRIFICE OUR CUSTOMER'S WATER TO, UH, WHOLESALE TO SOMEBODY ELSE.
DO THEY PAY US NOW FOR THE RIGHT TO BE ABLE TO TAKE THAT WATER OR IT'S ONLY WHEN THEY TAKE IT, WE CHARGE 'EM.
SO THE WAY THE AGREEMENT'S STRUCTURED ON THAT IS, UM, ONCE THEY, ONCE THEY START USING IT, THEN THEY PAY THE METER CHARGE FROM THEN ON UNTIL THEY COMPLETELY DISCONNECT MM-HMM.
[00:45:01]
IF THEY USE MORE WATER DURING THE SUMMER MONTHS, UM, WHAT WE WERE TRYING TO DO IN THE CONTRACT WAS ENCOURAGE THEM TO USE WATER YEAR ROUND.SO IF THEY JUST USE SUMMERTIME WATER, THEN THE RATE IS 90% OF OUR TOP TIER ON RESIDENTIAL RATES.
UM, SO IN THIS INSTANCE, IT, IT WOULD BE SIGNIFICANT, UM, AND HELP SUBSIDIZE ON OUR END IF THEY WERE TO BE NON, NON STEADY USERS.
SO, SO HAVING THAT IN PLACE, DOES THE CURRENT FINANCIAL MODEL ACCOUNT FOR THEIR USE OR IS THAT JUST A, MAYBE THEY'LL DO IT.
LIKE ARE WE MODELING ANYTHING COMING FROM THEM RIGHT NOW AND THE CURRENT RATE INCREASE WE'RE DOING SINCE IT'S SET AND METERED? OR IS IT JUST IF AND WHEN THEY DO IT, IT MIGHT HAPPEN? WE DON'T KNOW.
THE NOT MUCH BECAUSE WE DON'T KNOW HOW THEY'RE GONNA USE IT AND WE DON'T WANT TO COUNT ON IT.
UM, BUT YOU KNOW, AS WE SEE HOW THEY START USING WATER, UH, FOR THE NEXT RATE STUDY, THEN THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING WE ACCOUNT FOR.
'CAUSE ARCADIA IS A PRIME EXAMPLE.
THEY TOOK 10 YEARS TO START USING WATER AND WASTEWATER SERVICE, BUT ONCE THEY DID, THEN THEIR, UH, USAGE IS NOW IN THE RATE STUDY.
SO IT'S SMALL BUT STILL, UM, IN THERE.
SO, AND SO AS WE HAD THAT AGREEMENT WITH GUTHRIE, OUR CURRENT AGREEMENT, WE'RE TRYING TO BE INDEPENDENT OFF OF, UH, FROM OKLAHOMA CITY IN REGARDS TO THE SORT OF PLAN THAT WAS LAID OUT WITH THE RATE INCREASES WITH THE YEARS AND WHERE CAPITAL WILL BE RAISED AND SPENT.
AT WHAT POINT DO YOU SEE US, UM, FALLING OFF OF THE OKLAHOMA CITY CONTRACT? 'CAUSE WE HAVE ENOUGH INFRASTRUCTURE INDEPENDENCE ON THAT.
THAT, THAT'S GONNA BE A CONVERSATION THAT, UM, THE WHOLE COUNCIL NEEDS TO HAVE.
BECAUSE ONCE WE TURN THAT OFF AND TELL 'EM THAT WE'RE NO LONGER GONNA USE IT, THEN IT'S NOT AN OPTION.
AND, UM, I DON'T WANT TO, I, I HATE TALKING ABOUT WATER RELIABILITY BECAUSE UH, RIGHT NOW ONE LINE OR ONE, UH, ONE LITTLE HICCUP RIGHT NOW WILL, UM, CRASH THE SYSTEM.
AND, AND BY CRASHING, I MEAN, YOU KNOW, WE GET INTO BOIL WATER ORDERS, UM, THINGS THAT, YOU KNOW, WE DIDN'T HAVE TO DEAL WITH IN FEBRUARY OF 21 DURING THE, THE WINTER STORM THAT, YOU KNOW, OUR NEIGHBORS DID.
UM, SO WE DO A GOOD JOB AT MAINTAINING IT, BUT I DON'T WANT TO JINX IT AND START TELLING YOU ALL THE THINGS THAT CAN GO WRONG IF WE DON'T HAVE, UH, OPTIONS, UH, BEFORE WE'VE GOT ALL OF OUR INFRASTRUCTURE IN PLACE.
AND THAT'S, SO THAT'S PROJECTED, WHAT, 27 OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT? OR 27, 28 IS WHAT WE'RE PROJECTING? YEAH, THERE'S THE MAXIMUM.
THAT'S A MILLION A YEAR, GIVE OR TAKE.
THAT'S WHAT I UNDERSTAND A MILLION IT.
IT'S WENT UP 10% LAST YEAR, ANOTHER 5%.
UM, IT'S HARD TO MAKE SENSE OF THEIR PERCENTAGES THE WAY THAT THEY'RE MOVING THEIR NUMBERS.
IF THEY SAY 5%, I THINK THAT'S FOR THEIR RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS.
THEY DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT WITH US.
I DON'T THINK WE'RE ASKING FOR A PREMATURE CUTOFF.
I THINK WE, IT WAS JUST RIGHT.
UM, THE, I'VE BEEN VERY PLEASED WITH WHAT I'VE SEEN, UM, THE TEAM AND SCOTT AND EVERYBODY WORKING TOGETHER WITH OUR FEDERAL DELEGATION, UH, PARTICULARLY WORKING.
AND, AND AGAIN, SOME OF THOSE WERE ONE TIME TYPE OPPORTUNITIES.
THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION WHO OCCUPIES THE WHITE HOUSE IS VERY INFRASTRUCTURE FOCUSED THAT MIGHT EBB AND FLOW IN THE FUTURE.
WHAT IF, OR ANY CONFIDENCE DO WE HAVE AS A CITY THAT THERE MIGHT BE ANY ADDITIONAL DOLLARS OR AS IF WE SAID, OH, WE'VE GOTTEN A BITE AT THE APPLE, OR ARE WE TRYING TO GO BACK AGAIN FOR SOME OF THESE PIECES? WHAT IS THAT LOOKING LIKE FOR US? YEAH.
WE'RE, WE'RE STILL GOING AFTER ADDITIONAL DOLLARS, UH, TO WHATEVER EXTENT WE CAN, WE WILL, WE'LL ASK FOR EVERYTHING AND GET WHAT WE GET.
UM, YOU KNOW, SO FAR WE'RE AT $24 MILLION.
THE FEDERAL FUNDS COMING DIRECTLY FROM THE E P A ARE, UH, MUCH MORE INTENSIVE PROCESS, BUT THEY'RE REIMBURSABLE.
SO WE'VE GOT TIME TO GET THOSE.
AND ONCE WE GET 'EM, THEN IT DOES HELP OFFSET COST FOR FUTURE PROJECTS.
SO WE'LL TAKE THAT INTO ACCOUNT AS WE MOVE FORWARD, UH, WITH OUR DEBT.
IT'LL BE A CONTINUAL PROCESS OF, I'LL CALL IT A CONTINUAL REQUEST OF OUR CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION FOR EITHER WHAT THEY CALL 'EM NOW, COMMUNITY PROJECTS, I'LL CALL 'EM EARMARKS, AS WELL AS OTHER FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES TO THE FEDS.
[00:50:01]
THE OTHER PART IS, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THE FINANCING WE'RE DOING TODAY IS THROUGH OUR STATE RESO REVOLVING FUNDS.WE HOPE TO CONTINUE THAT, THAT GIVES US A VERY LOW COST OF, OF ISSUANCE, WHICH IS BETTER THAN BEYOND THE OPEN MARKET.
SO WHAT WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE ALL OUR RESOURCES, I THINK WE JUST RECEIVED PROBABLY ONE OF THE LARGEST ARPA, UM, FUNDING DELEGATE, UH, DESIGNATIONS FROM THE STATE LEVEL RIGHT TO OUR WATER FUND.
SO WE'RE, WE ARE MORE THAN ANYBODY, EVERY ROCK STONE.
I LOVE THE LOBBYING PARTNERS THAT WE HAVE.
I LOVE, UM, WHEN WE LOOK AT, AND THIS JUST PROBABLY JUST BEING ME DOING NEW, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT DEBT.
SO BASICALLY WE'RE BONDING AGAINST FUTURE REVENUE AS WE'RE ABLE TO BASICALLY SAY, HEY, WE'RE, WE HAVE THIS CUSTOMER BASE, IT'S INCREASING BY THIS.
AND SO WE'RE ABLE TO BORROW AGAINST THAT TO IMPROVE OUR INFRASTRUCTURE.
THERE'S TWO FUNDS, AS WE ALL KNOW, ONE IS ONGOING PERPETUAL, AND THEN THE OTHER ONE IS GOING TO GO IN FRONT OF THE VOTERS, UH, BEFORE 2027 FOR ANY TYPE OF AUTHORIZATION OR EXTENSION.
WHAT IF ANY OF THE C I P FUNDS ARE TIED UP IN THAT EQUATION? SO WHEN WE LOOK AT THAT, IS IT JUST THINGS THAT WE'RE FINANCING THROUGH THE OKLAHOMA WATER BOARD AND STUFF? ARE WE ACCOUNTING FOR ANY C I P FUNDS? I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S TIED UP IN WATER VERSUS IF THAT 2027 THING DOESN'T GET EXTENDED OR PASSED OR WHATEVER.
YEAH, SO WA WATER AND WASTEWATER PAY FOR THEIR OWN DEBT, BUT THEY ARE, UH, ON A LARGER INDENTURE WITH, UM, EITHER C I P, UM, THE GENERAL FUND SALES TAX, UM, EVEN ELECTRICS INCLUDED IN THIS.
SO IT'S A BIG BROAD INDENTURE WHERE ALL THESE, UH, RESOURCES ARE COMMITTED, BUT WE LOOK AT 'EM INDIVIDUALLY.
SO WASTEWATER PAYS FOR ITS OWN AND IT'S GOTTA COVER ITS OWN DEBT AND WATER'S GOTTA COVER ITS OWN DEBT AND DEBT SERVICE.
SO YOU, YOU COVER YOUR OWN DEBT.
I GUESS WHAT I'M TRYING, AND I'M JUST NEW, SO I JUST DON'T KNOW WHEN IT COMES TO THE AVAILABLE C I P FUNDS THAT ARE, UH, THAT ARE THAT ARE REMITTED THROUGH THAT SALES TAX, ARE WE TAKING DOLLARS FROM THAT C I P FUND, WHICH WE GOTTA BALANCE AGAINST A ROAD, A SPLASH PARK OR WHATEVER.
NO, IT'S TOTALLY SEGREGATED AND SEPARATE.
THESE ARE UTILITY RATE, UH, BONDS THAT WE'RE DOING.
SO IT'S PURELY UTILITY RATE BONDS.
WHEN I HEAR, 'CAUSE I HEAR THE WORD C I P EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE WITH LIKE WATER STUFF, BUT IT'S NOT LIKE THIS IS IN COMPETITION WITH MM-HMM.
THE 10 WHEN, WHEN PEOPLE SEE THE, UH, WHEN WE'RE DOING IT, THE REVENUE BONDS OR A LOAN, ALL THESE FUNDS GET COMBINED UP JUST FOR RESOURCE PURPOSES.
SO WE LOOK BETTER TO PEOPLE THAT WE'RE SELLING BONDS TO, BUT WE'RE, WE'RE NOT, UH, LOOKING AT DOES THE C I P SELL TAX PAY FOR WASTEWATER? 'CAUSE IT DOESN'T.
UM, IN FACT, WE'RE SENDING RIGHT OF AWAY USE FEES AT 3.8% BACK TO GENERAL FUND, WHICH HELPS SUBSIDIZE GENERAL FUND.
WHAT'S REPAYMENT? PEOPLE NEED WATER WASTEWATER.
THEY'RE GONNA PAY THEIR BILLS.
THAT GIVES YOU GENERALLY YOUR HIGHEST BOND RATING.
THEN PROPERTY TAX, YOUR LEASE IS SALES TAX BECAUSE SALES TAX IS SO VOLATILE.
SO THAT'S WHY WATER AND WASTEWATER UTILITY RATE, RATE BONDS GENERALLY GET YOUR BEST RATES AND COVERAGE.
AND WE'VE TRIED TO STAY, STAY AWAY FROM REVENUE BONDS ANYWAY AND STAY WITH THE STATE REVOLVING FUNDS BECAUSE THEY ACTUALLY HELP, UM, HELP WITH THE BONDING PROCESS.
SAY IF, YOU KNOW YOU'RE BUILDING A CITY HALL, UH, THEN THEY, THEY TAKE A BACK SEAT AS FAR AS DEBT REPAYMENT IF SOMETHING WERE TO GO WRONG OR A JUNIOR LIEN INSTEAD OF A SENIOR LIEN.
SO IT'S GETTING OFF IN THE WEEDS.
BUT NO, IT'S, IT'S, IT'S GOOD.
I MEAN, BECAUSE IT'S A STRUGGLE FOR, FOR MYSELF AS SOMEONE NEW, BUT PARTICULARLY THE AVERAGE CITIZEN, LIKE THE CONVERSATION THAT WE JUST HAD IS DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT THEY KIND OF SHAKE THEIR HEAD OR DON'T, YOU KNOW, COMMENT ON, BUT THEY DON'T KNOW THAT LEVEL OF STUFF.
SO TO THAT POINT, LIKE OBVIOUSLY YOU COME AND SAY, HEY, BEST PRACTICES ARE THAT WE HAVE THIS TYPE OF INFRASTRUCTURE THAT SIT THAT CITIES ON THE WHOLE, UM, WHO, UH, OWNER OPERATE OR CONTROL THEIR WATER CAN BETTER CONTROL THEIR DESTINY.
AND HEAVEN KNOWS THE WARS AND BLOOD THAT'S BEEN SHED OVER WATER OVER THE ENTIRE HISTORY OF OUR EARTH.
THE OTHER CHALLENGE IS, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A CITIZENRY WHO IS GOING ABOUT THEIR DAILY LIFE AND THEY'RE COMING AND GOING AND DOING ALL THE THINGS THAT ALL OF OUR CITIZENS DO.
AND, UM, YOU KNOW, OUR JOB IS TO OVER COMMUNICATE AS CLEARLY AS WE CAN WITH THEM.
THE SENSE THAT I GET FROM CITIZENS IS OUTSIDE OF TRANSPORTATION, THE ONE THING THAT THEY DON'T UNDERSTAND IS HOW UTILITIES, BUT THEN VERY SPECIFICALLY, HOW DOES
[00:55:01]
WATER GET METERED AND WHAT IS THE ROLE AND WHO PLAYS WHAT AND HOW DO I AND ALL THAT.SO AS WE CONSIDER ALL THESE, I WOULD SAY YES, IT'S GOOD TO CONSIDER HOW CAN WE BE THE BEST RATED AND HOW CAN WE BE THE BEST STUFF, BUT WE HAVE TO DO SO WITH THE CONFIDENCE AND SUPPORT OF OUR CITIZENS.
UH, AND THE WAY TO DO THAT IS TO COMMUNICATE OVER, COMMUNICATE AND DO SO CLEARLY.
I WOULD SAY IF AND WHEN WE WERE TO EMBARK ON A REAUTHORIZATION OF ANY TYPE OF DISCUSSION IN REGARDS OF RATES AND FEES, IT WOULD HAVE TO ACCOMPANY A ROBUST STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT, PUBLIC RELATIONS PART OF WHICH WE'VE NEVER SEEN BEFORE.
BECAUSE IF NOT, THEY WILL GET THAT BILL 30 DAYS LATER AND THEY WILL LOOK AT IT AND THAT'S, THEY'LL JUST START REACTING OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN.
NOW, YOU ALL WEREN'T HIRED FOR THAT PART.
I, I HIGHLY DOUBT WHEN YOU WERE SAT DOWN IN YOUR INTERVIEW PROCESS, SOMEONE SAID, TELL ME OF YOUR PUBLIC RELATIONS.
LIKE, YOU KNOW, CAMPAIGNS ACROSS THAT IS DIFFERENT AS FAR AS SKILLS AND STUFF, BUT I WOULD SAY IT WOULD, I WOULD BE VERY UNCOMFORTABLE SUPPORTING ANY TYPE OF RATE HIKE, NOT KNOWING THE TYPE THAT WOULD BE SIGNIFICANT AND ROBUST OF EDUCATION ENGAGEMENT WE WOULD DO WITH OUR CITIZENS IN ORDER TO HAVE, UH, THAT, THE CHALLENGE IS IS THAT IN LEADING UP TO THIS, OF COURSE THERE HAVE BEEN DOZENS AND DOZENS AND DOZENS OF MEANING.
AS I LOOK AROUND HERE, I KNOW EVERYONE'S NAME, I KNOW EVERYONE WHO'S HERE.
99.9% OF OUR CITIZENS ARE GONNA COME IN AT A DIFFERENT PART OF THE CONVERSATION LOOP PREDOMINANTLY WHEN THEY SEE THEIR BILL AND THEY'LL JUST REACT TO IT.
SO I'M JUST THROWING THAT OUT THERE AS FAR AS THERE'S COULD BE THINGS THAT ARE LOGICAL WHEN IT COMES TO INFRASTRUCTURE.
THERE COULD BE THINGS THAT ARE BEST PRACTICE WHEN IT COMES TO BONDING A DEBT AND ALL THOSE THINGS.
UH, IT'S GOTTA BE DONE WITH OUR CITIZENS' ENGAGEMENT AND SUPPORT.
AND SO I'M REALLY INTERESTED IN THAT PROCESS AS WE LEAD UP TO NOVEMBER.
BUT THEN ALSO CONSIDER AS A COUNCIL, WHAT, IF ANY RATE INCREASES THAT WE WOULD SUPPORT ON THAT.
WELL, SO WE, WE HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE REACH OUT AND WHAT, WHETHER IT'S, YOU KNOW, THEY DON'T LIKE RATES OR THEY WON'T UNDERSTAND WHAT WE'RE DOING.
UM, JENNIFER BOSE, UM, ACTUALLY SET UP A TOUR REGISTRATION ON OUR WEBSITE.
SO EDMOND WATER.COM AND THEN, UM, ABOUT MIDDLE OF THE PAGE, YOU CAN REQUEST A TOUR AND WE CAN TALK ABOUT WHAT WE DO, HOW WE DO IT, YOU KNOW, WHAT IT, WHAT DOES IT COST, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER, WHATEVER CONVERSATION PEOPLE ARE WILLING TO ENGAGE IN.
AND, YOU KNOW, WE, WE DO THIS WITH GROUPS, WHETHER IT'S LEADERSHIP, ADMIN, UM, THERE'S SO MANY, SO MANY GROUPS OUT THERE THAT HAVE BEEN, UM, INTO OUR, UH, BIG TRAINING ROOM.
AND SO, UM, I DON'T THINK IT'D BE FAIR TO SAY WE HAVEN'T REACHED OUT.
WE REACH OUT AND WE HAVE A LOT OF TOURS.
WE TALK TO A LOT OF GROUPS, WHETHER IT'S SCHOOL AGE, UH, ADULT GROUPS, CIVICS, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER.
SO WE'RE, WE'RE WORKING ON AND HAVE BEEN ENGAGING CUSTOMERS, WHETHER IT'S JUST WATER CONSERVATION, THEY WANT TO LEARN ABOUT PLANTS, THEY WANT TO SEE WHAT WE'RE DOING, HOW WE'RE BUILDING IT, WHATEVER THAT IS.
SO HOW THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF CONVERSATIONS ON EVERYTHING.
UM, BUT HOW DO WE GET INFORMATION OUT? UH, THERE WAS, I REMEMBER A CONVERSATION WE HAD LAST YEAR ABOUT WHAT ARE ALL THE SOCIAL MEDIA SITES THAT WE'RE USING? UH, WOULD IT BE, MIGHT, MIGHT BE BENEFICIAL FOR EVERYONE THAT IF WE COULD CREATE THAT LIST ON EVERY, ON HOW WE DO COMMUNICATE NOW.
BECAUSE, UH, I'VE BEEN IN VIDEOS BEFORE ON WATER.
I'VE, SOME OF THE STAFF MEMBERS HERE HAVE BEEN ON VIDEOS.
SO IT MIGHT HELP ALL THE COUNCIL TO SHOW YOU ALL THE THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW AND SAY, OKAY, WHAT ELSE NEEDS TO BE DONE? BECAUSE WE'VE GOT A WATER CONSERVATION PRESENTATION YEAH.
THAT I CAN PULL UP OR, 'CAUSE PART OF THE THING IS, IS THAT THE CITIZEN, THEY HAVE TO ENGAGE THEMSELVES ALSO.
AND SO I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE, 'CAUSE WE'RE NOT STARTING FROM SCRATCH HERE.
THERE, THERE'S A LOT THAT'S ALREADY OUT THERE.
AND SO IF THEY'RE COUNCILMAN ROBBINS, IF THERE'S SOMETHING THAT YOU, AFTER YOU REVIEW THAT LIST AND THERE'S SOMETHING THAT YOU THINK THE PEOPLE THAT YOU'RE TALKING TO, IT'S NOT GETTING TO THEM, THEN WE CAN, WE CAN ADDRESS THAT.
SO, I MEAN, TO POINT OUT A CASE LIKE THREE DAYS AGO, CITY OF EDENTON GOVERNMENT PUT ON A WATER CONSERVATION UNIVERSITY GRAPHIC ON HERE ABOUT WATERING, GOING FROM BACK AND FORTH.
THERE ARE A TOTAL OF 18 COMMENTS AS YOU GO THROUGH.
UM, SOMEBODY SAYS, JUST NEEDS SOME MORE CAR WASHES TO HELP EASE THE WATER DEMAND WITH 11 THUMBS UP, LAUGHING EMOJIS, NO REPLY.
THEN IT GOES DOWN AND SAYS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, OUR CURRENT INFRASTRUCTURE
[01:00:01]
AND HAS PICTURES OF WATER, WHICH WE TAKE CARE OF.AND I THINK WE'RE VERY RESPONSIVE TO, BUT NO REPLY.
THEN WE GO TO, UM, YES, IT'S OKAY.
THE CITY'S KEEPING, ALLOWING CAR WASHES TO OPERATE, BUILD NEW CAR WASHES, KEEP WATERING.
UM, AND THEN IT, YOU KNOW, PERHAPS THIS BROKEN LINE, PERHAPS THIS, THERE'S NOT A SINGLE REPLY ON OUR OWN CITY DEAL WHEN IT COMES TO WATER.
AND SO AS WE ENGAGE IN ANY TYPE OF POTENTIAL DISCUSSION AROUND RATE INCREASES, THAT'S GOTTA GO 110 FOLD, LIKE 180 AS FAR AS IMMEDIATE RESPONSE, GETTING INFORMATION OUT THERE.
'CAUSE IF NOT, IT'LL JUST FROTH, FROTH, FROTH.
AND THEN WE'RE JUST GONNA BE DEALING WITH A LOT OF BLOW BACK, UH, WHICH IS A PUBLIC RELATIONS ENGAGEMENT DEAL.
UM, BUT I I, I'M JUST NOT SATISFIED WITH THE TYPE OF REPLY RESPONSE THAT WE'RE HAVING CURRENTLY.
SO THAT'S A DIFFERENT SUBJECT.
THAT'S A DIFFERENT SUBJECT THAT YOU'RE BRINGING UP.
YOU, JUST BECAUSE THERE'S NOT A REPLY ON THERE DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE CITY, WHAT WHAT I HEARD YOU INITIALLY SAY WAS THAT YOU WANTED MORE ENGAGEMENT ON EDUCATION OF THE CITIZENS, BUT NOW WHAT YOU'RE SAYING IS THAT NOW FROM A SOCIAL MEDIA THING WHERE EVERY CITY OUT THERE IS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW DO YOU RESPOND SOCIAL MEDIA WISE THAT YOU IN A, IN A GOOD EFFECTIVE WAY, TO ME THAT'S SOMETHING TOTALLY DIFFERENT.
THAT'S NOT EDUCATING BECAUSE WE DON'T KNOW.
I MEAN, WE KNOW FROM OUR EXPERIENCE TO SOME OF THOSE COMMENTS, I MEAN US FROM JUST RUNNING FOR OUR POSITIONS HERE, AND SOME OF THOSE COMMENTS ARE JUST SNIDE COMMENTS TO THAT ARE NOT BEING SAID TO BE HELPFUL.
SO THERE HAS TO BE THAT BALANCE THERE.
SO I WAS ADDRESSING WHAT YOU WERE SAYING ABOUT THE EDUCATION OF THE PEOPLE, NOT THE SOCIAL MEDIA ENGAGEMENT, WHICH JUST LIKE US IN ALL OTHER COMMUNITIES, WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE THAT OUT MM-HMM.
NOT TO HAVE A NAUGHTY DEBATE BECAUSE SOMETIMES THE RESPONSE JUST CREATES THE RABBIT HOLE THAT WE'RE IN AND AT THE END WE'RE, IT'S NOT GETTING WHAT WE WANT.
I, I HEAR WHAT COUNCIL MEMBER ROBINS IS SAYING, AND MARY AS WELL.
WE'LL PROBABLY, YOU KNOW, NEED TO LOOK ON THE F A Q FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS.
ONE OF 'EM MAY BE, HEY, THERE'S A LOT OF NEW CAR WASHES, CAR WASHES, AND HEY, DID YOU KNOW ON AVERAGE IF TEE GOES OUT IN HIS DRIVEWAY, USES 300 GALLONS OF WATER BECAUSE YOU KNOW, THE AVERAGE NEW CAR WASH ONLY USES WHATEVER, WHATEVER.
WE CAN START TO LOOK AT SOME OF THOSE THINGS.
UM, YEAH, I'M A LITTLE BIT CAUTIOUS OF ENGAGING ON A BACK AND FORTH ON SOCIAL MEDIA, BUT HAVING SAID THAT, YOU KNOW, WE COULD LOOK AT WHAT ARE THOSE TRENDING QUESTIONS AND FIND WAYS TO ANSWER THEM IN BROADWAY VERSUS, HEY, JOHN, I SAW YOUR COMMENT.
LET ME GET BACK DIRECTLY ON THAT SPECIFIC QUESTION.
I MEAN, AND THIS IS, I THINK IT SEVERAL TOPICS FOR WIDER DISCUSSION.
AND, AND MAYBE THIS ISN'T THE FORUM, BUT I MEAN, THIS GOES TO THAT POINT OF CITIZENS SAY, WHY DO WE NEED MORE NAIL SALONS? WHY DO WE NEED MORE MASSAGE PARLORS? WHY DO WE NEED MORE CAR WASHES? AND WHAT THEY REALIZE THEY DON'T REALIZE SOMETIMES IS WE CAN'T TELL PEOPLE NOT TO DO WHAT THEY ARE LEGALLY ALLOWED TO DO ON THEIR PRIVATELY OWNED PROPERTY.
SO WHAT I'M HEARING IN THAT IS WHY CAN'T YOU SAY NO TO MORE CAR WASHES? RIGHT.
I MEAN, I THINK THAT'S THE IMPLICATION IN SOME OF THAT IS WHY ARE, WHY IS THE CITY ALLOWING US TO BUILD THIS MANY, WE, WE WE CAN'T STOP THEM IF IT'S ZONED FOR THAT APPROPRIATELY FOR FREE ENTERPRISE.
I MEAN, SO I THINK SPEAKING TO EDUCATION, I MEAN, I'VE HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH PEOPLE ABOUT THAT ISSUE AND IT'S LIKE THEY THINK EVERY SINGLE NEW BUSINESS CHANGE OF BUSINESS COMES BEFORE THE COUNCIL.
AND WE'RE SAYING, YES, PLEASE BRING US MORE DISPENSARIES AND MASSAGE PARLORS AND NAIL SALONS AND CAR WASHES.
SO, YEAH, I MEAN, I, I THINK, AND I AGREE WITH THE MAYOR, I THINK SOME PEOPLE FRANKLY JUST LIKE TO TAKE DIGS AND THEY'RE NOT REALLY INTERESTED IN THE INFORMATION.
SO HOW DO WE GET INFORMATION OUT TO PEOPLE WHO TRULY WANT TO BE INFORMED MM-HMM.
I WANT TO KEEP, CONTINUE TO EDUCATE THE PEOPLE THE BEST WAY AS POSSIBLE.
BUT WHAT I DON'T WANT, WHAT I'VE SEEN, UH, IS FOR US TO GO INTO, GET DOWN INTO A RABBIT HOLE, AND IT'S, IT'S NOT ANSWERING THE QUESTION THAT WHAT WE'RE DOING, WE'VE GOT INTO A BACK AND FORTH SOCIAL MEDIA, UH, ALTERCATION
[01:05:01]
WITH AN INDIVIDUAL GROUP OF PEOPLE WHEN WE SHOULD BE TRYING TO SEND OUT MAJORITY OF THE INFORMATION TO THE MASSES, UH, LIKE IN THE FREQUENCY ASKED QUESTIONS.AND I MEAN, I THINK IF, YOU KNOW, WE'RE ELECTED TO GET ALL OF THIS INFORMATION AND DIG INTO THIS AND THEN MAKE DECISIONS THAT ARE IN THE BEST INTEREST OF THE CITIZENRY.
AND IF WE SAY, WELL, WE'RE ONLY GONNA DO A RATE INCREASE IF POPULAR SENTIMENT IS TO DO A RATE INCREASE, WELL, THEY'RE GONNA SAY NO.
AND THEN WE GET TO THE, THE ISSUE YOU TALKED ABOUT WHERE WE'RE NOT TAKING CARE OF TAKING CARE OF OUR RESOURCES.
AND SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT THINKING THAT, YOU KNOW, SOMEONE'S SAYING, NO, I DON'T WANT A RATE INCREASE.
AND SO NO, WE DO NO RATE INCREASES, RIGHT? I MEAN, WE'VE GOT TO, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE PAID THE BIG BUCKS RIGHT.
TO DO
AND SO I AM NOT GOING TO NOT DO A RATE INCREASE IF THAT'S WHAT WE NEED, BECAUSE POPULAR SENTIMENT IS NO RATE INCREASES.
SO THAT'S, I DON'T DID YOU HAVE SOMETHING? THANKS, CHRIS.
JUST, JUST A COUPLE FINAL QUESTIONS.
I THINK, DID HE LEAVE? NO, HE SAID, OH, HE'S SITTING RIGHT THERE.
HE'S, HE, UM, WELL, YOU KNOW, HE MADE A POINT ABOUT, HEY, SOME CITIES KEEP THEIR RATES LOW AND SUBSIDIZE WITH GENERAL, GENERAL ANTHROPY.
I THINK IT'S, YOU KNOW, YOU ASKED WHAT DO WE SAY TO RESIDENTS? IT'S, IT'S, I LOOK AT IT THIS AS YOU'RE GETTING CHARGED FOR YOUR ACTUAL USAGE MM-HMM.
AND IT, AND IT DISCOUNTS THAT VERSUS YOU'RE PAYING EXACTLY WHAT YOUR USAGE IS.
WE'RE GONNA WORK CHRIS AND HIS TEAM AND OUR PUBLIC RELATIONS, OR WE'RE GONNA LOOK TO SAY, HEY, IT'S 3%, THAT'S AN AVERAGE OF $3 A A MONTH.
UM, THE OTHER PART IS, IS THE INDEPENDENCE KEY TO BE YOUR OWN INDEPENDENT SYSTEM.
AND WE HAD A GOOD CONVERSATION WITH OUR, OUR COUNTY COMMISSIONER TODAY ABOUT OTHER OPPORTUNITIES TO, UH, WHOLESALE RATE OPPORTUNITIES.
SO WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO EXPLORE THAT.
UM, BUT TO HAVE A ROBUST WATER WASTEWATER SYSTEM, THAT'S WHY MOST PEOPLE WANT TO BE IN AN INCORPORATED CITY MM-HMM.
I MEAN THAT'S, WELL, AND I THINK ONE OF YOUR MOST IMPORTANT GRAPHS UP THERE FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC AND MYSELF IS HOW IT SHOWED WITH THIS PERCENTAGE, THIS IS WHAT IT WOULD COST YOU A MONTH.
BECAUSE WHEN PEOPLE SAY, WELL, I JUST CAN'T AFFORD THAT.
WELL, CAN YOU AFFORD $3 A MONTH? MM-HMM.
AND, AND IF YOU CAN'T, THEN HERE'S SOME GREAT WAYS FOR YOU TO CUT.
THAT $3 A MONTH OUT OF YOUR MM-HMM.
WELL, AND LIKE YOU SAID, I MEAN, INFLATION IS RANGING BETWEEN THREE AND 5%, UM, FLUCTUATING.
I MEAN, THESE ARE NOT, I MEAN, THIS IS INFLATION COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENTS AS MUCH AS, AND WE GET THE BENEFIT OF CONTINUING TO COVER OUR OPERATIONS WITH THOSE FEES, NOT DIP INTO GENERAL FUND AND TAKE CARE OF OUR INFRASTRUCTURE FOR TODAY AND TOMORROW.
SO, UM, MY LAST COMMENT IS, IS THERE'S THIS ACTION, BUT THERE ARE OTHER ACTIONS.
THE CITY'S GONNA BE LOOKING AND COMING BACK TO THE, TO THE COUNCIL.
WE'RE, WE'RE GONNA DO INTERVIEWS THIS WEEK FOR OUR UPDATE TOWARD AND IMPACT FEES.
UM, AND, AND, AND JUST A REMINDER IS OFTENTIMES YOU MAY, WE, WE DO THOSE ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND MEMBERS OF THE DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY SAY, OH MY GOSH, YOU RAISED MY FEE.
BUT JUST FOR EXAMPLE IS IF YOU, YOU KNOW, DID 500 NEW ACCOUNTS MM-HMM.
SO WE'RE GONNA LOOK FOR OTHER MEANS, YOU KNOW, EVEN ZONING PLAYS INTO IT.
WHAT'S THE RIGHT USAGE OF LAND TO, TO PROVIDE WATER, BUT MINIMIZE INFRASTRUCTURE COSTS? AND, YOU KNOW, MAYBE THERE'S, I DUNNO IF OKLAHOMA WILL GET TO IT.
HEY, WE WE'RE DISCOURAGING THE USE OF GRASS IN OUR NEIGHBORHOODS BECAUSE OF CERTAIN NEEDS OR WHATEVER IT MAY BE.
WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO LOOK FOR OPTIONS TO EDUCATE AND GET PEOPLE FAMILIAR ABOUT WATER, USE IT WISELY AND, AND THESE DIFFERENT MEANS.
BUT TO HAVE A ROBUST SYSTEM IS KEY.
THERE'S, THERE'S A MEMBER, YOU KNOW, A FELLOW SITTING IN THIS, IN THIS REGION THAT THEY HAVE TO DO ELECTIONS FOR ANY RATE CHANGE
[01:10:01]
AND THEY DON'T GET IT PASSED.AND SO THEY'RE LITERALLY FIXING EVERY 10 FEET VERSUS PUTTING IN THE, THE PROPER INFRASTRUCTURE TO DO FOR LONG TERM.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, VERY MUCH.
THIS IS, THIS IS A, UH, THANK YOU, SIR.
A, UH, PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION.
SO, UH, I WILL OPEN UP, IF ANYONE IN THE PUBLIC WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A COMMENT AND STATEMENT.
COME ON DOWN AND INTRODUCE YOURSELF WHEN, UH, MY NAME'S DAN O'NEILL AND, UM, MR. WINHAM FIRST CAME TO EDMOND 15 YEARS AGO, WAS MY COUNSEL.
PART OF THE REASON WE DID THE RATIONALE FOR THE RATE INCREASE WAS SEVERAL FULL.
ONE WAS TO MAKE SURE THAT, UH, THAT THE PEOPLE THAT WANTED TO POUR WATER ON THEIR YARD, UH, COULD DO SO AND THEY WOULD PAY FOR IT.
SO WE INTENTIONALLY RAISED THE RATES, UH, FOR THE HIGHER END USERS.
AND, UH, EVERYBODY SAID THAT THAT WAS A GOOD IDEA AT THE TIME.
IT WOULD ENCOURAGE ENC UH, CONSERVATION.
UH, WE WERE ALSO IN THE MIDST OF, UH, A DECISION AT THAT TIME ON WHAT WE WOULD DO FOR OUR FUTURE WATER.
AND PART OF WHAT, UM, WE WERE TRYING TO DO AT THAT TIME WAS TO TIE IN WITH OKLAHOMA CITY AND THERE WAS A NUDE LA SERGEANT, SGAS LAKE, I THINK PROJECT EXCUSE THAT HASN'T HAPPENED YET.
AND, UM, IN OUR EFFORTS TO DEAL WITH OKLAHOMA CITY, WE'RE NOT VERY SUCCESSFUL.
SO WE SORT OF BACKED OFF THAT DOWN THE ROAD, UM, LATER ON.
UH, BUT THE POINT THAT I WOULD MAKE ABOUT THIS CURRENT RATE OF 2.5%, IT'S NOT KEEPING UP WITH INFLATION.
AND WHEN YOU DON'T KEEP UP WITH INFLATION, YOU LOSE, UM, JUST, JUST A THOUGHT.
AND PART OF WHY WE'RE IN SUCH GOOD SHAPE IS BECAUSE, UH, WE FELT LIKE IT WAS IMPORTANT TO INVEST IN OUR INFRASTRUCTURE.
AND WE'VE BEEN DOING THAT, AND THAT'S BEEN A LONG TERM GOAL.
UM, BUT WE'RE SORT OF GIVING OUR FUTURE WATER.
YOU KNOW, THE, THE WATER SOURCE FOR EDMUND IS NOT UNLIMITED.
AND IT SEEMS LIKE WE'RE, WE'RE INTENTIONALLY TRYING TO FIND MORE AND MORE CUSTOMERS FOR IT, UH, WHEN IN FACT, UH, WE NEED TO SAVE THAT FOR OUR FUTURE, UH, CITIZENS OF OUR TOWN.
AND WHEN YOU DO MORE DENSE, UH, HOUSING, UH, YOU HAVE MORE WATER USES THAN YOU WOULD IF YOU WERE SPACIOUS IN YOUR EAST EDMOND, UH, AREAS.
AND THEN WE FOUND OUT, I THINK ABOUT THREE AND A HALF, FOUR YEARS AGO, THAT, UH, THE EASTERN HALF OF EDMOND, WE DON'T, WE DON'T EVEN OWN THE WATER RIGHTS, UH, TO OUR OWN, UH, CITY'S HALF OUR CITY'S WATER OR LAND.
AND, UH, THAT'S CAUSED A, A SIGNIFICANT, IN MY MIND, UH, HICCUP IN TERMS OF OUR FUTURE USE.
SO I WOULD ENCOURAGE THE COUNCIL, UH, TO BE, UH, MORE PROTECTIVE ABOUT GRANTING WATER EXCESS BEYOND OUR BORDERS.
UH, I THINK THE, WE GOT CAUGHT IN THE THING ON ARCADIA, UH, THAT WAS SORT OF A GOOD DEAL IN ONE WAY, BUT IN THE LONG TERM, IT INCREASES, UH, GREATER USES ON OUR COMMUNITY WATER, LIMITED WATER SUPPLY.
UM, I WAS HERE WHEN MOVED TO EDMOND, PRIMARILY BECAUSE OF LAKE ARCADIA.
UH, I KNEW CARL ERMAN, UH, AND I KNEW ALL OF THE EFFORTS THAT HE DID DURING HIS 10 YEARS OF, UH, BEING OUR MAYOR.
UH, HE GREW UP IN A TOWN, UH, THAT GOT FLOODED BY THE SAME RIVER THAT WE'RE USING FOR OUR WATER SUPPLY.
AND PART OF THE REASON FOR DAMING, UH, AND MAKING A WATER SUPPLY FOR EMINENT LAKE ARCADIA IMPROVED THE FLOOD CONTROL DOWNSTREAM.
HE GOT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO BUY INTO THAT CONCEPT BECAUSE LAKE ARCADIA IS STILL A FLOOD CONTROL LAKE.
IT IS OWNED, UM, UH, BY THE LARGEST LANDOWNER IN THE CITY OF EDMOND, THE CORPS OF ENGINEERS.
AND, UM, THERE'S SOME THINGS ABOUT THAT RELATIONSHIP.
UH, WHEN WE FIRST DID IT, WE WERE ULTRA PROTECTIVE OF THAT LAND.
UH, WE MADE IT, UH, CHARLES LAMB WAS ON THE PLANNING COMMISSION AT THAT TIME.
HE HEADED UP THAT WORKFORCE AROUND LAKE ARCADIA.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THEY SAID THAT THEY WOULD DO NEVER DO WAS TO PUT COMMERCIAL INTO THAT AREA.
AND THAT RURAL RESIDENTIAL WAS ALL THAT WOULD BE PERMITTED WITHIN THAT AREA.
AND, UM, THERE'S BEEN EFFORTS BY VARIOUS, UM, INDIVIDUALS IN THE PAST, UH,
[01:15:01]
TO, TO, UH, CHANGE THAT RULE.UH, IT APPEARS THAT IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN AGAIN.
ANOTHER, ANOTHER EFFORT TO, UH, COMMERCIALIZE OR TO INCREASE THE DENSITY OF HOUSING OR TO PUT OUR ONLY WATER SUPPLY, UM, UH, ABOVE GROUND WATER SUPPLY AT RISK BY CROWDING WITH, UH, USES THAT WE THOUGHT WOULD NOT BE, UH, TO THE, TO THE PUBLIC WELFARE.
SO MY THOUGHTS ARE IS, UM, WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR RATES KEEP UP WITH INFLATION.
AND THAT TWO AND A HALF PERCENT DOESN'T QUITE DO IT.
WHAT I UNDERSTAND THE, I'LL LEAVE THAT TO THE EXPERTS.
UH, WE DO NOT NEED TO BE TRYING TO DREAM UP MORE WAYS TO GET MORE CUSTOMERS IN OUR COMMUNITY.
THE, WE NEED TO THINK LONG TERM.
WE DON'T NEED TO THINK SHORT TERM.
I, I DON'T LIKE THE IDEA OF THE 2050 PLAN WHERE WE'RE GONNA HAVE 150,000 PEOPLE IN THE NEXT 30 YEARS IN OUR TOWN, LESS THAN 30 YEARS.
UH, I DON'T THINK WE HAVE THAT KIND OF WATER SUPPLY TO SUPPORT THAT.
UH, WE HAD AN ENGINEERING STUDY THAT WAS BASED ON, UH, UH, A PROFESSIONAL COMPANY THAT CAME IN AND SAID THAT, UH, AQUIFERS ARE NOT A RELIABLE SOURCE OF FUTURE WATER.
AND NOW WE ARE LIMITED SOLELY TO THAT.
AND THE GUYS HERE IN THE ENGINEERING KNOW THAT'S WHAT THE REPORT SAID, AND MAYBE THAT'S WHAT WE WANTED THEM TO SAY AT THAT TIME.
BUT I THINK THAT WAS A PROFESSIONAL OPINION.
SO BEFORE WE GIVE AWAY ALL OF OUR WATER IN ORDER TO INCREASE CUSTOMERS AND STUFF LIKE THAT, UNTIL WE OWN AT LEAST THE WATER RIGHTS TO THE OTHER HALF OF OUR TOWN, UH, MAYBE WE OUGHT TO THINK NOT BE SO AGGRESSIVE TO, UH, POPULATE OUR COMMUNITY, UH, WITHOUT KNOWING WHAT OUR RESOURCE CAPABILITIES ARE.
WITH WATER, YOU CAN HAVE ALL THE FACILITIES YOU WANT, BUT IF YOU DON'T HAVE THE INITIAL, UH, INGREDIENT OF WATER, WE COULD BE IN TROUBLE.
THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME MAKE MY COMMENT.
ANY OTHER CITIZENS? MCC COUNCIL? I THINK IT WAS A GOOD, UM, SESSION ONCE AGAIN.
UH, BASICALLY WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO IS TAKE THIS INFORMATION DIGESTED AND WE'RE GONNA HAVE FUTURE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT ANY IMPLEMENTATION.
SO THE, UM, THE INITIAL PLAN WAS TO BRING IT BACK FIRST MEETING IN SEPTEMBER, UM, AS IS, UNLESS THERE WAS ANY COMMENTS OR CONCERNS, UH, TO NOT BRING IT BACK AS PROPOSED.
IT DOESN'T TAKE ANY POLITICAL COURAGE TO NOT CHARGE CORRECT RATES AND, YOU KNOW, CITIES AND MUNICIPALITIES WHO DO DEFERRED MAINTENANCE HAVE TO PAY THE PIPER AT SOME POINT, YOU KNOW.
UM, BUT I'M WILLING TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS WITH OUR STAFF AND COUNSEL ON WHAT'S AN APPROPRIATE EDUCATION, AT LEAST FROM MY VIEWPOINT.
YOU KNOW, MY BACKGROUND, EVERYONE HAS DIFFERENT, UM, THINGS THAT THEY'RE REALLY, REALLY EXPERTS AT.
UM, UH, WATER INFRASTRUCTURES.
AND ONE I CAN PROBABLY FOR THE NEXT 10 YEARS, TRY TO LEARN WATER LAW AND RIGHTS AND WHAT THE GENTLEMAN JUST SAID ABOUT WHO OWNS WHAT.
AND I'D STILL HAVE A TON LEFT TO LEARN, BUT ON THE PUBLIC AFFAIRS SIDE, YOU KNOW, I HAVE SOME THOUGHTS.
SO I'LL SHARE THOSE WITH OUR, WITH OUR, MY FELLOW CITY COUNSELORS AND STAFF AND JUST SEE, UM, WHERE THAT MIGHT LAND ON, ON EDUCATING OUR PUBLIC.
I WANT A MOTION ORDERING HIM TO GO HOME.
WHO NEEDS TO GO HOME? JUST NEED TO GO HOME.
THAT'S WHAT WE CAN END IT NOW SO YOU CAN GO HOME.