An Informal Informational Meeting ("Shirtsleeve" Session) of the Lodi City Council was held Tuesday, July 30, 2002 commencing at 7:03 a.m.

Present: Council Members – Hitchcock, Howard, Land, and Nakanishi

Absent: Council Members – Mayor Pennino

Also Present: City Manager Flynn, City Attorney Hays, and Deputy City Clerk Taylor

Deputy City Clerk Taylor reviewed the weekly calendar (filed).

City Manager Flynn offered his condolences to Richard Prima for the recent loss of his brother.

Mr. Prima thanked Mr. Flynn and extended his gratitude to the Public Works staff who stepped up to prepare and deliver this morning’s presentation and conduct yesterday’s public meeting.

C-1 "Update on Phase II Stormwater Program Permit Requirements"

City Engineer Wally Sandelin and Management Analyst Marlinda Devera distributed copies of Technical Memorandum No. 3 (filed) prepared by Black & Veatch, and provided a summary of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Phase II Implementation with the use of overheads (filed).

Management Analyst Devera stated the public meeting held yesterday included state and county representative presentations and that approximately 30 developers, contractors, and private citizens attended. She shared that many in attendance were already aware of the developer guidelines, but expressed concern with local enforcement and penalties.

City Engineer Sandelin reported that during the 1970s, publicly owned treatment and industrial facilities were the focus of the state; in 1987 the federal regulation works were amended; and in 1990 specific guidelines were established for communities with 100,000 or more population. In 1999, regulations were adopted for Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4) serving small communities, requiring cities to file a notice of intent with the Regional Quality Control Board. This in part is the Storm Water Management Plan (SWMP), which contains control measures to include public education and participation, illicit discharge detection, and elimination, construction site storm water runoff control, post-construction storm water management, and pollution prevention. Engineering consultants Black & Veatch prepared three technical memos addressing these main categories, which will be compiled into the SWMP. The plan will be brought to the City Council to review and approve actions, and after submittal of the plan to the State, future actions may include modifying project design and construction standards, and municipal code revisions to more precisely address storm water issues including gray water. The City will have to develop a program to reduce pollutants, develop penalties, and create a site plan for review, inspection, enforcement, and public input. Following Council action the Notice of Intention will be filed prior to the March 2003 due date.

In response to Mayor Pro Tempore Hitchcock, Mr. Sandelin explained that while City Council would be asked to consider modifications to the municipal code, staff was not prepared to address specifics until a thorough review of the NPDES Phase II draft requirements and the Black & Veatch Technical Memorandum No. 3 could be conducted. Mr. Sandelin stated staff may address the frequency and conduct of fundraising car washes and construction activities causing substantial sediment in the street, both of which would create a regulatory problem in determining responsibility with the fundraising entity, property owner, or contractor. He also shared that the State is the regulating authority for the community, but after the City obtains its permit, it becomes the authority to inspect, enforce, and penalize, and the State may choose to take additional action. He stated the biggest change in enforcement is a reduction from the five-acre to the one-acre threshold, meaning that if one acre is disturbed, even though only 10% of that acre may be modified, it falls within the new regulations. Mr. Sandelin stated most developers in Lodi are far ahead of the curve in their understanding and response to state regulations, but the future will prove difficult when developers move out and owners, unaware of requirements and guidelines, become responsible for properties.

Mr. Sandelin noted the City is not interested in fines, but rather in requesting that developers add the SWMP to their development improvement plans, and being prepared to offer incentives for compliance. Implementation of the SWMP will include meetings, and brochures to communicate design criteria and construction standards. The objective is to establish best management practices having measurable goals and a timetable that achieves contaminant reduction to the maximum extent practical. Pollution prevention and source control is the better method for contamination reduction. Developers currently use tubes of straw instead of fabric fencing to control sediment discharge, having discovered the straw to be much more effective.

In response to Council Member Howard, Mr. Sandelin reported that Lodi does not currently utilize reclaimed water for park maintenance purposes, as is the case in many larger communities. He shared that if the City were to implement such a program, the reclaimed water, once it is discharged to the gutter carrying a modest amount of fertilizer and contaminates, would fall under the auspices of storm water regulations.

At the request of Council Member Land, Mr. Sandelin explained that developers will be required to take out their permit with the State, paying a fee of $250 to $500, triggering the City to implement the permit and inspection process, which will be detailed in staff’s recommendations to Council in October. Mr. Land expressed his concern about concrete delivery vehicles washing out their tubs in the street and down the drain system, and dumping large quantities of leftover product on empty lots from landscape and swimming pool jobs. Mr. Sandelin noted that the State has similar concerns, and that another large problem in our community is painters cleaning their brushes and painting equipment onto the ground and into the gutter.

Council Member Land inquired about the status of the Delta Keeper Program and if Phase II would affect their filing of frivolous lawsuits for hazardous materials and waste. Public Works Director Prima stated that federal regulations for industrial activity and storm water permits are spelled out clearly, and California has adopted a general permit list for industrial activity requiring the filing of a Notice of Intent to be covered. Delta Keeper reviews this list, discovers sites that have not filed and are therefore non-compliant, and the process begins as permitted under the law. Similarly, the State requires a construction activity general permit so the developer pays a fee outside the city. Now the City will have to obtain a permit for its storm water system, and the State will take a back seat, encouraging cities to take the lead in enforcement, inspection, and fines. He noted that Phase I and II allow for citizen action, which can result in frivolous lawsuits and costly settlements, but believed the State plans to deal with this issue in the near future. City Attorney Hays added that Delta Keeper may have made an error in focusing on Claude Brown, who is opposing them and making progress in establishing that contamination may not be caused by the industrial activity, but more likely the use of chain link fence.

Responding to Council Member Land, Street Superintendent Bradley stated the new street sweeping equipment and modified schedule is very effective and residents have been cooperative. He stated a few cars have been tagged, but the need for notices to residents has not been necessary, nor has there been a need to consider "no parking" signs or street barricades to permit towing of vehicles.

At the request of Council Member Land, Mr. Prima reported that illegal connections would be addressed on a case by case basis as new projects arise, and that it was not the City’s intent to go back at this point and impose difficult or unreasonable requirements on customers, such as existing gas stations. Mr. Prima also shared that car wash fundraisers would not be banned, but suggestions would be made for using mats to cover the catch basin, or piping water to a landscape area to minimize discharge.

Council Member Howard commented on the importance of information gathered by the Stormwater Detective Program and its continued benefits to the community. Mr. Prima stated the funding for the program has and will continue to be a part of the City budget with no funding increases, but several education and information programs generated by the Phase II implementation will be difficult to identify in the budget.

Mayor Pro Tempore Hitchcock stated she hoped the State would realize that Phase II will have a cost to cities for personnel and program costs, and that funding and support would be appropriate. Responding to Ms. Hitchcock, Mr. Prima stated that while sand and oil traps were a major concern in the past, there are less than 100 in existence, and that checking these would become the City’s responsibility under the Phase II implementation.

Mr. Prima stated assessing the City plan would be done through a wide field of measures as outlined in the permit application, but while the State required programs and goals are set forth, it offers no specific implementation plan. The City will outline programs, timelines, and public workshops to meet application guidelines; however, identifying success and measurable goals will be difficult. A decrease in debris and contamination through the testing of river water might be a direct result of any one or a variety of implemented programs. Staff will avoid looking at analytical measurements and concentrate on overall improvements like decreased materials in street gutters and monitoring for a decrease in the total maximum daily load. No successful statistics for the Phase I program have been released, but the City has been able to review and mirror other community procedures and activities.

In response to Council Member Nakanishi, Mr. Prima stated there were many contaminants, including zinc, that would need to be addressed now, including air conditioner condensation, which until now was considered to be relatively clean. He explained that storm water basins now capture the first flush of water and overflows, with water discharged directly and only high flow winds up in the basins. Storm water should run overland across vegetation or a small basin in an attempt to reduce overload, but the City would not be modifying basin designs at least for the next 10 years. The goal is to adequately manage new processes and implement better practices, but not make retroactive repairs at this time.

At the request of Mayor Pro Tempore Hitchcock, Mr. Prima explained that the domestic system, during the low flow of summertime, gets high concentrations of materials, and that perhaps that should be diverted to White Slough in certain areas where possible. Staff wants to proceed slowly to inform the public, line up funding, and move at a rational, moderate pace. He shared that adding operational costs to implement Phase II may total $100,000 to $200,000, but capital costs would be implemented as projects proceed, and there are currently sufficient funds from wastewater rates.

None.

No action was taken by the City Council. The meeting was adjourned at 8:15 a.m.

ATTEST:

Jacqueline L. Taylor
Deputy City Clerk