AGENDA MEMORANDUM

Meeting Date: April 13, 2009

From:                          Raymond S. Sharp, Director, Environmental Services/Public Works

Subject:                      Consideration of Lake County Water Alliance Survey and Approval of Consensus Response

Staff Recommendation:

Staff has provided a completed survey with suggested responses.  Commissioner Polk is the Commission’s appointed representative to the Lake County Water Alliance.

Analysis:

The Lake County Water Alliance was formed several years ago for the purpose of completing a county-wide Water Supply Plan.  That work was completed in 2007, and the plan was adopted by the Alliance in December, 2007.  The Alliance reformed under a new inter-local agreement.  In the interim, the Alliance board has been unable to reach consensus with regard to the role the Alliance Board should fulfill.

In recent months, in order to overcome that roadblock, the Alliance board has voted to acquire the services of a consultant to facilitate a visioning process and subsequent development of a suitable governance document.  The first part of the visioning process is completion of this survey by each of the Alliance member governments.  This will help to identify areas of common interests and concerns, as well as form the basis for a visioning workshop to be conducted at the May Alliance meeting.  The outcome of that workshop should help determine whether or not the Alliance may continue to exist, in what form it should continue to exist, and what the Alliance’s role should be in the future.

Attached are a blank survey form, a survey form with staff suggested responses, as well as a document provided by the consultant that describes the various options for governance of the Alliance, together with examples.  These options cover a broad range of possibilities.  None of these are recommendations; they are only intended to provide illustrations of some of the possibilities, for information.

Staff has completed the survey with suggested responses.  The Commission may choose either to accept or modify these suggested responses after due consideration.  Staff is requesting that a single consensus survey response be approved by Commission and that staff is authorized to transmit it to the consultant as the City’s single consensus response.  The consultant has requested the consensus survey be returned by mid-April, in order to provide adequate time for workshop preparation.

Options:

1.  Approve a single consensus survey response and authorize staff to transmit it to the consultant as such; or,

2.  Such alternative action as the Commission may deem appropriate

Fiscal Impact: 

In the event the Alliance continues to function as an entity, it is likely to develop an annual budget for its activities, which each member government funds on a pro-rata basis, based upon the previous year’s annual ground water withdrawals.  The current fiscal year budget anticipated that our required funding will be the same as the past year and provides funding accordingly of  $6,500.

Submission Date and Time:    4/9/2009 9:27 AM____

Department: Environmental Services Prepared by:  R.Sharp__________ Attachments:  Yes__X__   No ___ Advertised:   ____Not Required ___ Dates:   _________________________                      Attorney Review :       Yes___  No _X_ _________________________________            Revised 6/10/04

Reviewed by: Dept. Head ________ Finance  Dept. __________________                                    Deputy C.M. ___________________                                          Submitted by: City Manager ___________________

Account No. _________________ Project No. ___________________ WF No. ______________________ Budget  ______________________ Available _____________________