Committee to nail down data on water system

A new committee will dive into the contentious issue of water rates, trying to nail down the factual basis for the city council to move forward with a policy decision.

On Thursday, the city council approved the formation of an eight-person technical advisory committee (TAC) to review the city water systems proposed five-year capital improvement project (CIP) budget.

The TAC is intended to validate or modify the data used to develop the CIP budget, and to review the need and timing of the proposed CIP projects. At issue are projects to improve fire flow, mitigate well water rights, repair or replace aging water pipes and pumps, and update purification systems.

For more than nine months the Sisters City Council has been attempting to determine the water rates and capital improvement investments that will be required to keep the city's water delivery system and water fund afloat. The debate between council members has often been contentious, and has more recently drawn critical input from two local political activists, Mike Morgan and Ed Protas.

There has been no argument that a small increase in water rates was needed to the keep the water rate fund financially viable going forward. Two weeks ago the council approved a temporary four percent water rate increase to financially stabilize the water fund.

The split in the council has come over the capital improvement project (CIP) budget proposed by city staff to maintain and upgrade the water delivery system. It has been estimated that the proposed five-year CIP budget of roughly $600,000 could increase water rates as much as 30 percent to 50 percent depending on how the projects were financed and when they were implemented.

Conflicting technical data developed by the individual council members has been bolstered by a steady barrage of input from the local activists. Instead of converging to an agreed-upon set of facts, in recent months the data as presented has been diverging, with one councilor's set of facts often in direct conflict with another councilor's or activist's set of facts.

The TAC proposed by Councilors Sharlene Weed and Wendy Holzman at the previous council meeting was to be made up of three to four members and a facilitator. Mayor Lon Kellstrom suggested that the TAC be expanded to seven members to provide more balance and technical input. After some polite debate, the council approved Mayor Kellstrom and City Manager Eileen Stein's proposed committee of seven, but with the addition of Councilor Wendy Holzman as a voting member, bringing the TAC to eight members.

The need for a trained facilitator had been acknowledged since the beginning of the discussion of a TAC. Cris Converse, a consultant and trained facilitator, was nominated to the TAC with facilitation in mind. Quotes from paid professional facilitators were also discussed ($85 to $185/hour).

In the end, the council decided that the TAC itself would need to select their own leadership and determine the best way to facilitate their deliberations.

Councilor Pat Thompson stated his support of the TAC, but objected strongly to any version of the TAC that involved paying members or facilitators, saying, "We need to live within our means."

The TAC will begin their discussions after the city's budget committee concludes their work, probably in early June. The committee would "sunset" in December. Findings are expected to come to the council in early September.

The TAC will consist of Mike Morgan; database analyst Ed Protas; city budget committee members McKibbon Womack and local consultant Cris Converse; businessman Kris Calvin; engineer David Abbas; Redmond city engineer and local resident Mike Caccavano, who designed and maintained the Astoria water system for 14 years; and Councilor Wendy Holzman.