Minutes
May Meeting of the MPCD Board of Supervisors
May 7, 2013
Submitted by Katlin Miller on May 8, 2013
The April Board meeting of the Board of Supervisors for the Middle Park Conservation District was called to order at 6:10pm by President, John Kossler. Other members present were Dave Abbot, Vice President; Deb Wood, Treasurer; Mark Volt, NRCS; Katlin Miller, District Manager; and Jay Yust. John Longhill, Secretary; and Johnnie Miller, Member, were also present via phone for the duration of the meeting.
After a brief round table discussing the past month’s happenings for each board member, the minutes for the April meeting of MPCD Board of Supervisors were read and approved as written.
Katlin presented the financial report from April 17-May 6. Primary sources of income for the month were: seed sales, tree sales, and ‘Water Law in a Nutshell’ registration fees. Primary expenses were: Quarterly payroll taxes, tree refunds, District Manager wages, and cost of food and supplies for the ‘Water Law in a Nutshell’ class. Overall, we had a net income of $7423.56 for the month of Aril 17-May 7. Our total assets for the MPCD are 18.7% higher than in May 2012. John Kossler and Deb Wood also signed checks for bill payments, salary, and mileage to board members, Bonnie, and Katlin
Katlin also reported on the tree pickup day and ‘Water Law in a Nutshell’ class. All trees were picked up or delivered on Friday, May 3rd, with the exception of one box Large Tube Ponderosa Pine trees. Katlin put them in the back shed until she can find someone to purchase them. The ‘Water Law in a Nutshell’ class went very well. We had 50 attendees and all seemed very pleased with the presenter, Aaron Clay, and the depth of the information he covered. Total income for the class was $2700 ($2500 in registration fees + $200 from Northern Water Conservancy District for food). The $200 from Northern Water has yet to be received. Total expenses for the class, including food, folders, and 4-H servers, was $2634.44. Thus, the net income was $65.56. There seemed to be a lot of interest in hosting another class, so Katlin will look into it some more for a future workshop.
Moving on to old business, John Longhill reported that he spoke with some landowners in Summit County about putting some more MPCD signs along the highway on their property. The landowners said no thank you.
Next on the agenda under old business was the irrigation cost-share application review. We had nine applicants apply for $22,500 matching grant funds from the CSCB. Applicants included: Geoff Niggeler, Brush Creek Ranch, Rafter ‘N Ranches, Southard and Panacons, Sammons and McElroy, Morales Farms, Mark Davidson, Blue Tree Farm, and Kent Whitmer. The majority of the projects dealt with installation of cement structures; head gates, diversions, and check stations; and pipe. After much discussion, it was moved, seconded, and approved to move forward with funding 7 of the 9 projects. The motion proposed, seconded, and approved by the board stated: ‘I move to approve the proposed applications, with the exception of Sammons and Blue Tree Ranch, up to 50% of the project expensesto cover only the cost of materials. The total funding approved for each project shall not exceed $3000.’
The group voted to NOT fund the Sammons and McElroy project because they felt that 500 feet of pipe would be insufficient to complete the project and that the end result would be less than sufficient to provide a fully-functional ditch. The board decided instead to focus on smaller projects that could be entirely completed by November 2013 and with substantive results.
The group also decided to reject the Blue Tree Ranch proposal because it did not fit in the criteria for review. The criteria specifically stated that the MCD would fund 50% of the cost of the project, up to $3000, with MPCD funds applicable solely towards the cost of materials. The Blue Tree Ranch proposal asked for funds to be applied toward the cost of labor to lower a head gate on their ditch off the Blue River. Though the board agreed with the merit of the project, it did not fall in the guidelines of the cost-share application criteria; thus, the board had no choice but to deny the application.
Lastly, in new business, the Board voted to approve the 2013 annual Colorado River Watershed Association fee of $75.
The meeting was adjourned at 7:45pm.
Next meeting is Tuesday, June 4, 2013 at 6pm.
Post Meeting Email Discussion
Dear MPCD Board Members.
I wanted to update you on the status of the Irrigation Cost-Share applications. After the meeting last week Monday, Mark and I reworked our numbers, and I realized I had made a critical error in my calculation at the meeting. I had forgotten the $3000 cap and had mistakenly given more funds to those that exceeded the cap. As a result, we have excess funds that are currently unaccounted for in our sum. In fact, the exact amount is $4816.
Please think about and respond with what you would like to do with the remaining amount.
thanks!
John Kossler/ May 20 (9 days ago)
/
tome,Dave,Deborah,John,travis,Mark,Mom
Hello Everyone: As much as I hate to leave "money on the table", I would strongly suggest we stick with the decision that we made at our last board meeting where we approved specific projects with specific allocations. This was voted on and approved by the board at the time and, in the face of any contention, I think it would be detrimental to the Board to set a precedent of changing our mind for any reason. It is my understanding that choosing to leave these funds will not hurt in any way our ability to apply for grants or funds in the future. Rather than re-open the issue, I think we should stick with protocol and go with our original decision. Thanks.
John Kossler/ May 20 (9 days ago)
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tome,Dave,Deborah,John,travis,Mark,Mom
Thanks, Katlin, for catching this and letting us all know!
Swan Center/ May 20 (9 days ago)
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toJohn,me,Dave,Deborah,travis,Mark,Mom
Hi John,
Sounds appropriate, I concur with our president.
John Longhill
From:John Kossler <
Date:Monday, May 20, 2013 5:00 PM
To:KATLIN MILLER <
Cc:Dave Abbott <>, Deborah Wood <>, John Longhill <>, travis hoesli <>, Mark Volt <>, Mom and Dad <
Subject:Re: Cost-Share Applications....PLEASE READ and RESPOND
/ May 20 (9 days ago)
/
toSwan,John,me,Dave,travis,Mark,Mom
I agree with John Kossler and think that we should stand by our decision at the board meeting. Thanks to Katlin.
Thank You,
Deb