JORDAN RIVER COMMISSON Governing Board – Regular Meeting Minutes of January 17, 2013 Name Agency or Organization Present Councilman Corey Rushton Board Chair, West Valley City X Councilman Chris McCandless Board Vice-Chair, Sandy City X Mr. Richard Bay Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District X Mayor Ralph Becker Salt Lake City X By Alternate: Emy Maloutas Mr. John Bennett Office of the Governor X Councilwoman Rebecca Call City of Saratoga Springs X Councilman Bill Colbert Draper City Mayor Ben McAdams Salt Lake County X By Alternate: Julie Peck-Dabling Commissioner Louenda Downs Davis County X By Alternate: Barry Burton Commissioner Larry Ellertson Utah County Mr. Bruce Jones Utah Transit Authority X Councilman Irvin Jones City of South Salt Lake X By Alternate: Michael Florence Ms. Laura Ault Division of Forestry Fire State Lands X Rep. Rich Cunningham Utah House of Representatives X Councilman Stan Porter City of North Salt Lake X By Alternate: Ken Leetham Councilman Justin Stoker City of West Jordan X By Alternate: Chuck Tarver Councilman Tee Tyler Cottonwood Heights X Mayor Russ Wall Taylorsville X By Alternate: Michael Meldrum Mr. John Whitehead Division of Water Quality X By Alternate: Carl Adams Councilman David Wilde Salt Lake County Mr. Mark Bedel Ex-Officio, Jordan River Foundation X By Alternate: Lynn Larsen Ms. Alene Bentley Ex-Officio, Rocky Mountain Power X Mr. Jon Bronson Ex-Officio, Zions Bank Ms. Amy Collins Ex-Officio, TreeUtah Mr. Greg Hardy Ex-Officio, Chevron Mr. Michael Horrocks Ex-Officio, Wasatch Rowing Foundation X Ms. Andree’ Walker-Bravo Ex-Officio, Utah Society for Environ. Ed vacant Ex-Officio, vacant Ex-Officio, 1 JORDAN RIVER COMMISSON Governing Board – Regular Meeting Minutes of January 17, 2013 ALSO IN ATTENDANCE Laura Hanson, Jordan River Commission David Eckhoff, Commission Technical Advisory Committee Chair Eric McCulley, Environ Dr. Steve Burian, University of Utah Tyler Murdock, Jordan River Commission Melanie Franti, Jordan River Commission Chase Clyde, Congressman Jim Matheson’s Office Pam Juliano, Congressman Jim Matheson’s Office Beth Graham, Congressman Jim Matheson’s Office MINUTES A regular meeting of the Governing Board of the Jordan River Commission, was held on Thursday January 17, 2013 at 9:00 am at the Taylorsville City Hall, 2600 Constitution Boulevard, Taylorsville, Utah 84129. Councilman Corey Rushton, Board Vice-Chair, called the meeting to order at 9:00 am. He welcomed the Board and audience. ITEM 1 – CONSENT AGENDA Councilman Corey Rushton asked if there were any changes to the agenda or November 29, 2013 Governing Board meeting minutes. Motion – Mr. Richard Bay made a motion to approve the agenda and the November 29, 2013 meeting minutes. Second – Mr. Michael Meldrum Vote – Unanimous in favor. ITEM 2 – CONSIDER EMPLOYMENT OF TYLER MURDOCK AND MELANIE FRANTI Councilman Corey Rushton asked Laura Hanson to introduce this item. Ms. Hanson noted that the Board may vote to close the public meeting to discuss the character and competency of individuals if desired. The Board decided not to close the public meeting. The approved funding in its FY 2013 budget for a Utah Conservation Corpsmember as well as a part-time, permanent employee. A job description was drafted for both positions with assistance of the Board Chair. These descriptions were posted on the Commission website, distributed through the Technical Advisory Committee, and send to the University of Utah and Utah State University, the Utah chapter of the American Planning Association, and on the Utah Society for Environmental Education. Nearly 30 résumés were received, and four individuals were interview for each position by Laura Hanson. Laura’s recommendations for each position were reviewed by the Board Chair. 2 JORDAN RIVER COMMISSON Governing Board – Regular Meeting Minutes of January 17, 2013 The JRC Bylaws require the Board to formally approve employment of any Commission employees. Tyler Murdock is recommended by the Executive Director for the part-time, permanent position. The FY 1013 budget contemplated a starting hourly wage between $12 and $15/hour, with no benefits. Melanie Franti is recommended by the Executive Director for the full-time, 11-month Utah Conservation Corps term. There is no hourly wage associated with this position, but the Commission is required to provide a $10,750 contribution to a living allowance managed and disbursed by the Utah Conservation Corps (UCC). The FY2013 budget planned on a $10,500 contribution, which was based on the 2012 UCC requirements, so an additional $250 is needed to participate in this program. Mr. Ken Leetham noted that with the new health care law that the Commission may be required to provide health insurance for employees working more than a certain number of hours. Laura Hanson noted that the UCC position offers health insurance to its corpsmembers, and that the part-time employee falls under the threshold of required insurance. Both Melanie Franti and Tyler Murdock were invited to introduce themselves to the Board. Motion – Councilman Chris McCandless made a motion to employ Tyler Murdock at an hourly rate of $13.50 and Melanie Franti effective February 1, 2013. Second – Mr. Jon Bennett Vote – Unanimous in Favor ITEM 3 – PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD Councilman Corey Rushton asked if there was any member of the public wishing to address the Board. Pamela Juliano, Chase Clyde, and Beth Graham from Congressman Jim Matheson’s Office introduced themselves and spoke about Congressman Matheson’s priorities. They asked the Commission to keep them informed of any issues or areas of interest to the Commission and with which the Congressman can help. ITEM 4 – EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS REPORT AND FINANCIAL REPORT Councilman Corey Rushton asked Laura Hanson to present the Director’s report of the past month’s activities. These focused primarily on the following efforts: Division of Water Quality Grant: Riparian Corridor Best Practices • Hard copy sample pages from document will be brought to the board meeting • February 5 – Draft toolbox presented to Technical Advisory Committee for review • February 26 – TAC comments on Draft due 3 JORDAN RIVER COMMISSON Governing Board – Regular Meeting Minutes of January 17, 2013 • March 5 – Project Steering Committee and TAC meet with EPG to discuss document. • March 21 – EPG presents draft to Governing Board • March 28 – Second Stakeholder Workshop. Workshop objectives are to present contents, purpose, and intended us of the draft document, solicit feedback, and discussion on how to best encourage implementation of the Best Practices at the local and project level Mr. John Bennett suggested that agriculture and manicured open space should be separated in the document as they are managed quite differently. Mr. Carl Adams mentioned that the Division of Water Quality has some Best Practices for agricultural lands that could be referenced as ad additional resources. Mr. Bennett also mentioned that the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget has a library of ordinances that can be listed as a reference as well. Mr. Mike Horrocks asked if the document is broad enough that it could be expanded to address tributaries as well, to which Laura Hanson replied that it is. Councilman Rebecca Call suggested that the Utah Lake Commission be contacted as a resource for invasive species management, specifically phragmites. Councilman Chris McCandless asked if the Board is going to endorse or approve this document upon completion. Laura Hanson replied that it would be useful if the Board could take formal action endorsing the document. Motion – Councilman Chris McCandless made a motion that the Board consider adopting the Best Practices document in its final form at its May 16, 2013 meeting. Second – Councilwoman Rebecca Call Vote – Unanimous in Favor EPA Urban Waters Small Grants • Worked with Salt Lake County and the Center for Documentary Expression and Art to develop a Work Plan and updated schedule for the grant. This was sent out to the board before the holidays. • May 2013 – Grant program kickoff • May 2013 - May 2014 – educational residencies, smart phone app development • May 2014 – Educational residencies completed and smartphone app launch • June 2014 - April 2015 – Community outreach and app promotion • Ongoing – possible collaboration with the University of Utah’s, Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism track app and educational information usage, and evaluate its effectiveness. Citizen Science in West Jordan • Exploring partnership with Tracy Aviary and the Division of Wildlife Resources to conduct volunteer-based bird monitoring pre- and post- restoration on site. • Citizen volunteers are trained to identify birds by ear, and data will be used to evaluate the impacts of the restoration project. • Project was piloted in City Creek Canyon last year and the methodology is being refined. 4 JORDAN RIVER COMMISSON Governing Board – Regular Meeting Minutes of January 17, 2013 • A future expansion of this could be ongoing volunteer monitoring at different sites along the entire length of the river. Potential Bluffdale Restoration • Waiting on Farm Bill to confirm whether the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) will be available to landowners in 2013. Fiscal Cliff negotiations resulted in a temporary fix, which extends the current bill until September 2013. • USDA believes that the extension will allow new enrollment in the WRP this year. • The bill itself mentions neither program, but since they had not yet reached their acreage cap, it appears they may continue. It is not yet clear how much funding will be available • $300,000 of wetland mitigation money we hoped would be available for this project has been committed elsewhere. We estimate an approximate $600,000 shortfall for the purchase of the conservation easement. No action taken. Discussion only. ITEM 4 – TECHNICAL ADVISORTY COMMITTEE REPORT Mr. Dave Eckhoff gave a report on the activities of the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC). These included: • Ongoing work with on the Best Practices document with the Commission’s consulting team, EPG. • Review of a Stream Alternations Permit during is public comment period and provided suggestions on ways to improve the project.