Mhm. >> Uh good afternoon. I'll call to order the Public Utilities Commission meeting for Tuesday, June 23rd, 2026. The first item on our agenda is our consent agenda with our operations report. >> I'll make a motion to approve the
consent agenda. >> Second. >> Can I >> Yep. >> And go ahead and make a few comments. >> Yeah. >> Yeah, make a few comments. Thank you very much. Um No worries. Um I just wanted to call out. So, in the last week or so, I had um a couple of
different meetings with uh key accounts, our industrial accounts within the city. Um there were eight organizations represented that covered about 50% of our wastewater revenue and about a third of our water demand. In addition to that, had the opportunity to meet with um the
chamber board of directors and get some feedback there. And so what I have put in the director's report is documented feedback from those various meetings. I have tried to anonymize it so folks feel like they can say what they need to say and you can get that feedback. I
wanted to call out that of the folks and and organizations in attendance, this probably represents maybe 25% or 20% of the participation. Most of the businesses and organizations that
participated understand I think they all understand what we're what we're needing to do here. You know, nobody likes it, nobody wants to do it and and maybe there was a subset that had expressed their their feelings on that and I wanted to make sure that that was documented. I promised to promised to
communicate that to you, but I know that there's always the question of is this what's this widely held opinions were they more more smaller subset and I would say a smaller subset. >> Yeah, that's probably more impactful. I'm assuming.
>> Absolutely. So I just wanted to make sure to provide some context as you read these these pieces of feedback. >> [snorts] >> No, very good. >> Thank you. >> Thank you. We have a motion and a second. Is there anything else on that? Otherwise all in favor say I. >> I.
>> Opposed? Motion carries. Now we get into employee of the month. >> Yes, thank you very much. I'm trying to get my agenda on there. Thank you. I'd like to go ahead and nominate Pauline Brolick for recognition as employee of the month. Pauline has been
an integral part of the recent transition to an accounts payable clerk. So we had a long time clerk is no longer in that position. I believe she retired. So Pauline willingly learned and assumed responsibility for not only her duties, but the accounts payable duties while that position was vacant. I'm taking on
those two roles. Once the new clerk had started, Pauline was had dedicated a significant amount of her own work time to training the new employee, explaining tasks, and and making sure that that employee had the support that they needed to keep things going and and to make sure that um our business kept functioning properly. So, um very very
beneficial to have Pauline on our staff, and I'm very thankful for her extra work that she put in voluntarily. So, I'd like to go ahead and and nominate Pauline Brolick as employee of the month. >> Fantastic. >> I'll make the motion to recognize Pauline Brolick as employee of the month for May
2026. >> I'll second. >> All right, we have a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion? >> I worked with Pauline for many year some years up at the county, and she was always very pleasant to to work with. So, >> Fantastic.
>> Thank you. >> Yes, I can say Pauline as my director part is a great person to work with. So, >> Awesome. All kinds of positive feedback. That's fantastic. All right, then all in favor say I. >> I. >> Opposed? Motion carries. Congratulations, Pauline. Thank you very
much. Uh next up is to receive an order file the financial report. Unless there's any discussion on that really. So, I'll entertain a motion to receive an order file that. >> I'll make the motion to receive the annual financial report for the fiscal
year ended December 31st, 2025 for the New Ulm Utilities Commission. >> Second. >> All right, we have a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion? If not, all in favor say I. >> I. >> Opposed? Motion carries. Now, we're to telecom installation.
Beth. >> Good afternoon, President Visscher, commissioners. We are asking um for approval for the updated telecom installation reimbursement schedule. Um the electrical department routinely coordinates with local
telecommunications providers. Currently, that is Comcast Corporation and Nuvera Communications when installing or relocating underground services. This coordination is a win for all parties involved. Comcast and Nuvera will
put their wires in the trenches with our electrical wires and that's a benefit. It saves preserves limited underground real estate for future utility work, increasing safety and lowering cost.
The telecom companies, it reduces service installation cost for them by sharing the cost of excavation and restorations. And residents and customers, it's a benefit for because it reduces the number duration and overall disruption of underground excavation.
So, we do have an updated schedule here of costs and it costs have just been going up. The last time this schedule was updated was approximately 4 years ago. So, although we do want to cost share on this to
incentivize this happening in the future, costs have gone up and risen. So, we are asking for a a slight rate increase here. >> So, is this what we charge them to use for them to use our trenches? >> Yes, correct.
>> Do we ever go in with them if they're trenching something and we're not there or not necessarily? >> Not really. I think it's it's typically the the PUC that's trenching and then they will come in with us in our trench or conduit. >> How much did these change over 4 years?
That seems like a long long time. >> Yeah, we were able to get some standardized um prices just from area contractors, things like that. And then we also did some of our own calculations to
to see how costs had risen there. So. >> Okay. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. Maybe want to look at that more on every other year. >> Yeah. >> Or something. Yeah. >> And just and and commissioners President Visser um just to be clear and I think um Beth mentioned this is that it's not full cost recovery um to maintain that
incentive for them to continue participating with us. So. >> Yeah, cuz we still have the cost anyways. So it's some reimbursement. >> Yeah. That's right. >> Understood. All right. I'll entertain a motion now. >> I'll make the motion to approve and adopt the updated telecom installation
reimbursement rate schedule. >> I'll second that. Okay, we have a motion and a second. Um is there any further discussion? If not, all in favor say I. >> I. >> I. >> Opposed? Motion carries. Next up is a purchase of EOS Arrow series
GPS. >> President Visser, commissioners, so um this is a request from the gas department natural gas department. So a couple of years ago uh Minnesota state statute was updated. It's the Gopher State One statute that requires all um
underground utilities for anything that's abandoned or put in the ground after January 1st, 2027 for communities of our size to have geospatial coordinates associated with it. Um so we we definitely been been um you know, we have a a CAD, a
computer-aided design drawing tool that we use for our natural gas um system, but we'll be taking geospatial information from that point going forward. And in order to do that, we need um the the kit essentially, the piece of equipment to do that. So this is one of those um GPS devices that's on
the end of a giant staff essentially um that helps you put it over the asset, you click and it locks in those coordinates and that's how you document those. So um this is part of us um maintaining compliance with that with that law change that's going forward. >> Okay. Well, that makes sense.
>> And one other thing is that this is a tool that we have in other departments as well. So, it's it's not it's not new to us. >> Yeah. >> Thanks. >> I'll make the motion to authorize the purchase of one GPS receiver unit from
TreeBize LLC in the amount of $9,665 plus tax. >> I'll second. >> All right, we have a motion and a second. Um is there any further discussion? If not, all in favor say "Aye". >> Aye. >> Opposed? Motion carries. Uh now we have
a wastewater treatment outfalls repair. >> President Vasser, commissioners, this is a request from the wastewater department. Um the there's been some erosion along the outfalls, so the area where the treated wastewater is discharged into the Minnesota and Cottonwood rivers.
Um there's been some erosion along those outfalls, those discharge pipes, and so some work needs to be done to to sort of armor them with rocks and rebuild them and things like that. Um the DNR has said that uh has set a requirement that we do a survey, that we fund a survey for
endangered and threatened mussels in the Minnesota river um under the um description or or the rationale is that um doing that work will kick up a lot of sediment um as you're sort of rebuilding the side of that river bank and and armoring those outfalls. And so, they have requested or
required us to do a to fund a mussel survey before we continue that work. So, this is authorizing us um to accept a proposal from Bolten Menk to to fund that survey so that we can move forward in the permitting to fix [snorts] the outfalls. >> And the the pricing you have below is
more for the repair, $100,000. >> Yes. >> Okay. >> Yeah, we're just showing that we have enough money to cover it. >> Okay. Very good. I'll take a motion on that. >> I'll make the motion to authorize city manager to accept the proposal from Bolton and Mink for the repair of
wastewater treatment plant outfalls muscle survey in the amount of $19,500. >> Second. >> All right, we have a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion? If not, all in favor say aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Uh next up is
SCADA system improvement. Dan. >> Yeah, this is more of a change order to what we started in 2025. Um In control gave us a quote for just shy of the $100,000. Forgive my rounding.
For doing the bulk of plan, but after that we had in the works, so we had them keep it out there putting the new MCC and switch gear in. Well, this is to serve that new MCC and switch gear and integrate it into the rest of plant facility and
infrastructure. Um side note, [clears throat] we were slightly over our budget at that time in 2025. You'll notice in the 26 budget year we had added another quarter of a million, so we're at a million dollars for the budget.
With this change order included, we're at about $880,000. So, we are now again we'll call it a $120,000 under budget. But, that excludes some electrical work, so there may be some minor electrical work
>> It's coming up, yeah. >> So, the project is still in good health and under budget and on progress. >> When is that completed, you know, is that completed this year? >> This We will get the MCC >> Yeah. >> late October. We're hoping to put it in
in December. It'll either get finished this year or very early next year, just depending on when everything gets cut over. >> be a little carryover on the project if >> We're hoping not, but yes. That's way things seem to go.
Yeah. Thank you. All right. >> I'll make the motion to receive and order file the change order from In-Control Inc. for the wastewater treatment plant's supervisory control and data acquisition
SCADA in the amount of $77,538. >> I'll second that. >> Okay, we have a motion and a second. Um, is there any further discussion on this? If not, all in favor say aye. >> Aye. >> Opposed? Motion carries. Last item is a report of claims.
>> I'll make the motion to accept the list of claims in the amount of $2,905,959.29. >> I'll second. >> All right, we have a motion and a second. Um, is there any further discussion? If not, all in favor say aye. >> Aye. >> Um, opposed? Motion carries. Um,
is there any additional comments from any of our commissioners today? If not, uh, we are adjourned. Thank you, everybody. >> Thank you.