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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/17/2006Municipal Telecommunications Utility (MTU) Board Minutes January 17, 2006 Board Members Present: Doris Kelley, Jim Waterbury, Randy Pilkington, Bob Heaton, Scott Crowley Staff Members Present: Mayor Hurley, Jim Walsh, Linda Craun The Board met at 4:00 p.m. on January 17, 2006. Moved by Bob Heaton, seconded by Scott Crowley that the minutes of December 27, 2005, be approved as submitted. Motion carried. Mayor Hurley spoke to the Board regarding goals. Initially, the Mayor sees the Board's mission as factfinding. We need to position ourselves for economic development and advanced technology. We should determine the capacity of bandwidth, both current and future, and the capacity of the current providers. His vision is to know what the City's physical assets are, know where the gaps are, and know the costs to fill those gaps. He would like Waterloo to be competitive with CFU. Historically, the Water Works Board has been autonomous. He would like more of a relationship between this Board and the City, i.e. when there is revenue that monies be invested in the City for long-term growth. A needs assessment should be done. Five years from now, he would like to know where the gaps are and the Board's plans to address those gaps. In the future there may be costs associated with the Board's plans. Citizens were told no tax dollars would be spent. However, it may be possible for the City to loan the Board money to be paid back with future revenues. Doris Kelley stated that the Board needs to assess the City government usage and future needs first; this could be done by survey. Jim Waterbury asked what cities could be used as a model. Doris is currently doing some work for Kansas City, Missouri, that could be used, also locally there is Team Technologies and CFU. Mayor Hurley stated that as information is sent into his office, he will forward it to the Board members. The Board checked into being a member of the Iowa Association of Municipal Utilities (IAMU) by joining with the Waterloo Water Works. The Board can't join with the Water Works. Membership is $2,000.00; the benefit is mostly lobby support. A comment was made that Mediacom's rates increased at approximately the same time that this Board was created. January 17, 2006, Minutes Page 2 Jim Waterbury thought we should get input from businesses. Jim Walsh stated most businesses will want to know the cost and how long to install. They will also want good customer service and the service to be competitive. Doris Kelly suggested we also survey businesses. Randy Pilkington thought that telecommunications could be added to the survey already done by Cedar Valley Alliance. Bob Heaton thought the Chamber would probably help with surveying businesses. In response to a question, Randy Pilkington said any survey service through UNI would most likely be fee -based. Doris Kelley stated we need an internal City and business needs assessment and current infrastructure, including private carriers such as McLeod, Mediacom and Quest. Jim Quint, City of Waterloo MIS Director, should be able to provide internal City information. Doris Kelley will provide the language for the letters to be sent to the private carriers, and Jim Walsh will send the letters out. Mayor Hurley stated when RFD was removed, Mediacom did respond and put it back on. Mayor referred to a memo from Jim Quint stating where the City currently owns or leases fiber: The City owns fiber to the Courthouse, Carnegie Hall, Fire Station No. 1, Water Works, Library, Arts Center, Young Arena, and 5 Sullivan Brothers Center; the City leases fiber from Mediacom to Waste Management, Hazmat, Leisure Services and Tri County; there may also be fiber used between some traffic signals. Bob Heaton used the analogy of building an airport and having various airlines to ask about the Mayor's goals for the Board. The Mayor responded that he sees infrastructure for sure, but that the City may not be the "airline," only the "airport." Doris Kelley asked whether conduit is being laid during street construction for future use; it would be cheaper to do it during initial construction rather than later. Mayor and Jim Walsh thought it probably was not included in street construction currently. Someone questioned if cities are rated according to their telecommunications. Randy Pilkington will check with Steve Dust, President & CEO of Greater Cedar Valley Alliance. Before leaving for his next meeting, the Mayor took the opportunity to once again thank the Board members for saying yes to serving on this Board. By mid -summer the Mayor would like to know where the Board is and what has happened. By next meeting Doris Kelley will provide a model needs assessment and a draft survey. She feels the survey should be done within three months. January 17, 2006, Minutes Page 3 Randy Pilkington will check on Location One information and speak with Steve Dust. There was mention of the possibility of a co -venture with Deere or other private businesses, hospitals, or schools. Scott Crowley will check with Deere regarding their needs and capacity and report back. Jim Waterbury will check with the hospitals, and Bob Heaton will check with the schools. Jim Walsh stated he and Linda Craun would obtain articles from municipal publications for the last two years and provide copies to the Board members. Jim Waterbury requested that "public comments" be included on each future agenda. He then asked for comments or questions from the public. Doug Nix, Manager of Mediacom, stated he had a few comments in response to earlier items: RFD was left on, it was never taken off; there was no rate increase in Waterloo when the Board was established; when obtaining information from other cities, the Board should find out if those municipal utilities obtained funds from other municipal utilities that don't need to be repaid. Scott Crowley moved, Doris Kelley seconded that the meeting be adjourned. Motion carried. Linda Craun Secretary