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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02.21.2024 Telecom Board Agenda BOARD MEMBERS Andrew Van Fleet Board Chair Theodore Batemon Ritch Kurtenbach Mike Young Amy Wienands City Council Liaison: Rob Nichols February 21, 2024 City Council Chambers 4:00 p.m. 1. Roll call. 2. Approval of the agenda, as presented. 3. Approval of minutes of January 17, 2024, regular session, as presented. 4. Motion creating four temporary part-time Direct Sales Internship positions within Waterloo Fiber. 5. Resolution approving the Waterloo Fiber Public Purpose Policy. 6. General comments from staff, consultants, and board members. 7. Adjourn. Kelley Felchle Board Secretary WATERLOO Telecommunications Utility Board of Trustees TELECOMMUNICATIONS UTILITY BOARD OF TRUSTEES City Council Chambers January 17, 2024 4:00 p.m. 1. Members present: Van Fleet, Batemon, Kurtenbach. Mr. Young and Wienands arrived at 4:05 p.m. 2. Moved by Kurtenbach seconded by Batemon that the agenda as proposed, be approved. Voice vote- Ayes: Three. Motion carried. 3. Moved by Batemon seconded by Kurtenbach that the minutes of January 3, 2024, Regular Session and January 8, 2024, Special Session, as presented. Voice vote-Ayes: Three. Motion carried. 4. Moved by Kurtenbach seconded by Batemon to approve the resolution approving the Waterloo Fiber Employee Handbook. Eric Lage, General Manager, explained that they have worked with PDCM as part of their HR Connect service to prepare the handbook. Mr. Kurtenbach discussed his concerns with Mr. Lage and the Board and provided suggestions for editing the document. Mr. Lage addressed the concerns and thanked Mr. Kurtenbach for his comments. He stated that he could make whatever changes the Board wishes. He explained that he would like to get the handbook to the employees as soon as we can and asked if the handbook could be approved tonight with the changes discussed. Roll call vote-Ayes: Five. Motion carried. Resolution No. 2024-041. 5. Moved by Kurtenbach seconded by Wienands to approve the purchase of NEA CDN Edge cache server from Ateme, Inc. of Englewood, CO, in the amount of $56,620.00. Eric Lage provided an overview of the item. Mr. Van Fleet questioned if there are any annual costs and asked what the shelf life is. Eric Lage commented there is not and that the shelf life is between 7-10 years. Mark Lane explained that a standard discount was provided per the 28E Agreement with CFU. Mr. Van Fleet suggested asking for an additional discount as we are a start-up company. Voice vote-Ayes: Five. Motion carried. 6. Moved by Kurtenbach seconded by Wienands to approve an IPv4 Block in an amount not to exceed $43,000.00. Eric Lage explained that these are public IP addresses for any business or residential subscribers that request it, for a monthly fee of $10 per month per IP address. There are 1,204 IP addresses in the block which should last quite a while depending on growth. He added that we are on the ARIN waitlist (American Registry for Internet Numbers) list for additional IP addresses. Voice vote-Ayes: Five. Motion carried. 7. General comments from staff, consultants, and board members. Eric Lage shared that we have had some good media coverage recently. Both he and Andy were on the Steele Report, and an article was recently published in the Courier. He reported that the shelter should be delivered on the 22nd depending on weather. He has asked that staff give an update on how things are going. Page 2 Erica Christiansen, Customer Service Manager, shared that they have been receiving a lot of calls and emails that the two new CSR’s have been answering. She and Erin Langenberg are working together to make sure everyone is communicating the same message to consumers through social media, face-to-face, etc. Next week they will push out mass information to everyone who filled out a survey. Ian Crowther-Green, Plant Engineering Supervisor, shared that the two technicians have been hired, and Tony is helping to train Maya as she is new to this field. They have been procuring the equipment needed to begin installs. Rob Nichols, council liaison, shared that Eric Lage has been coordinating with Stephane Shavers with Neighborhood Services and himself, to come and speak about Waterloo Fiber at the community forum he is holding next Tuesday at All-In-Grocers in the Willie Mae Wright Community Room. Erin Langenberg, Strategic Communications Manager, commented that they are out in the public meeting with people and just met with Kiwanis Club this week. They have been working on different swag items to get in front of the public and are reviewing budgeting for events to hold throughout the year. Julie Eastman, Accounting Manager, explained that she will be doing onboarding for the accounting software and will soon be entering vendors into the system. She hopes to have everything including payroll up and running in March. John Rath, NOC Support Manager, commented that they are continuing work on proof of concept at Fire Station #6, working with Calex support and developing job descriptions for network technicians to add to staffing. Ryan with ITG, reported that two drill crews will be running January and February which should be able to process 2,500 to 5,000 feet of conduit per week. In March we plan to increase that to four drill crews with an output footage of l0,000 -15,000 feet per week and are gearing up to the ultimate goal of 30,000 feet per week until November. Mike Regan, Entrust, commented that Ryan covered much of their update. Due to the weather things are a bit slower than desired but they expect to ramp up soon. Accumulative totals there are just about 30,000 miles of conduit completed. Maggie Berger, Speer Financial, commented that they are getting ready to go into another round of bonding for backbone and utility services. Mr. Van Fleet requested a budget to actual report on a quarterly basis, including change orders. Mr. Van Fleet spoke on meeting cadence and questioned if a monthly cadence might be reasonable moving forward. Maggie Burger noted that with future bonding, it may be necessary to have special meetings at the end of February and into March to cover the two-week window but otherwise monthly would work for her schedule. Mr. Van Fleet suggested regular board meetings be set for the 3rd Wednesday of each month beginning February 2024 with special meetings as needed. Mr. Kurtenbach questioned if the voiceover equipment is set for phone service. Eric Lage stated that there is minimal equipment needed for that and this should come before the board in the next few meetings for approval. Mr. Kurtenbach questioned the need for a splicing trailer. Eric Lage confirmed it is time to begin looking. Page 3 8. Adjourn. With no further business before the board, it was moved by Kurtenbach seconded by Young that the meeting be adjourned at 4:40 p.m. Voice vote-Ayes: Five. Motion carried. Nancy Higby Administrative Secretary Waterloo Telecommunications Utility dba Waterloo Fiber Public Purpose Policy Public and Utility Purpose Public Purpose: All use of funds and assets of Waterloo Fiber, including but not limited to monetary expenditures, must have a public purpose. Article III, Section 31 of the Iowa Constitution states, in part, “… no public money or property shall be appropriated for local, or private purposes….” Utility Purpose: Waterloo Fiber is the municipal communications utility of the City of Waterloo. The funds and assets of the communications utility must be used for a communications utility purpose. Public and Utility Purpose: Altogether, subject to exceptions provided by applicable law, expenditures and other use of funds and assets of the communications utility must have a public communications utility purpose. For most expenditures and other use of assets of the communications utilit y the public communications purpose will be evident. For example, routine maintenance and operating expenses of the utility. In those circumstances where the public communications purpose may not be evident to a third party, Waterloo Fiber staff shall refer the proposed expenditure or other use of the communications fund or assets to the Board of Trustees with staff’s identification of the public communications purpose. The Board shall then make a finding regarding the public utility purpose. For purposes of this policy, the following expenditures are found to serve a public utility purpose: 1. Workforce expenditures: Expenditures and meals (breakfast, lunch, dinners, dessert, cake, etc.) relating to the following events and meetings serve an important public purpose to bring about a better and more efficient service by improving personnel and morale, through the retention of faithful and experienced employees: • employee recognition events; • employee awards or recognition mementos or gifts for special or exceptional service (awards, mementos, or gifts may be nonmonetary or monetary in nature, and may include gift cards or other items of value); • employee events celebrating major life events (milestone birthdays, retirement parties, etc.); • other employee celebrations of special events which are non-routine in nature; • annual and other employee appreciation events, including annual appreciation dinner and recreational, social, and cultural activities from time to time for employees and their families, such as a summer outing, holiday/employee recognition parties, promotional/marketing items and gifts for employees and attendees, etc.; • new employee gatherings; • department meetings where the purpose is business-related; • other employee meetings where the purpose is business-related, including staff development meetings; • training events, activities, conferences, and programs, including individual and all-employee initiatives, Waterloo Fiber initiatives and third -party initiatives (including IAMU, Entrepreneurial Operating System, Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers, etc.); • conferences and trade shows; • safety events, including meetings, training, events celebrating safety, and events recognizing the importance of safety, to help keep safety on the forefront of employees’ minds at all times); • employee team building events; • membership in service clubs and community groups, including Rotary, Lions Club, Grow Cedar Valley, etc.; • employee, board member, family member or former board member funerals, including flowers. Waterloo Fiber staff shall maintain supporting documentation for all such expenditures, including receipts, and shall document the nature of the event for which the expenditure is incurred so that it will be apparent whether the expenditure falls within this policy. Staff shall implement such practice or procedure as may be necessary to comply with this policy. 2. Sponsorships and Memberships: Sponsorships and similar expenditures are a form of advertising and marketing for Waterloo Fiber. Advertising and marketing advance the purposes of the communications utility, as described in the “Advertising and Marketing” section below. Approved sponsorships include community events and organizations including but not limited to the following: • Waterloo Chamber of Commerce; • Grow Cedar Valley (including Grow Cedar Valley Golf Classic and Annual Grow Cedar Valley Celebration); • Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber; • My Waterloo Days; • Irish Fest; • Fridayloo; • school and youth sports; • the Waterloo Rotary Club; • local media (radio/print/digital) promotions of Waterloo Fiber products; • customer appreciation events; • community events sponsorship and participation, including seasonal and holiday events; • other similar community events, organizations and expenditures. Sponsorships of, and membership in the Waterloo Chamber of Commerce, Grow Cedar Valley, and also the Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber also serve another important public purpose because these organizations engage in economic development activities in the City of Waterloo. Local businesses and a vibrant economy facilitate public utility purposes of load growth, increased utility services sold, and rate stabilization. Membership in these organizations serve these public utility purposes and provides the General Manager of Waterloo Fiber a platform to support the interests of Waterloo Fiber in such matters. Waterloo Fiber staff shall maintain supporting documentation for all such expenditures, including receipts, and shall document the nature of the expenditure so that it will be apparent whether the expenditure falls within this policy. Staff shall implement such practice or procedure as may be necessary to comply with this policy. 3. Advertising and Marketing: Advertising and marketing serve an important public purpose by fostering the success, recognition and awareness of the communications utility. The communications utility operates in a competitive environment in which advertising and marketing is necessary to compete for customers and customer revenue, thereby directly relating to the operations of the communications utility. Additionally, advertising and marketing raise public awareness and recognition of the utility. This relates directly to the competitive nature of the communications utility. Advertising, marketing, and public awareness and recognition facilitate positive customer relations and serve as a reminder to customers that Waterloo Fiber is the service provider which customers can contact when they have questions or need assistance. Customer relations and customer service are important public utility purposes. Advertising and marketing efforts includes events hosted by Waterloo Fiber for “Champions”, who are community members selected by Waterloo Fiber to champion for, support, and promote the utility. Expenditures for these events may include, but are not limited to, the purchase of meals, snacks, and beverages in connection with meetings with the Champions for training and performance purposes, and marketing materials and promotional products for the Champions to pass out in the community. Advertising and marketing efforts also include open house events hosted by Waterloo Fiber where the utility invites members of the public to its facility for marketing purposes. Expenditures include meals, snacks, and beverages, and marketing and promotional products provided at the open house events. Waterloo Fiber staff shall maintain supporting documentation for all such expenditures, including receipts, and shall document the nature of the expenditure so that it will be apparent whether the expenditure falls within this policy. Staff shall implement such practice or procedure as may be necessary to comply with this policy. 4. Implementation Waterloo Fiber staff shall maintain supporting documentation for all such expenditures, including receipts, and shall document the nature of the event or expenditure so that it will be apparent whether the expenditure falls within this policy. Staff shall implement such practices or procedures as may be necessary to comply with this policy. This policy is not intended to be an exclusive list of all expenditures which serve a public purpose. For such other expenditures, Waterloo Fiber shall document the public purpose, and if there is any uncertainty regarding whether such expenditure serves a public purpose, staff shall present it to the Board for a determination. 02297234\24268-000