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Item 3B1 High Quality Water Services City Manager’s Report SKY: Thank Mayor, City Council for opportunity to present Note that time is flying – March 20 was the official first day of Spring Before we know it, summer will be upon us This means hot, and usually dry weather. It also means peak demand for water For the City, this means managing distribution For the consumer, this means higher water bills Want to start the conversation 1 City of Southlake Strategy Map Critical Business Outcomes CBO1 - Continue to implement Southlake 2030 Plan by focusing on short-term initiatives. CBO2 - Become an employer of choice by developing a plan to recruit, develop and retain employees committed to excellence. CBO3 - Develop long-term strategies to address future financial uncertainties and challenges. CBO4 - Improve mobility by proactively completing traffic analysis of key areas. CBO5 -Optimize resources through collaboration and partnerships to reduce costs and add service value. The City of Southlake provides municipal services that support the highest quality of life for our residents, businesses, and visitors. We do this by being an exemplary model of balancing efficiency, fiscal responsibility, transparency, and sustainability. Deliver on Our Focus Areas Performance Management & Service Delivery C1 Achieve the highest standards of safety & security C2 Provide travel convenience within City & region C3 Provide attractive & unique spaces for enjoyment of personal interests C4 Attract & keep top-tier businesses to drive a dynamic & sustainable economic environment C5 Promote opportunities for partnerships & volunteer involvement Serve our Customers Manage the Business B1 Achieve best-in-class status in all City disciplines B2 Collaborate with select partners to implement service solutions B3 Enhance resident quality of life & business vitality through tourism B4 Provide high quality services through sustainable business practices B5 Enhance service delivery through continual process improvement B6 Optimize use of technology Provide Financial Stewardship Promote Learning and Growth F1 Adhere to financial management principles & budget F2 Invest to provide & maintain high quality public assets F3 Achieve fiscal wellness standards F4 Establish & maintain effective internal controls L1 Ensure our people understand the strategy & how they contribute to it L2 Enhance leadership capabilities to deliver results L3 Attract, develop & retain a skilled workforce L4 Recognize & reward high performers L5 Empower informed decision-making at all levels in the organization C6 Enhance the sense of community by providing excellent customer service and citizen engagement opportunities L6 Foster positive employee engagement SKY: Providing high quality, reliable water to our community is one of our top strategic priorities Not only are we focused on infrastructure to ensure we can meet demand, we also are attentive to providing water through sustainable business practices (B4) We also work to enhance our service delivery through continual process improvement (B5) and actively seek technological solutions to help us manage our business efficiently (B6) Tonight’s brief presentation is about informing City Council and the general public about some exciting initiatives to improve the services of Southlake Water Utilities. 2 Presentation Purpose SKY: For the next few minutes we want to cover just a few topics, as shown on the screen We want to inform you of seasonal use and how that impacts our water system and the cost of water We also want to discuss some exciting changes we are making with our infrastructure, intended to empower consumers to effectively monitor their use and costs, and we’ll wrap with some general information about how Southlake businesses and residents can work together to minimize water waste in our community. 3 SKY: I want to note that we kicked off our Ready, Set, Summer! Campaign with a Town Hall Forum last Tuesday. The displays from that event are still up in the lobby, including a sink that is connected to a meter to show how running water & it’s measured use. I would invite everyone to take a look at the materials in the lobby and get to know the resources that are available. At this time, I would like to invite our Chief Financial Officer Sharen Jackson to the podium. Sharen shares management responsibility of Southlake Water Utilities with our new Public Works Director Rob Cohen. 4 Billed Water Consumption FY 2014 and FY 2015 Sharen J. Good evening Mayor and Council I’d like to visit with you briefly about water use trends, as an introduction to our discussion. This chart shows you a comparison of the water purchased from the City of Fort Worth and the water sold to City of Southlake customers. When comparing 2014 and 2015, the trends are comparable, although water consumption in June and July 2015 is lower than we experienced in 2014, in spite of having more customers. This is a reflection of the unusually heavy rainfall we experienced this Spring. As you can see from the charts, water use in Southlake spikes during the heat of the summer months, peaking in September. In 2015, gallons consumed increased 105.87% from April to September. A similar trend could be seen in 2014. The steady increase in the Spring eases into a dramatic increase in water consumption in July. 5 Residential Water Rates Sharen J: For Southlake Water Utility customers, dramatic increases in use can have a large effect on the cost of the water. Tiered rates are designed to reward customers who use less water by charging the lower rates for water used in the lower tiers. The more water a customer uses, the higher the tier(s), resulting in higher charges for water use.  During peak use (July – September) customers may move into a higher tier than their normal bills due to their consumption…this is not always a welcome surprise! The City is also charged extra during peak periods of demand. These charges, known as “peaking charges,” are applied by the City’s wholesale water provider, the City of Fort Worth, when Southlake’s system pulls large amounts of water during periods of high use (max day and max hour calculations). These charges can add up and are another compelling reason for Southlake’s water customers to help us manage consumption. 6 Unintended / Unobservable Use Sharen J. Southlake’s staff interacts with our thousands of utility customers on a regular basis. During these interactions, we sometimes are able to pinpoint water charges to unintended use. None of us want to pay for water than we aren’t making good use of! As we head into summer, increases in intended use can drive customers into higher tiers and the City into peaking charges…the last thing we want is unintended use. Sometimes a leak or other unintended usage is detected by looking at the account information. Public Works field crews can help with leak tests, working with the customer to determine if a leak exists. In Southlake, customers who have a leak and produce evidence that it has been repaired, may be eligible for a credit on their account. Southlake Utility Customer Service staff is happy to work with anyone who believes that have used more than they normally consume because of an undiscovered leak – having the leak fixed benefits the customer as well as the system. Occasionally we discover that customers have “auto fill” features on the pools which activate water use when evaporation occurs. A customer may not realize that this feature is resulting in water usage because it isn’t readily observable. Unintended use is expensive…and is sometimes undetectable as we go through our day-to-day activities. We’ve been working to find ways to help us better manage use – especially during the peak use of the summer. 7 Leaks Auto Fill Features Irrigation programming Meter Replacement Program Sharen J.: Each year, the City replaces a portion of its meters, based on age and functionality. In the next few weeks, Southlake water utility customers will notice crews working install meters that are equipped with cellular endpoints. The cellular capability of these meters provides a number of benefits to the consumer, including the ability to monitor water use real time. Customers will not only be able to see monthly, weekly, daily, or even hourly use, they will also be able to set up alerts to notify them when use exceeds control points that the customer has set. By optimizing technology with our water meters, we will be able to provide an enhanced level of service to customers who will be more fully informed. Customers will be able to quickly identify anomolies with water use, make deliberate decisions about their use, and reconcile their use with billing. The City will be working in partnership with Badger Meter to install more than 4,000 meters in the coming weeks to provide this technology and will be producing materials to communicate with residents as we work through the installation period.. 8 Residential Water Audit Kit Sharen J. There are other tools the City is making available to Southlake Water Utilities customers. Insert information here 9 W.I.S.E. Guys Program No cost irrigation system evaluation One time incentive of up to $200 for system repairs (water bill credit) Sharen J. I think many people are aware of the WISE Guys program. Launched in April 2011 – Had over 1,200 evaluations completed to date. The W.I.S.E. Guys program has been designed to increase the efficiency of a customer’s irrigation system and possibly lower the monthly water bill. Several licensed irrigators have been secured to perform a one-time evaluation of participants' irrigation systems for efficiency, free to the customer. Once an evaluation has been completed, customers may have some of the inefficiencies found in the system repaired. The City is offering a ONE-TIME incentive of up to a $200 credit on the water bill to make the repairs. This service not only helps the customer, it is also a way for the City to manage demand for water during peak periods, which is very costly. Spend about $25,000 per year (UF) providing this service. 10 Information Resources Sharen J. As we go through the summer, you will see the City and Southlake Water Utilities will provide ongoing information. Customer Service can be reached at XXXX, and are always happy to help answer questions or hear concerns. Questions? 11 Robert Cohen 817-748-8097 12 For questions concerning this item, please contact Robert Cohen at 817-748-8097. Thank you for your attention.