City of Columbia, Missouri

Meeting Minutes

Water and Light Advisory Board

701 E Broadway

Columbia, MO

Conference Room

1A/1B

Wednesday, November 12, 2025

8:00 AM

Regular

I. CALL TO ORDER

Mrs. Jennifer Coleman called the meeting to order at 8:04 a.m.

Staff: Erin Keys, Utilities Director; Sarah Talbert, Assistant Director Utilities-Rates

and Fiscal Planning; Gwen Corches, Assistant Director Utilities-Electric; Maggie

Jones, Engineering Supervisor-Water; Ron Wyble, Power Supply Manager; David

Storvick, Engineering Manager-Electric; Eric Worts, Engineering Supervisor-Electric;

Matthew Everts, Water Production Manager; Todd McVicker, Utility Services

Manager; Jason West, Communication and Outreach Supervisor; Matt Nestor,

Public Information Specialist; Aubrey Turner, Public Information Specialist; Earl

Kraus, Assistant City Counselor; Leslie Nguyen, Fellow from Federal Department of

Energy; Christina Weaver, Administrative Technician II

Mike Murphy, CoMo Buzz; Jim Windsor, Public; Betsy Peters, City Council; Laura

Wagnor, Public

4 - Thomas Jensen, David Switzer, Philip Fracica and Jennifer Coleman

1 - Ryan Westwood

Present:

Absent:

II. INTRODUCTIONS

A round robin was done for introductions.

III. APPROVAL OF AGENDA

Mr. David Switzer made a motion to approve the agenda as submitted with a

second by Mr. Phillip Fracica. Motion passed unanimously.

IV. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

The October 8, 2025 meeting minutes and October 29, 2025 public input meeting

minutes were approved as submitted with a motion by Mr. David Switzer and a

second by Mr. Phillip Fracica. Motion passed unanimously

Attachments: Meeting Minutes Draft 10 08 25

Meeting Minutes Draft 10 29 25

V. FINANCIAL REPORTS (as available)

a) Due to an illness in the department, the financial reports were not available.

VI. DIRECTOR'S REPORTS

a) Review Water Irrigation Ordinance

Mrs. Jennifer Coleman led a discussion and review of the water irrigation ordinance

draft. The board and staff reviewed the draft ordinance point by point, asked

clarifying questions, and made adjustments. Mr. David Switzer mentioned the

concern that was expressed by the public regarding the irrigation of City-owned land

and golf courses. Mrs. Erin Keys will get clarification from Parks and Recreation

regarding their watering practices. Mrs. Jennifer Coleman recommended increasing

the fine for violating the ordinance.

Attachments: Irrigation Ordinance - DRAFT

b) Transmission Line Cost Estimate

Mrs. Erin Keys provided the cost estimates for the transmission line. The Chapel Hill

Route assumes 11 months of construction and has an estimated total of $43,056,144.

The Vawter School Route assumes 8 months of construction and has an estimated

total of $29,987,013. The remaining bond authority is $29,885,000. The Vawter

School Route goes from Chapel Hill Rd down Scott Blvd then across Vawter School,

Grindstone to the Grindstone Substation. The Chapel Hill Route goes down Chapel

Hill through backyards across Forum and the existing69kV route. This does not

include a substation at Mill Creek. To make the transmission line underground, the

totals would increase by 3-5 times the estimate provided. This cost estimate was

provided to the board to allow them the opportunity to review it before it goes to City

Council.

c) Purchase Power Agreement Review

Mrs. Erin Keys presented 3 solar proposals in MISO Zone 5. They all score similarly

in metrics. Two proposals connect to substations in MISO Zone 5; one is 20

megawatts and the other is 40 megawatts. The third proposal is for 140 megawatts

and would connect directly to Bolstad, and it’s a surplus generation proposal. All

three proposals are in the 62-72 dollars per megawatt hour range. The impact on

annual operating expenses would range from 2-12%, with the largest proposal being

on the higher end of the impact. The contract length for the 20 and 40 megawatt

proposals is 8-12 years and the 140 megawatt proposal is a 20 year contract. After

discussing the proposals, Mrs. Jennifer Coleman stated the board is not in favor of

moving forward with this project based on the financials; if Council is insistent on a

project, then the project that would put the least amount of risk on the utility would be

the 20 megawatt, 8-12 year contract.

Attachments: PPA Review

d) Monthly Power Cost Adjustment (PCA) Report

Due to time constraints, this agenda item has been pushed to the next meeting date.

Attachments: PCA Board Report - September 2025

e) Quarterly Utility Disconnection Update

Due to time constraints, this agenda item has been pushed to the next meeting date.

Attachments: Pending disconnects for WLAB

f) 3rd Quarter Renewable Energy Report

Due to time constraints, this agenda item has been pushed to the next meeting date.

Attachments: 3rd Quarter Renewable Report

g) 4th Quarter CIP Progress Report

Due to time constraints, this agenda item has been pushed to the next meeting date.

Attachments: 4th Quarter Electric CIP Report

4th Quarter Water CIP Report

h) 2018 Water Ballot Project Quarterly Update

Mr. Matthew Everts explained that at the Water Treatment Plant, Train 3 and Train 4

are in operation, a 24” mag meter is installed, the chemical building’s floors and walls

are epoxy coated, the operation building’s electrical panel is installed, and filters 7 and

8 underdrains are installed and grouted. Basin 1 demo is scheduled for the second

week of November. Additional items currently in progress are: the chemical building’s

HVAC, mechanical, plumbing, and duct work, as well as admin building updates.

Photos of the progress were provided.

Mrs. Maggie Jones informed the board that West Ash Pump Station’s mobilization

began October 20, 2025. Demolition for the new transformer and generator, and

demolition of monorail and exterior doors are currently in progress. The Southeast

Pump, Southwest Water Tower, and Well Platforms are on hold until funding can be

allocated.

Attachments: Water Bond Proj Status 2025-11-05

i) Council Item Update

Mrs. Sarah Talbert stated that there wasn’t much for the Council item updates, and

there are no items for the October 20 or November 3 meetings.

Attachments: Council Item Updates - October 2025

j) APPA Training

Mrs. Sarah Talbert announced that the APPA training will be held virtually in City

Hall’s Conference Room 1A/1B on December 16 from 1:00-4:30 p.m.

VII. CHAIRMANS' REPORTS

a) Public Input Meeting Follow-Up

Due to time constraints, this agenda item has been pushed to the next meeting date.

b) Advisory Board Report to Council

Due to time constraints, this agenda item has been pushed to the next meeting date.

Attachments: WLAB_FY2025_Annual_Report

c) WLAB 2025/2026 Goals

Due to time constraints, this agenda item has been pushed to the next meeting date.

Attachments: WLAB Goals

d) Rolling Calendar

Due to time constraints, this agenda item has been pushed to the next meeting date.

Attachments: WL Rolling Agenda November

VIII. PUBLIC EMAIL COMMENTS

Mrs. Sarah Talbert stated that many of the points from John Conway’s email are

addressed in the meeting agenda and packet attachments. Caroline Amparan’s email

regarding the irrigation ordinance was addressed while the board discussed the

irrigation ordinance draft. Howard Fenster’s email was submitted too close to the

public input meeting to be addressed at the meeting.

Attachments: Comments for this evening_s public input - Fenster

WLAB Public Input Meeting on Oct - Amparan

WLABPublic_ Public Input Meeting - Conway

IX. GENERAL COMMENTS BY PUBLIC, MEMBERS AND STAFF

Mr. Jim Windsor stated that the original transmission line route was passed by

Council in July of 2013, and many people who turned out for it were Boone Electric

customers. He hopes the board clearly states the need for this to move forward. On

the Chapel Hill route, there’s a distribution line that has to be addressed before

anything can be done for the transmission line. According to his memory, the

University of Missouri had wanted to bring power in from the outside and partner up

to Hinkson-Creek, but they decided to build a substation instead. Additionally, he

asked who said the community wants renewable energy. If you look at the results of

the survey, the community wants reliability and affordability. The question on the

survey that asked if they 100% support renewable energy is a leading question; he

would love 100% renewable energy, but he understands the difference between

capacity and energy. There are better ways to spend money that will decrease climate

impact; smart meters would have more of an impact because you could send price

signals that say ‘don’t use at this time’ or ‘reduce your usage.’ You also have to

address the capacity and transmission issues, so there are better ways to spend

money. Just say no to data centers. The job creation per megawatt is almost

nonexistent and we would be putting our system at risk for almost no jobs. The

general administration fee puts the burden on utilities, and he hopes that the board

starts looking at some of these in more detail as a part of their fiduciary responsibility

to rate payers.

Mrs. Erin Keys introduced Matthew Everts, the new Water Production Manager, and

Gwen Corches, the new Assistant Director of Electric Utilities.

Mr. David Switzer inquired about what the board needs to do with the email

comments they receive and whether the board needs to respond to them via email or

in person. The board will discuss how they wish to handle public email comments at a

later date when all members of the board are present.

X. NEXT MEETING DATE

December 10, 2025

The meeting adjourned at 10:39 a.m. on a motion by Mr. David Switzer and a

second by Mr. Phillip Fracica. Motion passed unanimously.

XI. ADJOURNMENT

To submit questions or comments to the Water & Light Advisory Board, please email

wlabpublic@como.gov.

All media inquiries should be submitted to Matt Nestor at Matthew.Nestor@como.gov or Jason West at

Jason.West@como.gov.

Members of the public may attend any open meeting. For requests for accommodations related to

disability, please call 573.874.CITY (2489) or email CITY@CoMo.gov. In order to assist staff in making

the appropriate arrangements for your accommodation, please make your request as far in advance of

the posted meeting date as possible.

USB DRIVES PROHIBITED: A speaker who desires to display a presentation must upload the

presentation, in advance, to the city network using an upload portal. To upload your files and learn

more, visit CoMo.gov/upload.