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Council hears resolution to appoint new water and hydroelectric director; staff proposes tap, meter fee and code updates
Summary
A resolution to appoint Rainer Hirschotte as Director of Water and Hydroelectric Services was introduced and staff presented fee updates to tap and meter schedules and periodic code corrections for wastewater sections; start date for the candidate was announced and fee changes remove city sale of backflow assemblies and mechanical meter listings.
City staff introduced a resolution seeking to appoint Rainer Hirschotte as Director of Water and Hydroelectric Services and presented an annual update to tap and meter fees and related code revisions during the Oct. 20 PIES Committee meeting.
"This resolution seeks to point Rainer Hirschotte to the position of Director of Water and Hydroelectric Services," said Chris Averett, who presented the item. Averett said Hirschotte served in the U.S. Marine Corps and spent the last seven years in a public-works leadership role with the city of Austin; Averett said Hirschotte is scheduled to start Dec. 15.
Averett also reviewed the annual update to water tap and meter fees. He said the update reflects current labor and material rates and includes two notable changes: removal of the city's sale of backflow assemblies and removal of mechanical meters from the fee schedule because the city has moved to smart-meter technology. "Historically, these were inventoried by the cities to provide to contractors... Since then there's been standardized list developed and so as part of the last water regulations update, we've just started referencing a list that they can purchase directly," Averett said. He added that backflow assemblies will still be inspected by the city.
Averett said the tap and meter fee changes will be incorporated into Section 13.04 of the Spokane Municipal Code. He also reported a periodic review of SMC sections 13.03 and 13.05 for wastewater that corrected department names and any discrepancies with the Sewer Installation Handbook.
No formal vote or final action on the appointment or code changes was recorded in the excerpt provided; Averett said staff were available to answer questions.
