Matthew Zelinski, Deering

Let me clarify for the readers some of Ms. Hendrickson’s comments from her Letter to the Editor on Saturday 01Apr2023.

She incorrectly stated that the decisions at North Prairie Rural Water District are concentrated into a select few hands. First, the district’s name is not North Prairie Rural; it is North Prairie REGIONAL. It is named that way because the district encompasses approximately 4800 square miles. Second, the North Dakota Century Code; Chapter 61-35-12, Items 1 through 24, along with NPRWD By-Laws spell out the powers and duties of the board of directors. Something she is now a member of!

She continued, over the past few years, these individuals have used our money to build nothing less than a water empire.

Projects cannot be done in a couple of years. For instance, the Deering, Surrey, Granville project was first conceptualized in 2004 when a feasible study was initiated. It wasn’t until the fall of 2016 that water flowed through the pipes to some of the first customs on that project.

All other projects have had similar timelines, some maybe a little less. The projects that have been done have enabled North Prairie Regional the ability to upgrade existing parts of the system and add new members by utilizing grant money and low interest loans. A lot of the small cities — Anamoose, Benedict, Carpio, Deering, Des Lacs, Norwich, and Ruthville — whose water systems were on the verge of condemnation by the State either for lead service pipes or arsenic contaminated wells are served by North Prairie Regional. I truly believe that it has mattered to the residents of those cities and the folks in the surrounding areas of those cities. We also sell water in bulk to Surrey, Max, Granville, Norwich, Ryder, Plaza, and Sawyer because they too had water supply issues.

The whole reason water districts exist in the state of North Dakota is to provide safe drinking water to people in rural areas who do not have access to a municipal water system or a potable water well. The subdivisions that lay outside of the Minot city limits would not exist if it was not for North Prairie Regional Water District, PERIOD. It was the people from the rural areas that allowed North Prairie Regional Water District Board to serve those subdivisions.

She states that the members are getting hosed.

Everyone who is served by North Prairie Regional signed a contract that explains to them the cost of being served water. It is the base rate that not only pays for the loan but for operation, maintenance and replacement for the future. The $65.00 base rate came from the users of North Central Regional Water District when we merged. The $54.00 base rate is for the original users of North Prairie. As of the 5/1/20 merger, all new services and ownership changes are at $65.00.

All rate increases that have occurred over the years have been based on increased expenses. The board tries not to raise the base rate, but put the increase on the water rate, so that those who are using the water are paying for it, not the person that is on a fixed income. This year, the board increased the water rate $.25 per 1000 gallons. What does this mean? It means the average user will pay approximately $.75 more on their monthly water bill — a total of $9.00 per year.

Ms. Hendrickson further stated that the rate increases are being used to stockpile money for repairs that are decades in the future, rather than pay down today’s debt.

That couldn’t be further from the truth. It costs $35,000 to $40,000 to put a mile of 2-inch pipe in the ground. Part of North Prairie’s water system is over 50 years old, and we have 250 miles of old pipe that needs replacement. Do the math. There is no such thing as stockpiling money. We have 25 pump stations of which 6 of them need to be updated and brought into the 21st Century. In 2010, to redo a pump station it cost $375,000. Today, the cost to do the same thing is $775,000.

The Mountrail project has been done in phases 1, 2, 3. It takes all phases to make the project viable. More importantly we now have a 3rd water source. We are always looking to the future of North Prairie, as we want to ensure that future generations will have a safe, reliable, water source.

Let’s get back to her statement on paying down debt. In the bonding process you cannot pay more than the scheduled payment as investors have put up their money when buying bonds and they want a return on their investment. So, as you can see it’s not that simple. Our USDA loans provide us with 1926B Protection. This is crucial to the survival of the district.

Now there is the requirement for loan reserves, which are dictated by the government. There is an emergency reserve, which can be used but must be replaced. Then there is debt reserve where we are required to have 1 year’s loan payment in the bank. And last but not least, payment reserve where we set aside monthly for 1 to 2 times a year loan payments.

The $.25 per 1000 gallons is a 2.6% increase compared to the national inflation rate of 6.8%. The board could have opted to increase it to 6.8% but that was not an option in the eyes of the board. Cost of pipe, parts, meters etc. have increased by 30 to 40%. Without growth and strategic planning from the board North Prairie would not exist.

She states these are average people with no particular qualifications.

My qualifications came from a family-owned contracting business installing water, sewer lines and sewer systems, which I was actively involved with growing up. I managed $75 million worth of vehicles and equipment while supervising over 200 men, women and civilians during my 24 years of service in the United State Air Force.

Owning my own successful construction company after retirement from the military. I also served my community by serving on the Deering volunteer fire department, Glenburn ambulance squad, and Deering Fire department Board of Directors. I served the past 12 years, 11 of those as Chairman, of the McHenry County Planning and Zoning Board. My fellow board members come from many walks of life, from owning their own business, to bankers, marketing, HR, customer relations, rancher/dragline operator and domestic engineer.

Ms. Hendrickson stated that the board is not providing the financial oversight that it should. I disagree, in 2020 the board refinanced $12,570,000 of our highest interest rate loans by bonding and saved the members of the district $1,500,000. In interest.

Folks, as you can see, there are always two sides to a story. It is very sad that Ms. Hendrickson did not bring her allegations or concerns to be addressed by the board.