Contributed Ideas

A great deal of Fleet Services work is farmed out to vendors in the community. So, it appears that there is more fleet type work than can be done by the present personnel OR the work can be done cheaper outside. We need to decide if we want to continue to do our own work or downsize/eliminate the department. There is a case to be made for both routes. If the current model is more expensive than farming the work out with all of the union and management employees and associated infrastructure, then we should farm it out. If on the other hand our current model is cost effective, we should hire more personnel and do the job properly. This would require proper facilities. Show More

A warehouse facility is needed at Chelan Hydro to keep track of spare parts necessary for the reliability of the generations.

Add a second gantry crane to Rocky Reach intake deck. There is no reliable contingency plan to install head gates at Rocky Reach Dam. If the exiting crane were to break down, the 240 ton crane may be able to pull gates and dog them off in the gate slot that they are in at that time, but there is no way to move them to another unit. Show More

Add opportunities to do community work while getting paid by the PUD. Serving places like the YWCA, Habitat for Humanity, or volunteering at hospitals, etc. adds value where we live.

An apprenticeship program would be nice at Fleet Services. It gives the opportunity to new technicians to learn a trade in the workplace.

Apprentice program for hydro mechanics, wiremen, and operators.

As a home owner and customer of our local PUD, I would love it if the additional revenue could be used to create training. This would produce candidates locally to fill positions that provide a living wage by the PUD. From what I hear, it sounds like there are jobs available, but we don't have qualified people to fill these positions. Bottom line for me is can we find a way to use the revenue to provide employment for residents in our community? Show More

Be proactive and do forward planning for resource levels at the hydros. Currently we are not prepared for work load if everyone that's eligible to retire were to retire.

Better training of systems used within the PUD: Maximo, GIS, CIS. Basic training on electric systems would also be beneficial to many employees.

Build a large parking garage for heavy equipment at Rocky Reach Dam.

Build a new distribution warehouse and fleet building in Sunnyslope. Access to all headquarters would be enhanced.

Build a new warehouse/tool room at Central Maintenance complete with loading dock to off load and load trucks.

Build a parking garage at Rock Island for crew vehicles.

Build a Pump & Hose storage building and repair shop to better keep track of pumps and keep them reliable.

Construct a proper repair shop at Rock Island Dam.

Continue to provide a positive work environment and benefits that allow employees to raise a family in our valley.

Create a simple PUD employee smart phone app listing district internal phone numbers, alerts, etc..

Create new line department and mechanic shop facilities to improve efficiency & safety. Growth over many years makes this necessary and overdue. Wait longer and it just gets more expensive. Time to bite the bullet.

Decreasing Health Care Benefits for all PUD employees in order to avoid paying $300,000 Cadillac tax is only hurting the employees. Projected net revenues are over $100 million. Do you really value PUD employees so little? Show More

Demolish F&W, service building, tech shop, and possibly fleet. Construct a green site with underground parking, and build a large building in that area. This maintains our public “face” for billing, etc. The biggest issue I see with this, is it may be difficult to “let go” of the HQ building in this case, and I can see us with the same modernization struggles. The next site is the large empty fields on both sides of the CTC. Extremely large area, room for truck traffic to make deliveries, good access to the loop trail, and close proximity to RR, CTC, Hawley St. and Odabashian bridge. Show More

Develop an application for customer-owners to download all pud forms/standards for electric, water/wastewater, and fiber installations. This would help homeowners & contractors during construction so they can have requirements in "the field" as they install.

Develop an asset management program.

Develop cross-training programs for PUD employees to become apprentices.

District could start a "district recycling center similar to Avista. (Recycling left over parts/pieces and re-using or putting back into inventory whatever possible.) Example might be a bucket or used bolts left from a job. Rather than toss, take to recycling where they can be refurbished and placed back into inventory. Show More

Do not raise the cost of health care benefits.

Education programs that will train people for the jobs that are in demand.

Employees work in old, dirty, outdated conditions. Please update equipment, bathrooms, ask employees to wipe down work areas on a regular basis. No more dirty dishes left in restrooms!

Encourage change and forward thinking. PUD is like stepping back in time. Employees don't like change and are afraid to ask for newer technology and more efficient ways of doing things.

Ensure that our most valuable assets are kept in top working condition. The district has 33 hydro generators (19 at RI, 11 at RR, 2 at Chelan Falls, and 1 at Stehekin) with an expected life of 40 years each. These units bring in the majority of the revenue for the district, so look at the age of the generators, rehab one unit a year to endure that our main revenue source and generation reliability is kept intact. After 33 years it will be time to start rehab all over again on the first unit - keep the most valuable assets in top working condition. Show More

Expand current energy conservation programs.

Finish painting the Chelan warehouse by completing the ceiling. Everything looks great except the ceiling looks terrible.

Finish the Pole Yard Project by completing the pole building for storage of all the vehicles during winter. Add power to the building so everything can be plugged in and kept clean and dry.

Fleet Services shop is too small for our employees and vehicles. Need more room for shop. Tools needed. We work outside a lot because shop is full. We are limited on space to put new tools that are needed. Show More

Focus on maintaining current infrastructure, hydro's, transmission, distribution. Without those assets, we have nothing.

Focus on staff. Appropriate size of work force (all areas seriously under-staffed) and succession management in particular. We talk about them but do not do much about it. Show More

Get rid of the self insured L&I and go to a system that treats employees with respect. The working classes do not like this system. This is bad for employee morale!

Help people retire earlier by adding part time jobs and a pre-pay insurance program. Add additional time/age so employees can retire and more young people with families can work here.

Hire 1 comm. engineer and 1 mtr/rely engineer to help with technician work load, especially to deal with last minute assignments.

Hire and train a planner/scheduler that would help the 3 foremen with maximo, cip/wecc, etc. The planner should be a technician and equally compensated, including over time. If not, nobody would want the job.

Hire more technicians to better handle ever increasing workloads and requirements as well as improve internal customer service and morale. This need has gone unmet in recent years and is causing mounting frustration. More hands on deck in this department creates big value added for the whole PUD.

Hire one more recruiter. One cannot keep up with demands and provide great customer service with a friendly attitude.

Hire WECC/compliance engineers at hydros. The plant engineers cannot support day-to-day walk-in and project work and still effectively handle WECC stuff.

How could WVC partner with the PUD to provide a pool of prospective qualified technical employees?

I propose the primary work force could include people with disabilities and special needs. This would go a long way to help these folks with regular and meaningful employment. Avista has a few employees who manage and direct the special work force and have a forklift operator to move heavy items. Win/win. Show More

I think the #1 priority should be to catch-up with maintenance of major District assets that has been deferred over the past two years due to unexpected events.

I think the PUD should take a serious look into its long-term infrastructure. I think getting all of the employees possible under one roof would be a huge improvement. Our current HQ building was built somewhere around 1955 (one year before Rocky Reach ph1 construction started) – roughly 65 years ago, and many of our employees are spread across the county in tertiary locations (CTC, F&W, Hawley st, etc.). Obviously we can’t move everyone, but all of fiber, finance, IT, operations, transmission, etc. could be. We could have faster collaboration, easier access for meetings, a more unified “presence” to our customers, and many other improvements. This would also get us out of the troublesome CTC datacenter and into one we control completely (e.g., Reach datacenter). The HQ building is very “franken-esque” right now, lots of ‘let’s make this work’ rather than ‘let’s do this right’ fixes; many times the ‘do it right’ fix is not possible in our building. A green site could bring huge improvements in Workplace Safety, HVAC, IT infrastructure, Carbon Footprint/green initiatives, Meeting Room technology, productive workspaces, and our public image. At some point we have to look at this, HQ won’t last forever—and it seems like we do a lot to try and fit the 21st century into our 20th century workplace. Another thought on this, to help illustrate my point—an example of potential. Wenatchee Valley College built a new building “Wenatchee Hall” in in ’05-’07. It is a 80,000 gross sq. ft. building, with 3 stories and a basement. Obviously it’s not set up as an office space, but in my mind it’s something roughly comparable to what we might need. In the basement is a large datacenter, and each floor has a small datacenter closet on it. All of the classrooms have complex A/V setups, security, and telepresence setups, not cheap by any means! They built and furnished this building for just under $25 million. They built the smaller 27,000 gross sq ft MAC building in late 2012 for $9.5 million. These numbers sound high to a regular Joe, but comparing the cost to the fiber build out, or some of our other capital projects, I don’t think it’s outside the realm of possibility by any means for a building we could get upwards of 70 years of use out of. I don’t know how large projects like this work but financed over say 30 years this could be very affordable. Show More

I would be interested in more training on new vehicles and new tools to repair all of the new equipment.

I would like to see faster restoration of power in Leavenworth. Currently they have one truck and they must call for back up once they get to the location. What can be done to get more service and faster restoration?

I would like to see money invested into our aging buildings. These buildings and properties are the public’s, and they are starting to appear "ratty" and generally not up to standards of any public entity.

I would love to see a new facility for Distribution line crews and Wenatchee Warehouse crews. The existing faculty is always bordering on being unsafe with so many vehicles, people, and freight deliveries coming and going in such a small area. In addition there are fiber crews, parks, fish and wildlife crews and fleet personnel picking up materials with vehicles and equipment being served and replaced here. Very, very tight quarters. Show More

If the PUD ever decides to dispose of its Leavenworth service center, the City would be very interested in acquiring the property.

Implement a thorough and robust asset management standard and plan across the District. I realize an effort is underway to develop a plan, but this plan must become the foundation for our future financial and potentially workforce planning. The asset plan will identify future capital and maintenance work on the District’s assets and this information can then be used to prioritize the work (assuming a prioritization tool is in place) into the future. Although I cannot speak on the current state of our assets, there were too many years when we deferred maintenance and improvements to a point that the costs of doing so rose each year as the assets fell into further disrepair. The longer we wait the more it will cost. It may be necessary to reassign work or to hire staff to implement the asset management plan, but there must be a focus on this effort and simply adding this responsibility to current staff will result in a less than desired outcome. Show More

Improve the load capacity of the electrical infrastructure serving Front Street lighting and snow-making equipment.

In a budget surplus scenario, I would like to think the first (and most important) thing we take care of is ourselves. We should set up some sort of trust fund – and “live off” the interest. We need to have a significant nest egg established that can ride us through a future budget deficit scenario. Discipline and aggressive policies can keep our hands out of the principal to ensure the PUD is here in another 50 years. I am happy to the see the fruits of our 5 year plan, and our slice contracts, but this wouldn’t (shouldn’t) change any of that. I want the PUD to be a part of this valley in the future for my kids. Show More

Incorporate health improvements in all PUD policies to promote health and safety.

Increase and maintain a high qulaity training budget for technicians so they can maintain the expert knowledge and tools they need to do an excellent job. This is particularly important because as technical equipment is rapidly changing, consistent learning is needed to keep up.

Increase apprenticeships and skill development in our human assets.

Install elevators in place of spiral staircases at Rocky Reach Dam.

Install underground utilities

Institute mandatory pay increases for professional certifications.

Invest heavily in increased energy efficiency of buildings, houses, appliances, lighting, etc.

Invest in employee training to give opportunities to individuals who are interested in learning new skills and advancing their careers. Internal development enhances moral and builds careers.

Invest in employees. Support employees by keeping health care benefits the same as now even if that means the District pays the Cadillac tax. Employees work for the District due to the great benefits. If you want to keep getting great employees, the benefits need to be great.

Invest in our own small towns. Help the budgets of the small towns that struggle so that we all can start and stand on a positive note. Help take some of the weight off the city so that it can move forward which helps us all more forward.

Invest wisely to make sure our hard earned dollars continue working for us. When investing, whether in existing or new infrastructure, always ask the question "Is this needed or would this be nice?” If the District wants to remain financially solid then we need to ask that question and others such as "what is the return on investment?" "What are the costs/risks associated with this?" "Will this investment become a benefit to a large number of customer/owners or a select few?" "Is this within the scope of our authority as a Public Utility within the State of Washington?" "Is this mandated in order to remain in compliance with a higher authority?" Show More

It appears that reducing the rather sizable debt is a PUD priority, and my comment would be to maintain that priority, especially given the potential risks you mentioned at the meeting.

It would be nice to have a back up generator for the East Bank Hatchery for when they lose power.

Keep jobs in the valley, and do in house training.

Keep our benefits. Don't raise premiums.

know capacity planning is in our plan, and something we are looking closely at, but we may not be moving fast enough in this regard. In some technical fields the “spin up” time is so long, we may not have time to replace knowledge that is leaving the district with retirees, even if we hired someone today. Without pointing fingers there are some departments where the average age seems in the 50+ range; to me that does not seems like a healthy model for knowledge retention. Some departments metrics for FTE’s are much different than others, and can be difficult (if not impossible) to justify new positions. It is frustrating to see some departments add multiple new FTE’s, and see others struggling to get everything done. Show More

Lack of parking at the fleet shop causes us to shuttle vehicles around or park them inside our workspace. This hampers our ability to work efficiently.

Live a safe, healthy, and happy life. The district works on employee safety and health but, there is a lot of room for growth in sustaining a happy workforce. Job shadowing in a different department for a few days to give us all a better idea of what others do may be one way to give us a better appreciation/perspective on our own position. Have an accounting analyst job shadow a CM Superintendent and vice versa. Show More

Maintain an apprenticeship program at C.M.

Make energy grid enhancements.

Merit increases should be for just that—a job well done. A separate pool of money—outside of the department’s pool – should be used to help move staff to their midpoint or conversely for exemplary performance. In addition, smaller departments have less flexibility to make adjustments so a District-wide pool provides greater potential for equity in salary increases across the District. Also, hire experienced staff in at or above the midpoint to avoid this need to catch-up and use the salary limits as the incentive to perform. It is my opinion that the District has not gotten back to the intent of the compensation system that was envisioned a number of years ago when professional staff had the ability to grow their salaries up to 115 or 120% of their midpoint. This was intended to keep professional staff in those critical roles. Instead there appears to be an effort to get and keep employees around the mid-point and those efforts to get employees to the mid-point may be at the expense of those above the mid-point. Show More

Mimic the CM shop at RI, using the same equipment. Meet with CM employees to get their input rather than telling them what the plan is.

More effort should be made in reducing wasted energy and PUD resources: turning off lights, computers, vehicles, sharing resources and surplus items. Recycling.

Move the warehouse and line crews to a new building in Olds Station.

My previous employer had a program called People To People. At the beginning of each year all employees received vouchers to give to another employee for a good deed. These vouchers were then redeemed for a gift card of there choice. They used $50.00 gift cards and each employee could hand out 4. They were only good for the calendar year and it was handled through an online service. This was a great morale booster for employees. Show More

Offer employees a chance at a different jobs, training people hands on, in house (for example I always wanted to assist the biologists with their surveys, nests, etc. in the field). Otherwise we are left with no opportunity for change or growth unless hired, retired, or dead.

Offer employees with 30 plus years an early out. This will help more frequently re-evaluate the positions as well as attract new blood, ideas and energy.

Our Fleet Service shop is long overdue for an upgrade or replacement rather: 11 mechanics in an 8 bay shop. Multiple projects apart at one time. We need more space. Parking outside of the shop has always been an issue as well.

Our obligations to the CTC are a common hurdle I hear about this. I don’t know the specifics of our obligations to the port, but we could work with them to create an exit strategy to slowly close our space, and transition to the new building. Giving the port time to find new tenants.

Our staffing in Fleet services is insufficient to meet all of the "top priority" demands. This causes all of our internal customers to have to do without the equipment they need to do their jobs in a timely manner.

Pay down our debt. The district has a good plan in place to pay down its debt and should continue with this plan.

Please consider a parking garage or something like that for the new building.

Please consider combining the Wenatchee area facilities. It is inefficient to have our department split between multiple buildings.

Please keep our health benefits intact and don't raise our premiums.

Please maintain our current health benefits package and do not increase our costs due to the possibility of Obamacare Cadillac Taxes. I personally feel we need to maintain our benefits package to retain employees and for recruiting future employees. Show More

Professional licenses required for all managers. Professional license/cert. relevant to what they're managing.

Promote within. Take the time to invest in our current employees—employees that have proven to be capable, talented and skillful. Give our employees the opportunity to advance. Look internally and quit hiring outside when we have so many deserving employees. All jobs should be advertised and offered internally before there are advertised externally. Show More

Provide amplified phone or radio talkgroup to address trespassers or river rafters going over the river's left Dam (due to recent trespassing incidents).

Provide better break areas for employees. E.g., benches and tables that are not dedicated for smoking.

Provide better customer service within the PUD.

Provide opportunities for PUD employees to sit in on meetings they would not be normally invited to. It would be an opportunity for enrichment and broadening horizons of the individual, making a more well-rounded employee.

Provide redundant electrical service feeds for the downtown business district to minimize the duration of outages.

Put a wage freeze on all employee's making over $125,000. Only fund retirement the same way. Only up to $125,000. The working person is also deserving.

Put some money aside for a "Rainy Day”. The district has a good plan in place for cash reserves and should continue with this plan.

Recent raises have been extremely poor and most positions are paid less that other utility counterparts. (I refer in particular to PUD staff in the "engine room" of the PUD.) Without a solid work force the PUD ship will not sail smoothly.

Reinvest in employees. Leave health care benefits as is. Integrated utility.

Relocate overhead electrical facilities in business district alleys to make them aesthetically pleasing.

Relocate overhead electrical lines to underground and absorb the associated costs.

Remodel and improvement the Rocky Reach museum. People come from all over to see our Hydro facilities and the museum has not been updated since it was built in the 20's. I think reinvesting in the asset could bring many more people to Rocky Reach and Wenatchee.

Repair and make sidewalks.

Replace windows on the HQ 3rd floor building. It is very hot (even w/ the HVAC running). A lot of energy goes "out the windows" due to the age/lack of insulation of the current windows.

Require jobs to be offered internally before being offered externally. Give strong preference to internal candidates.

Retrofit street lights and signal lights with LED lighting.

Start up a recycling program within the PUD. Gerald's should only use plates, utensils and to-go containers that are green-earth friendly. Mailroom could cut back on magazines. (Get them electronically, keeping subscriptions current with no waste.)

Stop wasting time and money looking for an HR Director and just promote from within.

System Reliability should remain the #1 focus. Without it, other issues become secondary. Includes dam structural, generation and transmission.

The day crew will leave disabled vehicles so when the afternoon crew comes to work sometimes there is no room to work inside the shop.

the District could increase the grant money we provide to the Community Action Council each year to support weatherization for low income households. I understand the amount we provide annually ($65,000) has not increased for a number of years. This again would be a way to provide a benefit of the expected financial position to those that may not otherwise benefit directly from the other efforts being considered. Show More

The District has several major businesses. I believe that surplus sales should support all of the businesses not related to the Hydro Projects. Surplus sales should be used to help pay down debt for Distribution System, Transmission infrastructure, Water system, Waste Water system, and Fiber infrastructure. Show More

The district needs to take a good look at the HR department. Unfortunately the human has been taken out of the resources area. Employees have been told they don't have time to assist you with their job specific area since they are overly busy. It seems that if you take on more job responsibilities you should still be held accountable to do your job. Lack of helpfulness has been apparent for some time. I come from a company where the HR department was the backbone—and in this organization, people avoid even using the department. Mid-point salary range is a problem. They are not understood, and employees who go above and beyond are compensated for a job well done. This whole system needs to be looked at from an outside source and revised. A good example too is the training that HR did for employees (similar to OUCH). Trainers would not show up or would come in late complaining that Wenatchee drivers did not know how to drive. Really? In OUCH training? Some of our employees drove from different locations to make sure they were there on time, but the HR trainers did not. This is a good example of why in outlying areas employees believe the HQ office has a less than caring attitude. We are told change is good right? Then let's start changing at the source of the issues. Show More

The District should consider increasing the discount to low-income and senior customers beyond the monthly charge and provide discounts on usage as well or in lieu of the current discount. This would be a way of ensuring these customers truly share in the benefit we hope to receive. The District is considering numerous actions to benefit the county, but these areas may or may not provide benefits to our low-income senior and disabled customers. I doubt these approximately 1500 -2000 customers will benefit much from the other areas under consideration. Show More

The Grange pushed for Public Utilities many years ago because investor owned utilities would charge the full cost of line extensions and higher rates to farmers. I believe that it would be appropriate for the District to pay a portion of any line extensions and not have the customer pay full price. I do not know what the appropriate percentage should be. Show More

The HQ building is showing its age and parking there is sketchy at best. One building for employees at CTC, Hawley, F&W and the rest of the HQ complex would make meetings more efficient, communication better and provide a tighter-knit team atmosphere.

The PUD should renew it's commitment to have an organization that reflects its community through a vigorous affirmative action plan. We should not accept a 4% minority workforce. We should engage creatively in recruitments and retention activity.

Underground overhead electrical lines where aesthetics are a consideration.

Update Hawley Warehouse with running water and a restroom. Also add a mezzanine for additional storage of materials.

Update the employee Above and Beyond program. I think an employee would be much more receptive to something like a gift card (maybe a choice of Amazon, Starbucks and Target or something like that). We could even keep it local with something like “dinner and a movie date for 2”, or a variety pack of Mike’s Meats, or a flower delivery from a local company. Possibly have a program to add PL hours or roll directly into deferred comp. If nothing else, a prepaid visa for $x would be useful. Show More

Upgrade older electrical infrastructure to improve service reliability.

Upgrade the facilities. The building is dark, dirty and old.

Use funds to create a "PUD Fire Response Team" This team would take volunteers from across the district to respond and assist with fires near key resources. Currently the district uses untrained linemen to fight pole fires using an ill equipped truck. The new program would actually train the crews to a basic wildland fire fighting level and provide a refresher each spring. It would also provide funding for an adequate brush truck with proper tools. This would ensure safety of the crews and limit liability for the district while protecting assets. Show More

Very few opportunities exist for staff to "move up" within the PUD. Very few positions are offered for competitive selection. Rather people are just moved into positions.

We need a more robust asset management plan that relies less on run to failure. Please consider reinvesting in employees/departments with licenses and HEPS and NERC/WEC reliability and regulation. We need to acknowledge that administering there programs takes technical skills that are not in great supply, the ability and time to foster great working relationships with agencies/stakeholders, and greater number of individuals to accomplish this effectively. The mantra of "do more with less" is not sustainable. If this strategic plan process is intended to foster a better community to live and work please afford those opportunities to PUD employees to be able to enjoy both components of living and working. Show More

We need an open space in front of our fleet services shop. It is dangerous to drive big trucks and trailers around all of those vehicles parked in front our our shop.

We need training for entry level employees to be ready to be moved up the ranks. Apprenticeship. Time for in house training and mentoring needed. Too much workload to allow this.

Weed control around sites to lessen fire hazards. Or sterilize ground around structures.

Work with partners (cities, county, chambers of commerce, whomever) to develop a county wide trail system for the health of PUD customer-owners and visitors.

Work with the federal government to investigate pump storage using wind machines as pumps. This will help generate high-value electricity during peak demand, and the created reservoir could also be used as an additional water resource for activities such as fishing, jet skiing, paddle boarding, etc.

The highest priority for the Chelan PUD should be to pay off its debt.

Great plan on reducing debt. A fiscally conservative approach is the best. Focus on refurbishing our dams/assets to maintain and improve our assets for the future.

Just maintain. You are already doing so well—carbon free and wild-fish friendly. Keep it up!

Keep the debt coming down and maintain the low rates.

Never kill the golden goose. Invest in protecting and enhancing the hydro power assets first. Invest in market expertise to maintain competitive advantage.

Spend dollars on reducing electrical use - insulation, lighting. This is an investment in the future - more power to sell on the market than if we don't do it.

Be #1 in securing all of our asset producing systems to be insulated as much as possible for terrorism attacks, and put into place a strategic plan for timely repair if it happens.

I want to see a more inspiring work environment and facilities for PUD workers. Also, we should invest more in employee personal development.

Invest in additional parks & recreation opportunities balanced with wildlife interests. Purchase additional land? Responsibly expand trail access along river shore and Sage Hills.

Continue reducing debt to ensure stability for rate payers in the case of economic down turn or natural disaster.

It appears we (PUD) can still safely release 1/2 of excess power to contribute to Chelan PUD "bottom line."

The City of Wenatchee has been through a major restructuring looking at the staffing levels and cost of benefits. Has the PUD been through a similar exercise? It appears that the PUD's cost of overhead is much higher than the city's cost. This could be due to the level of staffing, the legal review required of all activity, etc. The City has benefitted through review and has truly come to value the jobs provided by the city and the true cost of those jobs. It has also lowered the City's cost of operation, allowing it to put more into the services the public expects. Show More

Reinvesting in the employees of the PUD is essential. Seems like most have forgotten that just a few years ago employees were forced to take furloughs and pay freezes for 2 years. How about paying them back for the loss of wages for furlough? At the time the General Manager stated to the Commissioners that there will need to be a catch up for these reductions. This never happened. Just one more example of the employees who keep this place running and are then forgotten when the excess money is being decided where to spend. Show More

Buy the mill property in Peshastin for future utilities.

Invest in protecting the distribution and transmission lines by undergrounding them.

The irrigation canals could be covered with solar energy generation panels. This would help generate more sustainable energy while protecting irrigation water from evaporation.

Reinvest in Rock Island Powerhouse 1. Create opportunities for apprenticeships within the PUD; those have been stagnant lately.

What are our conservation goals—so we can sell more on the open market?

Look at workforce development. PUD employees take pride and are part of this community—and employees having the opportunity to grow within the organization keeps valued expertise in place to benefit all with Chelan County.

Hire more entry level people. There are many retirements coming up and there is a growing gap in the workforce.

Reinvest in Generation Units at Rock Island. Powerhouse 1 units are old; don’t let them waste away.

The dams are the greatest asset (physical) in Chelan County! Reinvest in longevity, security, technology and in the best talent it takes to make the above work over time. What is their expected life? Do we know everything abut the status of their maintenance (I mean, really know). Do we have a reserve sized to deal with any reasonable failure? I worry about security risks—terrorism, etc.. Thanks for being so open! The public needs to understand that it is expensive to maintain the dams. Show More

Reinvest in the Grid for a stronger more efficient PUD. Perhaps add more underground electrical systems.

Explore cap & trade options.

Lower (pay off) the debt of the PUD, before reinvesting.

Can reinvestment include uniting PUD's such as Douglas and Grant? We see how inter-related they are by the experience of the crack in the Wanapum Dam.

Of immediate need is securing and enhancing riparian habitat within the lower Peshastin and the Wenatchee rivers for fish, wildlife, flood storage, and to protect the PUD's long-term financial investments in hatchery programs. Thank you for this opportunity! It would be advantageous to maximize rate payer dollars by developing a strategic plan that not only provides a pathway to comply with FERC license conditions but also incorporates community VISION, illustrates mutually desired outcomes, and builds partnerships. A great first step would be to identify lands that have the potential to protect ESA listed and resident fish, enhance riparian and over-wintering habitat for fish, protect and enhance habitat for wildlife, provide additional public access and outdoor educational opportunities—and that may generate a new revenue source by enhancing and providing additional recreational opportunties for fishermen, boaters, rafters, bikers, hikers, and wildlife viewers. This could be a great first step to developing the strategic plan! I would encourage the PUD to collaborate with local, state, and federal entities, key legislators, residents, and NGO's that have already identified properties that could be part of strategic plan to protect riparian habitats within Chelan County and may be used to offset impacts associated with future PUD projects (e.g. distribution and transmission expansions, substation construction, etc). I am optimistic Chelan PUD will recognize it is essential to invest in this community to retain an educated-vibrant workforce and maintain rate payer support during times of recession, rates increases, state and federal rule-making, and drought. Thank you for your time. Show More

Invest in education & professional development, and work based learning opportunities for youth, to support the level of service and build affinity.

I don't know enough about this, but it is clearly essential to maintain the infrastructure and human resources.

Continue as the PUD is doing now with a good Board and good management people.

Increase investment in the weatherization of sub-standard housing. This ensure our clean hydro is not wasted and it will help empower and benefit the most vulnerable and disadvantaged in our community.

All the building need updating. We need beautiful offices and perks for employees at the PUD. We want people to want to work there.

Do joint planning with Douglas County PUD.

Don't defer maintenance of dams, distribution, buildings, and people.

High skilled employees are needed to make the PUD run. How do we assume continued supply of employees?

Several potential threats were discussed/identified/planned for in the last 50 plus years. What are the coming ones?

Add a second story above the main parking area creating a parking facility with ample, covered parking. This would free up the smaller parking area between HQ and the Service Building which could be turned into a really nice outdoor "greenway"/park-like area for employees to lunch at and enjoy on breaks. This would be similar to the area on the North side of HQ, but with more seating and possible landscaping. We work in grey, windowless rooms/cubicles for an entire day under artificial lights with canned air. It's nearly suicidally depressing. A fifteen minute break isn't really long enough to get away from the building and walking around the parking lot is not much better. Having an area conducive to refreshing and recharging is essential to giving our best work. Yes, we can walk to the riverfront, but only along the road, under the train tracks, to enjoy a whole 5 minutes of serenity before having to turn around. A covered parking area also increases security to our vehicles and eliminates the need for all the snow removal in the winter. Less weather on the surface also means less repainting stripes and resurfacing asphalt. There are no negatives to this idea (with the exception of paying for it) and the benefits are numerous! Show More

I believe reinvestment should be the highest priority for future investment of the PUD. Recent generation problems bear this out. First and foremost should be the generation of dependable and affordable power.

Maintain facilities and equipment.

Better electric transfer systems to reduce low energy during transfer via power lines.

Customers should buy blocks of energy that don't expire.

Don't over extend yourself.

I appreciate your crew coming to my home and sealing my ducts on my heating and air conditioning. The young men were so careful and polite.

I want to see better financial responsibility.

Keep costs low and reduce debt.

Keep the rates low & reasonable.

More programs for schools and training for young people interested in PUD careers.

Thank you for paying down the debt. The PUD does an excellent job with the parks. Thank you for developing the Entiat Park.

Underground power lines.

Use of more sustainable non-hydro sourced power.

When upgrading the RI PH 1 potable water system, provide a potable water source to the PH1 Control Room for drinking, cooking and washing dishes. As it is now, the only potable water available is thru a water cooler.

The definition of a healthy workplace is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease" I believe the PUD needs to institute a program based on Wellness! Invest, Re-Invest in your employees and their health.

Become committed to the apprentice program again.

Look for opportunities to educate youth with the skills that the PUD needs for the future… ie. Energy, environmental stewardship, recreation, public administration, etc.

Establish a revolving trust account that lends money for infrastructure improvements to communities in the network. The funds would initially be investments from the reserve but would grow to become a self-sustaining account. (Much like the state wide Public Works Trust fund, but focused on Chelan Co. PUD members and cities with AAA credit.) Show More

Expand alternative energy & efficiency availability to everyday customers. Help homeowners learn more about residential solar applications. Workshops, etc.

How about hydrogen plants near the point of generation, running at night? Creating hydrogen during off hours would reduce cycling, and create useful and non-polluting products. Hydrogen cells attract industries. This is a way to store excess power that can be converted back to electricity if necessary.

I've sensed a shift over 30 years in employee satisfaction. Really positive to high stress. Maybe too much focus on legalities, rules, compliance, etc.

Increase tuition reimbursement for those employees who choose to pursue continuing education on their own time. Some companies pay for all expenses. Currently we pay up to $6,000 per year. Consider up to $12K reimbursement for courses in a Masters Degree program and up to $8K for undergraduate courses. Show More

Keep focused on debt reduction.

Let’s reinvest in our employees! Engaging, developing and retaining people is one of our greatest opportunities in the next ten years. People transform outcomes, change the course, and alter the way we do things. They innovate, they discover, they create revenue and deliver service to our customer owners. People can deliver unimagined levels of engagement and productivity when the District knows what matters most. How do you engage employees? Reward and retain the best employees; develop the next generation of leaders; create a culture that attracts the very best and most diverse talent; remain competitive in the talent marketplace; recruit employees with the specialized skills we need and make the District the place they want to work. Engaged employees generate 33% higher profits, operate at 50% higher productivity and score 56% higher in customer loyalty. (Gallup, State of the American Workplace) Show More

Leverage investments by the PUD to obtain greater return. Look for multipliers on the investment of 1.2 to 1.4 (which is at the high range of economic impact).

Offer opportunities for young people to see a pathway to employment.

One way to invest in employees is to provide the resources to support career development and engagement. The District needs a Learning and Development Manager to lead this effort. Currently this responsibility resides with the Organizational Development Manager, but there is too much important work for one person. A learning and development manager would: cultivate a culture that supports development and engagement; design and implement a comprehensive Leadership Development program; design and implement Employee Training and Development Programs; train managers and employees how to do career planning and development plans; coordinate the joint foreman training program and expand it to other crafts; identify and develop craft training needs beyond compliance training; develop in-house training using existing leaders and others; develop eLearning courses; improve training measures and records; resurrect a forum for managers (e.g., SWAT, DELTA). Show More

Our population is aging. What programs could the PUD offer to help seniors stay in their homes? Not just subsidies for low-income. Perhaps assistance with efficiencies advice about connectivity for emergency or medical management of health concerns.

The solar systems on school buildings seem stagnant. Make information about them more readily available as public info or a teaching tool. How much energy produced? Cost reduced or generated?

We could contribute to employee wellness by providing lockers and large bathrooms with showers, one each for men and women. The bathrooms attached to a small gym could serve linemen and others who do physical work, and the rest of us who sit all day and will benefit from more exercise. Ultimately we will reduce health care costs, which will benefit our customer owners. We had this at the last company I worked for and the facilities were used constantly. The gym can also be used for yoga or Pilates classes with outside instructors who use the space at no charge. That of course leads to a wellness program. Let’s get our employees healthy. This will reduce turnover (which is expensive) and lower our medical costs, which ultimately serves customer owners by keeping costs low. Show More

Debt reduction should be the top priority if we can’t build a new HQ at this time. The more debt we have the more risk we have and there is no good reason to keep a large amount of debt on the books as it make us more of a risk and raises the fees we are charged. Plus by reducing risk will reduce the interest we pay on that debt, which in the long run will mean more funds available for other improvements around Chelan County including Parks, Fiber, and perhaps new or updated buildings. Show More

Get out of the CTC building. It’s not a popular thought but with no control over the building and after repeated problems with water and cooling it’s time to pull up stakes and move the IT/Video equipment and staff out of that building. Plus the CTC continues to be a silo of employees, segregating them from the rest of the PUD and isolating them from some paths of communication. Out of sight, out of mind as the saying goes. If you don’t sit with your department, you are definitely left out of the loop on so much. In my experience at one time, due to being located away from my team, I was frequently not invited to meetings nor did I enjoy the daily discussions heard over the cubicle wall about current events relating to projects and issues we were having. In fact, the few meetings I was invited to I would show up and many of the others would ask who I was and state they didn’t know I even worked in the same department. Show More

We should be looking at rebuilding the HQ campus. Either knock it all down and build a large cohesive campus or explore finding a new location to build a new PUD campus and move everyone from the HQ area as well as everyone from CTC into one new campus. This building was built in the 1950’s and has seen many improvements and additions over the years, yet it still continues to struggle to meet the needs of the PUD. Heating/AC struggle every year, parking is always a challenge, and we constantly receive complaints about possible allergens, mold, or asbestos worries. A new, larger campus would bring about many benefits including greater business interactions and sharing of ideas plus cut down on travel time and lack of communications that plague employees due to the scattered nature of our current physical separation of areas. A large Microsoft-like campus would allow employees to be much more efficient with their time and lead to better paths for collaboration of ideas. Show More

My idea for reinvestment is to replace our radio and microwave system. As it stands right now, we are maintaining both of our systems with second hand and refurbished parts because both systems have been at their end of life for some time now. I also know that if you were to start planning for replacement systems now, it will probably take around three years until implementation. The radio system is used for switching, dispatching and other communication and it has a better coverage area than any cell system. Needless to say, if there was a natural disaster, the cell system would be rendered useless because of the inundation of calls being made and the radio system will be the only means for crews and dispatch to communicate. This was proven while I worked for the Snohomish PUD during the Nisqually earthquake. A lot of times these systems get overlooked because they are quietly working seamlessly in the background and only when it fails or during an emergency will you notice how important they actually are. Show More

Provide training for core software applications. Software is an asset. The District does not require training for our core software applications. These include MS Office, PeopleSoft, Maximo and Primavera. Our employees cannot do their jobs efficiently and effectively when they don't know how to use the software needed in their jobs. Also, the District has digital asset management software, but does not require the use of or training in this software. No standards or processes have been set for archiving District photos. I believe there is a definite risk regarding being able to access project photos in the future because they are sitting in a box somewhere under a retired engineers desk and no one can locate them. Software training requirements need to be assigned to each job description and a training plan developed for each employee. This would require an ongoing software training program. Just as important as software training, is the training of the processes that utilize the software. They go hand-in-hand. Show More

I would like to see the PUD invest in mountain biking trails and recreation. Groups already exist and just need more funding. This kind of recreation is key to the area and a great benefit to all.

It would be great to see funds invested in ways that could generate more money. Through property development or even towards growth of the Wenatchee Valley College. I see a great opportunity to develop property for housing or perhaps something else? Perhaps pump storage technology could be used to pump water to elevated areas and brought back during peak times for generation.

Use funds to find a way to bring the PUD together as a whole and eliminate "sand boxing" of groups. This would allow resources to work together more easily and efficiently.

The low rates are extremely important. Keep the M&O going along with updating & improvements. My biggest fear is the state will try to move into the power side- making a state wide rate. Local ownership is extremely important.

The PUD is a creature of the State of Washington and its “charter” can be changed at any time by the legislature. At a time when power is becoming more expensive for many state residents, Chelan PUD should be careful (or politically correct) about how it deals with the benefits we reap because of our abundant resource. This concern was first expressed by the Board of Commissioners in the mid 1990’s. At that time the board was looking forward to the time when obligations related to power contracts would expire and revenue from excess power sales would start to increase. The concern then was a political one. It should also be a concern now. A strategic vision that appears to flaunt the advantage we have could have negative political repercussions if powerful political interests from the “Westside” decide they want the same advantages. I have been somewhat surprised that someone from the “other side” have not proposed creating a state power agency that would spread the benefits of our cheap power over the entire state. So, while we create a vision that may bring additional benefits to our community, we need to be humble about it. Emphasizing the fact that inexpensive power helps create jobs in our rural/agricultural community and emphasizing that we carry a large debt which needs to be repaid should help us in that effort. Show More

Maintaining and upgrading the PUD's hydropower dams is crucial. The crack in Wanapum Dam shows how critical it is to assess and monitor structural stability of the dams. One part of this is seismic safety. With the recent discovery of what is likely to be the offset of the 1872 earthquake in Spencer Canyon, the PUD needs to stay ahead of this issue doing whatever seismic upgrades are warranted by new information. The PUD can also spearhead greater awareness of earthquake safety in Chelan County. It is not a question of if but only when we will see a return of an earthquake similar to the 1872 quake. Most people are ill-prepared because they think big earthquake only occur California. The PUD could help change that. Show More

Could the PUD move its headquarters? It might free up some prime real estate in down town Wenatchee and make it possible to build an up-to-date building somewhere else.

It's time for a new HQ building. Having spent some time in the PUD headquarters on multiple occasions, I believe the environment is sub-par and is negatively impacting worker productivity, wellbeing, recruiting, and (most importantly) accessibility. Windows are scarce, ceilings are low, lighting is dim (and the list goes on). I'm particularly concerned about the unfriendliness of the building to people with disabilities. Even the most basic facilities, such as bathrooms (and signs on bathrooms), are not anywhere near up to code. If I were wheelchair bound or blind, I would not want to work there unless I had to. Chelan County is the kind of place where people take care of each other. Just because the building is grandfathered in doesn't mean it's ethically justifiable to leave it as is. A building upgrade is long overdue, and while I'm no expert, it's difficult to imagine simply renovating this building into the 21st century. Here's a test: if you sold the building to a private company with a similar number and kind of employees, would they bother renovating it, or would they start over? Show More

Complete modernization at Rock Island PH1 to ensure long range viability.

Pave the CM parking lot and driveway to Rocky Reach so employees and equipment are not damaged.

The district needs a building to house the huge investments in mobile equipment and keep it out of the weather.

As a PUD employee I would love to see a new HQ complex built in Wenatchee. The complex would need to be large enough to accommodate proper, larger parking areas for employees and the public. The current parking areas are to limited and can be a safety concern. The service building could be in a separate location with plenty of room for the line crew, trucks and warehouse facilities. Show More

I am very grateful for the opportunities in career development. (e.g., Tuition Reimbursement). I would like to encourage CCPUD to support employees in career development with 100% funding for bachelor and master degrees for employees working full time and going to school.

I would like to see a broader employee recognition program that can provide recognition on small levels (project completion celebrations) as well as large projects. Monetary, or leave for saving money, creating a better process, major project savings. Transparency with the community is important on this too. Employees have earned this kind of expansion to the current program. Show More

A modern machine and fab shop is needed at Rock Island in preperation of work resulting from a power house 2 modernization. PH2 is 40 years old and motor unit work will begin in 5-10 years.

Develop a full records management system to promote operational excellence, stewardship, trustworthiness and safety. Records management failure has been identified by the District as a Key Risk. WAPUDA recently presented an excellent workshop on records management and the programs that some of the member PUDs have in place are impressive. Of particular note were organizations that are smaller than our PUD that have dedicated staff in a Records Management Department. In addition to providing substantial mitigation to key risks, the investment in a fully developed Records Management (RM) program and staff would support the District values. Having a well-defined RM program and an accountable staff would help ensure continuous improvement in the way the District performs RM functions. It would prevent the loss of critical documents, such as those pertaining to agreements, warranties, and decision processes. The District could be subject to fines and legal action if it were not able to produce documents in a timely matter (or at all). It is in the interest of all our stakeholders and the protection of District resources to have this subject under control. Should the District fail to comply with RM rules and regulations, it would be damaging to our reputation and relationships, and demonstrate a lack of competence. Having a RM program in place supports safety in that it would help assure that incident records, lessons learned, training materials, and other safety documents are secure and accessible to the appropriate employees and fulfill the requirements of document retention/disposition. Show More

Construct a new service center to consolidate Hawley shop, warehouses, fleet, fish and wildlife, and tech shop. This would improve efficiency of crews so all their equipment and supplies are at one location. A new location would be safer and more secure then the existing buildings. A possible location is the old DOT site on north Wenatchee Ave. This would also give HQ room to properly fence and secure the campus. Show More

Apply fire retardent higher up on the poles so they don't burn. It seems like applying the retardent 2-6 feet higher would prevent many burned poles.

Add a tool room on the Chelan County side of Rock Island.

Apprentice mechanics are needed.

At both CM and RI we could use more efficient shop areas. At CM, the building has been remodeled several times to try to increase productivity. But the building was not necessarily built to be a maintenance building. At RI the shop we are using is not conducive to a productive work area. Please look into building new maintenance shops at both locations. We could also benefit by having a tool room location on the PH2 side at Rock Island. Look at long term usage. It may cost a lot now but you may save a lot more in the long run. Show More

Build a new shop at Rock Island.

Build covered parking for trucks at Rock Island.

I believe we need to do a better job at protecting the planning department from being saturated. They need to be at the leading edge of the work but seem to have inherited responsibilities that, in my opinion, hamper their effectiveness. I have recently had the chance to help out in the planning department, here is my feedback. If the planner role is to tailor the timing of future roles they will need to work closely with engineers, purchasers, managers, and project managers, compliance and legal department, but not fulfill those roles. The planners I have observed do not lack motivation, skill, or an understanding of the process, not at all, what they do seem to lack is a defence from an unrealistic work load and expectation to be extremely familiar with every detail of every work order. Some real world examples I believe in are: Would productivity gains be made if all of the project managers were able to keep their projects and timelines up to date in Primavera? This tool, if underutilized, likely triples the effort for planners to understand timing of priority work and fit plans together effectively. I have seen several different methods employed for keeping track of timelines by project timing on the Primavera system seems to me to be a great goal. Why do we have planners attempting to understand every safety standard, code and law? Is this not why we have compliance, engineering handle this type of work in my opinion. The system seems to lack detailed structure for the entirety of a project. Responsibility is not clearly defined, parts to order and design seem optional, and priorities seem to compete, follow through is not emphasized. There in the middle of it all is the planner. Planners add work notes that the foreman and crews should have done and cover for anyone else who slacks off slightly. At the onset of any plan, if we are not focused, mistakes will be amplified throughout the entire execution. "Being busy does not always mean real work. The object of all work is production or accomplishment and to either of these ends there must be forethought, system, planning, intelligence, and honest purpose, as well as perspiration. Seeming to do is not doing." Thomas A. Edison Show More

Install a new fireline out to CM Yard.

We need a new milling machine at Rock Island.

We need a real warehouse building at CM pump storage and repair facility.

We need a shear at Rock Island.

We need new asphalt on parking lot and roadway.

I say forget projections of huge cash surpluses, pay off the debt, and establish a billion dollars reserves. After these are reality, we can talk about reinvestment. In the recent past, Chelan PUD has spent excessively and accrued excessive debt—much of it driven by lofty goals of being the "big deal" in Chelan County and spending irresponsibly. I am very glad this situation has improved—there is still a mountain of debt and it is likely current projections underestimate the actual costs of future regulatory compliance, technological upgrades, and repair and replacement of aging infrastructure. Right now, we owe over $700 million dollars. Let's get debt free to the extent possible. Keep our costs of power, and other utilities, as low as possible forever. It is NOT Chelan PUD's job to create economic development by hiring any more people than necessary, or determining what is the greater good for Chelan County. The PUD is NOT the quasi-government of Chelan County—you are our utility, and your ONLY job is providing utility services as cost effectively as possible. Run it like a business, not a philanthropic organization. Show More

Reinvest in facilities supporting District operations. Well designed and modern facilities will lead to gains in efficient work process and practices. Facilities utilized by hydro mechanics and wiremen, linemen, technicians, fleet service, fish & wildlife, and warehousing are outdated with today's modern workforce. Committment to the work force is a powerful and meaningful way to inspire pride and ownership; reinvesting in the basic facilities that support the labor force would be a great message of commitment and recognition of the value those areas bring to the District. Show More

Expand your website so it is a place people go to learn about alternative energies or conservation tips. Offer videos and a step-by-step process for installing solar, wind, or other alternative energy. Do not send visitors to other websites - instead draw them back to your website with up-to-date, relevant information. Your Lightly email/pamphlet is a great start! Show More

Let's reinvest in our employees—the people without whom the PUD would not exist; the people who deliver our products and services to our customer owners and keep the lights on. One powerful way to do this is to increase tuition reimbursement. Each year, only a handful of employees choose to pursue higher education. They go back to college to earn an AA degree, a BA or BS or a Masters Degree. Currently the PUD reimbuses up to 6K per year if all requirements are met. This is enough for most employees who take several classes a year. It is not enough for those actively purusing a Bachelors or Masters Degree. Employees have earned MBAs and one now is earning a Masters in Engineering. Lets encourage these employees and others by reimbursing 100% for classes where the employee earns a "B" or better. Show More

Build a gas-fired turbine generating plant on the Rock Island project near Alcoa. We have ample land available, existing transmission lines and there is a natural gas line in the area. This would provide new jobs and would diversify our generation capability for low water years. Show More

Continue to invest in modernization of our generators and hydro facilities.

Increase funding for our cable replacement program to maintain reliability.

Improve and modernize our headquarters complex by tearing down the Tech Shop & Service building and building a new modern multi-story building with a parking garage below and a sky bridge to existing HQ bldg. Make sure to provide for one acceptable customer/visitor lobby & reception area instead of multiple areas currently. Make sure office layout is adequate for future expansion. Engineering offices should reflect the need for focus on tasks: i.e., no low walled cubicles, no busy conference rooms adjacent to engineering, no open concept office. Plan for adequate break areas. Show More

Value the workforce by allotting a certain amount of training opportunities for each employee annually from the top of the company to the bottom. Have HR meet with the employee one-on-one to determine training opportunities and career goals. Show More

Treat all bargaining unit employees equally with regards to annual general wage increases. If journeyman positions get 3%, all bargaining unit positions get 3%. This would build unity and reflect the intent of a cost of living increase.

Promote from within for all positions. Expand the Leadership program for current employees that express interest in supervisory positions, specifically within their fields of expertise.

In support of the District’s value “Operational Excellence” it is recommendation that the District improve the processes and tools, through implementation of systematic quality improvement projects. Over the years compliance and regulatory requirements have increased at a significant rate. These requirements affect our operations and processes. Based upon the requirement deadlines and resource demands, processes and the tools have been applied that are not always efficient or effective in providing reasonable assurance that compliance can be maintained. In addition, these processes and tools can impact the efficiency of other operating activities. Show More

Unfortunately the PUD has the reputation for paying the highest wages in the county for laid back jobs. Much of this reputation stems from events in the past, but it lingers. The PUD needs to 1) provide transparency as to what people are paid for specific job categories and 2) seek parity with similar jobs/skills across the state and the Pacific Northwest. The PUD Should hire the best people from local and national labor pools, but wages should reflect appropriate levels for the area and, when needed, national talent pools. Show More

It's my belief that Chelan PUD should be a leader in sustainability. The PUD should be weighing its purchases of products and services on a scale that always tilts toward environmental stewardship. Our buildings should reflect an ethic of energy and water conservation; our vehicles should be electric, hybrids or low-fuel-consumers; our printers should be double-sided. We should do business with vendors who respect environmentally responsible practices and operate that way themselves. Show More

Please remember to reinvest in the great group of employees you have here, not just at the top but through all "bands." The current system that stops experienced, knowledgeable employees at a mid-range salary is unfair and discourages loyalty and innovation.

Create learning opportunities for employees interested in moving up or to a different department. Hire internally! There are a lot of people that would love to learn another job and further their career but are unable to due to a small lapse in training. People feel stuck and can only apply for low entry level jobs sometimes at the risk of a pay decrease. Show More

As our City and County move into the future, I suggest that we upgrade our in-city distribution system to an underground system. Our current over-head distribution system is old, getting unreliable and very unattractive. I would like to see our PUD develop a long range plan (say 10 to 20 years) to slowly replace the overhead components with underground components. Show More

Provide users with KWH price information in real time so users can schedule their usage during low cost periods.

Build an all inclusive headquarters campus combining the employees from the CTC, Hawley St, F&W and the Service Building. We could really use a building with up to date technology and overall a better work environment. Design this facility with the idea of promoting wellness in mind (include locker rooms, etc). Happy, healthy employees are productive, innovative employees. Show More

The PUD needs to be willing to keep the lake up longer even if it means compromising some power generation revenue for the benefit of the Lake Chelan valley. The PUD's lake level management program is destroying the recreational and economic viability of Lake Chelan for the residents, and putting at risk the economic viability of the tourist and hospitality businesses in the Lake Chelan Valley that depend on the lake. The lake level management goals SHOULD be to maintain the lake at a usable lake level from the Memorial Day weekend through the end of September. By Memorial Day weekend the lake level should be at not less than 1097 thus allowing limited use of docks and boat lifts. By July 1st the lake level should be at not less than 1099.5. The summer full lake level of not less than 1099.5 should be maintained through to September 30th. By October 31 the lake level could go down to not less than 1097. Hopefully there is operational flexibility within the license requirements to allow the PUD to address our lake level management concerns. Show More

Replace our direct burial power line with a conduit run. We don't want another 8 hour failure.

Need to continue to harden the electrical system from power bumps. A short interruption still creates quite a bit of hassle to reset the various electronic devices in the home. The last time I called and complained one of the reasons I was given was birds flying into power lines. I have lived all over the United States and parts of Europe. It seems like I have seen more power hits here in the past 4 years than anywhere else I have lived. You need to make some capital investments in making this key infrastructure more reliable. Show More

We strongly suggest raising lake levels from memorial day until mid-late september. Although power revenue might go down, the entire valley's economy that depends on tourism would flourish. Both my husband and I own businesses in Chelan that would benefit. Not to mention, all the lake activity! Show More

I think the way the water is let up and down and up again this year made the worst wood debris ever. The wood is causing damage to the shoreline and docks. My grandson was pinned between a log and seawall with boat wake. Swimming is getting very dangerous.

Please keep water levels up Memorial weekend through end of so we can enjoy the lovely lake that we are so fortunate to have! It’s a tragedy to eliminate that to such a short amount of time if you reduce the levels to the short period of time throughout the year. Show More

Mission Creep: see Chelan County. I see your core mission being to operate the dams—period. Look across the topics at the top of this survey. Outside of power generation I wonder why (and how) you have positioned yourselves in all these other areas. Private enterprise or local municipalities should be running parks, telecom, water, sewer and so on. Google "self licking ice cream cone”—that is what I see going on here. Be honest with yourselves and think about that for a moment. I am certain the PUD board or its executives have no interest in scaling back the empire or shutting down the propaganda machine, but brave leadership would recognize that the PUD has grown far beyond its core mission and start divesting itself in those areas it does not belong. Show More

Reduce outage duration and locating costs as well as increase life expectancy of the distribution system by providing discounted customer construction costs for overhead construction.

Purchase land to build a large central warehouse building so bulk purchasing can be possible. This would save the District money. It would ensure a good quantity on hand of the items needed every day. Items could then be sent out to satellite facilities. Having a modern facility would ensure quality control and best efficient use of manpower and dollars. Show More

We need a new, modern HQ building. One large enough to house more of our departments under one roof. The physical separation among PUD employees leads to communication problems and lack of team cohesion. Despite the technologies of phone and e-mail, the best way to stay up to date with what's happening in your group is to be near your co-workers. We have several departments that are split amongst places like the CTC, Hawley Street, HQ, Service Building, Tech Shop and Fish & Wildlife that would all benefit from being together in one building. Show More

Implement and fund a Wellness Program for employees that will improve employee health and overall well-being, as well as reduce District health care cost growth in the long-term. I am aware of several employees who are interested and willing to facilitate the development of such program. Show More

Affordable and high-quality childcare is a major concern for working parents. If facility improvements are being planned, please consider including a space for a day-care center. It could be like the cafeterias so that it is run by a private contractor but the facility costs are covered by the PUD. That should allow the cost to the PUD employee clients to be affordable. It would only be available to children of PUD employees. It would reduce commuting costs to employees and would greatly increase peace of mind of the parents who could check on their children during breaks. Show More

Facilities and technology are woefully behind at PUD offices. Office spaces can be efficient and cost effective, all while inspiring employees to be creative and provide more customer value. Our employees work long, hard hours in dreary, dank spaces. Ceilings leak. Some people freeze in their offices while others roast. Conference rooms are ancient and the computers in them only work part of the time. One area has to make sure they turn on a faucet in the sink in a closet periodically or a sewage smell permeates the area. We pinch every penny until it bleeds. Please give employees the tools to continue to do their jobs well, but in spaces that don't impede health, creativity or teamwork. Show More

Continue to build on the apprenticeship program.

Maintain and reinvest in the hydros, transmission, distribution as well as all work facilities. Buildings on the HQ campus are showing age and the parking area is not adequate. We need to update and show more pride in the facilities. HQ looks run down in several areas and the restrooms on 1st and 2nd floor are badly in need of updating. Is it feasible to build one campus rather than so many different locations within Wenatchee? Show More

Do our performance plans really help? Our goals are told to us and when we achieve them, then we don't get anything for it. We work hard all year to go above and beyond and we maybe get a pat on the back. You are lucky to have employees that have a good work ethic and want to work hard and do a good job. But, it would be good to be acknowledged as well. Our pay should be based on a job well done … not comparing to other jobs that are "kind of" similar. Show More

It would be nice to offer WIFI at Gerald's Place and Rocky Reach Visitor Center. This would provide a location that employees can go to during lunch and breaks and use WIFI. This could also improve business for the cafes.

If an employee has the capabilities they should be allowed to work remotely, even if it's just once a week.

The current working environment is pretty bad in most areas of the building. Grey cubes, grey walls with out-dated facilities. It's not a building that you actually want to walk into on a nice day—and lets face it we have a bunch of those in this area.

With upcoming retirements in the general workforce, it would be a good idea to invest in and groom the employees that will be here to shape the future of the PUD.

Economic development and reinvestment in the PUD look like the best headings to me. Expanding the fiber system could serve economic development, as would cutting rates.

Align the Telecom and Electric groups so they can design, construct, and maintain their respective assets in a manner that optimizes resources to achieve the most for our stakeholders.

Provide managers the resources to manage their people.

Remodel the campus or build a new one.

Invest more into the lunchrooms that are provided for us. I feel Gerald deserves more than we give him. Put him and Chelsea on the payroll, so they have time off with pay and insurance. Gerald is one of this first people to lend a helping hand for anyone having problems. This way maybe he could afford to go on vacation, as all of us do as employees. Show More

There are a realm of possibilities and areas to consider in how we reinvest in the PUD, however two very important elements for long-term sustainable financial and operational strength are investment in people and assets. The long position that our hydro assets provide give us opportunity to leverage that position to optimize value for our customer owners in providing low rates and reliable service, while building a strong financial position. And to leverage and optimize that position, it requires strategic leadership, prudent decision making with consideration of financial impacts and risks, and hard work by talented, creative and dedicated people. Without either of those, Chelan PUD is a different kind of public utility. Let’s keep us moving in the direction we are headed towards: prudent decision making directed towards long-term sustainable financial health while providing value-added, cost effective and reliable utility services and having strong focus in these two areas, 1) managing our hydro and distribution assets in a timely and cost effective manner through prudent decision making and prioritized plans with consideration of risks, and 2) continuously developing our leaders and workforce throughout the PUD through technical and soft skill training, development programs, fostering a culture that attracts and retains, continue to develop bench strength and plan for the future, engage in proactive succession planning, and ensure adequate resources to maintain a safe, healthy and balanced work life. Show More

Replace Wenatchee Headquarters campus with a modern facility designed and constructed to LEED criteria, but keep administrative office downtown.

Reinvest in generation. Modernize existing hydros to maximize generation potential and venture into other renewables (wind, solar).

Facilities issues with leased office space at the Confluence Technology Center have proved it is inadequate; and employees spread between different locations has been detrimental to communication, collaboration, and morale. Countless hours are wasted on travel time for meetings and a lack of meeting space or conference rooms with modern technology contribute to difficulty in scheduling and inefficient meeting management. Employees and customers will benefit greatly by having a more efficiently run organization with a modern, centralized headquarters facility for the majority of office employees and customer service needs.

Facilities planning should be a top priority at the District. Significant and costly investments continue to be made to our aging facilities that are inadequate and long outgrown—such as the main headquarters building. These are temporary fixes rather that permanent solutions.

In order for decision makers to make the best decisions, benefiting the most people, for the longest time; the District needs a consistent and standardized approach to enterprise reporting and business intelligence. This can be accomplished by removing barriers to analytics by unifying enterprise data and presenting it in business terms through self-service business intelligence. The District has a wealth of raw data and technology, but that data and technology is not fully leveraged because the data is in multiple systems and not staged in a way that is accessible to users; processes are not standardized or optimized; and there is a lack of human resources available to complete the necessary tasks. Staff spends a large amount of time manually compiling reports, duplicating efforts, and relying on others to extract and transform the data. A strong commitment from senior management to reinvest in our workforce and evolve our business intelligence capabilities will greatly benefit our employees and customers by transforming raw data into meaningful and useful information to support better decision making and provide self service analytics to decision makers and customers; which ultimately will increase efficiency and allow us to more effectively manage our organization. Show More

The PUD created a very hazardous condition at the head of the lake at Stehekin. Originally, they acknowledged this and corrected it. Now the area is again a danger and a hazard. This neglect involves the following conditions: dangerous flooding, recreational and navigational hazards constituting serious liabilities. PUD, please return to your original commitment to mitigate the conditions caused by the reservoir. Show More

Originally, the PUD removed the hazardous woody debris accumulation on the shallow delta that had once been the basis of the Stehekin community. This debris is now holding silt which holds more woody debris, etc.. This is dangerous and a liability. The PUD should/must act to mitigate what they have created.

Safety should be and is the promise of the PUD to be the first consideration. Please, focus on this at the head of Lake Chelan at Stehekin. Remove the dangerous hazards. There is no topic category for safety, although on the PUD web site home page the statement is "The PUD's goal is simple: to safely provide utility" (sic). Our concern in Stehekin is for safe navigation, safe recreation, safety for children, and flooding. We are not asking for more parks, although that is fine. Show More

The highest priority for Chelan County PUD should be to pay off its debt and have large reserves for drought years, emergencies, etc. Our high national debt may very well cause many "rainy days" in the future.