Capital Electric annual meeting recap
Capital Electric - July 1, 2011
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Bismarck Mayor John Warford addressed the membership with flood facts and figures, and gave encouragement to those who were weary from sandbagging and evacuating. |
Even though it was a busy and uncertain time for many people who were sandbagging or planning to evacuate, hundreds of Capital Electric members took a break from their flood preparations to attend the cooperative's 65th annual meeting. Held June 1 at the Ramkota Hotel in Bismarck, the meeting provided a welcome distraction for some of the 834 attendees who enjoyed a hearty meal.
The focus of this year's meeting was flooding and safety. Bismarck Mayor John Warford addressed the membership with facts and figures, and gave encouragement for those in the heart of the situation. Lt. Gov. Drew Wrigley touted the cooperative's last 65 years of service to the membership, and Lars Nygren, general manager of Capital, provided detailed information on flood preparation and recovery as it relates to electric service.
"We are working hard to keep the power on in all areas. We realize you need power to run pumps for surface or ground water," assured Nygren. "Keeping everyone safe is the top priority when the water rises and inundates a home."
Business meeting
In addition to information on the flood, Nygren and Board Chairman Dwight Wrangham updated the membership on a variety of operation issues.
1) Capital Electric's membership has expanded by approximately 5,000 members in the last 10 years. More than 500 of those members were added in 2010.
2) The Western Area Power Administration (Western) continued to raise its rates due to drought effects in 2010. The coop is looking for more stability in Western's rates now that the water levels have stabilized in the reservoirs.
3) Basin Electric Power Cooperative continues to develop alternate power sources in the form of wind energy and gas turbine generation. The generation and transmission co-op is also adding a 385-megawatt baseload generating station in Gillette, Wyo., estimated to cost $1.3 billion. Basin is in the power-supply building mode due to the growth of its members.
4) Capital is looking to add a prepay system for electric service that would be advantageous for some to better manage their accounts.
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All three incumbents were re-elected to serve three-year terms on the Capital board of directors including (l-r) Rex Hollenbeck and Kyle Hilken from District 2, and Rodney Eckroth from District 1. |
During the business meeting, three members were elected to serve three-year terms on the board of directors. Incumbents Rodney Eckroth in District 1 and Kyle Hilken and Rex Hollenbeck in District 2 were re-elected to serve additional terms. Capital thanks the Nominating Committee for putting forth the following names as board candidates: District 1: Rodney Eckroth; District 2: Kyle Hilken, Rex Hollenbeck, LeAna Hug, Bill Patrie and Leo Voigt. The co-op also thanks all the candidates for offering to serve their electric cooperative.
Capital kids
The member-owners of Capital Electric are making the annual meeting a family affair. From dancing to the upbeat tunes played by Joe Friday's Dixieland Jazz Band to eating cheesecake and watching a movie, Capital kids can always find something fun to do at the annual meeting. Members, thank you for bringing your children and showing them the importance of active participation in their family's electric co-op. They are our future members and decision-makers!