Central Iowa Water Works Selects Interim Executive Director

DES MOINES – The trustees of the new cooperative regional drinking water authority, Central Iowa
Water Works, met for the first time as a board to select officers and an interim executive director who
could possibly oversee the entity for the remainder of 2024.

The Central Iowa Water Works (CIWW) Board of Trustees celebrated on Wednesday, April 24, the
success of forming a stronger water production system for the region through shared governance and
collaboration.

Before the board meeting started, Robert Andeweg, mayor of Urbandale, recounted the journey to
achieve this regional water authority — from utilities such as Urbandale striking out on its own to build
new water treatment facilities to the years of expanded regional discussion.

“It can be quite a challenge to bring governmental entities together. The concept of this regional group
has been talked about for more than a decade, and I can assure you that I had a lot less gray hair before
this started,” Andeweg said. “There were times I thought this would never come together. It took two
more years and a lot of negotiations, and we have it done. Thank you for all the work that everyone in
this room has done. Let’s get moving.”

Among the CIWW Board’s first actions were to nominate and approve officers:
Chair: Jody Smith, West Des Moines Water Works
Vice Chair: David Jones, city of Ankeny
Secretary: Diane Munns, Des Moines Water Works

In addition, the Board voted to approve William Smith as the interim director. A committee of CIWW
member representatives recommended Smith, a retired attorney and energy consultant, who previously
served on the Iowa Utilities Board staff and has experience in the start-up and operations of a multi-
member public agency called the Organization of MISO States. OMS was established to represent state
and local utility regulators in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) region. It consists
of 17 members across 15 states and a Canadian province, who collaborate to share information and
resources, debate and exchange ideas on policy issues, and communicate viewpoints.

William Smith will serve until an executive director is hired. The CIWW Board selected five trustees to
serve on the executive committee to begin the recruitment process. They are: Jody Smith, Jones,
Munns, John McCune (Urbandale Water Utility) and Courtney Clarke (mayor of Waukee). It is
anticipated the search for an executive director could take up to nine months.