(A) No sewer utility shall commence collection, processing or disposition of waste substances and domestic or sanitary sewage (hereinafter referred to as “Sewer Service”) within the corporate boundaries of the city or within an area which is within four miles of the corporate boundaries of the city in the area identified as the Fishers Sewer Planning Area, unless such sewer utility shall first obtain a permit, contract, license or franchise (hereinafter referred to as “permit”) from the city, authorizing the sewer service, and a finding by the City Council that the public convenience and necessity require sewer service by the sewer utility, and defining specifically the area to be covered by the permit, such finding to be made after a public hearing has been held before said City Council pursuant to not less than ten days published notice in accordance with the provisions of IC 5-3-1.
(B) At the public hearing pursuant to division (A), an applicant for a permit to provide sewer service pursuant to the terms of this chapter shall demonstrate to the City Council by the presentation of competent evidence that it has met the following criteria:
(1) That it has the financial ability to install, commence and maintain said proposed service;
(2) That the plans and specifications for the sewer interceptor system to be constructed and installed shall have received the written approval of the city's Consulting Engineer and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management prior to the commencement of construction;
(3) That a contract will have been executed by the applicant and submitted to the city for its consideration and acceptance that will obligate the applicant upon the issuance of the permit to pay to the city the city's rates and charges as by ordinance provided for the transmission of sanitary sewage to the city for treatment at the city's treatment facility;
(4) That the applicant shall establish that it has the lawful power and authority to apply for said permit and to operate said proposed service. The permit shall state that before commencing operations and serving customers, the sewer utility shall file its rates and charges with the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission for approval by the Commission. The city also recognizes that the applicant may derive its authority to apply for such permit from other express statutory authority, such as a municipal utility, a conservancy district or a regional waste district;
(5) The permit shall state that before commencing construction or operations and serving customers, the sewer utility shall apply for and receive all of the necessary federal and/or state and/or county regulatory permits and licenses necessary to operate the sewer service in the area identified as the Fishers Sewer Planning Area. It is the intention of the city to recognize the jurisdiction of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission to fix the price to be charged for the service to be rendered by the applicant notwithstanding the provisions of IC 36-9-2-16 in the case of a regulated utility. In the event that a municipal utility, conservancy district, or regional waste district obtains the necessary federal and state licenses and permits, it is the intention of the city to recognize the jurisdiction of the permitting agency, and to consider such entity to have standing to apply for a permit from the city.
(C) After the city issues a sewer service permit pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, no other sewer utility shall commence sewer service in the permitted area without itself first obtaining a permit to do so from the city in accordance with the criteria set out above. In addition, the city may issue additional permits within the same permitted area only if the following additional criteria are satisfied:
(1) The sewer utility with an existing permit is not furnishing reasonably adequate sewer service and is not willing or capable of furnishing sewer service in the area for which an additional permit is sought;
(2) A period of at least 24 months has expired from the date of issuance of the existing permit;
(3) Issuance of the additional permit will not impair the ability of the existing sewer utility to continue to furnish existing sewer service within the permitted area;
(4) Public convenience and necessity as determined by the city require the issuance of an additional permit; and
(5) The sewer utility applying for an additional permit obtains approval from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission pursuant to the Public Service Commission Act, IC 8-1-2-1 and following, or otherwise meets the statutory requirements for lawful operation including a discharge permit from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.
(D) The city reserves the right to revoke any sewer service permit which it may grant, in whole or in part, for any of the following grounds as determined by the City Council acting in its legislative capacity at any regular meeting of said City Council:
(1) Failure of the sewer utility holding such sewer service permit to furnish reasonably adequate sewer service within the area defined in the permit;
(2) Failure of the sewer utility holding the sewer service permit to comply with any term, condition or limitation of such permit;
(3) Any act undertaken by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management or the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission which in any way limits or restricts the ability of the sewer utility to act upon the authority of said state bodies.
(E) In the absence of a clear and convincing health related reason, the City Council resolves that no cross county sewer service should be permitted that would allow for the sanitary sewage treatment of areas located within Fall Creek Township of Hamilton County by any provider of sanitary sewage treatment services other than the City of Fishers.
(F) All ordinances or parts of ordinances currently in effect within the city, which are in conflict, directly or indirectly, with the provisions of this chapter are hereby repealed.
(Ord. 3-2-90, passed 3-2-90; Am. Res. R090302A, passed 9-3-02; Am. Ord. 091514A, passed 11-17-14) Penalty, see § 10.99