A. Sewer construction by developer. Sewers to be constructed by the developer or his or her contractor shall be constructed in accordance with the following provisions.
1. Plat approval. In the case of subdivisions, the application shall be accompanied by two copies of a recorded plat, or, in the case of a new subdivision, an approved tentative plat, or preferably a master tentative plat or a large scale development plan plus a plan showing location of proposed sewer extensions.
2. Other governmental approval. Prior to final acceptance, all the sewer extensions shall be approved by the appropriate state agencies and the County Department of Public Health.
3. Materials and construction standards. All materials and labor shall meet the specifications currently required by the city. All construction shall be performed under the inspection of the city and in strict compliance with the standards of the city and either city or county public works manuals, whichever is applicable.
4. Costs. The developer will pay all connection charges and construction costs prior to connecting to the city's system, unless otherwise specified in an agreement between the developer and the city. Construction cost will be the cost of sewer lines of sufficient capacity to collect the sewage in the proposed development and transport it to the nearest adequately-sized city sewer. Connection charges are defined in § 12-5-12 hereinafter.
5. Oversizing. The city reserves the right to oversize any extension and will pay for the oversizing on the basis of additional costs beyond that necessary to serve only the subject development. The city will pay an established unit amount based upon the pipe size of a facility multiplied by the length of that facility. The established unit amount will be determined by the Public Works Director based on the flow requirements of the developer and the city's study of current construction costs. The city will credit the developer for the cost of the city's share of oversized sewers and this credit will be in the form of a reduction of the connection charge or a cash payment if the connection charge is more than offset. The city also reserves the right to limit the amount of its participation in the cost of oversizing, depending on current economic conditions or other factors. The rates of credit related to the difference in diameter between the pipe required for the developer's project and the pipe required by the city to be installed are specified as follows:
Pipe Size Difference in Inches | Credit per Inch Diameter per Lineal Foot |
Force Mains | |
8 and greater | $1.35 |
Gravity Sewer Mains | |
8 and greater | $1.50 |
6. Maintenance bond. Sewers installed under this section shall become part of the city's system; however, before acceptance, a contract bond, approved by the City Council, equal in the amount of 100% of the construction cost shall be required to guarantee all work and materials for a period of one year after acceptance by the city. Terms and conditions of the bond must meet the city's standards.
7. Construction permit. A permit for construction must be obtained by the developer from the appropriate governmental agency.
8. Repayment policy. In those cases where a developer does not utilize all of the capacity of a sewer extension he or she has paid for and which has not been oversized, others may connect into it. The city will make every effort to collect applicable construction connection charges from those others and make repayments to the developer, but shall only be liable for moneys collected. The connection charge is specified in division A.9. of this section. A developer shall not be repaid sums in excess of his or her original investment, less his or her use, in the sewer extension. The repayment shall only be made during an eight-year period commencing with the date of an executed agreement between the developer and the city for sewer service.
9. Construction connection charge. The construction connection charge shall be as per § 12-5-2. The period of the repayment is limited to eight years from the date of the initial execution of the developer agreement with the Authority.
B. Public easement required. No sewer facility will be installed under the provisions outlined herein and accepted by the city for operation and maintenance, unless it is in a public right-of-way or easement with a minimum width of 12 feet. Conveyance of all easements shall be by a separate document in recordable form to be approved by the city and shall be accompanied by a written certification by an attorney licensed to practice law in the state that the developer is the owner in fee simple of the property to be conveyed by the easements and that, upon its execution by the developer, a valid and enforceable easement in the developer's property will be vested in the city. No sewer facilities to be owned and operated by the city shall be installed under any building or appurtenance thereto.
C. Conveyance and ownership. All sewer facilities and appurtenances to be owned by the city shall be conveyed to the city by proper bill of sale immediately after the city's acceptance, in writing, of the construction of the system. The developer shall also provide copies of paid bills and/or lien waivers, releases, or satisfactions, together with a breakdown of the actual cost of the facilities. Concurrently with the documents required above, the developer shall furnish the city with one set of Mylar and electronic as-built drawings showing specific locations, depths, elevations to be on city elevation datum, and the like of all sewer facilities and appurtenances. When accepted and properly conveyed to the city for ownership, maintenance, and operation, the facilities shall become and remain the property of the Authority, and no person shall by the payment of any charges provided for herein, or by causing any construction of facilities accepted by the city, acquire any interest or right in any of these facilities, or any portion thereof, other than the privilege to have his or her property connected thereto for sewer service in accordance with these procedures and regulations.
D. Minimum size, velocity, and length of gravity sewers.
1. The minimum size of plumbing shall be as regulated by the Building Code.
2. The minimum size of a service lateral shall be four inches in diameter for a single-family residence and six inches in diameter for all others.
3. The minimum size of all other sewer lines shall be eight inches in diameter.
4. The maximum infiltration or exfiltration rate shall not exceed 200 gallons per day per inch diameter per mile of pipe.
5. The minimum design velocity in gravity sewers shall be two feet per second.
6. The minimum depth of cut to invert shall be three feet for service laterals and four feet for main line sewers.
7. The minimum inside diameters of sewer manholes shall be 23 inches for the cover frame opening and 48 inches at the base.
8. New gravity sewers shall discharge into existing gravity sewers where possible. In the event that a pumping station is required, the design of the tributary gravity system shall be such as to permit the present or future extension of the system's gravity service area to the maximum practical extent. To this end, the depth to invert at the pumping stations shall be in the range of 12 to 14 feet and shall permit extension of gravity lines not less than one-half mile. New force mains shall discharge into existing force mains.
9. The design and layout of the system shall be subject to approval by the Public Works Director as to conformance with city standards and its master sewer plan. The developer shall include provisions required by the city to carry out the intent of the master planning and will be reimbursed for the additional cost of oversized facilities.
E. Approvals. No sewer extension will be accepted by the city without the approvals of the Public Works Director and the appropriate state agency and the City Engineer.
F. Unauthorized work on sewer system. No person shall tamper with, work on, uncover, make connection with, or in any way alter or damage any city sewer or sewer appurtenance without written permission of the Public Works Director or his or her appointed representative. Further, no unauthorized person shall cause storm water, ground water, or any other unauthorized water or material to enter the sanitary sewer system, including sanitary sewage from septic tank trucks. This shall include the tying of downspouts or air-conditioning condensate lines into the sewer system, raising of manhole lids to allow for drainage, the dumping of garbage, refuse, or other wastes in manholes, the draining of swimming pools into sewers, or any other means of causing or allowing any substance not considered sanitary sewage, or not legally paid for as sanitary sewage, to enter the sewer system. The offending person shall pay the total cost of all charges attributable to the tampering and be subject to all penalties as may be provided by law.
G. Common house connections. A single connection serving two or more properties will not be permitted. In no case will common plumbing to two or more lots or parcels be allowed.
H. Extent of city maintenance. The city shall not be responsible for the repair and maintenance of house connections to the service laterals, nor for privately-owned pumping stations, force mains, and sewers. The city shall be responsible only for the repair and maintenance of all public sewers, pumping stations, and force mains in the city's system and shall make a diligent effort to inspect and keep these facilities in good repair.
I. Customer's maintenance.
1. The customer shall be responsible for the maintenance of the plumbing from the connection at the service lateral into and including the house plumbing, if a common lateral is utilized for two adjacent properties. If a single lateral is utilized exclusively for one property, the customer shall be responsible for keeping the service lateral, in addition to the plumbing, free from obstructions. In either case, the city shall have the right to inspect the house connection and plumbing and to discontinue water service to any customer or property owner who fails to maintain the plumbing to the extent that it may or does cause harm to the sewer facilities.
2. In the case of municipally- or privately-owned utilities, the city's responsibility for the cost of maintenance ends at the point of connection to the city system. The city retains all rights to insist on proper maintenance of these facilities and to exclude infiltration and/or harmful wastes by the owners.
J. Connection to sewer required. For the better protection of the health and convenience of the inhabitants, all persons owning real property adjoining streets and alleys in which there are sewer pipes and mains of the sewer system, and persons owning, leasing, or using real property or buildings or fixtures thereon which can be served by sewers, shall cause to be connected all privies, cesspools, and open and unconnected drains with the sewer system within 90 days after receipt of verbal or written notice by the city.
(Ord. 121, passed 12-4-1979) Penalty, see Article 1-8