Water and sewer taps will be made for the base tap fee provided the tap is made to a water or wastewater line abutting or adjacent to the lot or parcel to be served ("standard location"). For the purposes of this chapter, a tap made on a water or wastewater line located between the boundary line of the property to be served and the right-of-way line of the street or alley abutting such lot, or a line located within portions of the street, shall also constitute a tap made at a standard location. A tap made at a standard location shall be a standard connection. A non-standard location is any location for a tap to serve any lot, tract or parcel of land other than at a standard location. A non-standard connection is any tap that requires work, construction or extensions to be made for the tap, or that is made at other than a standard location. Additional charges and fees will be assessed and collected as herein detailed for costs associated with line extensions and taps made to a non-standard location.
(A) Availability of service. The existence of mains, truck lines or other lines, near a property will not constitute an obligation for the city to limit the tap fee or charge for making a water or sewer service tap to such line, where such lines must be tapped at other than a standard location, are inaccessible due to necessary crossings of streets, highways, drainage channels and similar barriers, or when cost must be incurred over and above the cost for making a tap at a standard location. Taps at non-standard locations must be arranged for with the Director of Public Works in advance of the desired service date, to permit necessary extensions, crossings or similar construction.
(B) Installation of a non-standard connection. Upon the approval of the City Manager, the owner or developer of a subdivision requiring a non-standard connection may contract with a qualified contractor for the installation, construction and extension of any water or sewer line necessary to make a non-standard connection or as necessary for the location of the tap to become a standard location and, in such an event, such owner or developer shall pay the reasonable costs and charges therefore directly to the contractor and obtain a receipt and release from said contractor. The city shall otherwise, at the expense of the applicant for the tap, construct all line extensions and perform all construction required to make a water or sewer tap at a non-standard location. The City Engineer or Department of Public Works shall inspect such construction and work to assure it is completed in compliance with the applicable rules and regulations of the city and the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Council.
(C) Costs. The reasonable costs and expenses for installing, constructing and extending any water or sewer line of the city to provide a tap at a non-standard location, or to extend such lines to a standard location, shall be charged and collected by the city, if such costs are not paid directly by an owner/developer pursuant to division (B) of this section. Such additional costs and expenses shall be equal to the difference between the cost of making the tap at a standard location and the cost of making the tap at a standard location, or, as the case may be, the difference between the cost of making the tap at a standard location and the costs incurred for the work and construction to extend the lines to a point or location that is a standard location for the tap.
(D) Payment of line extension fee. When a water or sewer line extension charge is required the city may at its option require the owner being furnished the line to:
(1) Deposit in advance, the estimated costs for construction of the water or sewer line that is estimated to be costs additional to a standard connection;
(2) Post a bond sufficient to cover the total estimated costs of line extension; or
(3) Provide a letter of credit sufficient to cover the total estimated costs of the line extension.
(E) Line extension fees outside city limits. The costs set out in this section shall apply for connections to property both inside and outside the city limits.
(Ord. 2019-005, passed 8- -2019)