The following shall be applicable to extension of retail water or sanitary sewer service to a subdivision or development within the corporate limits of the city.
(A) Developers desiring retail water or sanitary sewer service from the city shall comply with this code to obtain said service from the city for the development and to extend the city's water and sewer system to the development, and shall enter into a development agreement with the city that contains the details, including costs, of such provision of services. In no event shall developers be allowed to pay a lower cost for extending water or sewer facilities or mains than individuals and non-developers are required to pay.
(B) It shall be the developer's responsibility to acquire and/or designate any utility easements needed to extend the utility line from its present terminus or nearest location to the developer's property. The legal document used to acquire the right-of-way shall be reviewed and approved by the City Attorney and City Engineer prior to the document being presented to the land owner for consideration. The cost of the required easements shall be reimbursed as part of the total cost of the extension in the manner set forth in this section. The location, width, and cost of such easements shall be subject to the approval of the city. Should the developer be unable to acquire the needed easements, the city, at its option, may assist in the acquisition negotiations.
(C) The total cost of a utility line extension shall include all costs associated with the extension, including easement acquisitions, engineering costs, materials costs, construction costs, and any other costs for studies or surveys related to the extension, less the city's share in cases of required excess improvements.
(D) The extensions of retail water service and sanitary sewer service shall be figured separately and treated as separate and individual extensions for the purposes stated in this section.
(E) Water and sanitary sewer line extensions may be installed by the city or by the developer's contractor. This decision shall be made by the Council prior to the project being advertised for bid. In either case, the size, location, materials to be used, and installation practices shall be in accordance to the city's design standards and approved by the City Engineer along with being subject to inspection and approval by the City Engineer.
(F) When the city installs the utility line extension, the developer shall pay in cash or provide an unconditional guarantee from a financial institution, approved by the city, for the developer's share of the utility expansion as determined by the city. A final accounting will occur at the end of the project. The guarantee shall be filed with the City Secretary in letter form from the financial institution and be signed by its principal loan officer. The guarantee shall state the name of the project or identify the property and shall list the improvements the developer is required to provide. This payment or guarantee must be filed with the city after bids have been received and prior to the project commencing.
(G) A pro rata share of the total cost of an extension shall be assessed to each property that seeks service from the extension as provided in this section. The pro rate share for water utilities will be based on the property frontage along the proposed water utility. The pro rata share for sanitary utilities will be based on the property acreage.
(H) The basis for the cost of construction will be reviewed and approved by the city prior to communicating with the property owners along the utility extension route. The city will maintain a list of all property owners having paid their pro rata share prior to beginning construction.
(I) Any customer requesting service who has not paid his pro rata share prior to the installation of the utility extension must pay the pro rata share in full, in addition to the connection charges for water and sanitary sewer taps as set forth in this code, before service will be connected.
(J) A developer, CDC, or EDC that contributes in excess of his or her pro rata share for construction of a utility extension will be eligible for refunds. When assessed property owners do not pay their pro rata share at the time of installation, they will be charged as set forth in this section. The pro rata share shall be refunded to the developer, CDC, and EDC by the city. The developer, the city, CDC, and EDC shall be eligible for reimbursements in this manner for a period of ten years from the date installation of the extension is completed. The city shall continue to collect the pro rata shares from property owners who have not paid as they request service. See Table § 58.03(J) below for an example.
Utility Reimbursement Example
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Entity
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Total Project Cost
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Pro Rata Share
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Difference
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Percent of Project
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Utility Reimbursement Example
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Entity
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Total Project Cost
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Pro Rata Share
|
Difference
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Percent of Project
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Developer A | $512,500 | $425,000 | $87,500 | 26% |
Developer B | $175,000 | $87,500 | $87,500 | 26% |
Developer C | $237,500 | $150,000 | $87,500 | 26% |
Developer D | $0 | $175,000 | $0 | 0% |
Developer E | $0 | $162,500 | $0 | 0% |
EDC/CDC | $75,000 | $0 | $75,000 | 22% |
TOTAL | $1,000,000 | $337,500 | 100% | |
NOTES 1. Entities will be reimbursed over the next 10 years as new development occurs. Entities will be paid back based on the percentage of their contribution. The total reimbursement may not exceed the amount shown in the difference column. 2. The example above is for a project with the total sewer cost of $750,000 and a total water cost of $250,000. The example assumes developer D and developer E are not going to participate, but the EDC or CDC will participate. | ||||
(K) The city may connect any future customer to the extended lines provided the customer pays a pro rata charge and the connection charge for water and sanitary sewer taps as set forth in this code.
(L) The criteria for calculating the pro rata charge to property owners is as follows.
(1) The pro rata charge for each property where water utilities are to become available by installation of an extension will be based on the property frontage along the proposed water utility. The pro rata charge for each property where sanitary utilities are to become available by installation of an extension will be based on the property acreage.
(2) In making the calculations, the city will determine in advance which properties in the vicinity of the extension are capable of being served. Each of these parcels of property will then be included in the calculations. If the city determines that a property is not likely to tie into the system, it will be omitted from the calculations. Any owner of property that has been excluded from calculation in this manner who, at a later time, desires to connect to the utility extension will have to pay a pro rata share.
(3) The total project cost including engineering, surveying, geotechnical testing, construction materials testing, construction, construction administration and inspection will be divided by all the tracts participating. This amount will be shared with all the participants. The total cost will be divided between each participating property based on the property frontage for water utilities and property acreage for sewer utilities. See Table § 58.03(L)(3) below for an example.
Total Project Cost Per Property Owner Example
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Entity
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Areas (AC)
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Sewer (%) | Sewer Cost | Project Sewer
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Frontage (LF)
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Water (%)
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Water Cost
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Project Water
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Total Project Cost Per Property Owner Example
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Entity
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Areas (AC)
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Sewer (%) | Sewer Cost | Project Sewer
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Frontage (LF)
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Water (%)
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Water Cost
|
Project Water
|
Developer A | 200 | 40% | $300,000 | $370,833 | 500 | 50% | $125,000 | $141,667 |
Developer B | 50 | 10% | $75,000 | $145,833 | 50 | 5% | $12,500 | $29,167 |
Developer C | 75 | 15% | $112,500 | $183,333 | 150 | 15% | $37,500 | $54,167 |
Developer D | 100 | 20% | $150,000 | $0 | 100 | 10% | $25,000 | $0 |
Developer E | 75 | 15% | $112,500 | $0 | 200 | 20% | $50,000 | $0 |
EDC/CDC | 0 | 0% | $0 | $50,000 | 0 | 0% | $0 | $25,000 |
TOTAL | 500 | $750,000 | $750,000 | 1,000 | $250,000 | $250,000 | ||
NOTES 1. The cost for the developers that do not participate would be equally divided by the number of developers that do participate, and that number would be added to the total project cost for the participants. 2. The example above is for a project with the total sewer cost of $750,000 and a total water cost of $250,000. The example assumes developer D and developer E are not going to participate, but the EDC or CDC will participate. | ||||||||
(4) Properties that do not front on or abut the utility extension right-of-way, but which can be served by the extension, shall be subject to the pro rata assessment for the original extension plus that particular extension necessary to serve the tract that does not front the utility.
(5) Any condition not covered in this section or of such a nature that strict application of the procedures established in this section would result in an inequitable pro rata change to a property owner may be negotiated by the City Council at the time the original calculation is made for a proposed extension.
(Ord. 18-0320A, passed 3-20-2018)