A. Requests for Discretionary Undergrounding. Any person or group of persons who own and occupy one or more single-family residences that receive electric service from the Village may request that the Water and Electric Department place local transmission and distribution lines serving those residences underground; provided: (1) that the request be submitted on petition forms that are prescribed by the Water and Electric Department; (2) that the petitions include the notarized signatures of at least ninety (90) percent of the customers and ninety (90) percent of the property owners in the area for which the undergrounding is requested; (3) that the forms contain a statement that each person who signs, understands and agrees that the Village has and reserves the right to determine whether the requested undergrounding will be done and to determine the locations of the underground lines and all related utility equipment and facilities, including pad mounted transformers and switch gear; and (4) that each property owner who signs agrees to grant to the Village, without charge, any easements that the Village may determine are necessary for such underground lines and related utility equipment facilities.
B. Review of Petitions. The Village Manager shall review the request and submit a report to the Village Council. The report shall include the finding of the Director of Water and Electric, made in the exercise of his or her engineering judgment, as to the specific portions of the transmission and distribution system to which the petition shall apply and the estimated cost of placing the lines underground as requested. The report shall also address the following points:
1. Whether granting the request will in any way result in the interruption, modification or interference with the Village's scheduled undergrounding or capital improvements for the electric system;
2. Whether the Water and Electric Department has sufficient cash on hand to perform the requested undergrounding;
3. Whether the requested undergrounding will reduce present or future cash reserves of the Water and Electric Department to a level that is not consistent with the Village's fiscal practices;
4. Whether the cost of the requested undergrounding, including the cost of funds, can be fully amortized in sixty (60) months or less at a rate of no more than two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00) per month;
5. Whether another request for discretionary undergrounding has already been approved for that year;
6. Whether the Director of Water and Electric Determines that the area for which the undergrounding is requested is either too small to be done in a cost effective manner or too large to be done in the current year;
7. Whether the Village can acquire, without cost, all necessary easements before entering into any contracts or fixing any schedules for the performance of the work;
8. Whether granting the request will impose an undue financial burden or hardship on customers in the proposed project area who did not sign the petition; and
9. Any other information which the manager deems relevant for the Council's consideration of the request.
C. Decision by Village Council. The Village Council shall have the sole discretion to approve or deny any request for discretionary undergrounding and, in the exercise of that discretion, shall consider the information in the Manager's report and such other or additional information about the requested undergrounding and its effects as it may deem relevant. All approvals of requests for undergrounding shall be by resolution of the Village Council and may include any conditions or modifications that the council, in the exercise of its discretion, determines are in the best interests of the Village's electric utility, the Village as a whole and the customers in the proposed project area. The Council may deny the request for any reason, including but not limited to a determination that granting the request may impose an undue financial burden or hardship on any customer in the project area who did not sign the petition.
(Ord. MC-228-99 § 6 (part), 1999: Ord. MC-214-98 § 3, 1999: prior code § 9.23)