A. Partnership Credits.
1. The Village Council recognizes that, in certain unique circumstances, some institutions in the Village, such as schools, parks and churches, have sufficient resources that, in addition to complying with applicable stormwater detention requirements, they are also able to provide significant stormwater management assistance to the Village, through such actions as the donation of land for use in the stormwater system, significant capital contributions for the stormwater system or other such activities. The Village Council reserves the sole and exclusive right and discretion to enter into agreements with such owners to provide for such contributions to the Village's stormwater system, and to grant a credit to such owners for all or part of the stormwater utility fee in exchange for such contribution.
2. To avoid delay in the design and construction of stormwater projects, and to assure that a proposed partnership credit will not shift the costs of stormwater compliance from the party proposing the partnership to the other users of the stormwater system, the Village reserves the sole and exclusive right and discretion to limit the time period during which requests or proposals for partnerships for any stormwater project may be submitted and considered.
B. Individual Credits.
1. Any property owner whose property does not impact on the Village stormwater utility system to the extent of the stormwater utility fee charged to that property pursuant to section 13.16.070 may apply for one of the following credits against the stormwater utility fee:
a. A credit of up to 50% if not less than one half of the stormwater emanating from the relevant property for the 100-year design storm is detained and cleaned, in accordance with effective engineering practices and techniques, prior to discharge into the Village stormwater utility system; or
b. A credit of 100% if none of the stormwater emanating from the parcel in question discharges into the Village stormwater utility system, either directly or indirectly.
2. Applications for credits against the stormwater utility fee filed pursuant to this subsection shall be filed in writing with the Village Manager or his or her designee, along with documentation that the Rules and Regulations of the Village of Winnetka Stormwater Utility require for the assessment of the application, which documentation shall include, but not be limited to:
a. Detailed specifications of any on-site cleaning of stormwater performed prior to discharge into the Village stormwater utility system, along with sufficient evidence that any on-site cleaning system is in good working order and is maintained on a regular basis;
b. Topographical depictions of the runoff patterns and directions of all stormwater emanating from the relevant property that does not impact the Village stormwater utility system; and
c. Relevant photographic evidence in support of the application.
3. The Village Engineer shall review an application for a credit against the stormwater utility fee, and shall either grant or deny the requested credit, within 60 days after the date on which the application is received. The Village Engineer shall only grant the requested credit upon determining, in the exercise of his professional judgment that the applicant meets the criteria for the credit, as defined in paragraph 1 of this subsection.
4. The owner of any parcel granted a credit under this subsection shall be responsible for keeping the qualifying private stormwater management facilities in good working order, and shall provide an annual report of maintenance and repair activities to the Village Engineer, and the Village shall have the right to enter the property to inspect the private stormwater maintenance facilities to confirm that they remain in good working order. Failure by the owner to maintain the private stormwater management facilities will result in the loss of stormwater utility fee credits.
5. Provided the owner has continued to maintain the private stormwater maintenance facilities as required by paragraph 4 of this subsection, a stormwater utility fee credit granted under this subsection shall remain in effect for 5 years from the date of approval. The owner of the property in question may apply for renewal of the credits for successive 5-year periods, subject to meeting all of the applicable conditions then in effect. The approval of a stormwater fee credit shall not create a property right to renew or be granted a credit upon the expiration of the credit's 5-year term.
C. Application of credits; refund of overpayments. The Finance Director shall apply approved credits to the applicant's account, and shall refund to the applicant any overpayments made from the date of the application. If the amount overpaid is less than the full amount of the customer's bill, the refund shall be in the form of a credit against the customer's next bill. If the amount overpaid equals or exceeds the full amount of the customer's prior bill, then the overpayment shall be refunded directly to the customer within 30 days after the date the credit is approved. (Ord. MC-2-2014 § 2, 2014)