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Home My WebLink About2013-05-13 13-156 ORDERCOUNCIL ACTION Item No. 13-156 Date: May 13, 2013 Item/Subject: ORDER, Amending Chapter 252 to Include Establishment of Sewer Connection Fees and Implementing Fee Schedule Responsible Department: Wastewater Commentary: The attached Order would establish a sewer connection fee for any new connection to the City of Bangor waste water facilities. The purpose of this connection fee is to recognize the significant investment that is made in providing available sewer capacity and ensuring that the costs are fairly allocated to those that use the capacity. Currently, there is a flat fee of $60.00 for any new connection to the sewer system. The current fees do not cover costs associated with new sewer connections. Since the late 1980's a considerable amount of expenditure and debt has been incurred by the City of Bangor for sewer system improvements. The Infrastructure Committee recommends approval of this new version of the sewer connection fee. Department Head Manager's Comments: City Manager Associated Information: Memo from Brad Moore, Fee Schedule Budget Approval: Finance Director Legal Approval: City Solicitor Introduced for Passage x First Reading Referral 13-156 MAY 139 2013 r Assigned to Councilor Gallant o BAN 3. CITY OF BANGOR O`ftP�sd6' ._ �Rq�ED�f6 r (TITLE.) Ordinance, Amending Chapter 252, Land Development Code, of the Code of the City of Bangor, By Creating a Connection Fee WHEREAS, persons connecting to the City of Bangor's sewer system currently pay a nominal fee for the connection; WHEREAS, the current connection fee does not cover costs associated with new sewer connections; WHEREAS, many sewer projects have been performed in the last 25 years creating capacity for new sewer connections; and WHEREAS, until now, new sewer users have been allowed to take advantage of this extra capacity without having funded the costs for providing that capacity; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BANGOR AS FOLLOWS, Chapter 252 of the Code of the City of Bangor be amended as follows: § 252-24. Wastewater treatment rates. J. Connection Fee. Any pgrson wishing to connect to the Bangor sewer system is required to p@y a connection fee. Q1 This fee shall be updated every five years on the same schedule as the POTW's federal and state permit renewal. u The property owner must obtain a permit from the wastewater treatment plant and pay the calculated fee before connection to the public sewer system. The fee will be calculated and the amount conveyed within five business days from submission of the permit application. The average daily flow in gallons per day, as determined -by the Uniform Plumbing Code. Maine Subsurface Wastewater Rules and other reliable sources, will be used to calculate the amount of the fee for all properties. A sewer connection fee schedule for various proper y uses based on these calculations will be Drovided with the connection Dermit_aDDlication. (M Fee reduction and refund. A proper y owner may apply for a retroactive reduction of a sewer connection fee once one year has passed from the date of connection to the sewer system and not before. IN CITY COUNCIL May 13, 2013 First Reading eve DkPOTY CITYICLEYK IN CITY COUNCIL May 29, 2013 Motion made and seconded for Passage Vote: 8-0 Councilors Voting Yes: Baldacci, Blanchette, Civiello, Gallant, Longo, Nealley, Sprague, Durgin Councilors Voting No: None. Pa s CITY CLAK 13-156 MAY 13, 2013 jl r rr 1� 11' 11_ r r rr r rr r 1ME ip r r r rrl i� ry r r r r rr• 1� r 1 r 11.1 I- . kt .l suit' l r ♦• i 'l..'il' �.l" ��1 ��.' 1 :,.� !1.1 r - .11r • r - •11 �• 1� ♦.•7.7- r 1. 1 r1 rC•1i• r r rlrr r r, r 1.- • r- ,�- r r r r r - r - rr - 1-• - u The reduction may be granted by the Supgrintendent_of the wastewater treatment plant. Ap=l of the Superintendents decision may be taken to the appropriate committee of the City Council in accordance with the procedure outlined in & 252-25(G). Additions are underlined deletions sick -through. 13-156 MAY 13, 2013 MEMO April 1, 2013 To: Cathy Conlow Debbie Cyr Rosie Bradley Art Morgan Fr: Brad Moore Re: Establishment of a Sewer Fee Connection Fee Current Fee Structure Currently any new connection to the sewer system is assessed a fee of $60. This is a flat fee regardless of the size of the connection or the estimated wastewater flow generated by the new user. This fee is intended to cover administrative costs for the Engineering Department and the actual physical inspection of the connection by the Collection System Maintenance Division staff. Current fees do not cover the costs associated with new sewer connections. Rationale for Establishment of a New Fee Structure Since the late 1980's, the City has undertaken numerous sewer related projects, among them the construction of a secondary treatment plant and sewer line rehabilitation or replacement. The majority of these projects were engineered not only to provide for current flow rates but also were engineered to provide future capacity for development. This 'reserve' capacity is what allows new sewer users to connect to the sewer system. New sewer users take advantage of (use) that capacity without having funded the costs for providing that capacity. A connect fee levels the costs by shifting capacity consumption costs to new users who have not funded sewer projects and the debt service associated with the projects. Proposed Connection Fee Structure As mentioned above, since the late 1980's, a considerable expenditure and debt has been incurred by the City for sewer system improvements. The goal is to provide for current and future capacity. Some work is designed to reduce stormwater from entering the sewer system thus providing capacity without increasing pipe size. Ultimately, all the sewer infrastructure improvements will limit the maximum flow to the wastewater treatment plant to 18 million gallons per day on a monthly average. The maximum flow rate to the wastewater treatment plant along with the costs for construction of the secondary treatment plant can be used to calculate a cost per gallon that can be applied to a connection fee. The calculated cost per gallon following the suggestion above would be: 13-156 MAY 13, 2013 Sewer Fund Infrastructure Expenditure (Construction of Secondary Wastewater Treatment Plant) $19,000,000 Treatment Plant capacity (monthly average) 18,000,000 gallons $19,000,000/18,000,000 gallons = $1.06 per gallon The Maine Subsurface Disposal Rules and State Plumbing Code provide a standard for estimating wastewater flows from residential, commercial and industrial buildings. Two examples of a connection fee: Residential Maine Subsurface Disposal Rules 270 gallons per day Connection fee: 270 gallons per day x $1.06 per gallon = $286.20 Restaurant 125 seats Plumbing Code 35 gallons per day per seat = 4,375 gallons per day Connection fee: 4,375 gallons per day x $1.06 per gallon = $4,637.50 I suggest that any revenue generated by connection fees should have a dedicated revenue line and all revenues be used for sewer infrastructure improvements. 13-156 MAY 13, 2013 CITY OF BANGOR April 1, 2013 SEWER CONNECTION FEE SCHEDULE AMUSEMENT PARK DETERMINED BY SUPERINENDENT APARTMENT BUILDING 185 gpd/unit AUTO BODY SHOP 0.05 gpd/ft2 AUTO.SALES GARAGE 0.05 gpd/ft2 BAKERY 0.15 gpd/ft2 BANK 0.1 gpd/ft2 BARBER SHOP 0.35 gpd/ft2 BEAUTY SALON 0.75 gpd/ft2 BOARDING HOUSE 50 gpd/bed BOWLING ALLEY 75 gpd/lane CAR WASH DETERMINED BY SUPERINENDENT CHURCH (SANCTURY) 185 gpd DAY CARE 10 gpd/child DRY CLEANERS 0.15 gpd/ft2 DUPLEX, ANY COMBINATION OF PLEXES 185 gpd/unit FASTFOOD RESTAURANT (NOTABLE SERVICE) 20 gpd/seat FUNERAL HOME 0.05 gpd/ft2 GOVERNMENT BUILDING 0.1 gpd/ft2 HEALTH CLUB 0.15 gpd/ft2 HOSPITALS 150 gpd/bed HOTELS/MOTELS 100 gpd/unit INDUSTRIAL (PROCESS FLOW) DETERMINED BY SUPERINENDENT LAUNDRY 2.0 gpd/201b machine LODGE 0.25 gpd/ft2 MEDICAL/DENTAL 0.15 gpd/ft2 MOBILE HOME 270 gpd NURSING 100 gpd/bed OFFICES 0.06 gpd/ft2 RESTAU RNAT 35 gpd/seat RETAIL 0.05 gpd/ft2 RETIREMENT 120 gpd/unit SCHOOLS 10 gpd/student SENIOR HOUSING FACILITIES 65 gpd/unit SERVICE STATION W/RESTROOMS 500 gpd/island SINGLE FAMILY HOMES 270 gpd SUPERMARKET 0.05 gpd/ft2 TAVERNS, BARS, LOUNGES 0.09 gpd/ft2 THEATER 3 gpd/seat TRAIN/BUS STATIONS 0.075 gpd/ft2 UTILITIES 0.01 gpd/ft2 VETERINARIANS 0.65 gpd.ft2 WAREHOUSE 0.05 gpd/ft2