HomeMy WebLinkAbout2393 Amending Ordinance 2387 - Water Reservation System for Customers Located within Utilities Outside of City Service AreaORDINANCE NO.
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE 2387 REGARDING A WATER
RESERVATION SYSTEM FOR THE CITY'S WATER UTILITY CUSTOMERS
LOCATED IN THE UTILITY'S OUTSIDE OF CITY SERVICE AREA BY
AMENDING THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION 13.14.010, 13.14.060 AND
13.14.070 OF THE PORT TOWNSEND MUNICIPAL CODE AS
ESTABLISHED BY THAT ORDINANCE, AND RELATED TO THE TIME AT
WHICH WATER TAP FEES MUST BE PAID, THE ESTABLISHMENT OF
A WAITING LIST FOR WATER RESERVATIONS AND THE LIFETIME OF
A WATER RESERVATION WHERE A SUBDIVISION APPLICATION IS
INVOLVED.
WHEREAS, upon further consideration of the necessary and desirable point at which
actual water tap fees should be paid, it is the desire of the City Council to not require that such
fees be required at the time a water reservation is issued; and
WHEREAS, a modification in the time at which such water tap fees must be paid
requires an amendment of the recently adopted water reservation system ordinance codified as
Chapter 13.14 of the Port Townsend Municipal Code;
NOW, THEREFORE, Be it ordained by the City Council for the City of Port Townsend:
Section 1. Section 13.14.010 of the Port Townsend Municipal Code is hereby
amended to read as follows:
13.14.010 Purpose. This Chapter is intended to provide an orderly system for
commitments to provide water supply to property owners located within the water utility's
outside of city service area. It is the intention of this Chapter that a system of water reservation
be established which will provide certainty regarding water service to those who are ready to
use it at or near the time they obtain a reservation or commitment for service from the water
utility while at the same time preserving the ability of the water utility to 'provide reliable service
to its existing customers. This system is necessary to allow those who have partially developed
properties adjacent to existing water infrastructure to have an opportunity in future years to
obtain water supply and to avoid ail future commitments being reserved for large vacant parcels
at a pace greatly exceeding actual rates of growth and development in the outside of city service
This Chapter is further intended to provide a system for commitments to provide water
supply to be perfected by actually paying all charges under this ordinance and other ardinmnces
r~c~ving ~,.~ ~,~,-~,~J ............ ~.,.,,~.,~,,,.: .... · Payment of these ch~ges is intend~ to ~low the city to
have the funds in h~d n~es~ to complete major improvements to the water system, such as
providing incr~s~ storage capacity, upgrading the sizes of existing m~n lines ~d other
2
system-wide improvements necessary to accommodate growth concurrently with the actual need
for service and to create a disincentive to speculative reservations of water in advance of actual
development of the property and need for the water service. Due to the limited supply of city
water and the fact that water supply would soon be over committed if speculative reservations
of water are allowed to occur and continue in significant numbers, the process established
hereunder also provides for relinquishing of the temporary commitment to provide supply if the
water is not actually beneficially used within a reasonable period of time.
Section 2.. Section 13.14.060 of the Port Townsend Municipal Code is hereby
amended to read as follows:
'13.14.060. Payment of Certain Fees Required. For Issuance of Water Reservation;.
Creation of Waiting List and Refunds,. No water reservation shall be issued or be deemed
valid until the following fees, set forth more fully in Chapter 3.36, are paid:
Ao
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Water reservation application fee.
System Development Charges (SDC) for each equivalent residential unit being
proposed.
Water tap fees shall not be payable until application for the tap is actually made and such
charges are due and payable under Chapters 13.12 and 3.36. After the tap is installed, all
monthly charges and user fees shall be payable whether the tap is in use or not. System
Development Charges in the City's outside of City service area shall be paid at the time a water
reservation is approved and issued. The water reservation shall not be deemed valid until the
System Development Charges have actually been received. System Development Charges shall
be paid within fifteen (15) working days after notification that the reservation has been approved
or the application for water reservation shall be deemed abandoned.
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*'-" ~- ..... :~'~ A proportional refund of charges other than the water
reservation fee shall be made where the number of services or Equivalent Residential Units
(ERU) is reduced after payment of an initial fee based on a higher ERU. If the ERU's are
increased, a higher fee shall be assessed for the additional ERU's before water service may be
established or a reservation for the additional ERU's may be granted.
Where a request for water reservation has been denied because water is currently
unavailable, the Director of Public Works may, where future capital improvements will make
additional water available at a later date, establish a waiting list for availability of water. The
waiting list shall allow future available water to be allocated or reserved in the order in which
applicants have submitted their application for water reservations or a place on the waiting list.
An applicant wishing tO be placed on the waiting list shall pay, prior to placement on the waiting
list, in addition tO the application fee for a water reservation, all System Development Charges
for the Equivalent Residential Units being pro_t)osed by the applicant. The System Development
Charges paid are to be utilized for the development of additional capital facilities necessary to
provide the additional water supply necessary to serve the party on the waiting list.
Section 3. Section 13.14.070 of the Port Townsend Municipal Code is hereby
amended to read as follows:
13.14.070 Life of Water Reservation; Extension.
A water reservation shall be perfected when actual installation of the tap or taps involved
is completed. A water reservation for applications involving development proposals other than
subdivisions shall be valid for a period of one year and shall expire unless installation of the tap
occurs within that period or an extension of the reservation is granted. Upon payment of a fee
established in Chapter 3.36, a water reservation for an application involving a development
proposal other than a subdivision may be extended for a single additional one-year period where
it is established that permit applications for development of the property have not been issued
due to no fault of the applicant for reasons such as preparation of an environmental impact
statement, additional public processing or requests for further analysis or information from the
permitting agency. Where the water reservation application involves a subdivision, consistent
with the provisions of RCW 58.17. !70, the reservation shall be valid for a period of five years
from the date of approval of the final plat unless a change in conditions creates a serious threat
to the public health or safety in the subdivision.
This Ordinance shall become effective five days after passage and publication as provided
by law.
Read for the first, second and third times and pas~d%'~e City Council of the City of
Port3~t0T°wnsend'~b t~¥ Washington,, 1994. at a regular mee~s~.~~ //~h[_ day of
Attest: {
David Grove, Clerk/Treasurer
n Clise,¥Vlayor
Approved as 16 form:
Dennis McLerran, City Attorney