HomeMy WebLinkAbout1996-03-14 SDC MIN SDC Committee Minutes
March 14, 1996 4 p.m.
Council Chambers, Civic Center
Committee members present included Larry Medinger, Don Laws, Ken Hagen, and Kevin Talbert
along with ex officio members Sid Field, Don Greene and Daryl Boldt (for Dave Bernard). Staff
present included Jill Turner, consultant Wes Reynolds, Jim Olson, John McLaughlin, Ken
Mickelsen and Lynna Batters. Tim Price and Jack Nicholson were absent.
Laws called the meeting to order at 4:15.
Minutes from February 29 and March 6, 1996 were approved as presented.
Turner gave a brief history of SDCs. They were enacted in 1991 and phased in over three years.
The Parks SDCs pay an annual debt service of $200,000. No sewer SDCs have been spent yet.
The sewer SDCs will be used for the first time on the Bear Creek interceptor in 1996-97 to pay the
$90,000/year debt service. For water supply, $22,000 was spent in 1992-93. No more has been
spent since then. Currently, $248,000 is being spent on water treatment. In the future, water
treatment SDCs will go toward the water treatment plant debt. When there is a project that
qualifies, SDCs are spent on it.
Medinger said that if the money is being held for future water supply he doesn't have a problem
with it. He disagrees with the Council policy that states that the City won't need greater supply
until 2019... Laws said the inconsistency of methodologies is what bothers him. How can
reimbursement fees be collected for a project that doesn't exist? The lack of a specific project also
bothers him... Turner said current policy is to collect money to buy water rights. The water supply
pipeline project scheduled for 1999/2000 is estimated to cost $524,000 in today's dollars.
Turner noted that the storm drain project list is extensive. If work continues at the current rate all
work should be completed in about 100 years... Laws asked why we aren't spending faster on this...
Turner said the projects are large and involved and would require more staff than is available to
expedite the work... Olson noted that the Public Works Department is working from a 1980 study.
The work is physically tough, and therefore it's monetarily demanding... Turner said that since the
City can only fund 15 % of the project costs from SDCs, it would be very difficult to come up with
the remainder of the funds from another source.
Technical correction: Using the estimated population of 21,130 at 2005, which resulted in smaller
SDCs.
Regarding supply and capacity of the water treatment plant, Laws asked if SDCs should be tied to
the capacity of the plant... Turner noted that in 1991 the replacement cost of the water treatment
plant was $9 million. The City just spent $3.8 million to upgrade the plant and it is now worth
$10 million. Capacity of the plant is 10 million gallons per day, peak use is 6 MGD... Laws
doesn't like having a reimbursement fee for unused capacity.
Turner said wastewater SDCs are also based on a reimbursement figure... Medinger asked what the
population capacity of the wastewater treatment plant is. He suggested linking the methodology to
capacity.
McLaughlin presented his f'Lxture unit proposal. The commercial SDCs work all right. Ashland
doesn't use meter size because Council wanted to refine the system. Any way it is done, except on
measured water use, there will be mistakes. Irrigation use is a major factor in summer. "This
proposal would institute a base charge for all single family homes, but also address the issue of
larger homes (having more fixture units) paying a higher fee. Further, the proposal allows for
remodels and additions for convenience fixture units, but addresses remodels that allow for increases
in the capacity of the home and greater water usage."
Greene proposed that if SDCs are based on fixture units, the second sink and third hose bib should
be eliminated from consideration... Laws suggested using McLaughlin's recommendation with
Greene's amendment and investigate peak (outside) usage.
A member of the audience asked if 16 fixture units is based on a single bath... Medinger said most
homes do have two baths and they are charged extra for the second one... What about the size of
the lot, and how about TID use?
McLaughlin said he will look at using a 16 fixture unit base with an additional hose bib and sink
allowed. He said we can just change the way we count fixture units. Multi-family housing will be
treated similarly.
An additional meeting is scheduled for April 9 at 4 p.m. in the Council Chambers.
The meeting adjourned at 5:30.
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