Chapter 13.20
SEWER SERVICE SYSTEM
Sections:
13.20.010 Definitions.
13.20.020 Sewer charges.
13.20.030 Use of funds.
13.20.040 Annexation to Municipal Sewer District No. 1.
13.20.050 Special extension prorate charge.
13.20.060 Connection to sewer main of adequate capacity.
13.20.070 Compulsory connection.
13.20.080 Details and specifications adopted by resolution.
13.20.010 Definitions.
For the purposes of this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them by this section:
“Car wash” means a business whose principal activity involves motor vehicle washing, including automatic and self-service washing.
“Church” means establishments of religious organizations operated for worship, religious training or study. Other establishments maintained by religious organizations, such as educational institutions, hospitals, social services, and secondhand stores are classified according to their primary activity.
“Garage and repair shop facilities” means any garage/repair facility that performs minor or major repairs on automobiles, recreational vehicles, motorcycles, and/or boats. These establishments may be combined with automotive dealers or gasoline service stations. Gasoline stations and gasoline stations combined with other activities, such as convenience stores are considered general commercial unless there is on-site food preparation then it is classified as mixed retail with food.
“General commercial and office” means all businesses, offices, and similar users not otherwise included in another user category.
“Grocery” means all businesses whose principal activity involves retail sale of groceries and which have on-site preparation of fresh fruits and vegetables; fresh and prepared meats, fish, and/or poultry; baked goods; and similar items.
“Hotel/motel with food” means a full service facility having rooms, restaurant(s), and/or a bar serving food attached to the same water meter. Also included in this category are bed and breakfasts serving food prepared on-site, and any visitor-serving structure, which contains facilities for cooking and eating.
“Hotel/motel without food” means all living units of a transient nature, including hotel and motel rental room units, which do not contain any kitchen facilities, and bed and breakfast units that only serve continental breakfasts where baked goods and similar items are prepared off-site. Excluded from this category are full service hotels.
“Laundromat/laundry” means all self-service clothes washing establishments or an establishment which is primarily engaged in supplying residences and/or businesses with laundered shirts, pants, household linens, and similar items on an over-the-counter basis. This does not include commercial or industrial laundries. Dry cleaners without on-site cleaning facilities are general commercial.
“Mixed retail with food” means all establishments where more than one retail business is attached to a water meter and the primary water use on that meter is from a business or businesses as defined in the restaurant category.
“Multifamily dwelling” means a two-family, three-family, or multifamily structure as defined in Section 17.04.160.
“Public sewer” means a sewer in which all owners of abutting properties have equal rights, and is controlled by public authority.
“Residential” refers to all living or dwelling units (as defined by the Uniform Building Code) of permanent, rather than a transient nature, including single-family residences, apartments, mobilehomes, duplexes, townhouses, and condominiums. A dwelling unit shall be defined as any structure containing sleeping, eating, cooking, and sanitation facilities.
“Restaurant” means all establishments whose principal activity involves on-premise preparation of meals and food, including fast food restaurants, coffee shops, cafes, juice bars, delicatessens, and bakeries. Excluded from this category are establishments serving food prepared off-site (general commercial category), bars without on-site food preparation (general commercial category), restaurants on the same water meter as a hotel/motel (hotel/motel with restaurant category), and restaurants that are on the same water meter as other general commercial users (mixed retail with food category).
“Sanitation facilities and sewage facilities” means all devices and structures for collecting, pumping, treating and disposing of sewage.
“School” means an educational facility in which instruction takes place, including public, private and religious schools and colleges.
“Sewage” means a combination of water-carried wastes from residences, business buildings, institutions and industrial establishments, together with such ground, surface and storm waters as may be present.
“Sewer” means a pipe or conduit for carrying sewage.
“Special user” means any establishment which cannot be classified in any other category. (Ord. 00-6 § 1: prior code § 12.1)
13.20.020 Sewer charges.
A. Charges Imposed. Owners of property shall pay to the city a charge based on user categories for the connection of the property to the public sewage system in the amounts set forth in this section for every two months or any fraction thereof. Properties which are susceptible to classification under two or more user categories shall be subject to charges which allow for a reasonable usage allocation as determined by the public works director. Customers shall not be charged a sewer charge based on water used for landscape purposes when the water is metered through a dedicated landscape meter.
B. Single-Family Residential Users. Each single-family residential user shall pay a bimonthly sewer charge as follows:
|
|
Current |
May 2008 |
January 2009 |
January 2010 |
|
Single-Family Flat Rate |
$ 72.30 |
$ 79.53 |
$ 87.46 |
$ 96.23 |
C. Multifamily Residential and Commercial Users. Each multifamily residential and commercial user shall pay a bimonthly sewer charge based on size of water meter as follows:
|
|
Current |
May 2008 |
January 2009 |
January 2010 |
||||
|
Fixed Service Charge (Bimonthly): |
||||||||
|
Meter Size |
||||||||
|
5/8" |
$ |
45.28 |
$ |
49.81 |
$ |
54.79 |
$ |
60.27 |
|
1" |
$ |
110.11 |
$ |
121.12 |
$ |
133.23 |
$ |
146.55 |
|
1-1/2" |
$ |
218.17 |
$ |
239.99 |
$ |
263.99 |
$ |
290.39 |
|
2" |
$ |
347.84 |
$ |
382.62 |
$ |
420.88 |
$ |
462.97 |
|
3" |
$ |
650.40 |
$ |
715.44 |
$ |
786.98 |
$ |
865.68 |
|
4" |
$ |
1,082.63 |
$ |
1,190.89 |
$ |
1,309.98 |
$ |
1,440.98 |
|
6" |
$ |
2,163.21 |
$ |
2,379.53 |
$ |
2,617.48 |
$ |
2,879.23 |
In addition to the bimonthly sewer charge, multifamily residential and commercial users shall pay a variable bimonthly commodity charge based on the sewage strength of each user category per one hundred (100) cubic feet of water used (HCFWU) as follows:
|
|
Current |
May 2008 |
January 2009 |
January 2010 |
||||
|
Commodity Rate ($/HCF): |
|
|
|
|
||||
|
Multifamily Residential |
$ |
2.12 |
$ |
2.33 |
$ |
2.56 |
$ |
2.82 |
|
Car Wash |
$ |
1.53 |
$ |
1.68 |
$ |
1.85 |
$ |
2.04 |
|
City Buildings |
$ |
1.70 |
$ |
1.87 |
$ |
2.06 |
$ |
2.27 |
|
Schools |
$ |
1.80 |
$ |
1.98 |
$ |
2.18 |
$ |
2.40 |
|
Laundry/Laundromat |
$ |
1.95 |
$ |
2.15 |
$ |
2.37 |
$ |
2.61 |
|
Churches |
$ |
1.95 |
$ |
2.15 |
$ |
2.37 |
$ |
2.61 |
|
Commercial—General |
$ |
1.95 |
$ |
2.15 |
$ |
2.37 |
$ |
2.61 |
|
Sutter Home Winery |
$ |
2.29 |
$ |
2.52 |
$ |
2.77 |
$ |
3.05 |
|
Service Station/Repair Facilities |
$ |
2.34 |
$ |
2.57 |
$ |
2.83 |
$ |
3.11 |
|
Motels Without Food |
$ |
2.52 |
$ |
2.77 |
$ |
3.05 |
$ |
3.36 |
|
Mixed Retail With Food |
$ |
3.65 |
$ |
4.02 |
$ |
4.42 |
$ |
4.86 |
|
Motels With Food |
$ |
4.70 |
$ |
5.17 |
$ |
5.69 |
$ |
6.26 |
|
Restaurant |
$ |
6.28 |
$ |
6.91 |
$ |
7.60 |
$ |
8.36 |
|
Grocery |
$ |
6.38 |
$ |
7.02 |
$ |
7.72 |
$ |
8.49 |
|
Mortuary |
$ |
6.38 |
$ |
7.02 |
$ |
7.72 |
$ |
8.49 |
|
Merryvale Winery |
$ |
11.25 |
$ |
12.38 |
$ |
13.62 |
$ |
14.98 |
|
Spottswoode Winery |
$ |
11.25 |
$ |
12.38 |
$ |
13.62 |
$ |
14.98 |
D. Special Users. Each special user shall pay a bimonthly sewer charge based upon the size of its water meter and volume and type of sewage discharged and the costs of operating the public sewer system as follows:
Total charge per period = A(V)+B(BOD)+C(SS)+D
Where:
|
V |
is volume of water in millions of gallons |
|
BOD |
is biochemical oxygen demand in pounds |
|
SS |
is total suspended solids in pounds |
|
A |
is allocated cost for each million gallons of flow |
|
B |
is allocated cost per pound for biochemical oxygen demand |
|
C |
is allocated cost per pound of total suspended solids |
|
D |
is charge for water meter size contained in subsection C of this section |
The values for A, B, and C are set forth below:
|
|
Current |
May 2008 |
January 2009 |
January 2010 |
||||
|
Special Users (factors for formula in Section 13.20.020(D): |
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
A (for each million gallons of flow) |
$ |
1,256.49 |
$ |
1,382.14 |
$ |
1,520.35 |
$ |
1,672.39 |
|
B (per pound of BOD) |
$ |
0.61 |
$ |
0.67 |
$ |
0.74 |
$ |
0.81 |
|
C (per pound of SS) |
$ |
0.70 |
$ |
0.77 |
$ |
0.85 |
$ |
0.93 |
Values for V, BOD and SS will be determined at the entry point to the public sewage system, utilizing sampling, analysis, and flow measurement procedures established by the public works director for determining the respective characteristics of the discharge. Should the public works director determine a special user’s water meter is oversized for production, fire flow, or other such purposes where the water as registered by the water meter is not returning to the municipal sewer system, the public works director may make an adjustment to the size of meter for billing purposes based on estimated flow.
Values for A, B, and C will be allocated unit costs of operations, maintenance, administration and depreciation, determined in accordance with the Revenue Guidelines for Wastewater Agencies (State Water Resources Control Board: April 1983), including any amendments or revisions, and based on respective actual costs of the preceding fiscal year. Rates for special users shall be computed by the director of public works annually.
E. Effective Dates for Multi-Year Rate Adjustments. Rates for fiscal year 2008 shall be effective for the billing cycle that begins after April 1, 2008. Rates for future years shall be effective for the billing cycle that begins on or after January 1st of each respective year. The rates for fiscal year 2010 shall remain in effect until amended.
F. Collection and Billing Generally.
1. Sewer charges to occupants of property not billed for water service by the municipal water department shall be billed directly for such sewer charges.
2. All other sewer charges shall be collected from the occupants with the charges for water of the municipal water department of the city and shall be billed upon the same bill. The collection officer or collection agency of the city shall not accept payment of such combined bills unless the total amount of charges for water and sewer are paid in full.
G. Failure to Pay Bill. Bills are due and payable upon presentation and delinquent after thirty (30) days. Upon failure of any consumer billed or the owner of any premises to pay a sewer charge prior to the delinquency, the following action or actions shall be taken by the city to enforce such payment after such bill becomes delinquent:
1. Impose a penalty for delinquency of ten percent (10%) of the amount then delinquent;
2. Assess interest in the amount of one percent per month or fraction thereof on the amount delinquent from the date on which the bill first became delinquent until paid;
3. At the city’s election, cause an action at law to be brought on behalf of the city against the person responsible for payment of such bill to recover the amount of such bill and the cost of such action, including reasonable attorney fees incurred in an amount fixed by the court.
H. Delinquencies. In addition and as an alternative to any other remedy for the enforcement and collection of sewer charges, all delinquent sewer charges shall become a lien upon the real property upon which sewage is furnished or supplied, prior to all other liens, encumbrances or exemptions, other than state and county taxes, and shall have the force and effect of a tax lien, and shall be enforced as follows: on or about September 1st of each year the city clerk shall note the amount of all delinquent sewer charges upon the assessment of such real property as shown upon the assessment roll of the city for the current fiscal year, and shall add the amount of such delinquent sewer charges to the tax assessed against such real property and the amount shall be collected with such taxes in the same manner and at the same time as city taxes, and if not so paid, the same penalties shall be added as are now, or may thereafter be added to delinquent taxes, and thereafter the real property upon which it is a lien, shall be sold and be subject to redemption in the same manner as real property is now, or may hereafter be sold for delinquent taxes. (Ord. 08-1 § 1; Ord. 04-9 § 2; Ord. 00-6 § 2: prior code § 12.3)
13.20.030 Use of funds.
A. Revenues derived under the provisions of this chapter, shall be used only for the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, maintenance and operation of sanitation or sewage facilities, to repay principal and interest on bonds issued for the construction or reconstruction of such sanitary or sewage facilities and to repay federal or state loans or advances made to the city for the construction or reconstruction of sanitary or sewage facilities; provided, however, such revenues shall not be used for the acquisition or construction of new local street sewers or laterals as distinguished from main trunk, interceptor and outfall sewers.
B. There is established and created a fund of the city entitled “sewer fund” and all revenues derived under this chapter shall be deposited in such fund, subject to withdrawal as allowed by the provisions hereof. (Prior code § 12.4)
13.20.040 Annexation to Municipal Sewer District No. 1.
A. The owner(s) of any property to be annexed to the St. Helena Municipal Sewer District No. 1 shall pay to the city at the time of initiating the annexation proceedings a filing fee in an amount set by resolution, the amount of the fee that the city is required to pay to the State Board of Equalization to file statements pursuant to Government Code Section 54900 and following, and the amount of the fee that the city is required to pay to the Napa County assessor’s office for mapping services.
B. All applications for annexations shall be approved by the city council pursuant to the requirements of state law. (Ord. 00-9: prior code § 12.5)
13.20.050 Special extension prorate charge.
A. In addition to the usual costs of a sewer service connection as provided in this chapter, a special extension prorate charge shall be required and collected from applicants for sewer service and those property owners compelled to connect pursuant to Section 13.20.070 in those instances where the present or past owners of the premises to be served have not participated in the cost of installing the main fronting their premises and which main was installed within a period of ten (10) years prior to the date of granting the application for the sewer service connection or compelling connection under Section 13.20.070 of this chapter, but after the effective date of this section. The charge shall be determined by multiplying the footage of the premises lying along and which may be served directly from the main extension by one-half of the lineal per-foot cost of the main extension, but not to exceed the cost of an eight-inch main if installed by the department. The charge shall not be applied more than once to any premises. The charge shall be estimated and fixed by the director of public works subject to the approval of the city council and shall be payable prior to the installation of sewer service. The charge against each premises shall be reduced by ten percent (10%) of the total charge fixed for each full calendar year that passes after the effective date specified in subsection C of this section in which the subject premises have not obtained approval of an application for sewer connection nor qualified for compulsory connection to the city sewer under Section 13.20.070 of this chapter.
B. Exemptions. Except in unusual circumstances as determined by the city council, premises already served by the department at the date of installation of the main extension will be exempt from the payment of the special extension prorate charge.
C. When Effective. The special extension prorate charge shall be in effect for a period of twenty (20) years from:
1. The date of execution of the main-extension agreement, if the main extension is financed by property owners; or
2. The date of official completion of the main extension, if financed by the city.
D. Rights of Applicant Financing Main Extension. The applicant who has financed the main extension shall be entitled to the special extension prorate charges collected by the department as a part of the service connection costs. The amounts collected shall be refunded to the applicant in accordance with the terms of the main-extension agreement between the city and the applicant. The refunds shall be made within ninety (90) days following the date of collection thereof by the city. No refunds of the extension prorate charges shall be made after ten (10) years from the date of execution of the main-extension agreement.
E. Effective Date. All provisions of this section as effective prior to the effective date of the amending ordinance codified in this section shall remain in effect unmodified with respect to all sewer main extensions installed and main-extension agreements executed prior to the effective date of such amending ordinance.
F. Public Hearing. A public hearing shall be held by the city council prior to fixing and approving the special extension prorate charge in the manner described in subsection A of this section and prior to executing any sewer main extension refund agreement. Written notice of such hearings and of the charges estimated and fixed by the director of public works shall be mailed by certified mail to all owners of all properties upon which the charges are or could be prorated at least thirty (30) days prior to such hearings. The written notice shall be mailed to the property owners as determined by the latest county assessor’s records at the property owner’s address shown on the latest county assessor’s records, and if any owner’s address is different than the address of the property to which charges are or could be prorated, a further copy shall be mailed to the owner at such address of the property subject to the proration charges. The director of public works shall maintain his or her papers and calculations supporting his or her estimation and fixing of charges in a file available for public inspection in the city offices during the city’s regular business hours from the time of mailing such public hearing notices until conclusion of the public hearings. (Prior code § 12.6)
13.20.060 Connection to sewer main of adequate capacity.
In no event shall a sewer service connection be installed unless a sewer main of adequate capacity extends in a public street or public right-of-way across the entire frontage of the premises to be served; provided, however, that if, under particular circumstances, it is determined by the city council that no public purpose would be served to require the sewer main to extend across the entire frontage, such as, without limitation, those cases involving dead-end streets or cul-de-sacs, the council may determine a lesser distance to which it is necessary to extend the sewer main across the frontage to serve the public purpose. (Prior code § 12.7)
13.20.070 Compulsory connection.
When the city’s public sewer is available, every building or other permanent structure which has plumbing fixtures shall connect to the city’s public sewer at the time of the occurrence of any one or more of the following events:
A. Approval by the city of any use permit or variance applied for by or with the consent of the owner of the parcel on which the building or structure is located;
B. Approval by the city for recordation of any final parcel map, subdivision map or lot line adjustment effecting any portion of the parcel upon which said building or structure is located, in which case the prorated charge under Section 13.20.050 of this chapter shall be paid for the entire parcel as constituted prior to recordation of any such parcel or subdivision map or documents effecting the lot adjustment;
C. Issuance of a building permit or permits for any parcel on which the building or improvements are located for improvements totaling more than twenty thousand dollars ($20,000.00) in value within any continuous sixty (60) month period or for improvements which comprise replacement, relocation, or substantial reconstruction of an existing discrete sewage disposal system serving the parcel;
D. Determination by the city’s health officer or city engineer that the existing discrete sewage disposal system serving a parcel on which the building or structure is located, or the nonexistence of such a discrete disposal system, constitutes a public health hazard. (Prior code § 12.8)
13.20.080 Details and specifications adopted by resolution.
Standard sewer construction details and specifications shall be adopted by resolution by the city council and made a part of this chapter by reference. (Prior code § 12.18)