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1 ORDINANCE NO. 4 1 9 4
2 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF AUBURN, WASHINGTON, ESTABLISHING RATES AND CHARGES_
FOR THE ADMINISTRATION ;AND OPERATION OF A STORM DRAINAGE UTILITY.
3
WHEREAS, the City of Auburn, by adopting Ordinance No. 4193, created and
4
5 established a Storm Drainage Utility and elected to exercise all lawful powers
6 necessary and appropriate for the construction, condemnation and purchase,
acquisition, addition to, maintenance, operation, management, regulation and
7
control of a-Storm Drainage Utility system described and adopted therein,
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9 including without limitation all the lawful powers to fix, alter, regulate,
10 and control the rate, charges and conditions for the use thereof; and
11 WHEREAS, the City of Auburn finds that all real property in the City
12 contributes runoff to the common drainage problem, and that all real property
13 in the City benefits from the Storm and Surface Water Utility system in the
14 City of Auburn; and
15 WHEREAS, the City finds that the intensity of development on all parcels
16 of real property, as measured by the square footage of impervious surface
17 area, is an appropriate basis for determination of an individual parcel's
18 contribution to the problem of storm and surface water runoff; and
19 WHEREAS, the City of Auburn also finds that each parcel of real property
20 within the City of Auburn should support the cost of constructing, operating,
21 maintaining, repairing, improving and replacing drainage facilities in propor-
2 2 tion,,to the amount of runoff contributed to the drainage system-beyond that
23 which would occur if the parcel were in its natural state; and
24 NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF AUBURN, WASHINGTON DO
25 ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
26 Section 1. DEFINITIONS. The following words when used herein shall have
27 the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
28 A. Equivalent Service Unit - (ESU). A configuration of development or
impervious surfaces estimated to.contribute an amount of runoff to
29 the City's'storm drainage system which 'is approximately equal to that
created by the average single-family residential parcel. One ESU is
30 equal to 2,600 square feet of impervious "surface area or any portion
thereof.
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Ordinance No. 4194
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1 B. Impervious Surface Multiplier. A multiplier used in the City of
Auburn's Storm Utility rate formula which reflects the hydraulic
2 impact of increasing percentages of impervious surface area. The
effect of said multiplier is to increase the monthly service charge
3 for parcels having a higher ratio of impervious surface area to total
surface area.
4
C. Impervious Surface. That hard surface area which either prevents or
5 retards the entry of water into the soil mantle as it entered under
6 natural conditions pre-existent to development and/or that hard sur-
face area which causes water to run off the surface in greater quan-
7 tities or at an increased rate of flow from that present under
natural conditions pre-existent to development. Common impervious
8 surfaces include, but are not limited to, rooftops, concrete or
asphalt paving, wal"kways, patios, driveways, parking lots or storage
9 areas, and oiled, gravel or other surfaces which similarly impede the
natural infiltration of surface water.
10 D. Parcel. The smallest separately segregated unit or plot of land
11 having an identified owner, boundaries, and surface area which is
documented for tax purpose and given a ,tax lot number by the King
12 County Assessor.
13 _ E. Parcel - Agricultural. Any parcel of land upon which the principal
current land use is for producing crops or raising livestock and may
14 include barns, greenhouses, and other non-dwelling structures related
to farming activities. Agriculture parcels that contain one or more
1 5 dwelling units shall be assessed the corresponding residential parcel
charge; i.e., single family, multifamily two residential units and
16 multifamily three residential units.
17 F. Parcel - Developed. Any parcel which has been altered by grading or
filling of the ground surface, or by construction of any improvement
18 or other impervious surface area which affects the hydraulic proper-
ties of the -parcel.
19
G. Parcel - Single-Family Residential. Any parcel of land having on it
20 a single detached dwelling unit which is designed for occupancy by
one family or a similar group of people.
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H. Parcel - Multifamily - Two Residential Units. Any parcel of land
22 having on it two dwelling units which is designed for occupancy by
two families or similar groups of people.
23
I. Parcel - Multifamily - Three Residential Units. Any parcel of land
24 having on it three dwelling units which is designed for occupancy by
three families or similar groups of people.
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J. Parcel - Undeveloped. Any parcel which has..not been altered from its
26 natural state by grading or fill ing. of. the ground surface, or by
construction of any improvements or other impervious surface area
27 which affects the hydraulic properties of the parcel.
28 Section 2.0. SYSTEM OF CHARGES. There is hereby imposed a system of
29 charges on each parcel of real property within the City of Auburn to operate
30 the Storm Drainage Utility established by Ordinance No. 4193.
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32 Ordinance No. 4194
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1 The charges are deemed reasonable and necessary to fund administration,
2 planning, design, construction, operation, maintenance, repair, improvement,
3 and replacement of all existing and future storm and surface water facilities,
4 including the accumulation of reserves and the retirement of any associated
5 debt.
6 Section 2.1. CHARGES. The following charges are hereby established for
7 all parcels of real property in the City of Auburn:
8 A. Single-Family Residential Parcels: The single-family residential
charge shall be $2.00 per month for each parcel having one resi-
9 dential dwelling.
10 B. Multifamily Two Residential Unit Parcels: The two residential unit
charge shall be equivalent to the single family rate per month for
11 each parcel having two residential dwellings. For residential par-
cels that contain two attached dwelling.units and have two separate
12 residential utility accounts, the Storm,Drainage Utility user fee
will be.equally divided and each residential utility account charged
13 the appropriate account. For residential parcels that contain two
attached dwelling units and.have one commercial utility account, the
14 Storm Drainage Utility user fee'will be'entirely assigned to the
single commercial utility account and charged the appropriate amount.
15
C. Multifamily Three Residential Unit Parcels: The three residential
16 unit charge shall be equivalent to the single family rate per month
for each parcel having three residential.dwellings. For residential
17 parcels that contain three attached"dwel-ling units and have three
separate residential utility accounts; the Storm Drainage Utility
18 user fee will be equally divided and each residential utility account
charged the appropriate amount. For-residential parcels that contain
19 three attached dwelling units and have one commercial utility
account, the.Storm Drainage Utility user fee will be entirely
20 assigned to the single commercial utility account and charged the
21 appropriate amount.
D. Agricultural Parcels: Agricultural parcels that do not contain a
22 dwelling unit shall not be charged. Agricultural parcels that con-
2 3 tain one or more dwelling units shall be assessed the appropriate
residential parcel charge; i.e., single family, multifamily two resi-
dential units and multifamily three residential units.
24
2 5 E. The minimum charge subject to any applicable parcel shall be one ESU
as defined in Section 1 of'this ordinance.
26 F. Undeveloped Parcels: Undeveloped parcels shall not be charged.
27 G. Other Parcels:
28 1. The charge for all other parcels except single family, multi-
29 family two and three residential unit parcels, agricultural par-
cels, and undeveloped parcels shall be based upon the following
30 formula:
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32 Ordinance No. 4194
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e e
1 TNESU * ISM * RATE = Assessment Charge.
2 TNESU - Total number of Equivalent Service Units contained on
said parcel. An Equivalent Service Unit has been deter-
3 mined to be 2600 square feet of impervious surface or any
fraction thereof.
4
ISM - Impervious Surface Multiplier as determined by calcu-
5 lating the percentage of impervious surface coverage on
said parcel as defined in Section l of this-Ordinance.
6
RATE - The rate ,ass„igned to an.Equivalent Service Unit as
7 defined in Section 2.1 'of this Ordinance.
8 2. Impervious Surface Multipliers are hereby established.
9 a. Percentage of
Impervious Area
10 Per Parcel (,Im-
pervious Surface Area
11 Divided by the Impervious
Total Surface Area X 100) Multiplier
12
13 1 to 40 1.0
41 to 50 1.1
14 51 to 60 1,2
61 to 7.0 1.3
15 71 to 80 1.4
81 to 90 1.5
16 91 to 100 1.6
17 b. Impervious Surface multipliers correlate the theoretical
hydraulic impact of a parcel to its percentage of impervious
18 surface. The multiplier for the average single-family resi-
dence is established, at 1. The multiplier linearly increases
19 as the percentage-of impervious area increases. The largest
multiplier has ,a value of i.6 which is reflective of its
20 hydraulic impact on the drainage system as compared to that
of the average single-family residence.
21
Section 3. MEASUREMENT OF IMPERVIOUS AREA. The Director of Public Works
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shall determine the number of square feet of impervious surface in all non-
23 single-family, multifamily two and multifamily three residential unit parcels,
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excluding agricultural and undeveloped parcels, and the total surface area of
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each parcel of real property, through the records of the King County Assessor
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and through aerial photographic methods, provided that the methods used insure
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accuracy to one-tenth (0.1) of an equivalent service unit as defined herein.
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Section 4. BILLING AND COLLECTION. Storm Drainage Utility charges for
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each parcel of real property within the City of Auburn shall be billed on a
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32 Ordinance No. 4194
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1 bimonthly basis. The amount billed shall be included on the sanitary sewer
2 bill or on the water or garbage bill if not served by the Sewer Utility. A
3 separate billing shall be made to those property owners within the City of
4 Auburn who are not City of Auburn water, garbage or sanitary sewer customers.
5 A. Utility Bill Collection Outlets. The collection of municipality uti-
lity bills may be made by the local merchants as designated in
6 Section 13.28.010 of the Auburn Codified City Ordinance.
7 B. Order of Payment. Payments received for utility bills shall be
applied towards the following bills in the order of priority shown.
8
1. Storm
9 2. Garbage
3. Sewer
10 4. Water
11 C. Service Charges - Payment Delinquencies. The foregoing service
12 charges for storm and surface.water shall be due and payable at the
same time as fixed by Section 13.04.300.of the Auburn Codified City
13 Ordinances.
14 D. Charges Constitute Lien. All charges for storm and surface water,
including service charges, together with penalties and interest
1 5 referred to in this Ordinance shall constitute a lien upon the pro-
perty from.Which such charges are due, sup,erior.to all other liens
16 and encumbrances whatsoever, except for general taxes and local spe-
cial assessments. Enforcement of such lien shall be in the manner
17 provided by law.
18 Section 5. RATE REDUCTIONS. The Director of Public Works may reduce the
19 normal Storm Drainage Utility charge for a parcel of real property that satis-
2 0 fies one or more of the following conditions:
21 A. The owner of a parcel, other than a residential parcel, as stated in
Section No. 1 of this Ordinance, that has installed an approved on-
22 site retention system which substantially reduces he rate of flow
expected after the development of such a parcel. No reductions will
23 be made for.mitigative measures which are required to meet any ordi-
nance, regulations, other control or standard estabii~shed by the City
24 of Auburn, King County or the State of Washington. Such reductions
shall be commensurate with the mitigating effects so that the reduc-
2 5 tion.in rates will be in approximate proportion to the reduction in
runoff. In no case shall such a reduction result in a rate less than
26 the monthly charge for a single-family residential parcel. Such a
reduction will remain in effect as long as:
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1. The owner of such a system has obtained the proper permits and
28 constructed the system according to plans approved by the
Director of Public Works.
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2. The owner remains responsible for all costs of operation and
30 maintenance of the system (consistent with City standards).
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Ordinance No. 4194
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1 3. The Director of Public Works has access for inspection of the
system to determine if it is in compliance with design and main-
s tenance standards and functioning properly.
3 4. In the event that a parcel of property is incorrectly assessed as
determined through the hearing process, said parcel will be cre-
4 dited in the amount equal to the difference between the two
assessments.
5
B. A single-family residential parcel of real property that qualifies
6 for a. senior citizen's'or disabled citizen's rate exemption as
defined in Section 13..24.010 of the City of Auburn Codified
7 Ordinances shall be subje.ct.to a fifty percent (50%) reduction in the
monthly residential charge.
8
C. A parcel of real property that contains a major extra capacity storm
9 drainage storage/conveyance channel,'and is privately owned, main-
tained and operated, may be eligible to'partially or completely
10 substitute an acceptable in-kind service in the place of the Storm
Drainage'Uti.lity charge. The in-kind service shall consist of a
11 regular maintenance program to clean, redefine and enhance the
1 2 storage and conveyance characteristics of said channel or ditch. The
in-kind service will be required to be comparable in monetary value
13 and each parcel will be evaluated ona case by case basis.
14 D. A parcel of real property other than a residential parcel (i.e.,
residential single dwelling unit, two dwelling units or three
1 5 dwelling units)that solely utilizes a direct.storm water discharge
to a major watercourse in which the City of Auburn holds no respon-
1 6 sibili_ty for maintenance, operation, construction, etc. shall be sub-
ject to a reduction.in the utility charge based on the reduced impact
17 to. the City of Auburn Storm Drainage System. Each parcel that quali-
fies under this category will be evaluated on a case by case basis.
18 Section 6. RATE EXEMPTIONS. The Director of Public Works may provide
19 exemptions for the following parcels of real property:
20
A. A parcel of real property upon which the principal current land use
21 is for producing crops or raising livestock and does not contain a
dwelling unit.
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B. All public rights-of-way that are owned and operated by the City of
23 Auburn, King County or the Washington State Department of
Transportation.
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C. A parcel of real property that is in an undeveloped or natural state.
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Section 7. APPEALS.
26
A. Filing.
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1. Any owner or owners who dispute the amount of their charges or
28 who dispute any determination made by or on behalf of the City
pursuant to and by authority of this Ordinance, may petition the
29 Public Works Director,in writing for a hearing on a revision or
modification of such charge or determination, no later than
30 thirty (30) days after having been billed for such charge or
after having been notified of such determination. Such petition
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Ordinance No. 4194
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1 shall be filed with the office of the Public Works Department
upon payment of ten dollars ($10.00) which will be refundable if
2 the proposed appeal is approved. The petition shall identify the
property, describe all improvements or proposed improvements, and
3 allege specific errors in a charge or the basis for the challenge
of a determination.
4
a. For purposes of this subsection, notice of determination
5 shall be effective upon the=date"of mailing,. postage prepaid
to the address of-the person seeking the determination.
6 Notice of charges shall be the monthly account billing date,
PROVIDED, that a.reduction or increase in charges shall only
7 be allowed from that billing date forward, for which an
appeal is filed.
8
b. Any owner or owners who are actively seeking an appeal to the
9 Storm Drainage Utility charge shall continue to pay said
charge until a final determination is made on said appeal.
10 Upon final determination by the Public Works Director any
owner or owners who have been charged incorrectly shall be
11 refunded such overcharges with interest. Said interest rate
shall be determined by the City of Auburn Finance Director.
12
B. Hearing.
13
1. Upon receiving such a petition, the Public Works Director shall
14 schedule a hearing.with said petitioner within 30 days. Notice
of the hearing shall be provided to the petitioner at least ten
15 (10) days prior.._to the hearing. Following the hearing, a final
determination shall be made by the Public Works Director and the
16 petitioner so notified within 30 days.
17 2. All decisions of the Public Works Director shall be based upon
sound engineering practices as they relate to storm and surface
18 water drainage.
19 3. Nothing in this ordinance shall be construed as granting any
20 right of judicial review which does not previously exist in law.
The decision of the Public Works Director shall be final and
21 conclusive. A writ of review must be sought in the Superior
Court of. King County, if at all, by an-aggrieved party or person
22 within fourteen (14) calendar days of the effective date of the
Public Works Director's decision.
23 Section 8. CODIFICATION. There is hereby established a new chapter in
24 the Auburn.Codified City Ordinances to be codified therein as the "Storm
25 Drainage Utility".
26
Section 9. If any portion of this ordinance, as now or hereafter amended,
27 or its application to any person or circumstances is held invalid or
28
unconstitutional, such adjudication shall not affect the validity of the ordi-
29
nance as a whole, or any section, provision, or part thereof not adjudicated
30 to be invalid or unconstitutional and its application to other persons or cir-
31
cumstances shall not be affected.
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Ordinance No. 4194
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1 Section 10. The Mayor is hereby authorized to implement such administra-
2 tive procedures as may be.necessary to carry out the directions of this
3 legislation.
4 Section 11. This ordinance shall take effect and be in force January 1,
5 1987, after its passage, approval and publication, as provided by law.
6
7 INTRODUCED: DECEMBER 15, 1986
8 PASSED: DECEMBER 15, 1986
9
10
APPROVED: DECEMBER 15, 1986
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13
M A Y
14
15 ATTEST:
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17
City Clerk
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19
20 A ROVED AS TO FORM:
21
22 Acting City Attorney
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26 PUBLISHED: DECEMBER 21, 1986
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Ordinance No. 4,194
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