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Milwaukie staff propose utility code clarifications on service-line ownership, temporary hydrant use and shutoff timing
Summary
City staff proposed clarifying utility code language on who owns and maintains service lines, restrictions on temporary hydrant water use, and flexibility for delinquency/shutoff scheduling. Staff also said non-city-water customers inside city limits currently receive some municipal utility fees on a city bill.
Milwaukie staff brought proposed utility-code updates to the council Sept. 16, seeking to clarify ownership and repair responsibilities for service lines, tighten rules for temporary hydrant connections, and give staff limited discretion on the timing of delinquency enforcement and shutoffs.
Public works and finance staff told the council they intend to clarify that the service line discharge on the customer side of the meter is the property owner’s responsibility and that the city remains responsible for the meter and the main-side infrastructure. "What we communicate to customers is the city maintains the service line from where it's tapped into the main to the meter," said Peter Gasfilling, works director; he added the city wants the code to “spell out” that a property owner’s responsibility begins at the discharge side of the meter.
Staff also proposed formalizing rules for temporary hydrant use. The city currently rents a metered assembly for construction activities and charges a higher temporary rate and deposit; staff said that assembly includes backflow protection and is intended for construction or similarly temporary uses, not general convenience uses like filling private swimming pools.
On delinquency and shutoff rules, staff described the existing ordinance as prescriptive (the code currently specifies the third Thursday of the month for shutoffs) and asked council to let the finance director and city manager have a short window of scheduling flexibility (a seven-day period was discussed) so the city can avoid holidays, extreme weather, or public-health risks when enforcing shutoffs. Staff said the city has been operating with some discretion in practice and noted an example this summer when shutoffs were paused during a heat wave for public-health reasons.
Councilors and staff discussed customer expectations and enforcement. Staff said the city receives multiple leak reports per month and that the typical approach is to require property owners to pay for repairs on the customer side of the meter, with the city making adjustments when appropriate. Staff reported about 24 accounts that live inside city limits but do not receive city water; those customers still receive a city utility bill for applicable fees such as stormwater and public-safety fees. Finance staff said there are roughly "just over 300" accounts that receive water from Clean River Water (CRW) (a regional provider) while still getting certain other city utility charges on a Milwaukie bill.
Why it matters: Clarifying code language will reduce disputes about which side of the meter is responsible for repairs and give staff a clear legal basis for standard operating procedures for hydrant rentals, temporary service, and shutoff scheduling. Councilors asked staff to return with a redlined code draft that uses the municipal fee schedule for penalty dollar amounts and that updates references (for example, replacing a defunct "utility committee" reference and aligning authority language with the city manager/designee model used in other codes).
What’s next: Staff said they will bring a proposed code revision to a future work session and follow up with the council on related housekeeping items (fee schedule alignment, deletion of obsolete references, and whether to create a separate water sinking/reserve fund or continue to use the water fund’s reserves).
