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Prineville holds public hearing on updated water and wastewater SDC methodology; no action taken
Summary
City staff presented proposed updates to the system development charge (SDC) methodology for water and wastewater, including modest increases to water SDCs and a larger jump for wastewater; council held a public hearing and staff will return with a resolution for council consideration at the next meeting.
City of Prineville staff held a public hearing on proposed updates to the city’s water and wastewater system development charge (SDC) methodology and the rates that underlie those charges, but took no final action. Casey Keiser, Prineville public works director and assistant city manager, and Lori Hooper Antrim presented the methodology and answered council questions during the hearing.
The presenters told council the SDC update stems from master-plan updates completed in late 2024; SDC methodology is updated whenever the city updates its water or wastewater master plans, typically every five to seven years. Keiser said SDC revenue pays for capacity-building projects needed to serve anticipated growth, while monthly water and wastewater rates pay for operation and maintenance of the existing system.
Under the proposal, the city’s water SDC would increase slightly from about $6,200 to $6,276 (an increase of roughly $73). The wastewater SDC would rise more substantially, increasing by about $2,062 to $5,234. Lori Hooper Antrim said the combined total SDC collected for a single-family residence would increase from $19,658.11 to $21,793.09 after the update. Hooper Antrim identified the connection of the Melrose and Willowdale areas to the wastewater system among the SDC-eligible capital projects that drove the wastewater increase.
Councilors asked how the SDCs apply to nonresidential development. Keiser explained that nonresidential users are generally assessed using equivalent dwelling units (EDUs) or by meter size and projected impacts: “So everything kind of starts from what would the impact of a single family home be,” he said, and scale commercial or industrial fees as multiples of that baseline based on water usage, wastewater demands and transportation impacts. Councilor questions also clarified that the Crook County Parks and Recreation District sets its own SDC, and the city collects that amount on the district’s behalf; Keiser stated parks-and-rec SDCs are applied to residential development (single-family and multifamily) and are not assessed to industry.
Planning staff answered location-specific questions about storm or sewer infrastructure: Planning Director Joshua Smith described the Williamson Drive pump station as a cul-de-sac facility near Crystal Springs and the Purcell property on the east side of town and said the project would allow elimination of that pump station by connecting to the gravity sewer system.
No members of the public spoke during the hearing and staff reported there were no written comments. Keiser and Hooper Antrim said they do not expect a decision tonight; if no significant objections are raised, staff plan to bring a resolution to adopt the updated SDC methodology and the corresponding fee schedule to the next council meeting for formal consideration.
Background: SDC revenue can only be used for capital projects identified in the city’s master plans as necessary to serve future growth, the presenters said. The methodology and project lists in those master plans form the basis of the fees that SDC payers will be assessed.
Questions or technical follow-ups were available from an online consultant, Andy Parks, who assisted with the methodology work; Keiser indicated Anderson Perry and other consultants also contributed to the master plans and methodology.
