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Council discusses ETA policy draft; staff to return with clarified ERU threshold and process
Summary
City staff presented revisions to the draft Extraterritorial Agreement (ETA) policy and council discussed which ETAs require council review versus city manager approval and whether development agreements should be required when allocations exceed certain ERUs.
City staff presented revisions to the draft Extraterritorial Agreement (ETA) policy and council discussed which ETAs require council review versus city manager approval and whether development agreements should be required when more than a given number of Equivalent Residential Units (ERUs) are requested.
Staff said the draft clarified where classified ETAs would be sent and that certain classifications (0, 1 and 2) would go directly to the city manager for approval. The policy was updated to note that development agreements may be required when allocations exceed one ERU. "That gives us language to go back and update and completes development agreements along with the ETAs," staff said.
Council members asked whether the development-agreement trigger should be one ERU or higher. Several council members said they had considered a threshold of five ERUs for staff approval; others said that project‑level review is more appropriate. After discussion, council indicated a preference to retain a low threshold (one ERU) for council review and to treat larger subdivisions or new developments as separate matters that would require development agreements.
Why it matters: ETAs determine whether and how the city extends water services beyond corporate limits; the policy sets administrative authority and when council involvement is required. The public-policy balance affects small builders who commonly request single or a few ERUs and larger developers proposing subdivisions.
Next steps: Staff will revise the ETA policy to reflect council direction and will return to council in July for possible adoption. The policy references Department of Health emergency hookup provisions for certain non-contiguous parcels and retains classification definitions (0: within city limits; 1: non-contiguous parcels with emergency hookup request and water mains nearby; 2: other classifications) to guide who approves ETAs.
Ending: No formal vote was taken; council provided direction on threshold and asked staff to return with a clarified draft for adoption.
