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Board debates basis for stormwater fees; staff outlines square-footage approach and credits
Summary
Board members discussed moving stormwater billing to a square-footage basis, potential commercial rates and crediting for on-site stormwater practices; no rate was adopted.
Board members discussed options for reforming the stormwater fee structure, including billing by impervious area (square footage) and offering credits for on-site stormwater management measures.
A board member asked whether a billing unit would be based on square footage; staff responded affirmatively and said one billing unit would represent a defined square footage. One member noted current commercial accounts pay about $10 per month and asked whether that amount was appropriate for large properties such as the mall or a big-box store.
Staff suggested a representative commercial unit might be closer to $20 per month based on square footage, and said the fee structure could include credits for commercial properties that have installed rain gardens or other stormwater-reduction measures. A board member recalled prior calculations by Tommy that quantified square-foot charges and said comparisons with other cities showed substantially higher fees in some jurisdictions.
Members discussed coordinating any stormwater rate-change discussion with other ongoing rate studies so that changes are considered together. No motion to change stormwater rates was made at the meeting; staff said they would return with calculations and options for a later meeting.
