SPU proposes higher system development charges and cost‑sharing to ease costly mainline extensions

Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) on April 23 presented a three‑ordinance package to the City Council’s Parks, Public Utilities and Technology Committee that would raise and add system development charges (SDCs) for water, wastewater and drainage and create a cost‑sharing and reimbursement program to reduce the upfront cost of new mainline extensions.

SPU officials said the package aims to spread expensive infrastructure costs across all development so that individual projects are not priced out. "Everybody pays a little, so nobody pays a lot," Marco Lowe, chief operating officer in the mayor’s office, told the committee.

The package includes: (1) revisions to the water SDC and creation of drainage and wastewater SDCs; (2) authority for SPU to enter latecomer agreements and municipal reimbursement arrangements under state law; and (3) budget and staffing amendments to implement the program. Carrie Burchard Juarez, deputy director at SPU, said the program would begin cost‑sharing on Jan. 1, 2026, if approved.

Why it matters: SPU told the committee roughly 10% of development projects currently must build new mainline extensions, and those projects have borne about 76% of total developer‑paid infrastructure costs in recent years. SPU said developer contributions average about $21 million per year, concentrated on a small share of projects; the proposal would shift more of that…