Bowling Green staff outline stormwater utility plan; city approves purchase of 1112 Cave Mill Road for flood control

City staff on Tuesday updated Bowling Green City Commission members on a proposed stormwater utility that would fund inspections, repairs and larger water-quality projects and described a fee-in-lieu option that would let developers pay into a city-managed fund instead of installing on-site treatment. Commissioners later approved the purchase of 1112 Cave Mill Road as a site for additional stormwater capacity.

The update, presented by Courtney Howe of the environmental compliance division, said staff and consultants are drafting ordinance language and expect to present an ordinance for a vote in two to three months, with an intended utility launch of January 1. Howe described a draft fee structure under consideration of $4 per month for single-family residences and duplexes and $2 per month for multifamily units and mobile home community units. Commercial and industrial rates would be calculated from an equivalent residential unit (ERU) based on the average impervious area of a single-family residence in Bowling Green; the consultant is measuring a selected representative area of the city to set that baseline ERU.

Howe said the city is studying existing programs used by other MS4 communities such as Sanitation District No. 1 (Northern Kentucky) and Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government to identify elements that could be adapted for Bowling Green. She said staff is working with Bowling Green Municipal Utilities (BGMU) and Warren County Water to determine billing and data options for assigning fees by property classification. She also said several development projects are currently on hold pending implementation of the utility.

Commissioners asked how the fee-in-lieu (FELOC) would work. Howe said developers who choose the fee-in-lieu would pay into a pooled fund the city would use to build and maintain larger-scale water-quality projects. That approach would relieve individual property owners of long-term maintenance responsibility for on-site devices, but developers would still be required to meet stormwater quantity and drainage requirements on their site. If a city-built treatment system later needs maintenance or repair, the city would be responsible for that work.

Howe and other staff emphasized the utility would allow the city to inspect and maintain roughly 200 miles of pipe more regularly and to address aging infrastructure. Howe said the city has identified more than $10 million in stormwater issues so far but has inspected less than 10% of the system in recent years. Staff said the utility funds would help install basins, ditches and conveyances and to provide continual maintenance and inspections.

Later in the meeting, commissioners unanimously approved a municipal order authorizing the purchase of property at 1112 Cave Mill Road. City staff described that parcel as a candidate location where the city could create additional stormwater holding or retention capacity to reduce flooding in nearby neighborhoods. The motion to approve the purchase was moved by Commissioner Perrigan, seconded by Commissioner Hill and passed on a roll-call vote with Commissioners Hill, Perrigan, Bailey and Mayor Pro Tem Dana Beasley Brown voting yes.

The presentation material and exchanges with commissioners made clear the utility language and fee calculations are still under development; staff said the consultant is refining the ERU value specifically for Bowling Green rather than relying on a statewide average. Staff also said they have considered, but not finalized, any income-based waivers; the only written reduction being considered so far would mirror a local example that charges multifamily units half the single-family rate (reducing $4 to $2 in the staff example). Staff referred residents with hardship concerns to existing utility-bill relief programs rather than to a separate stormwater waiver at this time.

Why this matters: staff said older parts of Bowling Green—generally developments before 1976—often lack modern stormwater basins and conveyances and are therefore more prone to flooding. City leaders said a utility would provide a steady revenue source to inspect, maintain and upgrade the system, and the Cave Mill Road purchase is intended to add capacity where flooding has affected properties.

Speakers quoted in this article spoke during the stormwater update or the Cave Mill Road item at the public meeting; direct quotes are drawn from comments by Courtney Howe and commissioner roll call recorded in the transcript.

Looking ahead: staff said they expect to return with ordinance language for commission consideration within two to three months and to provide the consultant’s ERU calculation as the next step.