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City engineer urges review of stormwater utility fee calculation, council raises equity concerns
Summary
The city engineer presented an overview of Lake Elmo’s stormwater utility fee calculation and asked council whether to refine residential categories and credit processes. Council members raised equity concerns about charging identical fees across widely different lot types and asked staff to revisit credit rules and residential classifications.
City Engineer Nate Stanley briefed the City Council on Lake Elmo’s stormwater utility fee and asked for direction on whether the fee’s calculation method should be revised to improve equity among different property types.
What staff said: Stanley explained the stormwater utility fee funds citywide stormwater maintenance, MS4 permit compliance and occasional capital work. He noted the city currently charges a single residential unit rate ($95 per year, roughly $7.92 per month) for typical single-family lots and described the fee categories in the ordinance (residential, agricultural, commercial/industrial, institutional, park/golf course, vacant land). He asked whether council wanted additional residential buckets (for example by lot size or housing density) or other adjustments to better reflect different infrastructure demands.
Council concerns and equity question: Several councilmembers and the mayor expressed concern that the current charge treats widely different parcels the same — for example, a one-acre lot with on-site infiltration versus a small lot that drains into the city storm sewer both pay the same fee. The mayor said, “that’s not in any stretch of measure fair and equitable,” and urged staff to consider options that better reflect who uses and stresses the public stormwater system.
Credits and administration: Staff noted the city’s existing credit program (approved credits up to 75% were cited) and described that some stormwater facilities are privately owned and maintained while others are city-owned; some homeowner associations do maintain ponds and must submit inspection reports under watershed rules. Councilmembers asked staff to: (1) review and clarify existing credit criteria and whether credits should be processed at HOA level rather than individually for each homeowner, and (2) evaluate whether additional residential rate tiers (for lot size or housing type) are feasible without creating unmanageable administrative burden.
Next steps: Staff agreed to analyze options including modest residential tiering (for example small-lot, standard single-family, and large-lot/estate classes), to inventory which stormwater facilities are privately maintained versus city-owned, and to re-review the credit policy and monitoring practice. Council asked staff to return with concrete recommendations and cost/administrative estimates.
Ending: No fee changes were adopted at the meeting; the council directed staff to report back with implementation options and suggested tier structures and to validate existing credits and their documentation.
