Hurricane board refers developer water-dedication ordinance to city council

A majority of the Hurricane City Water Board voted to refer a draft city ordinance that would require developers who use water on a property to dedicate sufficient water rights to the city to cover outdoor irrigation needs, with the city waiving the outdoor portion of the development impact fee in exchange.

The referral motion was made during a public agenda item titled “Discussion and possible recommendation to city council for proposed city ordinance, irrigation water for development.” A board member moved to refer city ordinance 8 1 16 to the city council for discussion and possible approval; another board member seconded the motion. The motion passed on a voice vote; no opposition was recorded.

Why it matters: the ordinance is designed to give the city a clear mechanism for acquiring water associated with development that already has water rights, rather than relying solely on paying impact fees. Under the draft language discussed by the board, the developer would transfer “all water rights sufficient to meet the outdoor irrigation needs of the proposed development” and the city would credit or waive the outdoor component of the impact fee equivalent to that use.

Board members and staff said the ordinance would not require owners of dry property (no water rights) to obtain water; those owners would pay the impact fees as they do now and the city could use that revenue to acquire water for irrigation needs. The board clarified that the amount of water to be dedicated would be calculated using the city’s impact-fee methodology and the engineering assumptions from the impact-fee study.

The draft also includes an option that, if a developer has excess water after dedicating the irrigation amount needed, the developer “may” first offer that excess to the city. Board members stressed the word “may” reflects negotiation rather than a mandatory sale; it is intended to trigger a conversation during the land-use review so the city can express interest in purchasing additional water if available.

The board discussed recent council guidance on fair-market values for canal shares, noting that the city council previously authorized pricing parameters (a figure discussed at the meeting was $20,000 per primary share and $2,500 per secondary share). Board members said tying the ordinance’s water-calculation method to the city’s impact-fee study will make valuation and credits consistent across applications.

Next steps: the board voted to forward city ordinance 8 1 16 to the Hurricane City Council for consideration.