Committee moves stormwater code amendment for Snoqualmie Mill to full council
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Summary
The Community Development Committee reviewed an ordinance to treat some "previously disturbed" parcels as undeveloped — exempting them temporarily from stormwater rates if they meet three conditions — a change staff said would reduce fees for Snoqualmie Mill Ventures but could raise later GFC receipts and has modest net modeled effects through 2030.
The Community Development Committee on Tuesday reviewed an ordinance that would let certain "previously disturbed" parcels be classified as "undeveloped" for stormwater billing, potentially reducing stormwater rates for properties owned by Snoqualmie Mill Ventures.
Finance director said the code amendment would allow all or portions of a previously disturbed parcel to be treated as undeveloped — and therefore not charged stormwater rates — if three conditions were met: the portion lacks city-owned stormwater infrastructure, a development agreement and site plan have been approved by the council, and the portion is in a "nonproduction" state (not used for occupancy or income-generating activity). "The ordinance is seeking to narrowly expand undeveloped conditions to include previously disturbed parcels," the finance director said.
Staff told the committee the change would apply to Planning Area 1 and portions of Planning Areas 2 and 3 owned by Snoqualmie Mill Ventures and would reduce the amount that Snoqualmie Mill currently pays in stormwater rates. At the same time, staff said earlier collection of GFCs could offset some near-term rate revenue declines. The finance director summarized the modeled fiscal effects as a roughly $100,000 decrease in total sources, an approximately $600,000 decrease in total uses (driven by 2025 operating savings), and an ending cash balance higher by about $400,000 over the 2025–2030 period.
Committee members pressed staff on several points. Chair Louis Washington asked whether the definition of "previously disturbed" carried a time limit; the finance director said there is no time limit in the draft. Council member Johnson raised concerns about the presentation math, saying she "came up with that they're paying about, 10% approximately of the total rate revenue according to slide 7" and described some calculations as "doing some very questionable math here." The mayor noted the developer is incurring substantial costs to complete a state environmental review and that staff estimated the developer was spending about $50,000 a month on consultants to respond to the EIS.
Staff emphasized the change is not a blanket waiver. "This is not a free ride," the mayor said, adding that affected properties would still pay higher monthly amounts than when they first acquired the site; staff clarified the sites would return to being charged stormwater rates once city-owned stormwater infrastructure is installed and accepted.
Committee members indicated support for forwarding the ordinance to the full council for consideration; staff said the plan is to present a first reading at the council on April 13 and pursue adoption later in the month. No formal vote was recorded in the committee minutes; the committee agreed to advance the item for council consideration.
The committee also noted staff had reviewed maps and found gaps in stormwater infrastructure in portions of Lower Snoqualmie Ridge, Snoqualmie Falls and the Snoqualmie Mill area, which is the geographic focus of the proposal. Staff said they had identified few other parcels that would qualify under the draft criteria.
Next steps: staff will bring the draft ordinance and supporting materials to the full council for its scheduled readings, per the timeline staff announced.
