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Council temporarily suspends sewer impact fees; authorizes borrowing and several capital items
Summary
Council voted to temporarily suspend sewer impact fees while staff updates the needs assessment, authorized a preliminary $7.79 million bond issuance for capital projects, and approved several utility and equipment contracts and purchases. Staff estimated the updated study and ordinance process would take roughly 120 days.
The New Richmond City Council voted on a package of finance and capital items May 11 that included a temporary suspension of sewer impact fees, authorization to proceed with preliminary steps for issuing about $7.79 million in debt for capital projects, and several utility and equipment approvals.
Sewer impact fees: Staff explained that the city’s 2022 needs assessment identified sewer projects and associated fees; based on collections to date, the sewer impact fee fund has reached the amount identified for the projects in that study. For that reason staff recommended—and the council approved—a temporary suspension of sewer impact fees until a new needs assessment is completed and adopted. Staff said the sewer study would be prioritized in the city’s workplan and estimated the study and the ordinance update/approval process typically take about 120 days, though timing can vary. Councilors raised concerns that the suspension creates a brief window in which developers applying for permits after the suspension takes effect would not pay the sewer impact fee until a new study is adopted; staff confirmed impact fees are determined at building-permit issuance.
Borrowing authorizing resolution: The council approved a preliminary authorizing resolution to pursue approximately $7.79 million in borrowing for several projects, including refunding interim financing for the library project (about $1.6 million), the city’s share of fire apparatus replacement, programmable-logic-controller upgrades for sewer operations, and a water tower project. Finance staff outlined a timeline: release of a preliminary official statement, a rating call with Moody’s, a June sale, and an estimated closing near the end of June.
Other approved finance and procurement items: Council authorized the purchase of three replacement radios for the fire department (procurement amount noted during the meeting), authorized staff to solicit competitive bids to replace a 2017 utility van (truck #50) and to install fiber to two water towers and five wells, and approved a five-year contract with HydroCorp for cross-connection inspection services (staff said the multi-year contract yields modest multi-year savings compared with annual renewals). Council also received the first-quarter financial report: staff reported about $4.7 million in revenues (roughly 40–46% of the annual budget) and just under $3.0 million in expenditures (about 28.6% of budget), highlighted a one-time library lease payment recognized in the quarter, and summarized park fund operations and transfers.
Councilors asked staff to prioritize the sewer needs-assessment update and raised concerns about the timing and potential revenue implications of the suspension for projects that pull permits during the suspension window. Staff reiterated that the suspension applies only to the sewer impact fee category identified in the 2022 study and that other impact fees (transportation, police, stormwater, water, library) will continue to be collected under the current schedule until separately revised.
