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Home My WebLink About2014-07-30 PACKET 08 2015 - 2024 STORMWATER UTILITY FUNDTO: Honorable Mayor and City Council Ryan Schroeder, City Administrator FROM: Jennifer Levitt, City Engineer/Community Development Director Ryan Burfeind, Graduate Engineer DATE: July 10, 2014 RE: 2015-2024 Stormwater Utility Fund Plan Introduction The Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) general permit is mandated by federal reg- ulations under the Clean Water Act and administered by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA). The permit gives owners/operators of MS4’s, such as the City of Cottage Grove, approval to discharge stormwater into lakes, rivers, and wetlands in Minnesota. MS4’s are regulated through the use of NPDES permits. As a result of this unfunded federal mandate, the City of Cottage Grove is required to clean and maintain ponds, stormwater structures, waterways, and ditches on a five- year cycle. This includes minor maintenance and major maintenance projects. The minor maintenance is typically completed by internal street division employees, and the major maintenance is completed by hired contractors. Effective August 1, 2013, the MPCA reissued the general NPDES/SDS permit for MS4’s. The City of Cottage Grove submitted an application for reauthorization to the MPCA, and received notice of coverage for the new five-year term on March 17. 2014. Included in the updated permit are new requirements that the City must follow. The following is a list of the new requirements, which need to be met within 12 months of the notice of coverage. 1. Prioritize public education efforts. 2. Post the MS4 permit application and SWPPP Document to the City’s website. 3. Prioritize areas that are likely to have illicit discharges and perform additional inspections in those areas. 4. Develop written procedures for conducting illicit discharge inspections. 5. Update the City Ordinance on Illicit Discharges to meet the new MS4 permit requirements. 6. Develop written procedures for site plan review. 7. Develop written procedures for receiving public input. 8. Update the City’s Grading, Filling, and Excavation ordinance to meet new MS4 permit requirements. 9. Develop a regulatory mechanism to allow the City to conduct inspections on privately owned structural stormwater BMP’s, and assess costs of maintenance when completed by the City. This is only for BMP’s constructed after the effective date of the new permit. 10. Complete an inventory of City facilities that can contribute to stromwater pollution. 11. Conduct quarterly inspections of City owned stockpiles and material handling areas. 12. Develop procedures to assess the treatment effectiveness of City owned stormwater ponds, and provide a schedule of when the assessments will be completed. 13. Develop an employee training program for stromwater management that is commensurate with each employees job duties. Honorable Mayor, City Council, and Ryan Schroeder 2014-2024 Stormwater Utility Fund Plan July 10, 2014 Page 2 of 8 Background The City of Cottage Grove’s stormwater infrastructure currently includes 4,524 stormwater structures/manholes, 450,947 lineal feet of storm pipe, 285 flared ends, and 122 stormwater ponds. Cottage Grove also has approximately 88 miles of ditches. The Stormwater Maintenance fund is used for the following expenditure items: Public Works Personnel Services, which includes 3 stormwater employees. Commodities, which includes operating supplies. Professional Services, which include engineering services. Minor Maintenance, which includes minor maintenance completed by Public Works staff. Major Maintenance, which includes capital outlay projects and equipment. Miscellaneous contractual services, which includes watershed district fees for South Washington County Watershed District, the Education Coordinator, fleet costs, and other small services. Administrative and general expenditures for utility billing. The City adopted the Stormwater Maintenance Fund in 2001 to help fund projects and improve water quality and sediment control issues. The initial fee was $20 per year for a residential single family home; this was increased to $21 in 2003. On January 19, 2005, a Council Workshop was held to discuss the options for addressing the backlog of projects in the Stormwater Maintenance Fund. The discussion focused on what accounts for the backlog of projects in regards to minor and major maintenance, history of the fund, and options to address the backlog. The City Council voted in favor of increasing the stormwater utility fee for single family residential from $21 annually to $40 in the second half of 2005 and increasing the fee in 2007 to $42 annually for single family residential. In 2008 the City Council increased the fee to $48 annually for single family residential. The following table shows the annual fees per unit of measurement. Past Stormwater Utility Fees 2008 – 2013 Unit of 2005 Annual 2007 Annual Annual Rate Land Use Measurement Rate Per Unit Rate Per Unit Per Unit Urban Residential Res. Unit $40.00$42.00 $48.00 Townhomes Res. Unit $20.00$21.00 $24.00 Apartments Res. Unit $10.00$10.60 $12.12 1.5+ Acre Residential Res. Unit $30.00$31.40 $36.00 Commercial/Industrial Imp. Surface $160.00$168.00 $192.00 Acres Agricultural Parcel $40.00$42.00 $42.00 w/Structure Golf Course/Cemeteries Gross Acres $3.35$7.04 $8.04 2 Honorable Mayor, City Council, and Ryan Schroeder 2014-2024 Stormwater Utility Fund Plan July 10, 2014 Page 3 of 8 Stormwater Program 2008-2013 Stormwater Utility Fund Budget 2008-2013 Storm Water Maintenance 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 Personnel 163,204240,383200,749215,789195,667 224,074 Commodities/Contracts 232,838311,205197,303522,391470,254 360,650 Capital Outlay 235,38476,38330,737-- 82,000 Other Financing 22,5361,500116,027-81,586 - Maintenance Total 653,962629,471544,816738,180747,507 666,724 Storm Water Administration Personnel 5,9126,2826,3926,4556,512 6,653 Commodities/Contracts 19,86920,56420,91822,13135,098 32,364 Capital Outlay ----- - Other Financing 28,60029,00029,40029,40030,300 30,900 Administration Total 54,38155,84656,71057,98671,910 70,871 Total Expenses 708,343685,317601,526796,166819,417 736,911 Storm Water Revenues Grants 043,70080,625149,26046,040 49,462 Fees 640,639645,856641,686644,857647,055 649,344 Interest 10,0057,9071,8633,7181,498 (1,736) Total Revenues 650,644697,463724,174797,835694,593 697,070 Fund Balance $(57,699) $ 12,146 $122,648 $ 1,669 $(124,824) $(123,622) 3 Honorable Mayor, City Council, and Ryan Schroeder 2014-2024 Stormwater Utility Fund Plan July 10, 2014 Page 4 of 8 2008 Completed Projects: 2012 Completed Projects: ER-P7.1 L-P3.4 L-P2 ED-P7 ED-P2.2 WD-P14 TG-P1.2 SW-P11.1 SW-P11.2 2009 Completed Projects: L-P2 – Woodridge Park Pond ED-P6 Langley Storm Sewer Improvements TG-P9 Lamar Avenue Drainage L-P3 Pine Tree Pond Storm Pipe Extension 2010 Completed Projects: 2013 Completed Projects: WD-P13.4 WD-P4.3 WD-P13.2 WD-P19.1 WD-P11.1 C-P7 WD-P11.2 TG-P4 SPP-P4.1 L-P1 ED-P5 2011 Completed Projects: Cottage Grove Middle School ED-P8 Stormwater Improvements ED-P9.1 Cottage Grove Public Works Facility ED-P9.2 Improvements ED-P9.3 ED-P9.4 2008-2012 Major Maintenance Actual Cost by Year: 4371 - Maintenance Budget Spent 2008 $308,000 $129,970 2009 $216,600 $211,396 2010 $246,000 $114,340 2011 $266,000 $392,513 2012 $274,000 $315,601 2013 $210,000 $253,805 2008-2013 Budget Review When reviewing the stormwater budget from 2008-2013, an increase in expenses can be seen, especially in 2011-2013. A major reason for this is due to large maintenance/construction projects in each of those years, which include Pond C-P6, Pond L-P2, Cottage Grove Stormwater Utility Improvements, and Cottage Grove Public Works Facility Improvements. Costs for these projects, however, were not covered entirely by the City’s stormwater utility budget. Part of the funding for these projects was covered by SWWD grants, as shown in the graph below. Even with these grants, the stormwater utility fund is seeing higher expenditures than revenues. Consideration should be 4 Honorable Mayor, City Council, and Ryan Schroeder 2014-2024 Stormwater Utility Fund Plan July 10, 2014 Page 5 of 8 given to a change in the stormwater utility fee and possibly a reduction in annual maintenance costs. ^ƚŽƌŵǁĂƚĞƌ'ƌĂŶƚƐϮϬϬϴϮϬϭϯ ΨϮϬϬ͕ϬϬϬ ΨϭϱϬ͕ϬϬϬ ΨϭϬϬ͕ϬϬϬ ΨϱϬ͕ϬϬϬ ΨϬ ϮϬϬϴϮϬϬϵϮϬϭϬϮϬϭϭϮϬϭϮϮϬϭϯ Stormwater Utility Fund Plan 2015-2024 2014 – 2018 Major Maintenance Plan 2014* WD-P4.1 $24,500 WD-P4.2 $23,300 WD-P3.1 $6,300 2017 TG-P2 $14,500 WD-P11.3 $16,300 Total$68,600 C-P4 $38,200 35% SWWD $24,010 ED-P3.2 $31,500 Total $86,000 2015 WD-P18.3 $27,400 WD-P18.2 $7,400 2018 C-P5 $13,200 WD-P13.4 $11,400 TG-P3 $22,800 WD-P13.2 $18,200 Total $70,800 SPP-P4.1 $18,100 ED-P5 $31,300 Total $79,000 2016 WD-P16 $25,900 WD-13.7 $13,200 WD-P12 $20,500 SPP-P6$10,200 Total$69,800 *The City received a grant from the South Washington Watershed District to reimburse 35% of the 2014 Pond Maintenance project. 5 Honorable Mayor, City Council, and Ryan Schroeder 2014-2024 Stormwater Utility Fund Plan July 10, 2014 Page 6 of 8 Major Maintenance When planning out major maintenance costs for the next four years, specific ponds were identified that would require attention each year. These ponds would be included in the annual stormwater maintenance project, which is one large project that the City contracts out each year. When looking at the projected costs for these ponds, $75,000 should be budgeted annually. The City also contracts out smaller projects throughout the year to address smaller issues that are discovered, which should include $20,000. The final item that should be planned for is maintenance of the rural stormwater system, which should include $20,000. Other Annual Maintenance Items There are several miscellaneous maintenance items that are completed each year, including street sweeping at $25,000, emergency maintenance at $40,000, and televising/cleaning of pipes at $15,000. Originally the budget included $20,000 for emergency maintenance, however, recent trends have shown this number to be much higher than that. Due to this increase, the emergency maintenance should be raised to $40,000 per year. 2015 Annual Maintenance Budget Annual Stormwater Maintenance Project $80,000 Miscellaneous Maintenance Projects $20,000 Rural Stormwater Maintenance $20,000 Street Sweeping $25,000 Emergency Repairs $40,000 Televising/Cleaning $15,000 Total $200,000 Projected Stormwater Expenditures 2014-2016 Expenditures: Operating and Maintenance:2014 2015 2016 Personal services225,195231,000237,000 Commodities54,85051,52051,350 Contractual services*305,800279,120288,920 Watershed82,000117,62966,471 Capital Outlay225,195231,000237,000 Administrative and general: Personal services7,1007,4007,700 Commodities100100100 Contractual services33,36033,29033,960 Other charges- administrative charge35,02035,02035,020 743,425755,079720,521 Total expenditures * $200,000 annual maintenance budget is included in this item for 2015, with a 4% increase in 2016 6 Honorable Mayor, City Council, and Ryan Schroeder 2014-2024 Stormwater Utility Fund Plan July 10, 2014 Page 7 of 8 City Fee Comparison The Stormwater Utility Fee for the City of Cottage Grove is currently $4.20 per month for single family homes. When comparing this to the fees from 32 other cities, Cottage Grove is below the average fee (shown by black line) for those cities. ŝƚǇ&ĞĞŽŵƉĂƌŝƐŽŶ;ϮϬϭϰDŽŶƚŚůǇZĂƚĞƐͿ Ψϵ͘ϬϬ Ψϴ͘ϬϬ Ψϳ͘ϬϬ Ψϲ͘ϬϬ Ψϱ͘ϬϬ Ψϰ͘ϬϬ Ψϯ͘ϬϬ ΨϮ͘ϬϬ Ψϭ͘ϬϬ ΨϬ͘ϬϬ Stormwater Utility Fee Recommendation At the current City fee, the projected annual revenues for the stormwater utility fund are $670,954. When reviewing the projected annual budgets for 2014-2018, this revenue is not sufficient to sustain the stormwater program, even with capping the annual maintenance budget at $190,000. With the average monthly costs of all cities at $4.37 per month, a small increase in the City of Cottage Grove fee is recommended. An increase to $4.40 per month, or 4.8 percent, would raise the projected annual budget from $670,594 to $706,689. This same rate increase of $4.80/year is shown for 2016 as well, with a 4.5% per year increases in 2017-2024. The revenues also takes into account projected housing increases each year. 7 Honorable Mayor, City Council, and Ryan Schroeder 2014-2024 Stormwater Utility Fund Plan July 10, 2014 Page 8 of 8 Proposed 2015-2016 Rates: ProposedProposed Current 2014 2015 Annual 2016 Annual Unit of Annual Rate Rate Per Rate Per Land Use Measurement Per Unit Unit Unit Urban Residential Res. Unit $50.40 $52.80 $55.20 Townhomes Res. Unit $25.20 $26.40 $27.60 Apartments Res. Unit $12.72 $13.32 $13.92 1.5+ Acre Residential Res. Unit $37.8 $40.00 $42.00 Commercial/ Imp. Surface Industrial Acres $201.60 $211.20 $220.80 Parcel Agricultural w/Structure $50.40 $52.80 $55.20 Golf Course/ Cemeteries Gross Acres $8.44 $8.84 $9.24 Stormwater Utility Fund Revenues versus Expenditures: ^ƚŽƌŵǁĂƚĞƌhƚŝůŝƚǇ&ƵŶĚ Ψϭ͕ϮϬϬ͕ϬϬϬ Ψϭ͕ϬϬϬ͕ϬϬϬ ΨϴϬϬ͕ϬϬϬ ZĞǀĞŶƵĞƐ ΨϲϬϬ͕ϬϬϬ ǆƉĞŶĚŝƚƵƌĞƐ ΨϰϬϬ͕ϬϬϬ &ƵŶĚĂůĂŶĐĞ ΨϮϬϬ͕ϬϬϬ ΨϬ ϮϬϬϴϮϬϬϵϮϬϭϬϮϬϭϭϮϬϭϮϮϬϭϯϮϬϭϰϮϬϭϱϮϬϭϲϮϬϭϳϮϬϭϴϮϬϭϵϮϬϮϬϮϬϮϭϮϬϮϮϮϬϮϯϮϬϮϰ ;ΨϮϬϬ͕ϬϬϬͿ *A breakdown of the 2014-2024 budget can be seen in Appendix A. 8