Title
The Board of Water Commissioners for the City of Detroit, Water and Sewerage Department authorizes the Director to implement a New Stormwater Management Plan Review fee schedule, effective upon City Council adoption of the Post Construction Stormwater Management Ordinance, and also authorizes the Director to take such other action as may be necessary to accomplish the intent of this vote.
Body
Agenda of August 15, 2018
Item No. 18-0174
Policy: New Stormwater Management Plan Review Fee Schedule
TO: The Honorable
Board of Water Commissioners
City of Detroit, Michigan
FROM: Gary Brown, Director
Water and Sewerage Department
RE: New Stormwater Management Plan Review Fee Schedule, Effective upon City Council adoption of the Post Construction Stormwater Management Ordinance
MOTION
Upon recommendation of Palencia Mobley, Deputy Director and Chief Engineer, the Board of Water Commissioners for the City of Detroit, Water and Sewerage Department authorizes the Director to implement a New Stormwater Management Plan Review Fee Schedule, effective upon City Council adoption of the Post Construction Stormwater Management Ordinance, and also authorizes the Director to take such other action as may be necessary to accomplish the intent of this vote.
JUSTIFICATION
The Department is required to assess fees for services rendered. The proposed Stormwater Management Plan Review Fee Schedule recovers the costs of providing those services. (see Fee Schedule).
Stormwater management plans (SWMPs) will be produced, by developers and property owners, as part of the site plan process and submitted to DWSD for review and approval. DWSD’s Stormwater Management Group will review the SWMPs for compliance with the stormwater control requirements of the Post-Construction Stormwater Management Ordinance.
The primary objective of this stormwater management review fee is to ensure DWSD is recovering costs associated with stormwater management plan reviews that occur through the site plan review process.
BACKGROUND
Historical development and redevelopment activities in Detroit have not been subject to stormwater management requirements. This lack of a consistent, proactive approach to managing the stormwater runoff from impervious surfaces flowing to Detroit’s sewer system has contributed to overflows of untreated sewage entering the Detroit and Rouge Rivers, as well as localized flooding and basement back-ups, causing public health and safety risks and property damage.
Federal and state regulations and related NPDES permits require Detroit to develop programs to address water quality problems caused by discharges from both the combined sewer and separate storm sewer systems. These regulations include requirements for implementation of a stormwater control requirement for areas of new development and/or redevelopment to control the volume, rate, and quality of stormwater discharges. Detroit’s proposed Post-Construction Stormwater Management Ordinance (PCSWMO) was developed to meet this permit requirement which will enable development projects to manage stormwater at its source. Redevelopment includes projects that disturb the surface of land or underlying soils that results in a change in the existing cover or topography of land. It does not include re-surfacing of an asphalt, concrete or similar parking lot that does not expose the subgrade.
To demonstrate compliance with the PCSWMO, developers will be required to submit SWMPs to DWSD for review and approval. The proposed SWMP review fee is intended to recover costs incurred by the Department for these SWMP reviews and inspections of the constructed practices.
The proposed Stormwater Management Plan Review Fee does not require funding from Capital or O&M funds as it seeks to recover costs that will be incurred by the Department. The implementation of the post construction stormwater management ordinance, and associated Stormwater Management Plan Review fee, will require the management of stormwater on new and redevelopment sites, thus reducing the amount entering the combined sewer system. As a result, there is potential to avoid future costs associated with the implementation of additional CSO control facilities to comply with federal and state NPDES regulations.
PROPOSED FEE SCHEDULE
The proposed stormwater management plan review fee is $2,550. The proposed base fee includes a preliminary plan review meeting, an initial review of the plans and comment letter, as-built plan review and an inspection of the as-built project. Additional fees are proposed for services beyond the base review scope and fee. Those fees are shown in the table below.
|
Task Description |
Proposed Fee |
|
Base SWMP Review Fee |
$2,550 |
|
Additional Plan Reviews (per plan review beyond the initial review) |
$400 |
|
Additional inspections (per inspection beyond initial inspection of as-built project) |
$750 |