Item 4: Transfer of Water Pollution Control Facility to MWMC

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EUGENE CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY c Action: Transfer of Water Pollution Control Facility Property from the City of Eugene to the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission Meeting Date: July 10, 2006 Department: Public Works www.eugene-or.gov Agenda Item Number: 4 Staff Contact: Peter Ruffier Contact Telephone Number: 682-8606 ISSUE STATEMENT The City Council is requested to approve the transfer of95.56 acres of City-titled property to the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission. BACKGROUND The City of Eugene, City of Springfield, and Lane County entered into an agreement in 1977 for the purposes of establishing the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission (MWMC). The MWMC was established as an intergovernmental entity to "construct, operate, and maintain the Regional Sewerage Facilities." MWMC provides regional wastewater collection and treatment to the Eugene/Springfield metropolitan area. The Regional Sewerage Facilities are located on the site of the original wastewater treatment plant owned by the City of Eugene, which covered 62.5 acres. Additional acreage, primarily to the east of the original site was required for the construction of the larger MWMC facilities, and these properties were procured by the City of Eugene using regional wastewater funds under agreement with the MWMC. During the procurement process, title to the property obtained for the regional wastewater facilities vested in the City of Eugene. The titles to the original wastewater treatment plant property and the additional purchased parcels within the boundaries of the current Eugene/Springfield Regional Water Pollution Control Facility have never been formally transferred to the MWMC, which is the equitable owner of the site, as evidenced by the history and funding of its acquisition and the funding of the facility and as recognized in the underlying Intergovernmental Agreement updated by the cities and Lane County last year. The full 95.56 acres of the site was considered in the original conditional use permit (CUP) for the regional sewerage facility. The property includes the outfall to the Willamette River in part of this area. The full area provides open space and access to the river as well as buffering for the treatment plant. These will be factors considered in the modification of the CUP anticipated to be reviewed later this year. In May 2005, the council, by ordinance, approved a revised intergovernmental agreement (IGA) creating the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission as an Intergovernmental Entity and defining the duties and powers of the commission and the three parties to the IGA. The revised IGA provides, in Section 3(b), that the parties will: "Facilitate the completion of the process of transferring ownership to the Commission of the Existing Sewerage Facilities as defined in Appendix "A" Section VI. The transfer of ownership process shall proceed in a timely manner as determined by the mutual agreement LICMOl2006 Council Agendas1M0607101S0607104.doc