Admin Order 58-22-14-F -- Final SW User Fees

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Exhibit B to Administrative Order 58-22-14-F Page 6 of 7 and television ads, and social media. With changes in how information is communicated, stormwater education staff continue to seek more effective ways to connect and share information. There are some credits built into the method for calculating stormwater user fees. For example, fees are reduced for customers who voluntarily retrofit their property to reduce and/or treat runoff. The City has partnered with the Long Tom Watershed Council to work with interested businesses and industries to voluntarily retrofit their developed sites to do things like reduce paved areas and incorporate rain gardens and other green infrastructure. New development and significant re‐development are required by Eugene Code to capture and treat stormwater runoff, preferably with green infrastructure facilities such as rain gardens and swales. Staff conduct plan review and inspections during construction. After the facility is established, private property owners are required to send annual maintenance logs to the City, and staff conduct periodic on‐site inspections to ensure the facilities are being maintained properly and continue to function as designed. With over 1,450 private facilities to inspect and limited staff resources, the frequency of inspections varies according to certain factors including drainage area, site slope, facility size and condition, history of non‐compliance, cost of repair/replacement, and likelihood of creating habitat for pests. For all properties within the Eugene city limits, Permit and Information Center staff review includes determining the approved destination for stormwater runoff. Many factors are considered in making this determination including proximity to property lines, site slopes, soil types, and building codes. Sometimes the approved destination will be to the ground surface. Comment: One person asserted, and provided data to support, that the fee structure appears to arbitrarily and unfairly overcharge properties with small building footprints. He also asserted that “the policy of charging duplexes double appears to be capricious and contrary to city housing policy that otherwise encourages the construction of 'Missing Middle' housing types.” His e‐mail included four specific questions related to these assertions. He argued that the City should “change the fee structure to eliminate the tiers and instead charge all residential properties a rate based on their square footage of impervious surface (or use primary structure footprint as a proxy if necessary). Additionally, it would be most fair to provide a discount for multi‐unit structures as they almost always have more residents per square foot of impervious surface than single‐unit structures. Until the fee structure is made less unfair, I oppose any increase in stormwater fees.” Response: All categories of customers are charged the same Impervious Surface Rate (FY23 proposed rate is $4.53 per 1,000 sq. ft.). Most residential customers fall into the small or medium residential category depending on the size of their estimated building footprint. If the customer's building footprint plus garage area is 1,000 square feet or less, the customer falls into the small residential category. If the customer's building footprint plus garage area is between 1,000 and less than 3,000 square feet, the customer falls into the medium residential category.