5.3. PCSR 08-12-2008 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Case File: OA 08-OG Page 2 Dirt Ordinance August 12, 2008 Financial Impact • Additional costs to the average residential lot are approximately $3,000. Costs to commercial/ industrial are undetermined at this time. • Additional personnel costs, due to increased inspection and clerical work Attachments Draft ordinance • Staff memo to Bryan Adams dated Apri126, 2007 Overview The ordinance would apply city-wide. Analysis Staff recognizes the importance of water conservation. Clearly a paradigm shift is necessary to affect measurable change. Though supportive of the goal, Staff is concerned the proposed ordinance may not truly be effective in reducing water usage, will cause unreasonable enforcement demand, and place unknown financial and time burdens on a relatively few affected property owners. Concern #1: Undetermined actual water reduction -The majority of the city's urban services have been developed. Based on a review of the zoning map, as much as 80 to 85% of the City's urban service area (the area to be served by City water and sewer) is built out. The ordinance requires 4-6 inches of top soil on these lots. The top soil will retain water longer than the sand prevalent throughout much of the city. The concern is that only 20% of the urban service area will be required to import top soil, and the cost to administer the ordinance does not appear to outweigh the benefits provided to the city, which have not been proven. Additionally, the proposed ordinance applies throughout the City, even lots outside city services. Concern #2: Enforceability - Staff has genuine concerns related to enforceability. Staff is researching enforcement programs, but it appears that a staff person would need to be on site when the soil is delivered, (to verify mix ratio), spread (to verify depth), and tilled, to verify depth into existing ground. These three inspections add up in staff time, and prevent a homeowner from doing this work on a weekend. The ordinance suggests a certificate system where the property owner would sign a statement saying that adequate top soil has been provided and tilled into the ground, which raises some concerns relative to effectiveness. Concern #3: Cost -Staff is unsure of the cost to the homeowner. Affected lots would range in size from 8,000 square foot residential lots to multiple-acre industrial sites. Importing, spreading, and tilling top soil has been estimated at $3,000 for the average city lot (12,000 sq ft). At their meeting on July 8`", the Planning Commission, recognizing Staff concerns, and based on claims made by Mr. Adams regarding the marked reduction found in area communities, requested supporting information, in part to justify the cost on a relatively few property owners. Because no supporting information can be provided, Staff is recommending denial. S:\PLANNING MAIN\Case Files\OA\OA 08-06 Black Dirt\Staff report dirt ord 8-12-08.doc