Title
Wastewater Topics (Side Sewer Ownership, Septic to Sewer, S.T.E.P. Permitting)
Recommended Action
Move to recommend staff pursue a change in regulations regarding ownership of side sewers, septic to sewer program and S.T.E.P. system permitting and forward to Council for consideration.
Staff Contact:
Eric Christensen, Engineering and Planning Manager, Public Works Water Resources, 360.570.3741
Background and Analysis:
Side Sewer Ownership
The Olympia municipal Code (OMC) 13.08.040 states:
… The property owner is responsible for all costs and expense incidental to the installation, connection and maintenance of a side sewer, including that portion within the city right-of-way or utility easement. The City shall not be liable for any damages or costs incurred by reason of blockage or deterioration of a side sewer, up to and including its connection with the public sewer main.
This has sometimes been problematic for the City because repairs often take many months or even years to complete due to disputes with property owners about responsibility. Problems with side sewers have involved sink holes, sewage releases, or deposits of soil material into the sewer. Expedient repair is occasionally important for public health and safety. Therefore, the utility is exploring other options for ownership.
In Olympia, the average side sewer is 40 years old with some as old as 100 years. Many side sewers exceed 8 feet in depth and most extend under public streets making maintenance and repairs difficult and expensive. This has led to disputes with property owners about what has caused a break in the side sewer, exactly where the break is located, and whether they are required to make the repair and pay for it. Extensive staff time has been spent ensuring property owners make needed repairs. The City pursues repairs of side sewers when there is evidence (a sinkhole or soil entering the sewer main from a side sewer) of a structural defect. More than once, the situation has resulted in a lawsuit with involvement of attorneys. In addition, contractors sometimes perform substandard work which can result in damage to the roadway or utilities. The issues are not always detected during construction, leading to issues months or years later.
Staff researched the policies of other sewer service providers in the Puget Sound region. The results are attached and show that the City’s current policy is the most common, but others exist. The City of Tumwater, for example, owns side sewers in the right-of-way if a cleanout is installed at the property line. Preliminary discussion with legal staff indicate changing our current ownership policy is a legal option. The attached table lists two options and the corresponding pros and cons. Staff is recommending adoption of Option 2 (Public ownership of connections and side sewers to the right-of-way line if a cleanout is present). The public benefits of Option 2 are protection of City assets (pavement, sewer mains and other utilities), protection of public and environmental health (reduced sewer contamination through expedient repairs) and protection of public safety (reduced risk of sink holes and repairs being done with attention to safety).
Septic to Sewer Program Enhancements
There are currently about 2,000 septic systems (a.k.a. onsite sewage systems) within the city limits and an additional 2,200 septic systems within the Wastewater Utility’s service area. Septic systems installed at urban densities pose greater health risks through surface water and groundwater pathways. Recognizing these risks, the Utility developed the current Septic to Sewer Program in 2008 as a way to encourage conversion of properties from septic systems to public sewer. The program has been successful, with over 100 conversions and one neighborhood sewer extension. At this time staff is proposing changes to the program to simplify and further incentivize conversion to the public sewer.
Changes are proposed to the existing neighborhood sewer extension program (OMC 13.08.215) that will:
• Incentivize sewer extension projects by lowering and simplifying the costs recovered from property owners.
o 20% cost recovery if connection is made within two years of sewer availability
o 50% cost recovery thereafter
o 100% cost recovery from new development
• Provide guidance for prioritizing sewer extension projects based on public health risks including:
o Septic system densities,
o Proximity to drinking water wellhead protection areas and surface waters,
o Depth to groundwater,
o Soil types, and
o Public drinking water availability.
To further incentivize conversion to the public sewer, additional changes are proposed to OMC 13.08.205 and 13.05.210 that will:
• Allow property owners converting to the public sewer to pay applicable charges including the general facility charge, LOTT’s capacity development charge, and any sewer extension charges, over time.
• Create a single simplified funding agreement to pay applicable charges.
To make conversion to the public sewer simpler and more affordable, staff recommends the above changes to the Septic to Sewer Program.
Septic Tank Effluent Pumping (S.T.E.P.) Permitting
The 2007 Wastewater Management Plan significantly restricted the use of Septic Tank Effluent Pumping (S.T.E.P.) systems for providing sewerage throughout the Utility’s service area. Restrictions on S.T.E.P. systems were based on additional costs per service connection and odor and corrosion problems associated with elevated hydrogen sulfide concentrations. Current regulations permit the use of S.T.E.P. systems only to serve existing lots adjacent to existing S.T.E.P. mains. This has left a number of subdividable properties and small investors stranded without sewer service for the foreseeable future.
Staff proposes changes that would allow additional limited extensions of S.T.E.P. mains and S.T.E.P. system connections. Specifically, where S.T.E.P. sewers are currently available, staff proposes to allow one short plat (up to nine homes) on an existing property located adjacent to existing S.T.E.P. mains. Short plats would allow infill on small properties. Larger properties could realize modest cost recovery under the proposed scenario but would eventually be required to construct a regional sewer pump station and subdivide through the long plat process. Properties that short plat are required to demonstrate they can ultimately attain at least the minimum density specified for the zoning district.
The proposed alternative would allow for additional infill to help achieve growth management densities. An evaluation of the sewer infrastructure and existing properties determined that if every lot greater than one half acre were to subdivide, 450 additional lots could be eligible for S.T.E.P. sewer service. It is assumed that approximately half of that number of lots would actually be created. Operations staff has been consulted and feels the additional S.T.E.P. systems associated with the proposal would be manageable.
To allow small infill development where conventional sewer service is not in the foreseeable future, staff recommends the above changes to restrictions on S.T.E.P. sewer services.
Financial Impact:
Side Sewer Ownership
Staff anticipates added maintenance costs associated with the added feet of sewer to be maintained. Initially, the spot repairs project in the Capital Facilities Plan will be increased by $25,000. The spot repair budget will be adjusted up or down after more experience with the new policy. Many of the repairs will be done by City crews under existing budgets.
The number of repairs will likely be small. Based on recent permit records of repairs in the public right-of-way, there were seven known issues between 2010 and 2015. We can estimate 1-2 repairs per year, based on permit records.
There will also be considerable savings of staff time due to decreased disputes with property owners. This savings will be from existing budgets and free up staff to work on other utility priorities.
Septic to Sewer Program
The Utility currently allocates $341,000 per year for “on-site sewage system conversions” in the Capital Facilities Plan. Staff does not propose to change that value. There will be a partial cost recovery (approximately 10-25%) of funds spent.
Septic Tank Effluent Pumping (S.T.E.P.) Permitting
S.T.E.P. systems have been estimated to cost an additional ten dollars per month each for the City to maintain and pump out. Long term costs associated with this proposal could be $30,000 annually.
Options:
Option 1: Move to approve staff recommendations for changes to the side sewer ownership, septic to sewer program and S.T.E.P. sewer services and forward a UAC letter of recommendation to Council.
Option 2: Move to make revisions to staff recommendations for changes to the side sewer ownership, septic to sewer program and S.T.E.P. sewer services and forward a UAC letter of recommendation to Council.
Option 3: Move to reject all staff recommendations for changes to the side sewer ownership, septic to sewer program and S.T.E.P. sewer services.
Attachments:
Table of side sewer ownership policies for other jurisdictions
Table of pro and cons for each side sewer ownership option