Chapter 14.56
WATER – INITIATION OF SERVICE1

Sections:

14.56.010    Application for service.

14.56.020    Agreement upon application.

14.56.025    Account responsibility.

14.56.030    Effective dates of agreement.

14.56.040    Connection with main.

14.56.050    Service pipes – Specifications – Maintenance.

14.56.060    Installation – Fees and regulations.

14.56.070    Water service deposit.

14.56.080    Service pipes – Location – Stop and waste cock – Connection at property line.

14.56.090    Request for turnon of water.

14.56.010 Application for service.

Any person desiring to have premises connected with the water supply system of the city shall present to the water superintendent a copy of a building permit, where such permit is required by ordinance, or deed or title policy showing ownership, along with description of lot, block, and addition, and the official house number of the premises on which water is desired and shall make application therefor upon a printed form to be furnished for that purpose; which application shall contain the description of the premises where such water is desired, and shall state fully all the purposes for which the water is to be used, the number of families to be supplied and the identity and number of water fixtures, water power washers and water ejecting or pumping devices on the premises to be connected with the water supply and the size of the service pipes. The application shall be filed in the office of the superintendent, and at the time of filing such application the applicant shall pay the finance director the fees for installation of water service hereinafter provided and take the receipt therefor. (Ord. 1604 § 1, 2005; Ord. 994 § 9, 1986).

14.56.020 Agreement upon application.

All persons who make application as provided in PMC 14.56.010 shall be deemed to have agreed to pay for the water applied for in the same manner and at the same rate all like users in the city are paying at the time of said application. The applicant shall also be deemed to have agreed to make reservation to the city of the right to charge and collect the rates and enforce the penalties provided for in Chapters 14.52 through 14.92 PMC, in the manner provided in this chapter, and change the rates at any time by ordinance, to temporarily discontinue the service at any time without notice to the consumer, and to install a meter or meters to register the water consumed. The applicant shall also be deemed to have agreed that their use of the city water service shall be subject to all of the provisions of Chapters 14.52 through 14.92 PMC and of any ordinance of the city relating to the subject passed after the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter and that the city shall not be responsible for any damage by water or other cause resulting from defective plumbing or appliances on the premises supplied with water, and that the fact that the agents of the city have inspected the plumbing shall not be pleaded as a basis of recovery in case of damage to the premises from defective plumbing or appliances that in case the supply of water is interrupted or fails by reason of accident or any other cause whatsoever, the city shall not be liable for such interruption, nor shall it be held to constitute a breach of contract on the part of the city or in any way relieve the consumer from performing obligations of his contract. (Ord. 994 § 10, 1986).

14.56.025 Account responsibility.

Except as otherwise provided herein, all accounts for water service charges shall be kept in the name and address of the property owner and not in the name of an occupant or tenant, and the owner or his designated agent shall be responsible for payment of all water service charges. For condominium, planned residential development or other multifamily developments with units exceeding the number of water meters, responsibility for the water account(s) shall be in the name and address of the owner’s association that represents all of the owners of the condominium units or the parcels in the planned residential development. (Ord. 1732 § 1, 2009).

14.56.030 Effective dates of agreement.

The agreements referred to in PMC 14.56.020, and all other contracts and/or agreements entered into between the city and prospective users, shall be deemed to take effect from the day the application is made, and fees paid and rates shall be charged from the date the premises are connected with the city’s water supply and the water turned on. (Ord. 994 § 11, 1986).

14.56.040 Connection with main.

A. Upon the presentation at the office of the superintendent of the finance director’s receipt for the installation fees and the execution of the contract provided for in PMC 14.56.020, the superintendent shall cause the premises in the application, if the same fronts a city water main, to be connected with the city’s water main by a service pipe extending at right angles from the main to the property line and including a stopcock, which connection shall thereafter be maintained by and kept within the exclusive control of the city. In case of application for water service on premises not fronting a city water main, the applicant shall extend the city main from a point of connection to the existing main, to be approved by the city engineer, across the entire front of the premises to be served or, in the case where the premises to be served does not abut upon a city street, across the entire front of the ingress/egress and utility easement to the property. Extension of such mains shall conform to the provisions of Chapter 14.68 PMC.

B. Where there is a water main in front of any premises, every house supplied by city water must install its own separate connection with the city main, and the premises so supplied will not be allowed to supply water to any other premises except temporarily; provided, that such restrictions shall not apply to services already installed unless, in the judgment of the superintendent, the good of the service or to settle disputes, it is found necessary to enforce such provisions as to connections already made; provided further, where two or more buildings are supplied by one service through a meter, not less than the minimum rate for premises supplied by water hereinafter provided for shall be assessed for each separate building or premises so supplied. (Ord. 1604 § 1, 2005; Ord. 994 § 12, 1986).

14.56.050 Service pipes – Specifications – Maintenance.

All persons connecting to city service, or laying their own private pipe, shall be required to use polyethylene or copper pipe up to and including two inches in size, and all pipe shall be installed in galvanized steel casing, jacked or bored at least 18 inches nor more than 24 inches below finished roadway surface, except that in ungraded streets where the grade is already established, the service casing and pipes shall be laid at least 18 inches nor more than 24 inches below the established grade. The superintendent will maintain service from the city mains to the meter in streets. Owners shall maintain their private pipes from the end of the city service into their property. (Ord. 994 § 13, 1986).

14.56.060 Installation – Fees and regulations.

A. All water services within the city limits and without the city limits shall be metered. There shall be a fee for meter installation as follows:

Meter Size (Drop In)

Amount

5/8" to 3/4"

$400.00

1"

$450.00

1 1/2"

$650.00

2"

$850.00

Full installation (tap, meter, setter)

Cost plus time and materials

B. Materials used are to be at the discretion of the public works director or designee. There shall be an additional charge for the installation of any meter in an existing sidewalk area as established above. The director shall have the final decision as to the meter location.

C. In addition to other applicable fees, the city shall charge property owners applying to the city’s water system a general facilities charge as follows:

1.

Charge per ERU (inside city limits)

$6,133.00

 

Charge per ERU (outside city limits)

$7,133.00

2.

Nonresidential ERU Basis:

 

Restaurants

2.0 per 1,000 sq. ft.

 

Retail

0.2 per 1,000 sq. ft.

 

Office

0.5 per 1,000 sq. ft.

 

Warehouse

0.3 per 1,000 sq. ft.

 

Laundromat

0.4 per washing machine

 

Car Wash (automated)

5.0 each

 

Car Wash (small/hand)

3.0 each

 

Church

2.0 each

 

Daycare

2.0 each

 

Auto Service Station

2.0 each

 

Elementary School

3.0 per classroom

 

Junior High School

3.0 per classroom

 

High School

3.0 per classroom

 

Hotel – Motel

3.0 per room

 

Recreation Facilities w/ Pool

4.0 each

3.

The minimum charge shall be 1 ERU.

D. Upon determination by the city of the equivalent residential unit (ERU) usage for a property, the city shall issue a preliminary letter of water availability which shall set forth the ERU usage for the property and the applicable general facilities charge. The offer of water availability set forth in the preliminary letter of water availability shall be valid for 90 days. If the property owner pays the general facilities charge in full within the 90-day period, the city shall issue a certificate of water availability for the property.

E. The general facility charge shall not apply to properties for which a capital improvement charge has been previously paid under the conditions set forth below, and such properties shall be entitled to connect to the city’s water system upon payment of all other applicable city charges.

1. Part of a ULID assessment;

2. As a requirement of financing on the property;

3. As a requirement of an extended service agreement;

4. By a certificate of water availability; or

5. Under any other circumstance.

F. If a property, including those exempted under subsection E of this section, shall change in usage so as to require an increased usage of water service and/or shall make a request for service at a level of usage higher than that for which was previously assessed or collected, the GFC in effect on the date of the request for service shall be applied to the property, with the previously paid fees, including those set forth under subsection E of this section, being counted as a credit toward that GFC.

G. Upon request for water service or change in usage level of service, the city shall make a determination of the ERU usage that the property shall require. For purposes of this determination, an ERU for service shall consist of a projected average daily usage of 260 gallons. A single-family residential unit shall be assigned one ERU as a GFC, the charge for which shall be established by city resolution. Each multifamily dwelling and each mobile home situated in a mobile home park shall be assigned 0.75 ERU. All nonresidential service shall be assigned and pay an ERU level based on categorical listings as established by city resolution, with a minimum of one ERU assigned for any requested usage.

H. If a city-adopted categorical listing does not cover a specific nonresidential use for which application for service is made, the city shall establish an estimated ERU for the use, based upon comparable facilities and the 260 gallon per day usage factor.

The city shall monitor the water consumption for properties given an estimated ERU for a period of five years after connection. The city will determine within the five-year monitoring period a 12-consecutive-month consumption period which is most representative of normal water use condition with the property. If the water usage during that 12-month period is more than 10 percent above or below the estimated ERU, the city shall adjust the GFC accordingly. All adjustments shall be made at the rate paid at time of connection without interest.

Property owners are encouraged to implement conservation practices to reduce overall water consumption. A trend of reduction in water consumption attributable to water conservation practices and/or equipment will be considered justification in establishing the monitoring period as the last 12-consecutive-month period. Car washes shall be required to recycle water. (Ord. 1959 § 2, 2017; Ord. 1874 § 3, 2014; Ord. 1523 § 1, 2002; Ord. 1375 § 25, 1998; Ord. 1173 § 5, 1992; Ord. 1052 § 1, 1988; Ord. 994 § 14, 1986).

14.56.070 Water service deposit.

A. There shall be an account set-up charge of $10.00 deposited with the city clerk for each connection. The deposit shall be made by the property owner prior to installation of service.

B. The service deposit shall be retained as a security for prompt payment of water service charges and shall be returned to the owner of the property after a period of one year if the account has been kept in good standing. In case the deposit has been kept in excess of one year for payment of delinquent accounts, the service deposit shall be returned at the time such user voluntarily ceases to receive water service from the city; provided such user is not then in default in the payment of any water service charges, in which case the amount of the water deposit shall be credited to the unpaid balance.

C. In the event that a water user files any proceeding under Title 11 USC (Bankruptcy Code), the water superintendent shall seek adequate assurance of payment for post petition service pursuant to 11 USC, Section 366(b). In the absence of court order, adequate assurance shall be an amount equal to two times the amount of the average bill to the user or the amount which a new applicant user is required to deposit, whichever is greater. (Ord. 1874 § 4, 2014; Ord. 1375 § 26, 1998; Ord. 994 § 15, 1986).

14.56.080 Service pipes – Location – Stop and waste cock – Connection at property line.

Before water will be turned on to any premises connected with the city’s water mains, the service pipes upon such premises shall be made to conform to the regulations set out in this section. The service pipes shall be so located that the supply for each separate house or premises shall be controlled by separate stop and waste cocks of the standard make, approved by the superintendent, with extension handle, properly protected from the frost, and placed next to and on the service side of the meter box. Water piping shall be installed with a minimum 10 feet horizontal separation from any sewer pipe. The connection between the city’s pipes at the property line and the service pipe on the premises shall be made with a union. Every existing service or branch service not already equipped as required in this section shall be so equipped at the owner’s expense as soon as the defect is noted. (Ord. 994 § 16, 1986).

14.56.090 Request for turnon of water.

Whenever the owner or occupant of any premises connected with the city’s water supply system desires to use the water he shall notify the superintendent and request that the water be turned on to the premises. The owner shall leave his portion of the service exposed in the trench until the water is turned on by the superintendent, when he shall immediately properly cover the pipe. (Ord. 994 § 17, 1986).

1

For statutory provisions authorizing cities to make charges for connecting to water system, see RCW 39.92.025.