Chapter 11.10
UTILITY REIMBURSEMENT AGREEMENTS
Sections:
11.10.030 Minimum project size.
11.10.050 Length of reimbursement provision.
11.10.060 City engineer’s determination – Review by city council.
11.10.070 Determination of reimbursement area boundary and reimbursement fee.
11.10.080 Notice to affected property owners.
11.10.090 Reimbursement agreement must be recorded.
11.10.100 Written agreement – Payment of city costs in excess of application fee.
11.10.110 Construction and acceptance of improvements – Recording of final fees.
11.10.120 Collection of reimbursement fees – No liability for failure to collect.
11.10.130 Disposition of undeliverable reimbursement fees.
11.10.010 Purpose.
The purpose of this chapter is to prescribe rules and regulations for exercise of the authority to enter into street and utility latecomer agreements granted to the city by Chapters 35.72 and 35.91 RCW. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)
11.10.020 Definitions.
As used in this chapter, the terms listed below shall be defined as follows:
“Cost of construction” means those costs (excluding interest charges or other financing costs) incurred for design, acquisition for right-of-way and/or easements, construction, materials and installation required in order to create an improvement which complies with city standards.
“Latecomer agreement” means a written contract between the city and one or more property owners who provide for construction of water or sewer facilities and/or construction or improvement of street projects, so that they may be partially reimbursed for the costs of such improvements by owners of property benefited by the improvements, as more specifically described in Chapters 35.72 and 35.91 RCW.
“Street project” shall have the meaning specified in RCW 35.72.020(4) as it now reads, or as hereafter amended.
“Water or sewer facilities” shall have the meaning specified in RCW 35.91.030 as it now reads, or as hereafter amended. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)
11.10.030 Minimum project size.
To be eligible for a reimbursement agreement, the estimated cost of the proposed improvement must be not less than $5,000.
The estimated costs of the improvement shall be determined by the city engineer, based upon a construction contract for the project, bids, engineering or architectural estimates or other information deemed by the city engineer to be a reliable basis for estimating costs. Latecomer agreements may be applied for within 30 days before and/or after construction of the street project or water or sewer facility is complete. Applicants that submit applications after utility project of facility construction bear the risk that the city council may reject or modify the terms of the latecomer agreement. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)
11.10.040 Application.
An application for reimbursement agreement shall be made on a form provided by the city. An application shall be considered complete upon submission of the following:
A. Preliminary or, in the case of completed street projects or water or sewer facilities, final utility and/or street design drawings.
B. For applications submitted before the street project or water or sewer facility is completed, itemized estimates of construction costs prepared by a licensed civil engineer or in the form of a bid submitted by a qualified contractor (if more than one bid has been obtained, all bids must be submitted to the city engineer).
C. For applications submitted after construction of a street project or water or sewer facility is completed, receipts and itemized construction costs must be submitted to establish the costs of construction of the street project or water or sewer facility.
D. A scaled vicinity drawing, stamped by a licensed civil engineer or licensed land surveyor depicting the proposed improvements, the location, the proposed benefited area, dimensions and county assessor’s numbers for each tax parcel, size of parcels, and evaluations where necessary for determining benefits.
E. A separate legal description and tax parcel number for each tax parcel within the benefited area.
F. Such other information as the city engineer determines is necessary to properly review the application.
G. An application fee of $500.00. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)
11.10.050 Length of reimbursement provision.
No reimbursement agreement shall provide for reimbursement for a period longer than 15 years from the date of final acceptance of the improvements by the city. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)
11.10.060 City engineer’s determination – Review by city council.
A. The city engineer shall review all applications and shall approve the application only if the following requirements are met:
1. The project satisfies the minimum size requirement and complies with city standards and comprehensive utility plans; and
2. The proposed improvements fall within the description of street projects and/or water or sewer facilities as those terms are described in Chapters 35.72 and 35.91 RCW; and
3. The proposed improvements are not constructed or currently under construction.
B. In the event all of the above criteria are not satisfied, the city engineer may condition approval as necessary in order for the application to conform to such criteria, or shall deny the application. The final determination of the city engineer shall be in writing. The applicant may obtain a review of the final determination by filing a request therefore with the city clerk no later than 10 days after a copy of the final determination is mailed to the applicant at the address listed on the application.
C. In reviewing a final determination, the city council shall apply the criteria set forth above, and shall uphold the decision of the city engineer unless evidence clearly demonstrates that the criteria have been satisfied. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)
11.10.070 Determination of reimbursement area boundary and reimbursement fee.
In the case of all applications which are approved, the city engineer shall define an assessment reimbursement area based upon a determination of which parcels, in the case of a utility improvement, did not contribute to the original cost of the water or sewer facility and who may subsequently tap into or use the same, including not only those who may connect directly thereto, but also those who may connect to laterals or branches connecting thereto. In the case of street projects, the assessment reimbursement area shall be based upon a determination of which parcels of property adjacent to the improvements would have been required to construct similar street improvements as a condition of development had it not been for the construction which is the subject of the latecomer agreement. The amount of the assessment shall be established so that each property will be assessed a share of the costs of the improvements, which is proportional to the benefits which accrue to the property. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)
11.10.080 Notice to affected property owners.
A. The preliminary determination of area boundaries and assessments, along with a description of the property owners’ rights and options, shall be forwarded by mail to the property owners of record within the proposed assessment area shown on the records of the Snohomish County assessor.
B. If any property owner requests a hearing in writing within 20 days of the mailing of the preliminary determination, a hearing shall be held before the city council, notice of which shall be given to all affected property owners by mail not less than 10 days prior to the hearing.
C. In the event a hearing is conducted as provided in this section, after considering public testimony, the city council shall make a final determination of the reimbursement area boundaries and assessment based upon the criteria set forth in this chapter and as specified in Chapters 35.72 and 35.91 RCW as now or hereafter amended. The council may adopt, or may reject or modify the engineer’s determination based upon good cause. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)
11.10.090 Reimbursement agreement must be recorded.
In order to become effective, a reimbursement agreement must be recorded with the Snohomish County auditor within 30 days of approval by the city. Such recording shall make their contract binding of owners of record within the assessment area and their heirs and assigns. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)
11.10.100 Written agreement – Payment of city costs in excess of application fee.
Upon approval of the application, determination of the estimated costs of construction, the reimbursement area and estimated fees by the city engineer, the applicant shall sign a reimbursement agreement on the forms supplies by the city. The signed agreement, the application and supporting documents, together with the city engineer’s estimate of cost of construction, and determination of reimbursement area and estimated fees shall be presented to the city council with a request that the city council authorize the mayor to sign the agreement on behalf of the city.
In the event costs incurred by the city for engineering or other professional consultant services required in processing the application exceed the amount of the application fee, the finance department shall so advise the city council and the council approval shall be conditioned upon receipt of payment by the applicant of an additional amount sufficient to compensate the city for its actual costs in excess of the application fee. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)
11.10.110 Construction and acceptance of improvements – Recording of final fees.
A. After the reimbursement agreement has been signed by both parties, and all necessary permits and approvals have been obtained, the applicant shall construct the improvements, and upon completion, request final inspection and acceptance of the improvements by the city, subject to any required obligation to repair defects. The applicant shall provide the city an appropriate bill of sale, easement and any other document needed to convey the improvements to the city and to insure right-of-access for maintenance and replacement, along with documentation of the actual cost of the improvements and certification that all costs have been paid.
B. In the event that actual costs are 10 percent or more below the city engineer’s estimate, the city engineer shall recalculate the fees, reducing them accordingly. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)
11.10.120 Collection of reimbursement fees – No liability for failure to collect.
A. Subsequent to the recording of a reimbursement agreement, the city shall not, in the case of street project agreements, issue any permit for development upon property which has been assessed pursuant to the agreement, or, in the case of water or sewer facility agreement, permit connection of any property within the reimbursement area to any sewer or water facility constructed pursuant to the reimbursement agreement, unless the share of the costs of such facilities required by the recorded agreement is first paid to the city.
B. Upon receipt of any reimbursement fees, the city shall deduct a five percent administrative fee and remit the balance of the reimbursement fees to the party entitled to the fees pursuant to the agreement. In the event that through error, the city fails to collect a required reimbursement fee prior to issuance of development approval or connection to a sewer or water facility, the city shall make diligent efforts to collect such fee, but shall under no circumstances be obligated to make payment to the party entitled to reimbursement, or in any other way be liable to such party, unless such reimbursement fee has actually been paid to the city. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)
11.10.130 Disposition of undeliverable reimbursement fees.
In the event that, after reasonable effort, the party to which reimbursement fees are to be paid pursuant to a reimbursement agreement cannot be located, and upon expiration of 180 days from the date fees were collected by the city, the funds, less a five percent administrative fee, shall be returned to the party that paid them to the city and the obligation of such party to pay a latecomer reimbursement fee shall be terminated. (Ord. 634 § 1, 1995)