SNOW HILL – After months of discussion, the Worcester County Commissioners approved a resolution establishing standard sewer flow calculations.
The commissioners voted 6-1, with Commissioner Jim Bunting opposed, to approve the resolution but to revisit it in a year to see how it’s working out.
“This is not something that’s exactly perfect,” Commissioner Joe Mitrecic said.
The commissioners have spent months discussing the proposed policy, which was drafted by staff as a way to streamline the EDU (equivalent dwelling unit) allocation process. At their last meeting, the commissioners advised staff to work an appeal process into the policy, to allow for reconsideration of an initial allocation if a developer could prove they needed fewer EDUS than the county required. Kelly Shannahan, the county’s assistant chief administrative officer, told the commissioners Tuesday that staff had now done so.
“We’ve revised the draft resolution to include provisions which would allow any applicant to dispute the projected sewer flow and enter into an allocation agreement to monitor the flow for 24 months to determine the actual flow,” he said.
If the applicant presents data that staff agrees supports a lower flow, the initial EDU purchase will be based on the lower flow but may be adjusted at the end of the 24-month monitoring period.
“However, if the applicant presents data which staff does not agree supports a lower flow, the initial purchase of EDUs will be based on the standard sewer flow calculations and may be adjusted at the completion of the 24-month monitoring period,” Shannahan said.
Bunting said he didn’t like the process in the policy because all reviews would be done by staff.
“The staff has already said from the beginning they didn’t want any relief in here,” he said, adding that he thought the county should set up a review board.
Commissioner Chip Bertino expressed similar concern.
“It just bothers me that this reconsideration is going back to the same group of people who ultimately said no to begin with,” he said.
Maureen Howarth, the county’s attorney, said she’d drafted the latest version of the policy based on the commissioners’ comments at the last meeting. She said the monitoring period would show what a development’s true water and sewer usage was.
Bunting asked whether a portion of the initial EDU purchase money would be set aside, in case the county had to pay back a developer who’d been required to purchase more sewer capacity than they needed.
“That’s something we’re going to have to start addressing,” Howarth said. “As you all know, there is nothing set aside for this because this would be completely new … You guys have seen in every single memo it’s a big concern about how to handle those reimbursements but if you guys make the decision we’ve got to figure out how to do it.”
Bertino asked what sort of documentation would be required for developers to show their EDU usage was lower than what the county required.
“How do you define legitimate documentation?” he said.
Shannahan said that would be up to staff. He stressed that any developer could enter into an allocation agreement to have their usage monitored.
“If they don’t think the (allocation) table’s right, they can enter into an allocation agreement and in 24 months we’ll know what the flow is,” he said. “It trues it up. Every applicant has the right to go the allocation agreement route if they don’t agree with what it was in the table.”
Commissioner Diana Purnell made a motion to approve the resolution. She said staff had addressed everything the commissioners had asked them to address. Mitrecic, however, asked her to amend the motion to have the commissioners revisit the policy in a year.
“So we can see how it worked and get input from the community on how it’s working out,” he said.
The commissioners voted 6-1, with Bunting opposed, to approve the resolution.
