Department of Utilities
Reference: Water Dedication and Fee-in-Lieu of Water Dedication Updates
To: Mayor Gregory Mills and Members of City Council
Through: Michael P. Martinez, City Manager
Prepared By: Scott Olsen, Director of Utilities
Date Prepared: November 15, 2023
BACKGROUND
City Council adopted Ordinance No. 2406 on January 23, 2023, regarding water dedication and fee-in-lieu of water dedication. City staff and the City's water consultant find it necessary to update the water dedication and fee-in-lieu regulations. Further information on the updates is presented below.
PURPOSE
To propose updates to the City's current water dedication and fee-in-lieu regulations. The updates will ensure the City's water resources are secured for the existing and future residents/businesses in the City. City staff also propose to remove the fee-in-lieu amounts from Brighton Municipal Code (BMC) and place them in the Fee Resolution that is presented to City Council on an annual basis. Below is an outline of the updates proposed:
Section 13-4-10 BMC:
* Remove one acre size limitation- BMC currently allows projects that are less than or equal to one acre in total size AND have a water dedication requirement for the project equal to five acre-feet or less to pay fee-in-lieu of water dedication. During the adoption of Ordinance 2406, it was explained that it is difficult for projects with low annual water use to find small volumes of water on the free market to dedicate. City staff recognizes that the total project size is not always correlated with water use. For example, there could be a large storage warehouse that only uses water in the restrooms for a small staff. Staff proposes that projects that have a water dedication requirement of five acre-feet or less, regardless of parcel/project size, be able to pay fee-in-lieu of water dedication.
* Remove Section 13-4-10(e)- This section of BMC allows the Director of Utilities to reduce the water dedication requiremen...
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