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zz <br />MEMORANDUM <br />TO: Geof Gledhill, County Attorney - <br />FROM: Paul Thames, PE, County Engineer <br />DATE: July 11, 2000 <br />SUBJECT: Hillsborough process for developer reimbursement for utility extensions <br />Attached please find, as per your request, the segment of the Hillsborough Town Code dealing with <br />water and sewer utility acreage, front footage, availability, etc., fees. Also included is a section of a <br />utility contract with the developer of Scotswood dealing with a reimbursement of utility fees received. <br />from water and sewer taps occurring on lines lying off of the Scotswood property but that were <br />necessary to extend utility service to Scotswood. After two conversations with Hillsborough <br />engineering and planning staff (Town Engineer Kenny Keel and coordinator Julie Fogleman) I am still <br />unclear as to current Town policy on fee reimbursement practice. It appears that developers may be <br />eligible to be reimbursed their investments from front footage fees, but this eligibility is determined <br />during the process of utility negotiations. There does not appear to be any provision for developer <br />reimbursements in written Town policy. <br />I have spoken with OWASA staff about this type of fee reimbursement practice and have been told that <br />OWASA once had a policy allowing such reimbursements, but the policy was abolished approximately <br />two years ago. It certainly appears that an effort to require that OWASA reinstate such a policy on <br />either a limited (this project only) or non-limited basis would be something of a problem. <br />Insofar as the County collecting some sort of reimbursement of construction cost from owners/ <br />developers of heretofore undeveloped property within the Rogers Road neighborhood is concerned, it <br />was my understanding during the initial discussions on this matter that such charges and <br />reimbursements were not appropriate. That is, the water lines were to be provided with public funding <br />for the public purpose of protecting the area residents from existing or potential adverse public health <br />impacts of harmful constituents of landfill leachate on potable ground waters derived from <br />neighborhood drinking water wells. As such, it would be inappropriate to extend or construct water <br />lines without charge to some individuals in the neighborhood while charging others. I also understood <br />that another source of funding (perhaps some combination of contributions from the general funds of <br />Chapel Hill, Carrboro and the County, grant funds, etc.) was to be utilized to provide for some level of <br />financial assistance, (perhaps a sliding scale ranged from full assistance to no assistance) to individual <br />home owners for payment of OWASA availability fees and plumbing costs on private properties. Under <br />a sliding scale process, the actual level of assistance to any particular homeowner, resident, property <br />owner or whatever, could be determined on a basis of need, providing of affordable housing or some <br />other stated criteria reflecting County values or goals. Again, as I recall this sliding scale strategy was <br />one which allowed the County to avoid contributing benefits to a for-profit operation of a developer or <br />landlord.