Item:
Title
Stormwater Utility Planning and Implementation Update (30min)
Body
Date of BOCC Meeting: October 7, 2019
Request for Board Action:
Agenda Text
The Board is requested to receive an update on the development of a County Stormwater Utility. In FY2018, the Stormwater and Erosion Control Division contracted WK Dickson to complete a stormwater utility feasibility study including an overview of the history of the Falls Lake and Jordan Lake nutrient management rules, an assessment of the current legislative climate, and an analysis of the projected cost estimates to meet the requirements of the rules. The cost estimate analysis included a forecast of the costs as well as a timeline of how funding may be spent over time. The results of Phase I of this study were presented to Commissioners in one-on-one meetings in February 2018.
Since that time, County staff worked with officials from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality to refine the County's nutrient loading targets for Falls Lake and have continued working with the Jordan Lake One Water Association to better understand the requirements in that watershed. Over the next twenty-plus years, the County will be required to complete a number of activities to comply with the Falls and Jordan Lake Rules at significant cost. In April, the Board of Commissioners approved a contract with WK Dickson for Phase II of the utility project including planning and implementation.
Over the past several months, our consultant team has continued to gather information including cost estimates, impervious surface data, rules compliance updates, level of service evaluations, and more as inputs into its financial model to develop preliminary rate structures. County staff have provided additional input through meetings with involved County Departments, and the one-on-one discussions with Commissioners in September.
Following this update, County staff and its consultant team will be scheduling and ...
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