08-16-2011 EDC Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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MEMORANDUM TO: EDC Members FROM: Tim Houle, City Engineer DATE: August 11,2011 SUBJECT: WAC/SAC and ERC's I understand that there is a desire for some education and assistance in developing a WAC/SAC policy and ordinances. There are various consultants and resources that the City can use to help them with this, but a defined scope of work will be important; i.e. what is it you really want and how are you going to get there? While there are definitely other components (legal, engineering, administrative, etc.) involved, one way to look at this is as a financial exercise. So, first, let's go e., through some big picture numbers to help us get an overall sense of where the City is at. We can then discuss what you really want and some of the steps we need to get us there (this can be the basis for a Request For Proposal — RFP — if you want to recommend the City Council go out with one). Acronyms: WAC —Water Availability Charge SAC — Sewer Availability Charge ERC — Equivalent Residential Connection (also sometimes referred to as an ERU — equivalent residential unit— or EDU —equivalent dwelling unit) The number of ERC's (i.e. the average water used, or wastewater produced, from a residential unit) for a building or parcel is generally the method used to determine the WAC and SAC for that building or parcel. Justification for WAC and SAC varies from city to city. According to the League of MN Cities, WAC and SAC fees may be set to cover the eventual costs of improvements to local water and wastewater infrastructure including construction, reconstruction, repair, or enlargement of the system.