My WebLink
|
Help
|
About
|
Sign Out
Home
Browse
Search
12-09-13 Common Council Meeting Minutes
sbend
>
Public
>
Common Council
>
Minutes
>
Common Council Meeting Minutes
>
2013
>
12-09-13 Common Council Meeting Minutes
Metadata
Thumbnails
Annotations
Entry Properties
Last modified
1/15/2014 11:35:38 AM
Creation date
1/15/2014 11:35:30 AM
Metadata
Fields
Template:
City Council - City Clerk
There are no annotations on this page.
Document management portal powered by Laserfiche WebLink 9 © 1998-2015
Laserfiche.
All rights reserved.
/
33
PDF
Print
Pages to print
Enter page numbers and/or page ranges separated by commas. For example, 1,3,5-12.
After downloading, print the document using a PDF reader (e.g. Adobe Reader).
Show annotations
View images
View plain text
REGULAR MEETING DECEMBER 9, 2013 <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />RESOLUTION NO. 4311-13 A RESOLUTION OF THE COMMON COUNCIL OF <br /> THE CITY OF SOUTH BEND, INDIANA, CALLING <br /> FOR MORE DETAILED INFORMATION AND <br /> MULTIPLE OPTIONS FROM THE CITY <br /> ADMINISTRATION SO THAT THE COMMON <br /> COUNCIL HAS THE OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE THE <br /> MOST INFORMED DECISION POSSIBLE IN <br /> DETERMINING THE MOST “JUST AND EQUITABLE <br /> FEES FOR SERVICES RENDERED BY THE SEWAGE <br /> WORKS” <br /> <br /> Whereas, the South Bend Common Council notes that on December 29, 2011, the United <br />States Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a news release <br />from Hammond, Indiana, entitled “City of South Bend – Indiana Settlement” where they <br />announced that the “City of South Bend, Indiana has agreed to make an estimated $509.5 million <br />worth of improvements to its combined sewer system to significantly reduce overflows of raw <br />sewage to the St. Joseph River…” which is now projected to cost approximately $667 million; <br />and <br /> <br /> Whereas, that News Release noted that the combined sewer overflows (CSOs) resulted in <br />the discharge of pollutants without a permit and therefore was in violation of Section 301 of the <br />Clean Water Act, Title 33 United States Code § 1311; and <br /> <br /> Whereas, that New Release further noted that a Consent Decree was entered into which <br />requires the City of South Bend to implement a Long Term Control Plan (LTCP) by 2031, which <br />included upgrades to the wastewater treatment plant and improvements to the collection system, <br />in light of the fact that “over 2 billion gallons of untreated sewage” was being discharged into the <br />St. Joseph River [not noting that it was being diluted]; and would require the City to reduce by <br />95% the 80 event discharges to a total of four (4) event discharges ; and <br /> <br /> Whereas, no member of the South Bend Common Council was involved in the actual <br />negotiations leading up to the Consent Decree; and <br /> <br /> Whereas, the South Bend Common Council acknowledges that the Indiana General <br />Assembly has given the municipal legislative bodies the authority to “establish just and equitable <br />fees for the services rendered by the sewage works and provide the dates on which the fees are <br />due” pursuant to the passage of an ordinance consistent with Indiana Code § 36-9-23-25(a); and <br /> <br /> Whereas, on June 28, 2010, the South Bend Common Council passed Ordinance No. <br />10019-10 which became effective July 10, 2010, raised the sewer rates by an average of 9% per <br />year, with the rates being codified into the South Bend Municipal Code in § 17-21; and <br /> <br /> Whereas, the Common Council notes that South Bend Municipal Code § 17-25 requires <br />the City Administration to begin discussions with the Common Council by June of 2013 with <br />regard to any revisions and adjustments of the sewage rates “to assure adequacy in the cost of <br />maintaining the City Resolution on Sewer Rate Increase Considerations <br /> <br />sewer works in sound physical condition and financial condition necessary to render adequate <br />and effective service”; and <br /> <br /> Whereas, the sewage rates set forth in South Bend Municipal Code § 17-21 remain in <br />effect until action is taken by the Common Council; and <br /> <br /> Whereas, on October 14, 2013, Bill No. 64-13 was filed by the City Administration <br />which seeks to “adjust sewer rates and charges incrementally through 2017” and seeks another <br />9% rate increase compounded annually for the next four (4) years; <br /> <br /> Whereas, a series of Utilities Committee meetings have been held as part of the Council’s <br />due diligence requirements in determining “just and equitable fees”; however discussions with <br />the City Administration began well after the June date set forth in the City Code; and <br /> <br />28 <br /> <br /> <br />
The URL can be used to link to this page
Your browser does not support the video tag.