Agenda - Council - 01/14/1997 - Laserfiche WebLink

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The water and sewer lines servicing the Brandseth Addition run across my backyard ~or a distance o~ 183 ~eet. When Brandseth was ~irst proposed the plan was to run the utilities through the existing neighborhood with a requirement that hookup would be mandatory with- in a two-year period. It was to be routed up the ~rontage road and through my ~ront yard. Because o~ high cost including the loss o~ several large trees the routing north of 152nd Ave. became un~easable. Mysel~ and two neighbors got together and proposed the present routing to Brandseth through backyards; a plan which the city accepted. During the negotiations with the city the charter referendum ~as passed elim- inating the requirement that residents be ~orced to hook up to ser- vices within two years. According to the paper, that included no ass- essment ~or the service until connection was desired. When we were working on the contract with the city ~or purchase of the easement we wanted to include a statement assuring us that there would be no ass- essments put on our property a~ter the lines were run. The city eng- ineer, Steve Jankowski, indicated that it would not be necessary to include such a statement since there would be no possibility' o~ any assessments being applied. Now, six months later, we are ~aced with exactly such assessment. Several questions arise in my mind. At what point in the project will this assessment become applicable? Right now, as ~ar as I am concerned, my backyard property which was a~ected to make utilities available to Brandseth has not been restored to its original condition, which was our agreement. Two obvious items remaining are; ~irst, the removal and ~ailure to replace the permanent surveyors marker or pipe on the north- west corner o~ my property, and second, the ~act that I expect that in Spring there will be a washout across my property North to South since it already started with the Fall rains and early snow melts. I certain- ly don't expect to pay an assessment ~or something I neither want nor need while I have su~ered damages to my property to allow a develop- ment to proceed. Who is benefitting ~rom this? The developer certainly is and I imagine the city is considering the tax dollars collected ~rom the new housing. Will this assessment be considered a credit toward eventual hook-up to the system? I suspect not. I have no problem with a ~orced hookup i~ my system ~ails. Appbrently a si).~ mont~h period is proposed ~or that, which seems excessive, but in my situation I assume the assessment would be e~ective as soon as the lines are in regardless o~ whether the property has been properly restored or not. I~ the ordinance is put into e~ect as I understand it I will always wish I had tried to force the services down 152nd Ave. and have it come in· the back way to Brandseth. This, of course, would have resulted in the requirement to pave the street which would have caused all sorts o~ additional problems and controversies which would certainly have delayed the Brandseth development which, I believe the city was trying to avoid. A1 Kemp{ 15220 St. Francis Blvd. Resident for > 24 years lib I I I I ! I I I I I I I I I I I I I I