Agenda - Council - 02/22/1983 - Laserfiche WebLink

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I I I I I I I I As a member of the Ad Hoc Advisory Committee, and as an interested citizen, I ~ttended the Public Hearing on February 8. I recognize that the purpose of the Committee and the proposed ordinance was Lo recommend policy Lo pay for public improvements, if they are needed. The policies should not, In my opinion, be viewed either as a vehicle for or justification for "forcing" im- provements into an area -- residential, commercial, or industrial. IRamsey is lucky in that we did have this opportunity to plan before major improvement projects are initiated. The hearing was held Lo educate and receive input from the public on the proposed policy. How well that was done is debatable'. I am concerned that the general feeling is that, with the adoption of this proposed ordinance, the planning is completed. Yes, we hav~ planned, in general, how Lo pay the contractors, bonding agents., engineers, eLe. for building the projects, but ... what about operating and maintaining the sys- tems. As soon as the first sewer lateral is hooked up, we're in LISe 'sewer billing business. As soon as the first well is in and operating, we're in the water business -- operating pumphouses, chemical feed equipment, flushing lines, thawing and repairing frozen lines. Who is going to do the billing? Are we planning ~ or will we need~ Lo have a sewer and water superintendent? If improvements go in, should we anticipate a substantial impact on development that will require added police staff? Will existing or potential i~dustries LA be provided with sewer and water "demand" city fire protection? Granted, "development" may start slowly, but let's not ignore the potential impacts on increased city staffing which, whether a person has sewer or water or not, is reflected in local taxes. ,- . .' I am also concerned that at least the citizens Who attended .the hearing are- convinced that they won't see the impacts Of sewer and water for "many years". The potential impacts could be felt sooner than perceived. With developers holding on to heretofore undeveloped lands, they (/ expect) see the advent Of sewer and water as the mechanism to finally develop their property, sell lots and, hopefully, make some money. I am not faulting them for that. But, it is my guess that the wheels are already turning for more than one such area in the city. The City. Engineer and Mayor both Said, at the hearing, that work on sewer in Ftamsey could, theoretically, begin in April -- that's only 5 weeks away! Even if the first improvements occur in non-existing residential areas or even commercial/industrial areas, the impact could be felt by everyone in