Minutes - Council - 12/10/1996 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

The water and sewer lines servicing the Brandseth Addition run across my backyard for a distance Of 183 feet. When Brandseth was first proposed the plan was to run the utilities through the existing neighborhood wi th a requirement that hookup would be mandatory wi th- in a two-year period, tt was to be routed up the frontage road and through my front yard. Because of high cost including the loss of several large trees the routing north of 152nd Ave~ became unfeasable. Myself 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 was passed elim- inating the requirement that residents be forced to hook up to ser- vices within two years. According to the paper, that included no ass- essment for the service until connection was desired. When we were working on the contract with the city for purchase of the easement we wanted to include a statement assuring us that there would be no ass- essments put on our property after 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 of any assessments being applied. Now, six months later, we are faced with exactly such assessment. Several questions arise in my mind. At what point in the project will this assessment become applicable? Right now, as far as I am concerned, my backyard property which was affected to make utilities available to Brandseth has not been restored to its original condition, which was our agreement. Two obvious items remaining are; first, the removal and failure to replace the permanent surveyors marker or pipe on the north- west corner of my property, and second, the fact 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 for something I neither want nor need while I have suffered damages to my property to allow a 'develop- ment to proceed. Who is benefitting from this? The developer certainly is and I imagine the city is considering the tax dollars collected from 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 forced hookup if my system fails. Apparently a six month period is proposed for that, which seems excessive, but in my situation I assume the assessment would be effective as soon as the lines are in regardless of whether the property has been properly restored or not. If the ~.~rdinance is put into effect 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 of additional problems and controversies which would certainly have delayed the Brandseth development which, I believe the city was trying to avoid. A1 Kempf 15220 St. Francis Blvd. Resident for > 24 years