Alhambra Municipal Code Ch. 16.29 Sanitary Sewer Reconstruction Program

(A) Establishment. A sanitary sewer recon-struction program is hereby established for the city.

(B) Purpose. The need for relief sewers in the city is due to the changing pattern of land use and the erection of many multi-story buildings. The existing sewers in the city were constructed some 40 years ago and are no longer adequate to accommodate the increased flow of sewage from the areas being redeveloped. The overload in the sewers is directly attributable to the volume of sewage generated and discharged by the larger buildings to the system. The purpose of this chapter is to establish a means of providing adequate sewers which are required for the redevelopment of the city; to establish a charge to be collected from the properties that propose to discharge into the public sewer quantities of sewage in excess of the quantity for which the system was designed; and to establish an account within the Sewer Fund in which these charges may be deposited and from which moneys will be available for the sanitary sewer reconstruction program.

('86 Code, § 16.29.010) (Ord. 3890, passed - - )

The sanitary sewer reconstruction program shall be implemented basically in accordance with the city's official sewer master plan which is on file in the office of the Director of Public Services/City Engineer. If compliance with the official sewer master plan is impossible or impractical because of peculiar conditions and the purposes of this chapter may be accomplished and the public health, safety and welfare assured by an alternate construction, the Director of Public Services/City Engineer, upon so finding, may grant an exception to the official sewer master plan permitting such alternate construction.

('86 Code, § 16.29.020) (Ord. 3890, passed - - )

For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.

AVERAGE FLOW. The number of gallons of sewage discharged into the public sewers during a 24-hour period.

• CITY. The city of Alhambra.

• COUNCIL. The City Council of the city of Alhambra.

• COUNTY. The county of Los Angeles of the state of California.

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC SERVICES/CITY ENGINEER. The Director of Public Services/City Engineer of the city, or his designee.

FLOOR AREA. The area included within the surrounding walls of a building, or portions thereof, exclusive of vent shafts and courtyards.

LOT. Any piece or parcel of land bounded, described or shown upon a map, plat or deed recorded in the office of the Los Angeles County Recorder, or shown as a separate parcel on the last equalized assessment roll which conforms to the boundaries of such lot as shown upon such recorded map, plat, deed or roll; provided, however, that in the event any building or structure or intended use covers more area than a lot as defined herein, the term LOT shall include all such pieces or parcels of land upon which the building or structure or intended use is wholly or partially located, together with the yards, courtyards and other unoccupied spaces legally required for the building or structure.

OWNER. An individual, firm, partnership, corporation, organization or other entity having an interest in any lot or parcel of land in the city.

PUBLIC SEWERS. The sanitary sewer collec-tion system within the city.

('86 Code, § 16.29.030) (Ord. 3890, passed - - )

It shall be unlawful for any person to erect, construct, enlarge or alter any building or structure, or cause the same to be done, without first having complied with the provisions of this chapter.

('86 Code, § 16.29.040) (Ord. 3890, passed - - ) Penalty, see § 1.12.010

The Director of Public Services/City Engineer shall enforce and administer all the provisions of this chapter.

('86 Code, § 16.29.050) (Ord. 3890, passed - - )

(A) Capacity. The Director of Public Services/ City Engineer shall determine what capacity is necessary in each public sewer to provide for the proper collection of sewage in the city. In the event a lot in the city is to undergo development or redevelopment, and the anticipated sewage from the proposed use is found by the Director of Public Services/City Engineer to exceed the capacity available in the public sewer, the building permit for such development or redevelopment shall not be issued until such time as capacity in the public sewer is available or can be made available before the building is occupied.

(B) Determination of capacity. The size and grade of each public sewer must be such as to provide at all times sufficient capacity for peak flow rates of discharge. In order to establish estimates of sanitary sewage at peak flow, the owner shall submit building plans and such other information as the Director of Public Services/City Engineer may require on printed forms provided for that purpose.

(C) The following table is established as a basis for computing average daily flow to the sanitary sewer:

(D) All others shall be classified by the occupancy it most nearly resembles as determined by the Director of Public Services/City Engineer in accordance with the anticipated use.

(E) The daily flow to the sanitary sewer for a building containing mixed occupancies shall be determined by adding the average daily flow characteristics of the various occupancies as set forth in the above table.

(F) The daily flow from a room or building which is used for different occupancies at different times shall be determined by the occupancy which gives the largest average daily flow.

('86 Code, § 16.29.060) (Ord. 3890, passed - - )

(A) The City Council shall set by ordinance the fees for the sanitary sewer reconstruction program.

(B) The applicant shall provide all information necessary to comply with the provisions of this chapter and shall pay such a fee based on the additional average daily flow created by the new construction, together with any and all fees and charges required by § 16.28.020 of this code, to the Director of Public Services/City Engineer at the time of issuance of a permit pursuant to Chapter 16.28 of this code.

('86 Code, § 16.29.070) (Ord. 3890, passed - - )

In calculating the average daily flow, it shall be deemed that the existing average daily flow is not less than 0.0647933 gallons per each square foot of lot area. This credit shall not be applied more than once to the same lot, except when the building has been demolished.

('86 Code, § 16.29.080) (Ord. 3890, passed - - )

The funds collected pursuant to this chapter shall be deposited with the Director of Finance and credited to the sanitary sewer reconstruction account within the Sewer Fund.

('86 Code, § 16.29.090) (Ord. 3890, passed - - )

In the event any person shall have paid the applicable sanitary sewer reconstruction fee based on the additional average daily flow created by the new construction as provided herein and no portion of the new construction shall have been commenced and the permit for such construction shall have been canceled or expired, the person shall be entitled to a refund in an amount equal to 99% of such sanitary sewer reconstruction fee; provided that a claim in writing therefor, duly verified by the person paying such tax or penalty, his or her attorney, duly authorized agent, guardian, or his or her executor or administrator, shall have been filed with the Director of Finance within one year after the date or payment of the amount sought to be refunded. Such claim shall include the name and address of the claimant, the amount and date of payment sought to be refunded, and state under penalty of perjury the reasons or grounds upon which the claim for refund is based. The claim shall be on forms furnished by the Director of Finance. In no case shall any judgment be rendered for the plaintiff in any proceeding brought to enforce the payment of any claim arising hereunder if such action or proceeding is brought by any person other than the persons designated herein. Except as expressly provided herein, § 3.16.060(C) of this code shall apply to claims filed hereunder.

('86 Code, § 16.29.100) (Ord. 3890, passed - - ; Am. Ord. 4320, passed 3-24-97)

Funds deposited in the sanitary sewer reconstruction account may be expended by the City Council to:

(A) Accomplish any lawful purpose as stated in § 16.29.010 (B) of this chapter.

(B) Accomplish any lawful purpose set forth in Cal. Health & Safety Code § 5471.

(C) Accomplish any such other sewer purpose that the Council may lawfully authorize.

(D) Pay all engineering costs, mileage expense, overhead costs and construction costs necessarily incurred in the construction of relief sewers.

(E) Pay refunds as authorized by § 16.29.100 of this code.

('86 Code, § 16.29.110) (Ord. 3890, passed - - )