Indian Wells Municipal Code Ch. 13.08 Utility and Street Improvements

(a) Formation of District. Whenever utilities, power lines, gas lines, water lines, sewer lines, storm drains, streets or alleys, have been installed or placed underground or constructed by other than public improvement proceedings for which assessments are levied, the cost thereof shall be paid only by the property owners benefited. The City Manager or his designated representative may, upon completion of the work, determine the cost of such improvements, the boundary of the area of all property benefited and the allocation of the cost to the various parcels of benefited property in accordance with the current underground utility financing policy adopted by the City Council. After determination of the cost of such improvements, the City Manager or his designated representative shall notify all property owners who may be benefited and who are subject to inclusion within the district and charges therefor, of the hearing before the City Council not less than ten (10) days prior to said hearing. The City Council shall, at the hearing, consider the establishment of the district and assessment of costs.

Once the allocation of the cost has been approved by a resolution of the City Council, it shall constitute a Statement of charges due from the owners of the various parcels of property as their share of the underground utility improvements. The City Clerk shall record a copy of the Council resolution with the County Recorder. The resolution shall include the ownership of record, the legal description, and the amount of charges for each lot or parcel within the district.

(b) Requirement to Pay Established Charges Prior to Filing Final or Parcel Map and Issuance of Building Permit. If during the ten-year period following the formation of the district, any person either files a tentative map or a tentative parcel map or applies for a building permit on a lot for which a charge for improvements has been established in accordance with subsection (a) of this Section, and such person or his predecessor in interest has not paid such charges to the City, the established charge shall be paid prior to the filing of the final map or parcel map, or the issuance of the building permit; provided, however, such payment shall not be required in connection with building permits having a total improvement value of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000.00) or less; and provided further, that the money paid shall include the principal charge plus interest from the date of establishment of the charge at a rate determined by the City Council.

(c) Improvement Trust Fund. All moneys collected under the provisions of this Section shall be deposited by the City Treasurer into an Improvement Trust Fund. The City Treasurer shall refund to the person or persons who paid for the improvements for which the charges were collected, or to their assignees, all moneys so collected; except, however, that five (5) percent of all such moneys collected shall be retained by the City to defray the expenses incurred in administering the trust fund.

(Ord. 159 § 1, 1979; Ord. 160 § 1, 1979)

(a) Existing Utilities. Whenever utilities already exist, the design of new subdivisions shall be such as to place such utilities in their proper locations or else provide for their relocation at some future time.

(b) Cost of Relocation Paid by Developer. The cost of relocation will be estimated and the developer will be required to pay to the City, in cash, a fee based on a front foot basis. Once the fee is paid, the developer or his successors in interest would have no further responsibility for undergrounding utilities.

(c) Disposition of Fees Collected for Disposition. Fees so collected will be kept in a separate account to be applied to the specific relocation project. When the relocation project is undertaken all fees collected and accumulated interest in the account for that project will be applied just as if the developer that paid the fees had relocated the utilities concurrently with the development.

(Ord. 159 § 1, 1979)