O-78-569 - 10/12/1978ORDINANCE NO. %.5(40 9
AN ORDINANCE PROVIDING FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF
ALTERNATE WATER SUPPLIES FOR NEW RESIDENTIAL
CONSTRUCTION; PROVIDING FOR MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS
FOR WATER WELLS; PROVIDING FOR PAYMENTS TO OWNERS
OF SYSTEM; PROVIDING FOR ISSUANCE OF BUILDING PER-
MITS LEASED ON QUANTITY OF WATER WELL; PROVIDING
A SAVINGS CLAUSE; REPEALING CONFLICTING ORDINANCES,
AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, The City of Round Rock has suspended the issuance
of residential building permits for a period of 60 days from
August 24, 1978 by emergency ordinance and may continue such
suspension from time to time until the City determines that a
sufficient water supply is available to serve additional resi-
dential customers, and
WHEREAS, the Council finds that the issuance of building
permits does not place immediate demands on the water system,
and that there is sufficient water available to serve new customers
during the off peak demand period of the fall, winter and spring,
but that additional water supplies must be provided prior to the
summer peak usage of the system to provide for new customers, and
WHEREAS, the City is engaged in a test well program to dis-
cover additional supplies of water at its own expense, and the City
desires to have the right to obtain ownership of any major discovery
of water located by others in the Round Rock environs so that
such discovery may be used by all of the citizens of the City of
Round Rock.
WHEREAS, the City recognizes that a continuing residential
market demand exists within the Round Rock environs, and if the
City is unable to provide a water supply to serve such a housing
market, then alternate water supplies will be developed and owned
to serve this market by other governmental and non-governmental
entities, and
WHEREAS, the City may deny the approval of franchises to private
enterprise to operate such alternate systems within the City, and
such denial would then encourage such alternate systems outside
the city limits, and
WHEREAS, the City wishes to discourage uncontrolled growth
outside the City's environs, but encourages the orderly growth
within the city limits through the controls made available by
providing utilities to new subdivisions, and
WHEREAS, the City recognizes the importance of the revenues
derived through the sale of its own water supplies, waste water
fees and property taxes,
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
ROUND ROCK, TEXAS, THAT
I.
Until such time as additional water supplies are discovered
and developed by the City to meet the needs of new customers, the
owners, individually or collectively, of property within the City
are hereby authorized to discover, and develop plans to provide,
additional water supplies which are compatible with, and can be
incorporated into, the City's distribution system. The discovery
of additional supplies shall not be in conflict with any test well
program under development by the City.
II.
In the event the issuance of building permits is halted or
restricted due to a shortage of the supply of City water, the owner(s)
or developers of property within the City may obtain building permits
by complying with the following requirements:
1) Prove by a thirty-six (36) hour pump test, super-
vised and certified by the City's engineer and
hydrologist, a specific quantity of water of a
quality equivalent and compatible to that now sup-
plied by the City.
2) Provide evidence that the test hole has been properly
completed or abandoned in compliance with the Substan-
tive Rules of the Texas Water Well Drillers Board as
published in June, 1973, or as subsequently amended,
so as to prevent any contamination of the aquifer.
3) Provide the City with engineering plans and specifi-
cations for the construction and connection of such
supply to the City's distribution system; (such plans
to be approved by the Texas Department of Health Re-
sources and the City engineers.)
4) Provide fiscal arrangements in the form of an irrevo-
cable letter of credit from a state or national bank
or a payment bond by a surety company satisfactory to
the City, equivalent to 120% of the City En-
gineer's estimated cost of the construction.
Such fiscal arrangements shall be valid for a
period of one year from the date plans are ap-
proved and if construction is not to be required
within the first year and sufficient water has
not been discovered by the City whereby the al-
ternate water supply may still be required by the
City, the City shall re -estimate the cost of the
construction and new fiscal arrangements equal to
120% of the revised cost estimate shall be provided
prior to the expiration of the original fiscal
arrangements.
5) Provide a written agreement that
(a) should the owner(s) discover a well capable of
producing 500 g.p.m. or more, that well may become
the property of the City upon payment to the owner(s)
of expenses incurred in finding and drilling the well.
Further,the owner(s) shall dedicate up to 2,500
square feet of surrounding land to develop and operate
the well;
(b) should the owners be required to complete the
construction as provided for in Section IV., that
system shall be dedicated to the City subject to the
provisions of Sections V. and VI.
III.
Upon compliance with the above requirements and such other
ordinances and regulations that apply to the issuance of building
permits, the City will issue water taps and building permits cal-
culated as follows:
1) For areas designated entirely as single-family
or where an equivalent single-family pattern of
consumption can be determined, the number of single-
family equivalents will be the total number of gal-
lons per minute (g.p.m.) of the proven test well
divided by .8 g.p.m. Taps or permits shall be issued
based on the respective single-family equivalents.
2) For all other areas that are designated as mixed
land uses where no direct single-family equivalent
consumption can be readily determined, the total
g.p.m. of the test well shall be divided by 1.05
g.p.m. to determine the number of available water
taps and building permits allowed.
IV.
If, prior to the next period of peak demand on the City's
water system, it is determined by the City, which determination
shall be final and binding on the owner, that new sources of
supply have not been discovered, developed and connected to the
distribution system in time to meet the peak demand, the City
- 3
shall notify the owner to begin construction of the previously
approved alternate system.
V.
In the event the owner(s) has constructed such a system at
the request of the City, the City shall pay to the owner(s) a Water
Development Fee of $100.00 per water tap connected to the system
within his property. The City will forward a payment equal to
$100.00 times the number of water taps issued during the proceeding
calendar quarter until such time as the actual construction costs
of the system are repaid. In no event shall the total of such fees
be greater than the actual costs of the construction of the system.
VI.
Should the owner(s) fail to proceed with the construction of
the alternate water supply system, within ten (10) days of the
City's notice to proceed, the City shall proceed with the construc-
tion of the system with the funds provided through enforcement of
the fiscal provisions previously provided the City by the owner(s).
If the City is forced to construct the system, the owner(s) shall
not be entitled to be reimbursed for the cost of the system.
VII.
The invalidity of any section or provision of this ordinance
shall not invalidate other sections or provisions thereof.
VIII.
All ordinances, parts of ordinances, or resolutions in con-
flict herewith are expressly repealed. Specifically, this ordi-
nance repeals and replaces Ordinance No. 567 adopted on September
28, 1978.
IX.
This ordinance becomes effective immediately upon approval
of the Council.
(Mark through the following alternative that is not applicable)
Alternative 1.
By motion duly made, seconded and passed with an affirmative
- 4
vote of all the Council members present, the requirement for
reading this ordinance on two separate days was dispensed with.
READ, PASSED, and ADOPTED on first reading this /-2 day of
A ternative 2.
, 1978.
READ - APPROVED on first reading this th- day o
78
READ, APPROV 1 : . ADOPTED on se • = -ading this the
ATTEST:
, 1978.
ROBERT G. GRIFFIMayor
City of Round R
J A JN , City Secretary
5