Residents Will Pay A Share Of Stormwater System Cost

Money for a new stormwater system on Moran and Glenrose prairies will be collected, at least in part, from people who live there, county officials said last week.

It could cost $11 million to $13 million for what county officials are calling a “backbone” system of collector pipes, ditches and retention areas.

One of the toughest issues is going to be the financing, said Bruce Rawls, director of utilities for Spokane County.

At a meeting of the county Planning Commission last week, Rawls talked about the latest ideas for financing.

The county probably could spread out the annual costs by selling bonds and making payments over 15 to 20 years, he said.

County commissioners may have to enact new fees to pay off the bond debt. A new fee could be levied on property owners within the watershed.

Another fee could be assessed against all new developments within the watershed.

A third source of money could be an increase in the existing stormwater utility charge collected by the county, Rawls said.

Currently people in unincorporated areas pay $10 a year for each residential unit. Commercial and industrial properties pay much larger fees.

Rawls said the countywide fee could be applied to projects throughout the county but would start with Moran, Glenrose and the Chester Creek areas.

Rawls said the county estimates it will cost about $60 million to solve emerging stormwater problems throughout the county.

A consultant studying the Glenrose watershed has said the cost of a stormwater system there could be as much as $19 to $21 million. County officials now are talking about building only the “backbone” of the system.

That means individual property owners would pay extra for lines to connect to the system to solve localized problems of street and basement flooding, he said.

Greg Sweeney, a spokesman for the Moran Prairie Neighborhood Association, said he’s encouraged the county is coming up with long-range plans.

But he said county officials aren’t doing enough to prevent growth problems in the short run.

“As I see it, they are procrastinating,” he said.

, DataTimes