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The City of Zanesville Stormwater Utility will take a proactive approach in managing the city’s stormwater. Rather than raise income taxes or cut services, the proposed stormwater fee will cover the majority of the utility’s costs. This new approach will address and enforce the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) mandate referred to as the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Phase II stormwater regulations, which are part of the Federal Clean Water Act passed by the U.S. Congress in 1972. The funds will also be used to manage some stormwater flooding and drainage discharges, cover associated stormwater infrastructure costs, and finance capital improvement projects.
Stormwater services were previously funded from revenue derived from income taxes collected by the City general fund, revenue from the sanitary sewer fund and revenue from a temporary stormwater elimination surcharge fee that was approved by city council in 1987. This elimination surcharge fee, which funded small capital projects in the areas of the city that require flood protection and water quality solutions, was rescinded and replaced with the current stormwater utility fee.
All developed properties that contain impervious area are charged a stormwater fee. Commercial properties are billed per Equivalent Residential Unit (ERU) (2,300 square foot), while single-family residential properties, duplexes, some condominiums, and some agricultural land are billed at 1 ERU. Undeveloped lots will be excluded since there is no impervious area on those properties.
Impervious area is any hard-surface that does not allow stormwater to be absorbed into the ground. Impervious areas include:
ERU stands for "equivalent residential unit." In Zanesville an ERU is equal to 2,300 square feet, which is the average impervious area of a random sampling of residential property within the city.
Yes. Some impervious area credits (PDF) are available. The maximum total credit cannot exceed 50% of the equivalent residential unit fee.