HomeMy WebLinkAbout20110345 HEARING CERTIFICATION
RE: CONSIDER FIRST AMENDED SERVICE PLAN FOR ST. VRAIN SANITATION
DISTRICT
A public hearing was conducted on February 2, 2011, at 9:00 a.m., with the following present:
Commissioner Barbara Kirkmeyer, Chair
Commissioner, Sean P. Conway Pro-Tern
Commissioner William F. Garcia
Commissioner David E. Long
Commissioner Douglas Rademacher- EXCUSED
Also present:
Acting Clerk to the Board, Elizabeth Strong
County Attorney, Bruce Barker
Planning Department representative, Kim Ogle
The following business was transacted:
I hereby certify that pursuant to a notice duly published December 22, 2010, in Fort Lupton
Press, a public hearing was conducted on February 2, 2011, to consider the proposed First
Amended Service Plan for the St. Vrain Sanitation District. Bruce Barker, County Attorney,
made this a matter of record. Mr. Barker stated the Planning Commission considered the
matter on January 18, 2011, and it was requested that the Board consider a material
modification to the original Service Plan, to make the boundaries of the St. Vrain Sanitation
District commensurate with the area which it currently serves through agreements and as the
result of taking over certain areas which were previously served by other sanitation districts. He
stated the original Service Plan was created in the year 1985 and it has only been updated once
since then; therefore, the Amended Service Plan will bring the Service Plan up to date.
Kim Ogle, Department of Planning Services, presented a summary of the proposal and entered
the favorable recommendation of the Planning Commission into the record as written.
Eric Doering, District Manager of St. Vrain Sanitation District, thanked the Board for considering
its Amended Service Plan and he introduced Wayne Ramey and Jeff Rabas, St. Vrain
Sanitation District Board Members; Rob Fleck, St. Vrain Sanitation District Engineer; and
Richard Lyons, Attorney. He stated the Amended Service Plan will update the 208 boundary
which has already been approved by the North Front Range Water Quality Planning Association
and other entities. He stated St. Vrain Sanitation District has experienced some rapid growth in
the southwest portion of the County over the last 10 to 15 years, in order to serve the sanitary
needs of the communities of Frederick, Firestone, Dacono, Mead, Erie, Platteville, and Fort
Lupton. He stated the District has grown from approximately 900 customers in the year 1999, to
over 12,000 customers in the year 2010. Mr. Doering stated in the year 2008, the St. Vrain
Sanitation District consolidated with the former Weld County Tri-Area Sanitation District, which
served the Towns of Frederick and Firestone, and the Dacono Sanitation District. He stated
due to the growth, the District needs to expand its capacity from three (3) million gallons per
day, to six (6) million gallons per day at its current location. He stated the Amended Service
Plan will allow the District to meet the current and future needs of residents, as well as creating
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new methods of treating biosolids, limiting landfill, and agricultural application. Mr. Doering
stated the plan is to bid the project in the next few weeks, commence construction in late May,
and to complete construction within 21 months. He stated the District initially served the Del
Camino region and now it serves the area between County Road 1 and the South Platte River,
and the area between State Highway 66 and County Road 8. He reiterated the District has
utilized the North Front Range Water Quality Planning Association in amending its
208 boundary. Chair Kirkmeyer inquired as to whether the District's Service Area overlaps with
the Towns of Erie and Platteville and the City of Fort Lupton's 208 boundaries or the growth
areas. Mr. Doering stated the overlap in some areas is with the growth boundaries; however,
the situation with the Town of Platteville is that it contains one small shared area, where
Platteville and St. Vrain Sanitation District both provide service. He stated the District has an
intergovernmental agreement with the City of Fort Lupton stating whichever entity can best
serve a particular area will serve it. In response to Chair Kirkmeyer, Mr. Doering stated the
intergovernmental agreement with the City of Fort Lupton was entered into in either the year
2007 or 2008, and the area to the west of the Town of Erie, west of 1-25 and south of County
Road 52, has been within the District's 208 boundary since the mid-1990s.
Gary Behlen, Acting Town Administrator and Director of Public Works, Town of Erie, stated the
Town wants to work with the District and it does not object to the proposed Amended Service
Plan for the expansion of the treatment plant; however, the Erie has lands within its municipal
boundaries which are within the District's Service Area on the southwest edge of the District.
He stated Erie also has lands within the planning area, the DRCOG (Denver Regional Council
of Governments) Urban Growth Boundary, and its existing 208 boundary, which it plans to
annex and serve in the future; therefore, Erie wants to ensure that nothing in these proceedings
will prevent it from serving annexed lands within the District's Service Areas, the DRCOG Urban
Growth Boundary, or its own 208 boundary. He stated the Town is currently in the process of
updating its 208 Waste Water Utility Plan and it has a new treatment plant which is commencing
operation. Mr. Behlen stated Erie desires to control the water quality issues within its
boundaries and it assures its water rights for reuse purposes, and it desires to standardize
waste water fees for Erie's residents. He stated the Town looks forward to continued
discussions with the District regarding the 208 boundary, and would appreciate a provision in
the Board's findings that nothing herein will preclude Erie from serving the lands within its
municipal boundaries and planning area. Chair Kirkmeyer inquired as to whether the planning
area is the three (3) mile annexation plan or an urban growth plan with DRCOG. Mr. Behlen
stated there are several areas of overlap within the Town's planning areas, including an overlap
between St. Vrain Sanitation District's 208 Plan and Erie's Planning Area, and some of those
areas have been annexed into the Town of Frederick; however, there are also some areas
within the Erie's DRCOG Urban Growth Boundary which are in the District's 208 Service Area,
which are areas Erie would like to serve at some point in the future. He stated there are also
some areas which are within the District's 208 Service Area which have already been annexed
by the Town of Erie. In response to Chair Kirkmeyer, Mr. Behlen indicated the areas he is
referring to on a map.
Tom Holton, Mayor of the City of Fort Lupton, stated the published notification does not match
the area specified in the actual application, and he suggested perhaps the matter should be
continued, to allow time for the corrected notification to be published. He stated the notification
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in the paper includes an area within Fort Lupton's 208 boundary. Mr. Barker stated there is an
e-mail included in the file where Mr. Doering, Mr. Fleck, and Mr. Ogle discuss this matter and
how to resolve it. Mayor Holton stated some of these issues could have been resolved prior to
this point of the process; however, St. Vrain Sanitation District has not contacted the City of Fort
Lupton. He stated Fort Lupton has also commenced the process to amend its 208 boundary;
therefore, the boundaries need to be discussed. In response to Mayor Holton, Mr. Barker stated
the legal description includes a variety of sections which staff tried to describe as best as it
could from the map provided, and Mayor Holton has indicated the described area is incorrect;
however, the notification also includes a reference to the map. He indicated it needs to be
determined whether there is a discrepancy between the map and the area described in the
notification. Mayor Holton stated the descriptions in the notifications provided to the City of Fort
Lupton and published in the Fort Lupton Press match; however, the published notification does
not match the description in the application. In response to Mr. Lyons, Mr. Barker stated he is
unsure as to whether the legal description in the public notification is over-inclusive. In
response to Chair Kirkmeyer, Mayor Holton confirmed there is more area included in the
published legal notification than is reflected on the map. Chair Kirkmeyer indicated that,
although the descriptions do not match, she suspects Mr. Lyons will explain it is not a problem,
since the published notification was an over-inclusion, and the boundary can be reduced within
the hearing.
Mr. Lyons confirmed Chair Kirkmeyer correctly explained the point. He stated this issue was
clarified at the Planning Commission hearing, at which time the City of Fort Lupton raised the
same issue. He stated the over-inclusiveness was confirmed at the Planning Commission
hearing, and he apologized for the over-inclusiveness of the published notification, where more
area was included in the description than St. Vrain Sanitation District is including in its Service
Plan. He stated at the Planning Commission hearing, it was clarified the area designated on
Map 6 is the correct region being addressed in the Amended Service Plan; not the area in the
published notification, and Fort Lupton's representative indicated the proposed Amended
Service Plan was acceptable. Mr. Lyons stated St. Vrain Sanitation District indicated at the
Planning Commission hearing it would continue dialogue with the City of Fort Lupton to
determine whether any amendments to the intergovernmental agreement are required.
Commissioner Conway inquired as to whether the Board is considering the area within Map 6 or
the legal description in the published notice. Mr. Barker stated the Board has never continued
an item of business to publish a less-inclusive notice when a legal description has been
over-inclusive in the past. He stated it is unnecessary to publish another less-inclusive
notification, since anyone who should have received the notification has received it.
Responding to Commissioner Conway, Mr. Barker stated Mr. Lyons has indicated it is the
Map 6 area which the Board is considering today. Mr. Lyons reiterated the area being
considered was also clarified at the Planning Commission hearing. Mr. Barker stated the
question is whether the Resolution approving the Amended Service Plan can commensurate
with the map, and he does not know the section numbers to exclude from the description to
make it commensurate with the map. Mr. Lyons indicated he will have the engineer draft the
legal description to commensurate with the map. In response to Mr. Barker, Mr. Lyons
confirmed there are not any areas which were not included in either the map, or the legal notice,
which did not receive notification and should have. Mr. Barker stated if a matter is continued it
is because an area was not included in notification; however, that is not the situation in this
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case. In response to Commissioner Conway, Mayor Holton indicated there should not be a
problem if the legal description is changed to match the map. Mayor Holton stated the City of
Fort Lupton is in the process of amending its 208 boundary, and he would have liked it if
St. Vrain Sanitation District would have approached the City to discuss the proposed Amended
Service Plan. He indicated that as Weld County grows, there is a great deal of overlapping
boundaries, and if the entities could discuss the matter in advance of making changes, the
overlapping problems would be avoided. Commissioner Conway inquired as to whether Mayor
Holton is requesting the Board take action to facilitate the communication. Mayor Holton stated
there does not need to be a requirement from the Commissioners. Commissioner Conway
concurred with Mayor Holton that communication is important. In response to Chair Kirkmeyer,
Mayor Holton confirmed there is an intergovernmental agreement in place between the City of
Fort Lupton and St. Vrain Sanitation District; however, he has not had the opportunity to review
it. Further responding to Chair Kirkmeyer, Mayor Holton confirmed Fort Lupton has annexed
the area up to County Road 18, and this is one of the areas which he is concerned about, along
with the area around County Road 6. Chair Kirkmeyer stated there appears to be no
overlapping of Fort Lupton's 208 boundary and the proposed Service Plan boundary, and Mayor
Holton concurred. Mr. Doering concurred with Chair Kirkmeyer that there is no overlap, and he
indicated the City of Fort Lupton and St. Vrain Sanitation District agreed to the boundaries in the
map through their intergovernmental agreement, which was created in the year 2007. He stated
the boundary is along County Roads 18 and 21. Chair Kirkmeyer indicated demarcation
agreements were created at that time between St. Vrain Sanitation District and the Cities of Fort
Lupton and Dacono. Mr. Doering stated there is not an issue with the legal description in the
proposed Resolution. Chair Kirkmeyer reiterated there is no overlap between Fort Lupton and
St. Vrain Sanitation District's 208 boundaries. Mr. Lyons indicated there may have been a
problem with the newspaper because what was printed does not match what the District
submitted. Mayor Holton stated the newspaper description is completely different from the
proposed Service Plan, and the description in the newspaper matches the notification he
received from St. Vrain Sanitation District. Chair Kirkmeyer stated St. Vrain Sanitation District
has indicated it will continue to work with Fort Lupton on the intergovernmental agreement as
Fort Lupton expands its 208 boundary. Mr. Doering confirmed St. Vrain Sanitation District will
continue to work with the City of Fort Lupton. Mayor Holton stated he does not have any other
concerns to address. Chair Kirkmeyer stated the Town of Erie requested a statement to
preclude St. Vrain Sanitation District from serving the area within its municipal boundaries and
planning area boundaries, and she inquired as to what Mr. Lyon's response is to the request.
Mr. Lyons stated Erie's concern seems to be limited to the southwest quadrant of State
Highway 52 and 1-25, which includes Sections 3, 10, 15, and a sliver of Section 22 which is
adjacent to 1-25. He stated St. Vrain Sanitation District recognizes the Town of Erie has
annexed some of the area; however, he does not believe it has annexed the entire area. He
stated there are parcels in those sections which have been annexed by the Erie, yet are not
serviced by Erie. Mr. Lyons stated the existing State statutes indicates there is a process where
if St. Vrain Sanitation District is servicing properties which are annexed into the Town of Erie, all
the Town must do to cause St. Vrain Sanitation District to leave the area, is pass a Resolution
stating it will provide the service for the property. He stated it is a simple statutory process, and
the City of Longmont has followed the process when it has annexed property it wants to serve.
He stated the Town of Erie has not followed the process because it is not servicing the area,
and its plant just went into operation this week and the Town will need to install a line to service
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the properties. Mr. Lyons stated the District is prepared to discontinue service to the area when
Erie passes a Resolution indicating it will provide service for the area. He stated the District
does not want to force the people in the unincorporated area in Sections 3, 10, and 15 to obtain
service from Erie at this point. He stated there is methodology to handle both the 208 and legal
processes, depending on what direction a future developer chooses; if the developer wants to
remain in Weld County, St. Vrain Sanitation District has a line which reaches the intersection at
State Highway 52, and it may be more economical for a development to connect to the existing
line. Mr. Lyons stated St. Vrain Sanitation District does not want to tell a future developer it
cannot service the development because Erie wants to force the developer to annex. He stated
St. Vrain Sanitation District is in the utility business; not the planning business, and it believes it
should be up to each property owner and developer to decide if they would like to annex based
on the economics of utility service and advantages and disadvantages of annexation. He stated
St. Vrain Sanitation District's Amended Service Plan will not make any changes to the
southwest corner; it addresses the northeast corner. Mr. Lyons stated the District will continue
to work with the Town of Erie. In response to Chair Kirkmeyer, Mr. Lyons stated the portion the
State statute which addresses the process for removing a Special District from serving an area
is Section 32-1-502. In response to Commissioner Conway, Mr. Lyons confirmed the Town of
Erie will not be precluded from serving the areas if it passes a Resolution, or Erie can also
request that North Front Range Water Quality Planning Association alter its 208 boundary. In
response to Chair Kirkmeyer, Mr. Lyons confirmed the same processes are available to the City
of Fort Lupton and the Town of Platteville as well. In response to Commissioner Conway,
Mr. Lyons confirmed Erie is protected from being precluded from providing service to the areas
within its municipal boundaries and planning area by the State statute. Commissioner Conway
thanked Mr. Lyons for the clarification. Chair Kirkmeyer inquired as to whether property owners
within the proposed expanded Service Area are only notified about the expansion through the
newspaper. Mr. Lyons stated if there is an expansion of the boundaries, the property owner
signs a petition and the District Board has a hearing regarding the petition, and there is
published notification of the hearing and public testimony is taken at the hearing. He stated the
Board's order is then filed with the Court, and the Court adjusts the boundaries if it is ordered.
Commissioner Garcia moved to approve the Proposed First Amended Service Plan for the
St. Vrain Sanitation District, with the north boundary as County Road 32, the west boundary as
County Road 1, the east boundary as generally County Road 25, and the south boundary as
County Road 6, with the findings that the legal description is to commensurate with the map and
there is no overlapping with the City of Fort Lupton's Service Area. The motion was seconded
by Commissioner Conway, and he indicated he is comfortable with approving the Amended
Service Plan since the State statute will protect the Town of Erie and the City of Fort Lupton, in
regards to the concerns the City and Town presented to the Board. There being no further
discussion, the motion carried unanimously, and the hearing was completed at 10:30 a.m.
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This Certification was approved on the 2nd day of February, 2011.
APPROVED:
IE La BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
WELD COUNTY, COLO DO
ATTE 861 43V "Val 2.ALILLy
rbara Kirkmeyer,iChair
Weld C. yi3• �ti -rd /7 r
1 ; Sean P.
C�ay,PPro-Tem
BY: , ��� I 1-�(X/�Deputy Clerk to the Board
Wil FF. Garcia( ,
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DavidLong �/
EXCUSED
Douglas Rademacher
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EXHIBIT INVENTORY CONTROL SHEET
Case - AMENDMENT #1 TO SERVICE PLAN - ST. VRAIN SANITATION DISTRICT
Exhibit Submitted By Description
A. Planning Staff Inventory of Items Submitted
B. Planning Commission Resolution of Recommendation
C. Planning Commission Summary of Hearing (Minutes dated 1/18/2011)
E-mail response to Stan Linker(Central Weld County
D. Clerk to the Board Water District) providing copy of file (1/12/2011)
E-mail response from Petitioner to Don and Carole
E. Clerk to the Board Gourley, dated 1/12/2011
Notice of District Office Address Change, dated
F. Town of Frederick 1/24/2011
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