[R.O. 2011 § 140.170; R.O. 2009 § 39.40; Ord. No. 97-277, 8-25-1997; Ord. No. 98-98, 2-19-1998]
The general sewer system of the City shall be composed of four (4) classes of sewers, to wit: public, district, joint district and private sewers. The City Council may create by ordinance such sewer districts that it deems necessary for sanitary or other purposes. The boundaries of a sewer district that has been paid for wholly by special assessments shall not be altered or changed after any sewer has been constructed in and for the same.
[R.O. 2011 § 140.180; R.O. 2009 § 39.41; Ord. No. 97-277, 8-25-1997; Ord. No. 07-162, 6-11-2007]
Upon being petitioned by a majority of the property owners in a designated sewer district wherein a sewer construction project may be paid for in whole or in part by special assessments upon real property or upon the order of the City Council, the Mayor shall prepare and submit to the City Council a preliminary report substantially setting out the sewer construction proposed, together with such other information and data as may be available from the Department of Public Works concerning any such proposed sewer construction project.
[R.O. 2011 § 140.190; R.O. 2009 § 39.42; Ord. No. 97-277, 8-25-1997]
A. 
Any proposed sewer construction project to be paid for in whole or in part by special assessments upon real property shall be initiated by a resolution of the City Council authorizing the Department of Public Works to proceed with the engineering for such proposed sewer construction project. Such resolution may be submitted at the same meeting that the preliminary report set forth in Section 140.180 is submitted or at any subsequent meeting of the Council.
B. 
Lift stations and force mains designed to lift sewage which has flowed by gravity to a low area having no outlet from such area to places from which it can continue to flow by gravity to an outlet or treatment facility are a vital and necessary part of any sewer system. Therefore, whenever the preliminary report referred to in Section 140.180 shall note that any district or joint district sewer will not drain in whole or in part by gravity and there is required for the proper drainage of the area that a sewage lift station and force main be constructed and the City Council shall authorize engineering for the proposed sewer district as provided in Subsection (A) of this Section, then the proceedings relative to construction of facilities in said district or joint district shall be the same proceedings as provided in Section 140.200, except that the resolution required in Section 140.200(A)(2) shall note that the construction proposed includes a lift station and a force main. The cost of the construction of such lift station and force main shall be assessable against the lands located in the district or joint district.
[R.O. 2011 § 140.200; R.O. 2009 § 39.43; Ord. No. 97-277, 8-25-1997; Ord. No. 07-162, 6-11-2007]
A. 
After authorization by the City Council as set forth above, the following procedure shall be used for the proposed sewer construction project to be paid for in whole or in part by special assessments upon real property:
1. 
The Mayor shall cause to be prepared, filed with the City Clerk, subject to inspection of the public and submitted to the City Council, plans and specifications for the proposed sewer construction project, including construction costs which may include the costs of lift stations and force mains, construction contingency and fees and other expenses and an estimate of the portion of the total cost to be assessed against each property to be benefited by the project, i.e., the cost per individual lot or tract of ground in the district, exclusive of the public highways. Any error or inaccuracy in such estimate as compared with actual cost of the work shall not affect the validity of the proceedings or of any assessments made or of special bills issued.
2. 
The City Council shall, if it deems the project necessary for sanitary or other purposes or if a majority of the property owners of the district shall have petitioned for construction of sewers, by resolution, referring to the plan, specifications and estimates of cost filed in the office of the City Clerk, declare the work or improvement necessary, state the benefits of the proposed sewer construction project to the property of the district and state the nature and the method of payment of the proposed sewer construction project. The resolution shall set a time, date and place for a public hearing on the proposed sewer construction project. At the public hearing citizens may express their assent or objection to such project.
3. 
The City Council shall cause the resolution to be published in some newspaper printed in the County for two (2) consecutive insertions in a weekly paper and for seven (7) consecutive insertions in a daily paper or as may be provided by State law.
4. 
After the public hearing, the City Council may, by ordinance, adopt the plans and specifications filed with the City Clerk.
5. 
The Director of Public Works shall advertise for bids for the proposed sewer construction project set forth in the plans and specifications. On receipt of such bids, the Director of Public Works shall, at the time and place designated in the advertisement for bids, publicly open them and the Mayor shall in writing report to the City Council the name and bid of the lowest and best bidder. No bid may be considered which is above the estimate of cost previously filed. Thereafter, the City Council may, by ordinance, authorize the Mayor to enter into a contract with such bidder for the work on behalf of the City and require and authorize the Mayor to approve a bond from the contractor for faithful performance of the contract and for the payment by the contractor for all labor done or materials used in the improvement. Where the bids are above the estimate or no bids are received or for any reason a legally enforceable contract cannot be let, readvertisement for bids by the Director of Public Works may be made as often as may be deemed expedient.
[R.O. 2011 § 140.210; R.O. 2009 § 39.44; Ord. No. 97-277, 8-25-1997; Ord. No. 07-162, 6-11-2007]
When a sewer construction project to be paid for in whole or in part by special assessments upon real property is completed in accordance with the contract, the Mayor shall, in writing, so report to the City Council. The report of the Mayor shall include a separate report of the Director of Public Works, wherein the Director of Public Works shall compute the whole cost thereof and apportion the same against the lots, tracts or parcels of ground in proportion to the area of the whole district, exclusive of public highways. The City Council shall, by ordinance, after conducting a public hearing on the benefits conferred by the sewer construction project, accept the sewer construction project and, for that part to be paid for by special assessment, levy and assess special tax bills in accordance with the report of the Director of Public Works and order the issuance of special tax bills. The Director of Finance shall issue tax bills against each lot, tract or parcel of ground for the amount for which it is liable. Each special tax bill shall include, but is not limited to, the City Clerk's certification of the amount assessed against the property, interest per annum, a description of the property against which the special assessment is levied and the names of the property owners at the time of the assessment. The Director of Finance shall be responsible for all aspects of the collection of tax bills made payable to the City, including the filing of liens and undertaking of legal actions for the collection of amounts due under the tax bills issued.
[R.O. 2011 § 140.220; R.O. 2009 § 39.45; Ord. No. 97-277, 8-25-1997]
A. 
Each tax bill for the completed sewer construction project shall contain a brief general statement of the facts authorizing its issue, the amount for which it is issued, the name of the record owner and the description of the property against which it is issued, the rate of interest which it bears, when it begins to bear interest and shall state that it is a lien against the land therein described and give the time that the lien continues.
B. 
Tax bills for the completed sewer construction project shall bear no interest for sixty (60) days after the date of issue, at which time the tax bills shall be due and payable in full. After the expiration of sixty (60) days, tax bills shall bear interest, on the unpaid balance, at a rate not to exceed the rate on ten-year United States Treasury notes as established at the most recent auction, which rate shall be set forth in the ordinance authorizing the issuance thereof. Every tax bill for the completed sewer construction project shall be a lien against the lot, tract or parcel of land described therein for a period of up to twenty (20) years after date of issue, unless sooner paid. The lien, for tax bills payable in installments, shall expire one (1) year after the date of maturity of the last installment, except when it becomes necessary to bring suit to enforce the lien, in which case the lien shall continue until the expiration of the litigation. All tax bills for completed sewer construction shall be assignable and the owner or holder of any tax bill may enforce the collection thereof by filing suit in a court of competent jurisdiction in the name of the City to the owner's or holder's own use or in an action brought by the City in its own name and for its own use. If the property owner cannot be served by legal process, a suit may be brought by attachment or by any other legal remedy. Tax bills for completed sewer construction projects shall be prima facie evidence of what they contain, of their own validity, of the facts authorizing their issue, that they are a lien on the land described and, in all tax bills issued in payment for sewers, the liability of the person named as the owner of such property. No mere informality or clerical mistake in any of the proceedings shall be a defense thereto. Any error made in issuing any tax bill may be corrected by the Director of Finance, either by interlineation or by issuing a new tax bill in lieu of the erroneous one. When a tax bill is corrected by interlineation, the date of making same shall be certified by the Director of Finance on the margin or back of the bill. In any action brought on any tax bill, the court shall have the authority to correct any error in the tax bill.
C. 
The owner of any tract of land, against which a tax bill for completed sewer construction has been issued, may, not later than sixty (60) days after the issuance of the tax bill, enter into an agreement with the City to pay the tax bill in equal annual installments as may be authorized by ordinance. Each principal payment shall be in an equal amount, together with all accrued interest. The agreement shall provide that if any installment is not paid when due, the balance shall be then due and payable in full, together with all accrued interest. Prepayments may be made without penalty.
[R.O. 2011 § 140.240; R.O. 2009 § 39.47; Ord. No. 97-277, 8-25-1997]
In all cases where sewer construction work is done and the cost thereof is assessed as a special tax bill, any owner of property upon which such tax is levied may request, and the City Council shall grant, a public hearing to determine whether such assessment is excessive or is levied not in proportion to the work done. The City Council may adjust or reduce such assessment which is determined to be excessive or levied not in proportion to work done. If such adjustments or reductions result in the collection of special assessments insufficient to pay the costs for work done or improvements made, the City Council may pay the difference between costs accrued and special assessments collected out of other revenues.