[CC 1989 §6-100]
District sewers shall be established within the limits of sewer
districts to be prescribed by ordinance and shall connect with public
sewers or other district sewers or with the natural course of drainage,
as each may be. Sewer districts may be subdivided, enlarged or changed
by ordinance at any time prior to the construction of the sewer therein,
and more than one (1) district sewer may be laid in the sewer district
if deemed necessary by the City Council for sanitary or other purposes.
[CC 1989 §6-101]
After any sewer district has been established, the limits thereof
fixed and the construction of sewers therein has been ordered by ordinance,
and before any contract shall be entered into for the construction
of district sewers therein, an estimate of the cost thereof shall
be made by the City Engineer and submitted to the City Council, and
no contract shall be entered into for the construction of any sewer
for a price exceeding such estimate. This estimate, when approved
by the City Council, shall be placed on file in the office of the
City Clerk.
[CC 1989 §6-102]
Upon the approval and filing of the City Engineer's report and
estimate of cost, the City Engineer shall advertise for two (2) consecutive
weeks in a newspaper published in the City, or if no newspaper is
published in the City then in a newspaper of general circulation within
the City, for bids for the construction of the sewer. Such advertisement
shall advise bidders of the time and place when bids will be open,
that the work will be paid for in special tax bills issued in manner
provided by law, and at the expense of the contractor, that a bond
equal to the estimate of the City Engineer will be required with sufficient
security, and that the right is reserved to reject any and all bids.
Such advertisement shall refer bidders to the detailed plans and specifications
and no bid shall be accepted which is in excess of the estimate of
the City Engineer.
[CC 1989 §6-103]
Contracts for the construction of district sewers shall be entered
into by ordinance. The successful bidder shall be required to file
a written acceptance of the provisions of such ordinance forthwith
upon its passage and approval, and also a bond with two (2) or more
good and sufficient securities, or the bond of an approved bonding
or insurance company, to be approved by the City Council, in a sum
equal to the estimate of the City Engineer and conditioned upon a
faithful compliance with all the terms of the contract in the manner
and within the time specified in such ordinance and holding the City
harmless from any claim of damage occasioned by the performance of
such contract.
[CC 1989 §6-104]
District sewers shall have all the necessary laterals, inlets,
manholes and other appurtenances and shall be of the dimensions and
materials as set forth in the plans and specifications thereof, approved
by the City Council, and on file in the office of the City Clerk,
subject to such changes as may be made from time to time in accordance
with the terms thereof.
[CC 1989 §6-105]
As soon as any district sewer shall have been completed, the
City Engineer shall compute the whole cost thereof and shall apportion
it against the lots or pieces of ground, exclusive of the improvements,
in proportion to the area of the whole district exclusive of the public
highways, and he/she shall report his/her computations to the Council
by bill or otherwise.
[CC 1989 §6-106]
When the bill for the constructing of a district sewer has been
reported by the City Engineer to the City Council, the Council shall
by Ordinance levy and assess a special tax against each lot or piece
of ground within the district in the name of the owner thereof, whereupon
the City Clerk shall make out a certified tax bill under the Seal
of the City of such assessment, against each lot or piece of ground
in the district, in the name of the owner thereof.
[CC 1989 §6-107]
Certified tax bills under this Article shall be signed by the
Mayor and attested and recorded by the City Clerk and shall be delivered
to the contractor for the work. The contractor shall proceed to collect
such certified tax bills by the ordinary process of law, in the name
of the City, to his/her own use, and in the case of absent owners,
he/she may sue by attachment or by any other process known to the
law; and every certified bill shall be a lien against the lot of ground
described therein and shall bear interest at the rate of nine percent
(9%) per annum from thirty (30) days after the issue thereof unless
sooner paid, said special tax bill shall be a lien against the land
described therein for five (5) years after date, unless sooner paid,
excepting tax bills payable in installments in which case the lien
shall not expire until one (1) year after the date of the maturity
of the last installment.
[CC 1989 §6-108]
Certified tax bills under this Article may be paid in five (5)
annual payments payable respectively in one (1), two (2), three (3),
four (4) and five (5) years after the date of the special tax bill,
each installment to be one-fifth (1/5) of the original amount of the
tax bill, together with all of the then accrued interest, provided
that the owner of any tract of land chargeable with part of the cost
of any improvement shall, prior to the acceptance of the work by the
City, notify the City Clerk in writing that he/she desires to so pay
the tax bill to be issued against his/her property. In such cases
the special tax bill shall be so payable and shall provide that if
any installment is not paid when due, the remaining unpaid installment
shall at the option of the holder of the tax bill became immediately
due. The owner of the land against which any such installment tax
bill is issued shall have the privilege of paying all of such tax
bill at any installment paying date.
[CC 1989 §6-109]
Every certified tax bill under this Article shall, on action
brought to recover the amount thereof, be prima facie evidence of
the validity of the charges against the property therein described
and of the liability of the person therein named as the owner of such
property.
[CC 1989 §6-110]
All certified tax bills issued for special assessment for the
construction of district sewers shall be assignable and collectable
in any action brought in the name of the City to the use of the holder
thereof, but the City shall not in any event be liable for any cost
that may accrue in such action.
[CC 1989 §6-111]
The City shall incur no liability for building district sewers,
except where the City is the owner of a lot of ground within the district
and in that case shall be liable for the cost of the sewer in the
same manner as other property owners within the district.
[CC 1989 §6-112]
The repairs, cleaning and other incidental expenses of the district
sewers shall be paid out of a general appropriation for that purpose.
