The purpose of this Chapter is to help assure the continued
protection of the high quality of water resources available in the
City of Indian Wells by requiring all properties on which there exist
septic tanks, seepage pits and/or cesspools to abandon such facilities
and connect to the available public sanitary sewer prior to time of
sale of said properties.
shall mean the City of Indian Wells Building Official or
his/her designee.
shall mean the sanitary sewer owned and operated by the Coachella
Valley Water District and located within the sanitary sewer easement.
shall mean the document that is recorded on property indicating
that prior to sale of the property, it shall be lawfully connected
to the public sanitary sewer.
shall mean the document that is recorded on property that
releases the "Certificate of Requirement," and stipulates
that the property has been lawfully connected to the public sanitary
sewer.
shall mean the document that is recorded on property that temporarily releases the "Certificate of Requirement" and stipulates that the property has been accepted pursuant to Section 14.04.040 of this Chapter.
Except as otherwise provided in this Chapter, whenever a public
sanitary sewer is extended to within two hundred feet (200')
of any building being served by a private sewage disposal system,
the owner of the property on which the building is located shall abandon
the private sewage disposal system in accordance with the requirements
of this Code and shall connect the building(s) on the property to
the public sanitary sewer system. The abandonment of the private sanitary
sewer system and the connection to the public sanitary sewer shall
be completed prior to the sale of the property upon which the building
is located.
Each developed property fronting upon a public or private street in which there is a sanitary sewer shall be connected to the sewer (Per Section 14.04.030) prior to time of sale of such properties or within ten (10) years following the date of the beginning of operation of the sewer system, whichever comes first. No person shall transfer or convey more than fifty (50) percent of the ownership interest in any real property, residence, place of business, or other building upon which a private on-site sewage disposal system exists, without first providing for connection to the approved public sanitary sewer as a condition to close of escrow or transfer of ownership of the subject property. The City Council upon showing of extenuating circumstances can approve the recording of a Certificate of Temporary Exception that will authorize one sale of the property if the grantee(s) agrees to connect to the public sewer system prior to a date to be determined by the City Council.
(a)
A sewer connection fee in the amount of one thousand nine hundred
twenty-five dollars ($1,925.00) is hereby imposed upon all residential
properties in the City of Indian Wells connected to a private sewage
disposal system for which the City prepaid the sewer connection fee
imposed by Coachella Valley Water District.
(b)
A residential property owner does not have to reimburse the City
the one thousand nine hundred twenty-five dollars ($1,925.00) sewer
connection fee if the connection is completed within one year of the
beginning of operation of the sewer system or within one year of the
date of adoption of this ordinance whichever is later.
(c)
The property owner that is connecting to the public sewer shall be
responsible for all sewer connection costs.
To provide notice of the requirements of this Chapter, the Building
Official is directed to prepare and record with the Riverside County
Recorder's Office a certification of this requirement on each
parcel on which there exists a building being served by a private
sewage disposal system on the effective date of the ordinance establishing
this Chapter.
If the Building Official confirms and approves the sanitary
sewer connection permit, the Planning Director shall execute and authorize
the recordation of a Certificate of Compliance with the Riverside
County Recorder's Office.
A Certificate of Temporary Exception shall only be issued when
the City Council determines due to special circumstances, the cost
of connecting the building(s) to the public sanitary sewer would constitute
an undue hardship on the property owner. A Certificate of Temporary
Exception shall only authorize one sale of a property.
At the time of the application for a Certificate of Temporary
Exception by the property owner, the property owner shall submit an
inspection report summarizing the results of an inspection of the
sewage disposal system. The inspection shall be made for the purpose
of determining whether the private on-site sewage disposal system
is operating in compliance with this Code.
The inspection shall be conducted by a registered civil engineer
or a registered environmental health specialist, or any other individual
who is determined by the City to be qualified to perform such an inspection.
(Ord. 477 § 1, 2000; Ord. 536 § 1, 2003)
