[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Meeting of the Town of Hopkinton as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 4-11-1988 ATM by Art. 24]
A. 
The Town of Hopkinton does not intend to become the owner or operator of small sewerage treatment plants proposed or in operation in subdivisions or garden apartment complexes. Keeping a sewerage treatment plant, the interconnecting piping, controls, equipment in top operating condition and performing the necessary monitoring and sludge removal is time-consuming and expensive. In addition, expensive retro-fill actions to meet new standards may be required by the state or federal government in the future.
B. 
Further, the Town sewer system, which started construction in 1987, is limited in the amount of sewerage that can be processed and will not be available to provide service to the subdivisions and garden apartments that have failed private sewerage treatment plants. The owners of property served by these private sewerage treatment plants own and operate the plants and are financially and legally liable for their proper operation and maintenance. Potential buyers should fully investigate the potential costs and effects on resale of the property.
A. 
The seller (property owner) or realtor showing the property will warn any potential buyer that the property is serviced by a private sewerage treatment plant and will explain fully the responsibilities, liabilities and potential operating and equipment replacement costs.
B. 
The seller or realtor will give all potential buyers a copy of this article on the first visit to the property. The seller or realtor will keep a written record that proper notification has been given.
C. 
The Board of Health will approve the wording of the sewerage treatment plan ownership provisions to be included in the property deed.
D. 
The Board of Health shall require a funded reserve to be maintained at all times sufficient to protect the financial interests of the Town and ensure the public safety concerns over improperly operated or maintained privately owned sewerage treatment plants.
If any provision(s) of this article or the application of such provision(s) to any person, partnership or corporation or circumstances shall be held invalid, the validity of the remainder of this article and applicability of such provision(s) to persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby.
[Adopted 9-26-1988 STM by Art. 7; amended 5-5-1993 ATM by Art. 43; 5-5-1993 ATM by Art. 44; 9-12-1994 STM by Art. 18; 9-28-1998 STM by Art. 5; 5-1-2000 ATM by Art. 66; 9-25-2000 STM by Art. 2; 10-21-2002 STM by Art. 14]
The Town of Hopkinton, acting through its Select Board, shall assess the owners of land abutting a public sewer line installed by the Town by a rate based upon any or a combination of the methods set forth in MGL c. 83, § 14 and § 15. Sewer assessments shall be determined by the Select Board and approved by Town Meeting and shall be levied as betterment assessments and/or sewer privilege fees as described herein.
The authority to assess betterments, as well as the permitted methodologies for doing so, are described in MGL c. 80, Betterments, and c. 82, Sewers, Drains, and Sidewalks, § 14 and § 24.
If any provision of these regulations or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of these regulations which can be given effect without such invalid provisions or applications.
A. 
The Town of Hopkinton shall assess sewer betterments based upon any or a combination of the methods referred to in MGL c. 83, § 14 and § 15. Those properties abutting a sewered street which are assessed based upon the uniform unit method, shall be assessed by a rate proportional to the value assigned to the sewer unit at the time of the assessment. Said rate shall be determined by user class and shall apply to all lands developed or undeveloped abutting the sewered street. Those properties abutting a sewered street which are assessed based upon the fixed uniform rate method shall be assessed according to the frontage of such land on any way in which a sewer is constructed, or according to the area of such land within a fixed depth from such way, or according to a combination of both such frontage and area. Said rate shall apply to all lands developed or undeveloped abutting the sewered street. The total assessments shall not exceed the local share of the total sewer project cost which shall include total costs of engineering survey and design, construction, land acquisition, construction engineering services, legal services and all related contingencies less all state and federal aid received.
B. 
The Board shall levy, by preparing an order of assessment, assessments against all properties abutting a sewered street. In the order of assessment, the Board shall designate the owner of each parcel, as of the preceding January 1, as liable to assessment as stipulated under the provisions of the General Laws.
A. 
Betterments. The equivalent monetary value of one sewer unit shall be set at $4,000 for the Phase 1, Phase 2 and Phase 3 sewer construction projects. The equivalent monetary value of one sewer unit for the Phase 4 and Phase 5 sewer construction project shall be set at $15,840. For the Phase VI Sewer Construction Project, the betterment assessment shall be allocated by the fixed uniform rate method utilizing a combination of the area and frontage method such that area shalt constitute 75% of the calculation and frontage shall constitute 25% of the calculation. Appropriations for the construction cost of sewer projects may establish a differing equivalent monetary value of one sewer unit to be used for the construction costs of the appropriation. The time of assessment for lands abutting the sewered street shall be that date upon which the sewer system with appurtenances is approved for use. In the case where the construction of that portion of the sewer system (lateral sewers) partially funded by betterments is completed prior to the date upon which the sewer system is approved for use, it shall be within the powers of the Board to establish an earlier date of assessment.
B. 
Sewer privilege fees.
(1) 
For those properties not abutting the sewer line but tying into the system at a future date, the time of assessment shall be the date upon which that property connects into the sewer system.
(2) 
For those properties serviced by the sewer system but subdivided at a future date, the time of assessment for the unsewered subdivision shall be the date upon which those subdivisions connect to the sewer system.
C. 
The Phase VI Sewer Assessments shall be based upon 100% of the cost of the design and construction of the Phase VI Sewer Facilities, less any grants, gifts, or other funds received by the Town which reduces such amount, but including interest costs incurred by the Town with respect to any short-term borrowing for the project, and shall be assessed as betterments to all properties benefited by this project.
A. 
General. Sewer units shall be designated based upon the user class of those properties to be assessed a betterment. Said classes shall include residential and nonresidential. The nonresidential class shall include commercial, industrial, municipal and any or all other nonresidential properties.
B. 
Sewer unit determinations. Properties receiving direct benefit from the public sewer system, whether developed or undeveloped, shall be designated a number of sewer units in accordance with the following:
(1) 
Residential, developed.
(a) 
Single-family dwellings shall comprise one sewer unit.
(b) 
Duplex dwellings shall comprise two sewer units.
(c) 
Three-family dwellings shall comprise three sewer units.
(d) 
Four-family dwellings shall comprise four sewer units.
(e) 
Multiple family dwellings (in excess of four dwelling units) shall comprise a number of sewer units based on the following methodology:
[1] 
Rental properties (apartments) shall be assessed one sewer unit for each apartment with more than one bedroom. Rental properties shall be assessed on half of one sewer unit for each one-bedroom or studio apartment.
[2] 
Condominium complexes shall be assessed one sewer unit for each dwelling unit.
(2) 
Nonresidential, developed.
(a) 
Nonresidential property shall include all industrial, commercial and municipal properties.
(b) 
Nonresidential buildings which are metered for water use shall comprise a number of sewer units based upon the average water consumption for the 12 months most recently preceding the date of the establishment of the assessment using the following formula:
Nonresidential sewage in gallons per day (gpd)
300 gpd
=
equivalent number of sewer units
(all decimals shall be rounded up to the next whole highest number).
(c) 
Nonresidential buildings not metered for water use shall be assigned a water consumption volume based on Title 5 (Part 2, Section 13) of the State Environmental Code for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Minimum Requirements for the Subsurface Disposal of Sanitary Sewage. An equivalent number of sewer units shall then be determined by using the following formula:
Nonresidential sewage in gallons per day (gpd)
240 gpd
=
equivalent number of sewer units
(all decimals shall be rounded up to the nearest whole number).
(3) 
Residential undeveloped. Undeveloped lots shall be assigned one sewer unit and be assessed accordingly. Future subdivisions of the assessed lot shall be subject to the assessment of sewer privilege fees.
(4) 
Nonresidential, undeveloped. Undeveloped lots shall be assigned one sewer unit and be assessed accordingly. The lot shall be subject to the assessment of sewer privilege fees. Future use of the land shall govern the assessment of sewer privilege fees.
A. 
General. Except as herein provided, the provisions of the General Laws relative to the assessment, apportionment, division, reassessment, abatement and collection of sewer assessments, to liens therefor and to interest thereon, shall apply to assessments made under this article, and the Tax Assessor of the Town shall have all of the powers conveyed by the General Laws.
B. 
Lump-sum betterment. The lump-sum betterment payment for an assessed property shall be equivalent to the product of the total number of sewer units designated upon said property and the appropriate value for one sewer unit at the time of assessment. Said values shall be determined as described herein.
C. 
Apportionment of betterment payment. Property owners shall have the option to finance betterment payments through apportionment. The interest rate charged by the Town shall be 2% greater than the project bond rate being paid by the Town for the sewer construction project.
D. 
Betterment deferral. The provisions of MGL c. 80, § 13B, with regard to deferral of betterment assessments when adopted by Town Meeting would apply.
E. 
Any dwelling which is located within the Phase 1, Phase 2 or Phase 3 municipal sewerage system which is existing as of the date on which the municipal sewerage system is completed within the way adjacent to said premises, and which must install a pressure pump to enter into the municipal sewerage system, shall pay a betterment assessment in the sum of $1,500, and any sums previously paid for betterment assessments in excess of that amount shall be refunded to the property owner by the Town by any appropriate means. Any property which is located within the Phase 4 or Phase 5 municipal sewage system and which has a low pressure sewer system, or any property which must install a pumping system to connect to the Phase 4 or Phase 5 sewer system, shall pay a betterment assessment in the sum of $12,340.
A. 
Private sewer extension.
(1) 
If a developer or a person other than the Town of Hopkinton, or duly authorized representative of same, constructs a sewer extension to the public sewer system in a phase of the sewer construction project which has been assessed a sewer betterment based upon the uniform unit method, the Town shall assess a sewer privilege fee in lieu of betterment assessment against each property tying into said sewer extension. The sewer privilege fee shall be equivalent to 90% of the calculated betterment assessment value pertinent to each property as determined following the procedure outlined in § 163-9 of these regulations. The sewer privilege fee for Phase 4 and Phase 5 of the sewer construction project shall be the sum of $14,256. Sewer privilege fees shall be levied at the time of connection to the public sewer system. Property owner options for payment of said fees shall reflect those related to payment of betterment assessments as described in § 163-10B and C of these regulations.
(2) 
In addition, the developer and/or property owners connecting to private sewer extension shall bear the burden of all costs, including costs of legal services, related to the following:
(a) 
Review of design plans and specifications for the private sewer extensions to be accepted as part of the public sewer system conducted by a registered professional engineer as authorized by the Board.
(b) 
Inspection fees of the Board related to the installation of the private sewer extension tying into the public sewer system.
(c) 
Application fees for a building sewer installation permit, which shall include all reasonable costs related to installation inspection performed by an inspector for the Town of Hopkinton.
(3) 
Costs associated with the design and construction of a private sewer extension shall be considered separate to the sewer privilege fee. Payments or method of payment related to these costs shall not be reflected within the sewer privilege fee.
B. 
For those properties which are located within areas included in phases of the sewer construction project which have been assessed a sewer betterment based upon the uniform unit method, if a property abuts a private or unaccepted way within which a public sewer has been installed, the Town shall assess the betterment assessment as described in § 163-10 of this article against said property. All rules and regulations governing the payment and the method of payment relating to betterment assessments as described in § 163-10B and C of these regulations shall apply. For the Phase 4 and Phase 5 sewer construction project, if a property abuts a private or unaccepted way within which a public sewer has been installed or if a property lies within 100 feet of a public sewer within a private or unaccepted way, the Town shall assess a sewer privilege fee in the sum of $14,256. The sewer privilege fee shall be levied at the time of the connection to the public sewer. All rules and regulations governing the payment and method of payment related to betterment assessments as described in § 163-10B and C of these regulations shall apply.
C. 
Compensatory sewer privilege fee.
(1) 
Undeveloped property. In the situation where a betterment has been assessed to an undeveloped property based upon the number of sewer units required by these regulations and said property is ultimately developed to accommodate a number of sewer units in excess of the number used for determining the betterment assessment, the Town shall assess a compensatory sewer privilege fee. For the Phase 4 and Phase 5 sewer construction project, in the situation where a betterment has been assessed to an undeveloped property based upon the number of sewer units required by these regulations and said property is ultimately developed to accommodate a number of sewer units in excess of the number used for determining the betterment assessment, the Town shall assess a compensatory sewer privilege fee of $14,256.
(2) 
In the situation where a betterment has been assessed to a developed nonresidential property based upon the number of sewer units required by these regulations and the usage of said property is changed or increased which results in a number of sewer units in excess of the number used for determining the betterment assessment, the Town shall assess a compensatory sewer privilege fee. For the Phase 4 and Phase 5 sewer construction project, in the situation where a betterment has been assessed to developed nonresidential property based upon the number of sewer units required by these regulations and usage of said property is changed or increased which results in a number of sewer units in excess of the number used for determining the betterment assessment, the Town shall assess a compensatory sewer privilege fee of $14,256.
(3) 
The compensatory sewer privilege fee shall be equivalent to that sum of money that would have been charged as a betterment assessment upon the property at the time of the original assessment, under the conditions to which they have changed or increased, less the amount of the original assessment. The compensatory sewer privilege fee shall be the product of the number of sewer units applicable to a property as ultimately developed multiplied by the sewer privilege fee amount for the applicable phase of the sewer construction project.
(4) 
All rules and regulations governing the payment and method of payment related to betterment assessments as designated in § 163-10B and C of these regulations shall apply.
(5) 
No sewer privilege fee shall be assessed upon properties which have been assessed a betterment assessment based upon the fixed uniform rate method.
(6) 
The Select Board is authorized to take any other action necessary or appropriate to accomplish the establishment and recovery of such betterment assessments.