[Adopted 11-9-1915 by Ord. No. 75; amended in its entirety 8-22-2006 by L.L. No. 11-2006]
The following rules and regulations are hereby established for the supply of water by the Department of Public Works.
[Amended 6-24-2014 by Ord. No. 5-2014]
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to tap into the water main on a City right-of-way without first making an application for and obtaining permission to do so from the Director of Building and Planning of the City and paying the appropriate application fee as herein provided.
B. 
Such application must be conditioned to indemnify and save harmless the City of and from all loss, cost and damage on account of the granting of such permit and the making of such installation.
C. 
The applicant for such permit shall, at the time of making the application, pay $100 as a fee to the Director of Building and Planning.
D. 
All applications shall be reviewed by the City Engineer prior to issuance of a permit. Furthermore all work shall be inspected and approved by the Commissioner of Public Works prior to issuance of a certificate of completion.
E. 
The Director of Building and Planning shall maintain such files and promulgate such forms and regulations as are necessary to effectuate the requirements of this article.
[Amended 3-22-2011 by Ord. No. 4-2011]
The owner or occupant of the building or other place supplied with water and charged for use thereof shall keep all connecting supply pipes, stopcocks and other fixtures and apparatus connected therewith in good repair and shall protect the same from freezing and shall prevent all unnecessary waste of water. The owner or occupant of the place supplied with water and charged for use thereof shall be responsible for the costs and expense incurred to make any and all repairs to all connecting supply pipes from the tap into the City main forward to said property supplied with water. Within 180 days of disconnecting a water meter or razing a building, the owner or occupant of the place supplied with water and charged for use thereof shall be required to disconnect the supply pipes at the City main and be responsible for the costs and expense incurred thereof. The City or its Water Department shall not be liable for any damage or loss of any kind to property or persons which may arise from or be caused by any change in or increase of water pressure from any cause whatsoever. Should an improperly disconnected, broken or leaking supply pipe create or potentially create a public nuisance by negatively affecting other properties or the public at large, the Commissioner of Public Works may order the owner or occupant or person responsible for the care of the property so supplied with water to repair said improperly disconnected, broken or leaking supply pipe. Should the person so ordered, after being given written notice and an opportunity to be heard, fail to make the repairs after being given a reasonable period of time to make said repairs, the Commissioner of Public Works may cause the repairs to be made and restore the land to the same condition as it was found once the repairs are completed. The actual expense of the repairs and restoration, including all labor and materials, shall be a lien against the property concerned and shall be collected by the City, like other taxes and assessments.
The owner or occupant of a building or other place, desiring to introduce connecting supply pipes into such building or other place, may employ any plumber or other competent person to perform such work when a permit therefor shall have been granted by the Commissioner of Public Works. Permits shall be granted only to certified plumbers or contractors by the Commissioner of Public Works, who shall require from each permittee before such permit is granted with respect to all operations, acts and things done under the permit or by the permittee or by anyone acting by, through or for the permittee, including omissions and acts of the City, a good and sufficient liability insurance policy naming the City of Cohoes, its officers, departments, agents and employees as additional insured and indemnifying same from and with respect to all liability, loss, damages, costs, expenses and judgments which they or any of them may sustain or incur arising out of or because of any accident, act or omission and resulting in bodily injuries, including death, and injury to or destruction of property. Any such policy shall be for not less than $100,000 for all damages arising out of bodily injuries, including death, sustained by any one person in any one accident, and not less than $200,000 for all damages arising out of bodily injuries, including death, by two or more persons in any one accident, and not less than $50,000 for injury to or destruction of property in any one accident.
The Commissioner of Public Works and his subordinates shall be authorized at all times to enter any building or other place where water is used from supply pipes to examine as to the quantity of water used and the manner of using the same. Said entry onto any private property must be upon reasonable notice and consent of the owner or occupant, unless there are emergency circumstances or unless an administrative search warrant is obtained.
The owner or occupant of the building or other place, desiring to introduce water pipes in such premises, shall dig up and excavate the streets, highways and public places of the City in a careful and workmanlike manner, and all trenches and excavations made shall be properly safeguarded with suitable barricades and signals, and the earth and other material so excavated shall be deposited in such a manner as to cause the least public inconvenience, and such owner or occupant shall backfill such trench or excavation with such materials as shall be approved by the Commissioner of Public Works and shall restore such street, highway or public place to its original condition and to the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Public Works.
The owner or occupant of the building or other place supplied with water shall prohibit all other persons not residing upon the premises charged for the use of water from using water from such premises, unless a permit shall have been granted by the Commissioner of Public Works to such persons to use such water.
A. 
The Water Department shall conduct a City-wide reading of meters at quarterly intervals to determine the usage for property so supplied with water in the City for each billing period.
B. 
The Treasurer shall cause bills for water consumption and sewer charges to be sent to the owners of such lots and buildings in the City on a quarterly basis, two of said billing dates to correspond with property tax billing dates. Such bill shall contain a statement that a publication containing procedures for contesting a water bill is available at the City Clerk's office.
C. 
The Common Council shall set the water usage billing rate as part of the annual budget, and same shall appear as a dollar amount charge per 1,000 gallons of water consumed. Such amount of water consumed shall be that which flows through and is measured by the City-installed water meter.
D. 
There shall be a minimum usage of 11,580 gallons per quarter charged to all buildings, lots, or other properties connected to the City water system. This minimum usage amount reflects the added value to the property of being connected to the public water system and is based upon the costs of debt service, filtration, transmission, maintenance, and distribution of the City-wide water system. The minimum usage amount shall be reviewed periodically by the appropriate standing committee of the Common Council, which shall make any necessary recommendations to the Common Council.
[Amended 12-23-2008 by Ord. No. 12-2008]
E. 
Complaints with respect to water bills must be filed with the City Clerk within 30 days of the date of the bill on a complaint form available from the City Clerk.
F. 
The Water Bill Review Board is hereby constituted to hear and determine complaints with respect to water bills, subject to confirmation by the Common Council. The Board shall be comprised of the City Treasurer, who shall chair the Committee, the City Engineer, and the head of the Water Department. If any of those constituting the Water Bill Review Board is unavailable, then a designee may be named. Upon receipt of a complaint with respect to a water bill, the City Clerk shall notify the Board, which shall fix the place and time for a meeting to hear the complaint. At such meeting the Board may administer oaths, take testimony and hear proofs in regard to any complaint. After such hearing and consideration of the evidence presented, the Board may, by majority vote at said hearing or at a subsequent hearing, review and recommend correction of such bills or any or either of them. After such review and correction by the Board, the City Clerk shall cause a copy of such recommendations to be sent to the Common Council for its review and confirmation by resolution if same shall see fit. Upon confirmation by resolution of the Common Council, the Commissioner of Public Works shall cause a revised bill, reflecting any corrections, to be mailed to the owner(s) of the respective property.
G. 
The Water Bill Review Board is hereby directed and empowered to adopt rules and regulations governing the procedure and conduct of hearings herein authorized and to promulgate a written complaint form.
[Amended 7-28-2016 by Ord. No. 6-2016]
Water and sewer rents shall be billed together quarterly and shall be payable in one installment each quarter, and no deductions shall be made or allowed therefrom. Billing dates shall be March 1, June 1, September 1, and December 1, and said bills shall reflect the usage period being billed for. Such water and sewer rents may be paid within 30 days after the billing date without interest or penalty. On all such water and sewer rents remaining unpaid after the thirty-day billing period, interest shall be added thereon at the rate of 2% per month cumulative or 24% per annum. Water and sewer rents that remain unpaid shall be re-levied to the next City tax roll and shall thereafter become a valid tax against the property and collected in such manner as all other property taxes. On all such water and sewer rents re-levied to the next City tax roll, a fee equal to 5.5% of the amount remaining unpaid, including accrued interest, shall be added to the amount due and such fee shall be re-levied to the tax roll along with the water and sewer rents being re-levied and such fee shall become a valid tax against the property and collected in such manner as all other property taxes.
The Commissioner of Public Works shall have power to shut off the supply of water to the building, or other place supplied with water, for a violation of these rules by such owner or occupant or any other person acting with his consent or for failure to pay any and all water rents, water meter charges and charges for the use of water. However, once said unpaid water rents are re-levied to the City tax roll, shutoff for failure to pay those water rents is not authorized.
Every person violating these rules and regulations shall be subject to a penalty of not more than $250 for each offense and/or 15 days in jail upon conviction. In the case of a continuing violation, each shall be considered a separate violation and may be charged as such. And in addition thereto, said person violating this article shall be liable for all damages, costs and expenses arising out of the negligence and carelessness of such person and by reason of the violation of these rules and regulations.