Re: request/delay/sewer connect - Laserfiche WebLink

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project (1997), in which 10 of 60-plus homes were too low to be served economically by gravity sewer laterals. The City purchased 10 grinder stations and included those costs in the overall project cost, which was divided up equally between all 60-plus properties. 2) The Webber Hills project(2000), in which the City assessed the cost of the project plus an extra$5,000 per lot over 15 years, and then wrote $5,000 checks back to each assessed property owner, which they would use to pay a portion of their individual connection costs. There is no precedent staff is aware of in which the City has specially assessed the costs of an individual sewer connection except as part of the initial special assessment of a neighborhood sewer project. In many respects, to do so would be akin to acting as a bank and providing a home improvement loan to a property owner. The City is not a bank, and does not have a City- operated loan program. Other Funding Sources There may be some other sources of funding that the property owners might explore. The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program operated through Hennepin County comes to mind, which is intended to provide grants or deferred loans to eligible individuals or households for activities such as single-family home rehabilitation. Basic information about the CDBG program is attached. Is Waiving 54-47(b) an Option? The intent of this code section is to have property owners deploying their financial resources first toward required property improvements before using them for more discretionary improvements. The City Council could conceivably waive this requirement if it concluded that the proposed detached garage and paver driveway are required, non-discretionary improvements or deemed to be maintenance of an existing building. I think it would be a stretch to reach such a conclusion, given the facts and circumstances.