Town of Boone
Town of Boone Public Utilities

Ordinance 05-01

WHEREAS, the Town of Boone has adopted a water system hydraulic analysis and master plan completed by W.K. Dickson; and

WHEREAS, the water system hydraulic analysis and master plan has revealed that the Town of Boone has a very limited remaining capacity in its water distribution system; and

WHEREAS, the Town of Boone has begun planning for alternative raw water sources and possible water treatment plant expansion, but at this time does not know whether, to what extent, and within what time frame the Town may be able to add to its raw water sources; and

WHEREAS, The Town of Boone Water and Sewer Use Ordinance provides for the provision by the Town of water and sewer services both within the corporate limits and outside the corporate limits, including with the extra-territorial jurisdiction (ETJ) of the Town and beyond the boundaries of the Town and its ETJ; and

WHEREAS, during its planning process and until new sources for raw water are developed, the Town must closely monitor and prioritize the distribution of water to new applicants for water service; and

WHEREAS, the Town of Boone’s water system was designed to provide water service only in the primary pressure zone, but through ad hoc decisions made with respect to individual requests, water service has at times been extended into the secondary pressure zone without the Town having studied the overall effects and costs of the general extension of water services into the secondary pressure zone, and those extensions have caused unexpected construction, engineering and fire protection problems; and

WHEREAS, the Boone Town Council desires to amend the existing policies in the Town of Boone Water and Sewer Use Ordinance so as to establish priorities for the availability of water to new customers and to afford itself the necessary time within which to determine the future ability of the Town to serve the needs of its citizens and to assess the desirability of permanently amending the Water and Sewer Code to prioritize the future distribution of services;

NOW, BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that pursuant to its police powers created under N.C. Gen. Stat. ' 160A-174, in order to provide for the health and welfare of the citizens of Boone, and pursuant to N.C. Gen. Stat. ' 160A-312, which confers upon the Town the authority to protect and regulate its water distribution system through the adoption of reasonable rules, the Boone Town Council hereby adopts the following policy concerning the provision of water service to new customers. For its stated duration, unless extended, to the extent the following creates any conflict with the Town of Boone Water and Sewer Ordinance, the following provisions supercede and control the provision of water by the Town of Boone:

  1. To the extent feasible and during the term of this Resolution, the Town shall allocate its remaining water usage gallons, evenly in yearly increments of 50,000 gallons for a four year period beginning January 1, 2008, along with any unused allocation from a prior calendar year made available in the following calendar year. In addition, through and including December 31, 2010, the Town shall reserve an allocation of 10,000 gallons per day from its available water supply for possible allocation to existing vacant lots within the corporate limits of the Town. Any approval of water service in a particular calendar year shall ordinarily be attributed to the available allocation for that same calendar year; however, the Town Council may designate that a particular approval of water service shall be attributed to the available allocation from any year within the term of this resolution, but the periods of time established in paragraph 5 herein for the expiration of rights shall be measured from the date of the Town Council’s approval.

  2. Beginning November 2008, and no less than annually thereafter, the Town shall review actual water usage records to determine whether changes should be made to the allocation allotments for subsequent years. The Council may adjust any yearly allocation based on actual usage as it can be determined and/or new information concerning remaining capacity.

  3. Within the aforesaid limits, the Town of Boone shall ordinarily provide water service to future customers within the corporate limits on a first-come, first served, basis. The water usage predicted as to each application shall be determined by multiplying the usage predicted by the North Carolina Discharge Rate (NCDRS) Schedule by 60%. Any requests for water service which involve predicted usage, as thus calculated, of over 3,000 gallons per day shall only be approved upon action, by majority vote, of the Boone Town Council acting in its quasi judicial capacity. Likewise, in each calendar year in which the Town has allocated two-thirds (2/3) of the water allotted for that year, all subsequent requests for water connection for which there is a predicted usage of more than five hundred (500) gallons per day must be approved by the Boone Town Council, without regard to the predicted usage resulting from the granting of the request. In determining the desirability of approving a connection for water service, the Council shall consider the following:

    1. Any factor which may make the predicted actual use different from the NCDRS predicted use;

    2. The amount of water usage in gallons per day previously approved during the calendar year;

    3. The amount of water usage in gallons per day predicted to be used by the applicant, ordinarily with small requests preferred over large requests;

    4. Whether in its opinion the application is for a land use which is consistent with the Town’s adopted policies concerning growth and development; and

    5. Such other factors as may be identified by the Town Council in its deliberations which either suggest that a particular project promotes or undermines the public health or safety, or the general welfare of the Town.

  4. During the term of this Resolution, ordinarily only requests for service connections to property which is in the corporate limits will be granted. An applicant whose property is partly or wholly outside the Town limits may petition the Town for annexation, and if the property is annexed, in accordance with the requirements of North Carolina General Statutes and the Town of Boone’s ordinances, water services may be extended to such property, in accordance with the provisions of this Resolution.

  5. During the term of this Resolution, no service extensions into the secondary pressure zone shall be considered for approval unless the requesting property was located inside the Boone corporate limits on or before March 8,2007 and applicant is willing to adhere to Town of Boone secondary pressure zone specifications. These specifications include but are not limited to, eight-inch minimum pipe diameter; booster pumping stations shall be an EFI design with fire pumping capabilities; minimum 100,000 gallon welded joint steel storage tank, pressure protection is provided for each individual water service, telemetry systems shall be Dataflow Systems radio telemetry and shall be compatible with existing Town of Boone system, and proposed extension does not exceed 3,620 feet in elevation. A connection to an existing water main in a secondary pressure zone may be considered where the connection is within the corporate limits as they exist as of the date of the resolution, and where such connection creates no negative impact on the Town’s distribution system, allows adequate pressure to be maintained as may be necessary to comply with the requirements of the Boone Fire Department applicable fire codes, results in no additional costs to the Town, and otherwise complies with the requirements of the Town of Boone Water and Sewer Code for connection to the Town’s water system. For purposes of this paragraph, a “connection” is defined as the linking of pipes serving a single dwelling unit to an existing water main. For purposes of this paragraph, an “extension” refers to the continuation of a water main beyond its currently existing limits.

  6. Any applicant granted the right to connect to the Town’s water distribution system, without regard to the calendar year to which the applicant’s predicted water usage is attributed, must obtain all needed development permits within one year of the approval by the Town Council or Public Utilities Department of the water application, or said approval will expire and the allocated water usage shall return into the overall water census for redistribution. Upon subsequent action by the Boone Town Council, the approval of a water application may be extended for a second year from the date of the initial approval, whether by the Town Council or staff of the Public Utilities Department, upon payment by the applicant of a non-refundable availability fee in the amount of the normal availability fee established by the Town of Boone Water and Sewer Code for use(s) of the type proposed. Previously approved requests which have not been connected shall likewise expire within one year of enactment of this ordinance. However, they, too, may be extended for an additional period upon payment by the approved applicant of a non-refundable availability fee in the amount of the normal availability fee established by the Town of Boone Water and Sewer Code for use(s) of the type proposed. If approved, the additional period shall be no less than one year, but in the case where development rights are vested through the issuance of a zoning permit, special use permit, or the approval of a conditional zoning district, the additional period may be extended and approved for a longer period, so that the resulting water rights and the approved development rights simultaneously expire. Previously approved requests which have not been connected shall likewise expire within one year of enactment of this ordinance. However, they, too, may be extended for an additional period upon payment by the approved applicant of a non-refundable availability fee in the amount of the normal availability fee established by the Town of Boone Water and Sewer Code for use(s) of the type proposed. Without regard to the foregoing, should any applicant whose development project requires a special use permit or zoning permit allow the special use permit or zoning permit to expire, the applicant’s water rights will also immediately expire. Likewise, should any applicant whose development project acquires a building permit allow the building permit to expire, the applicant’s water rights will also immediately expire.

  7. For purposes of this Ordinance, the term “development permits”, as referred to in paragraph 5 above, shall mean the following:

    1. In the case of applicants for water service for a minor subdivision, the minor subdivision plat approval and recording of the approved plat with the Watauga County Register of Deeds, and any associated zoning and grading compliance certificates;

    2. In the case of applicants for water service for a major subdivision, a special use permit, and associated zoning and grading compliance certificates;

    3. In the case of commercial development projects, all permits required for the physical development of the land, plus those permits necessary for the building. These may include some or all of the following: special use permits, zoning permits and building permits.

  8. Whenever the Town Council approves an application for water service to either a proposed minor or major residential subdivision, the Director of Public Utilities shall subtract an amount of water from the available water calculations which reflects the projected amount of water which will be consumed when all residences in the proposed subdivision are fully constructed.

  9. During the term of this Resolution, Section 3-10(G) of the Town of Boone Water and Sewer Code, which prohibits the connection into the Town’s sanitary sewer system of the discharge from private water systems, other than the system of Appalachian State University, is suspended as to those applicants whose application for both water and sewer connections cannot be granted because the request for water service has been denied by the action of the Town Council in applying this Resolution. However, in order to be granted the right to connect to the sanitary sewer system, along with such other conditions as may be placed upon the applicant in accordance with the Town of Boone Water and Sewer Code, the applicant must agree to connect into the Town’s water system, should the Town later request that such a connection be made, and the applicant must sign a statement of commitment to that effect, which will remain on file with the Town’s Public Utilities Department.

  10. Any requests for water services from the Town must comply with all requirements of the Town of Boone Water and Sewer Code which are not superceded by this Resolution.

  11. The Town of Boone Water and Sewer Department shall provide a monthly report to the Boone Town Council concerning the number and predicted volume of each water connection request approved during the term of this Resolution.

  12. This resolution shall expire December 31, 2009, unless specifically extended by action of the Boone Town Council, and it may be modified by the Boone Town Council upon majority vote of the Council.

  13. This policy shall become effective upon the adoption of this Resolution.

Amended and effective this the 27th day of June, 2005.
Amended and effective this the 21st day of July, 2005.
Amended and effective this the 15th day of December, 2005.
Amended and effective this the 16th day of February, 2006.
Amended and effective this the 20th day of December, 2007.

Town of Boone, NC
567 West King Street
Boone, NC 28607
p: 828.268.6200
f: 828.268.6208