152-88 ORDINANCE NO. 152-88
AN ORDINANCE OF T~E C£TY CO~ISSION OF TH~ CITY OF
DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA, AHENDING TITLE 5
WORKS," C~PTER 50 "UTILITIES GENE~LLY; PUblIC
S~VICE T~" OF ~ ~DE OF O~~ OF ~
D~Y B~ BY ~~ A ~ S~ ~0.03
~A~ P~" ~~~ A D~ ~A~
WATER AND/OR SEWER CONNECTION CHARGES, HETER
INSTAL~0N ~GES, ~D ~S~SSION ~D
FEES IMPOSED ON CERTAIN N~ RESIDENTIAh
~IDING ON ~~ D~~D ~~; ~D~
~D ~NG FINDINGS ~ ~ ~ ~~ OF ~ A
ING FOR ~ ~~~ OF ~ ~ ~ ~
PAYME~ ~D~ ~Z DE~D PA~T P~ IN
SUFFICIE~ ~ CO~R ~ ~A~ OF PA~
DE~D PA~ P~; ~D~ ~~ US~ OF
CO~~D I~T; ~D~ ~ ~ C~
APPROPRIATE MONEYS ~OM ~ OF ~ CI~'S
~DS ~ ~DE ~ D~~CI~ ~SED BY ~-~
PAY~S ~D~ THE DE~D PA~ P~;
~T SU~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
DIA~LY ~ ~D PAY~ ~ ~ ~~ OF ~ OF
SITION OF LIENS ~ SE~ PAINT OF ~E DEF~D
U~GES ~D FEES; ~OVIDING FOR ~ DIS~~ OF
WATER S~VI~ IN ~ ~ OF A F~~ ~ ~ PAY-
~ ~D~ ~E DS~D PAINT P~; $~I~
THE PAYMENT PROVISIONS ~OER ~ DEFEND PAINT
PLAN; AMENDING PARAGRAPH C OF SECTION 52.35
"T~NSMISSION AND STOOGE FEES"; PROVIDING FOR A
SAVINGS C~SE; ~D PROVIDING FOR ~ E~~ ~.
WH~, the City of Delray Beach, Florida (the "City"), pursu-
ant to Article VIII, Section 2, of the Florida Con~t~.tution, and Chap%ar
166, Florida Statutes, as amended and supplemented, the City Charter and
other applicable provisions of law, actlng through its Public Utilities
Department, owns and operates a water and sewer system (the "Combined
Public Utility") for the purpose of providing water and sewer ~ervice to
the City residents; and
WHAT.~AS, certain residents residing on existing developed resi-
dential property witahin the corporate limits of the City which have exist-
ing wells and/or septic tanks, m~st be, or request to be, oon~ec~ed to the
Combined Public Utility (such residents are herein referred to as
"Developed Unserved Residential Customers"); and
WHEREAS, the Developed Unserved Residential Customers are
uniquely situated, in that in many cases they will have to bea~ the cost
of capping their existing welIs and/or removing or refilling their exist-
ing septic tank systems (collectively referred to as the "Private
systems',), in addition to paying the required Connection Charges, Meter
Inetallation Charge~, and Transmission and Storage Feee in order to con-
nect to the Combined Public Utility; and
WHEREAS, by virtue of connecting to the Combined Public
Utility, all or a part of the Private Systems of the Developed Unserved
Residential Customers will be without any value to such customers; and
WHEREAS, in order to further the. health, welfare and safety of
the City residents by providing safe potable water and sewage disposal,
and in recognition that the Developed Unserved Residential Customers are
uniquely situated as described above, the City Commission of the City of
Delray Beach (the "City Commission") hereby finds it necessary and in the
best interest of the City that, for the purpose of paying the Water and/or
sewer Connection charges, Meter Installation Charges, and Transmission and
Storage Fees required to be paid prior to connection to tbs Combined
Public Utility, the City shall treat the Developed Unserved Residential
Customers as a separate class, as authorized by the City's Water and Sewer
Refunding Revenue Bond Resolution No. 36-88, as amended, supplemented and
restated; and
WHEREAS, in order to alleviate the potential financial burden
many Developed Unserved Residential Customers may be forced to face by
connecting to the Combined Public Utility, the City Col~mission hereby
finds that it is in the Best interest of the City to encourage full pay-
ment of the charges and fees by hereby electing to offer to the Developed
Unserved Residential Customers a deferred payment plan for such charges
and fees (the "Deferred Payment Plan"); and
WHEREAS, in order to avoid any cost to t/%e cl~y by offering the
Deferred Payment Plan, it will be necessary for the City to impose an
interest or finance charge on each deferred payment; and
WHEREAS, such interest on finance charges collected shall be
deposited in an appropriate account, as shall be deter~tined by s~b~equent
proceeding of the City Commission, to provide a reserve for the benefit of
the Combined Public Utility in the event a Developed Unserved Residential
Customer fails to make timely payment under the Deferred. Payment-Plan; and
WHEREAS, in addition to providing for defaults under the
Deferred Payment Plan, the moneys collected from such interest and finance
charges may be used for any lawful purpose in connection with the Combined
Public Utility, as shall be determined by subsequent proceeding of the
City Commission; and
WHEREAS, the City Commission hereby finds that the City shall
not appropriate moneys from any of the City's general funds to provide for
any deficiencies caused by delinquent payment under the Deferred Payment
Plan; and
WHEREAS, the City Commission finds that it is in the best
interest of the City to provide for the payment of all deferred Water
and/or Sewer Connection charges, Meter Installation Charges, and
Transmission and Storage Fees upon the transfer of title of the
Residential Dwelling Unit (as such term is defined in Chapter §2 of the
city of Delray Beach Code of Ordinances (the "Code")) of a Developed
Unserved Residential Customer; and
WHEREAS, the City proposes to impose liens on the Re~idential
Dwelling Units subject to the Deferred Payment Plan to secure the payment
of the Water and/or Sewer Connection Charges, Meter Installation Charges,
and Transmission and Storage Fees deferred pursuant to such 91an; and
WHEREAS, this Ordinance is intended to establish a Deferred
Payment Plan for which only Developed Unserved Residential Customers of
the Combined Public Utility may now or in the future participate; and
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Ord. No. 152-88
WHEREAS, any term not otherwise defined in this Ordinance shall
have the meaning ascribed to such term in the Code; and
WHEREAS, the provision of paragraph C, Section 52.35 of the
Code shall be amended to reflect the availability of the Deferred Payment
Plan to Developed Unserved Residential Customers; and
WHEREAS, the City's Finance Department and Public Utility
Department are hereby instructed to implement the Deferred Payment Plan in
accordance with the provisions of this Ordinance.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY CO~ISSION OF THE
CITY OF DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA, AS FO~:
.S.E.CT___IQN 1. That Chapter 50 "Utilities Generally; Public
Services Tax" is hereby amended by enacting a new Section 50.03 "Deferred
Payment Plan" to read as follows:
(a) It is the intent of this Section to establish a deferred
payment plan whereby certain residents residing on existing residentially
developed property within the corporate limits of the City, which have
existing wells and/or septic tanks who are either required to connect to
the Combined Public Utility or elect to have water and/or sewer service
provided by the Combined Public Utility (herein such residents are
referred to as the "Developed Unserved Residential Customers"), who exist
now or will exist in the future while this plan is in effect, are, subject
to the provisions of this section, offered the option to pay the required
Water and/or Sewer Connection Charges imposed pursuant to Section 52.31
and/or'54.31 of the Code, Meter Installation Charges, imposed pursuant to
Section 52.32 of the Code, and Transmission and Storage Fees imposed pur-
suant to Section 52.35 of the Code.
(b) This deferred payment plan shall not constitute an indebted-
ness of the City within the meaning of any Constitutional, statutory or
other provision or limitation. No moneys from any of the City's general
fund shall be encumbered, appropriated or used in any fashion to subsidize
or make up for any deficiency under this deferred payment plan.
(c) At the time a Developed Unserved Residential Customer is
required to pay the appropriate Water and/or Sewer Connection Charges,
Meter Installation Charges, and Transmission and Storage Fees, such cus-
tomer will have the option of electing to pay all or any part of such
Connection Charges, Meter Installation Charges, and Transmission and
Storage Fees over a sixty (60) month period with sixty (60) equal pay-
ments, the first iDstallment beginning in the calendar month the first
deferred installment payment appears on the customer's utility bill. Such
deferred installment payment will be due and payable at the same time
other amounts appearing on the customer's utility bill are due and
payable. Interest shall be charged on the amount deferred payable with
each monthly installment payment at a rate which initially shall be the
lesser of the legal rate permitted by law or eighteen per centum (18%) per
annum simple interest.
(d) The City reserves the right to increase or decrease the
interest rate under this deferred payment plan, depending on certain fac-
tors including, but not limited to, the number of participants in the
plan, the rate of prepayment and delinquencies. Any increase would be
applicable only to new customers participating in the plan.
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Ord. No. 152-88
(e) Each Developed Unserved Residential Customer shall have the
option to prepay the remaining principal balance of the deferred charges
and fees in full at any time. Partial prepayments shall not be
permitted.
(f) If all or any part of the Residential Dwelling Unit of the
Developed Unserved Residential Customer or an interest therein is sold or
transferred, excluding (a) the creation of a first or second mortgage
lien: (b) a transfer by devise, descent or by operation of law upon the
death of a joint tenant, or (c) the grant of any leasehold interest of
three (3) years or less not containing an option to purchase, the City
may, at the city's option, declare the full principal balance, plus
accrued interest due and owing under this deferred payment plan, to be
immediately due and payable.
(g) A Developed Unserved Residential Customer may elect to par-
ticipate in this deferred payment Dian by executing a utility billing
paying agreement in a form approved by the City Co~mis.~lon. U~on execut-
ing such agreement and paying the required deposit for water and/or sewer
service, the Developed Unserved Residential Customer will be co~mcted to
the Combined Public Utility. Until all deferred Water and/or Sewer
Connection Charges, Meter Installation Charges, and Transmission and
Storage Fees are paid in full, together with accrued interest to date of
payment, the City shall record and ~aintain with the Clerk of the Circuit
Court in and for Palm Beach County, Florida, a lien against the
Residential Dwelling Unit. The utility billing paying agreement shall
clearly state, among other particulars, the terms of such deferred payment
including the actual rate of interest, that a lien will be recorded
against' the Residential Dwelling Unit, and that, in the event of · default
under the agreement, the City will enforce such lien in the m~nner permit-
ted by law. The Water and/or Sewer Connection Charges, Meter I~stallation
Charges, and Transmission and Storage Fees in effect at the time a
Developed Unserved Residential Customer elects to participate in this
deferred payment plan shall be the applicable chargel~ and fees payable
under the plan.
(h) In the event that any Developed Unserved Residential
Customer shall fail to make payment under the deferred payment plan when
such payment is due, the City, upon eighteen (18) (lays prior written
notice shall have the right to terminate water service in accordance with
Section 52.51 of the Code.
S_ .E.C~_ I__O N_ .2_. That paragraph C of Section 52.35 "Trans~ission and
Storage Fees" is hereby amended to read as follows:
subject to the applicability of Section 50.03, any transmission
fee or storage fee for a given residential dwelli~lg unit or its
equivalent required under this section shall be paid in full
prior to the issuance of any authorization to connect to the
city's water system.
~. That, should any section or ~rovision of this
Ordinance or any portion thereof, any paragraph, sentence, or wor~ be
declared by a court of competent Jurisdiction to be invalid, such decision
shall not affect the validity of the remainder thereof as a whole or part
thereof other than the part declared to be invalid.
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Ord. No. 152-88
SECTION 4. That this Ordinance shall become effective after its
passage on second and final reading, and the deferred p~yment plan set
forth in Section 1 shall be applicable to all applicable customers con-
necting to the Combined Public Utility on or after October 1, 1988.
PASSED AND ADOPTED in regular session on second and final read-
ing on this 22nd day of November, 1988.
CITY OF DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA
ATTEST
First Reading November 8. 1955
Second Reading November 22, 1988
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Ord. No. 152-88