Sewer taxes increased

Laguna Beach residents will pay more to dump waste into city sewers for at least the next four years.

The City Council voted at the April 20 meeting to continue annual 3.5% increases, which began seven years ago, through fiscal year 2014-15. There was no public opposition at the meeting to the increases, which will top out with bills of $581 a year for the average single-family home added to property taxes.

“We are raising property taxes and nobody is here,” said Mayor Pro Tem Toni Iseman, declaring herself amazed.

Councilwoman Jane Egly said the choice was between increases or sewage running in the street.

“I look on it not as a tax, but as a fee for service,” Councilwoman Verna Rollinger said.

Officially the increases are fees; they just show up on the property taxes, as does the bill for trash collection.

However, viewed as fees or taxes the hikes will not cover the complete costs of needed repairs to the city’s sewer system, which staff reported will set the city back $24 million in a span of 20 years. The improvements were approved by the council after a presentation by Water Quality Director David Shissler.

City Manager Ken Frank suggested the shortfall could be augmented by dipping into the Capital Improvement Fund, with one caveat: the return of bed taxes to or near to the pre-recession heights, when the Montage Resort and Spa was contributing more than $3.5 million a year to the city’s disposable income.

Improvements proposed by Shissler as essential in the next two decades included pipeline replacements in steep terrain that is difficult to access or require special equipment and/or techniques. The cost for the 10 named projects was estimated at $3 million.

Needed lift station reconstruction, rehabilitation or mechanical replacement “” such as the Calliope Street project “” totaled an estimated $18,140,000 for 12 projects. The Santa Cruz lift station in Top of World was recommended to be abandoned and replaced with a gravity pipeline.

The North Coast Interceptor, which runs from the life station at City Hall to the South Orange County Wastewater Authority’s Coastal Treatment Plant, is an acknowledged problem for the city. It can’t be cleaned, its condition and life expectancy are anybody’s guess and there is no extra pipe for bypassing and routine maintenance.

Just getting it out of Aliso Creek is estimated to cost $2 million “” estimates for other improvements are $4.8 million to $9 million.

The city sends about 2.4 million gallons a day to Coastal Treatment Plant, where sludge is processed. The city’s share of SOCWA improvements are an estimated $21.4 million over 15 years.

Improvements to the sewer system began in 2002, with the adoption of a strategic plan to reduce spills. About $16 million has been spent to accomplish that goal to date.