May 4, 2004
SUBJECT: Ordinance Amending Chapter 12.60 "Storm Water Management" of the Sunnyvale Municipal Code.
REPORT IN BRIEF
In August 2003, Council adopted Chapter 12.60 "Storm Water Management" in response to new Storm Water Discharge Permit Requirements. Subsequent Storm Water Permits issued for other Bay Area counties provided greater flexibility than the permit issued to Santa Clara County communities. The Regional Water Quality Control Board has recently conformed the Storm Water Discharge Permits Bay-Area wide. The amendments being proposed in Chapter 12.60 will provide the City the same flexibility for implementing the permit requirements that other Bay Area communities now have.
Staff recommends adoption of the amendments to Chapter 12.60 of the Sunnyvale Municipal Code.
BACKGROUND
As of November 1990, the Clean Water Act requires that all operators of municipal separate storm sewer systems obtain National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits for storm water discharge and develop urban runoff management plans. The purpose of these requirements is to prevent harmful pollutants from being washed by storm water runoff into the municipal storm sewer and then being discharged into local streams, creeks, and other waterbodies, thus causing their impairment.
The City is a member of the Santa Clara Valley Urban Runoff Pollution Prevention Program (SCVURPPP), which is an association of thirteen South Bay cities and towns, the Santa Clara Valley Water District, and Santa Clara County. All members of SCVURPPP share a common NPDES permit to discharge storm water into local creeks and South San Francisco Bay. A new permit was issued with an emphasis on watershed management, pollutant specific requirements, and continuous improvement of existing programs.
In October 2001, the permit was amended to include a specific provision, C.3- New and Redevelopment Performance Standards. In response to these requirements and to allow for implementation and compliance with the permit conditions, Council adopted Chapter 12.60 in August 2003.
Storm Water Permits issued subsequent to Alameda, Contra Costa, and San Mateo Counties provided greater flexibility than the Santa Clara Basin Permit. Accordingly, in September 2003, SCVURPPP requested that the Regional Water Quality Control Board approve changes to project size definitions to conform Provision C.3.c of the Santa Clara Basin Permit with the other Bay Area permits. The request to conform the Santa Clara Basin Permit to those of the other counties was approved by the Regional Board in October 2003, with official notification of approval received by the City in late January 2004.
Provision C.3 of the Storm Water Permit mandates that the City require all new development projects that create one acre or more of impervious surface (surface that won’t allow storm water to infiltrate but instead allows it only to run off), or significant redevelopment projects that result in a total of one acre or more of additional and/or replaced impervious surface, implement measures to reduce the amount of flow and/or pollutants from the project. Projects in this size category are called "Group 1" projects. The implementation of the requirements for Group 1 projects started on October 15, 2003.
Based on the approval of these changes to the Santa Clara Basin Permit by the Regional Board, the following amendments to the Storm Water Chapter are requested:
· Chapter 12.60.120 (b): Group 1 Projects - Paved sidewalks, bicycle lanes, trails, bridge crossings, bridge accessories, guard rails, and landscape features will not need to be included in the impervious surface calculations when determining if a project meets the Group 1 size criteria;
· Chapter 12.60.120(c): The description of Significant Redevelopment Projects will not include pavement resurfacing, repavement and structural section redevelopment in roadways and require these types of projects to meet treatment design criteria for Group 1 Projects, if they occur within the existing footprint of a public street or road or right-of-way where both sides of the right-of-way are developed;
· In addition to changes made based on Regional Board actions, a minor change to Chapter 12.60.280(d) was made to clarify the criteria to be used in the determination of impracticability when a waiver request is received for impracticability and alternative compliance. Also, a minor edit to Chapter 12.60.330 to correct the response time for an appeal request to fifteen days was included.
EXISTING POLICY
Current Code Chapter 12.60.120(b) does not allow for the exemption of sidewalks, bicycle lanes, bridge crossing, bridge accessories, guard rails and landscape features from the Group 1 impervious surface calculations.
Chapter 12.60.120(c) would require that repavement, resurfacing, or structural section redevelopment of an acre or more of existing roadway comply with the requirements placed on new and re-development projects for storm water treatment design sizing criteria.
DISCUSSION
The proposed changes to Chapter 12.60.120(b) and (c) will allow more flexibility in calculating the amount of impervious surface for a project and will make the City’s requirements for development projects similar to those found in neighboring counties, while still helping to prevent water quality impacts from new or redevelopment.
Provision C.3 also calls for these requirements for treatment of storm water to be applied to projects smaller than one acre, (defined as "Group 2" projects in the permit). The minimum size to which the requirements apply was revised to 10,000 square feet by the Regional Board’s October 2003 approval. However, an alternate size may still be proposed for approval by the Regional Board by the members of SCVURPPP. This may be done after evaluating existing development and redevelopment patterns and proposing an alternative size that will provide protection equal to the 10,000 sq. ft. level before the April 15, 2005 deadline for Group 2 project implementation. Staff will return to Council after the final Group 2 size has been determined by SCVURPPP and approved by the Regional Water Quality Control Board in order to update the City regulations prior to the implementation date.
Impact to City and Developers. A storm water management plan describing how a proposed project will meet the requirements of the Chapter 12.60 is required from applicants wishing to obtain a development permit from the City for Group 1 projects. By excluding certain impervious areas such as sidewalks, bridge crossings, and bike trails from the impervious surface area calculations for new and redevelopment projects, it may reduce the number of projects that must meet the development criteria required for Group 1 projects, and could reduce project costs.
Impact to the City. Similarly for the City’s own projects such as pavement resurfacing, repavement and structural section redevelopment in roadways that occur within the existing footprint of a project meeting the Group 1 size requirements, the City will not be required to implement the storm water treatment design requirements of Chapter 12.60. The City may also exclude certain impervious areas such as sidewalks, bridge crossings, and bike trails in the impervious surface area calculations for new and redevelopment capital projects. This may reduce the number of projects that must meet the development criteria required for Group 1 projects, and may reduce project costs.
In addition, by adopting the proposed changes to Chapter 12.60, the City's requirements will be similar to those for other members of SCVURPPP and the neighboring counties, thus providing equivalent protection and similar requirements for new and redevelopment projects in the communities surrounding San Francisco Bay.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Adoption of this ordinance is exempt from CEQA review because it is implementing requirements mandated by a regulatory agency for the protection of the environment. Individual development projects covered by the ordinance will be subject to applicable CEQA review at the time they are processed.
FISCAL IMPACT
Fiscal impacts will be negligible with the inclusion of these changes to Chapter 12.60. In some cases, the costs of City capital projects may be reduced, as they may not meet the Group 1 size criteria due to the exemptions allowed in the impervious area calculations with the proposed ordinance changes. Fewer projects may be required to develop a storm water management plan and implement numeric sizing criteria for treatment systems. Fiscal impacts to private projects would be similar.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made through posting of the Council agenda on the City's official notice bulletin board, posting of the agenda and report on the City's web page, publication of the Council agenda in the San Jose Mercury News, and the availability of the report in the Library and the City Clerk's Office.
ALTERNATIVES
1. Adopt an Ordinance amending Chapter 12.60 of the Sunnyvale Municipal Code to implement the project-type exemptions and flexibility now allowed by the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Region 2.
2. Request additional information and modified language for the proposed ordinance.
3. Do not approve any changes of the Sunnyvale Municipal Code. Not adopting changes to the Code will result in the City not having the options and flexibility for City Capital Projects that is now allowed by the California Regional Water Quality Control Board.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends Alternative #1; Adopt an Ordinance amending Chapter 12.60 to the Sunnyvale Municipal Code to implement the project-type exemptions and flexibility now allowed by the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Region 2.
Prepared by
Lorrie B. Gervin
Environmental Division Manager
Reviewed by
Marvin A. Rose
Director of Public Works
Approved by
Amy Chan
City Manager
Attachments
A. Proposed Ordinance Amending SMC Chapter 12.60 (Word Format)
B. Regional Board Letter - Approval of Proposed Alternative Group 2 Definition (Word Format)