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Nyle Zikmund, City Administrator Don Peterson, Public Works Director January 25, 2019 Page 4 might provide the City with an ability to negotiate modified terms that could provide some desired relief. (3) Third, in looking through the Mounds View City Code, section 908 contains provisions regarding the City's stormwater utility and it appears that Mounds View's fees are rather low. Specifically, the City only charges $11/unit per quarter for single-family residences, whereas a nearby city like New Brighton charges up over $15/unit per quarter. There is likely room to increase those fees in order to create additional revenue for a rain garden maintenance program. While it is understood that the City is hoping to not have to deal with these rain gardens, in the event that RCWD is unwilling to make concessions, it is likely worth discussing whether an increased utility fee might help cover the costs involved. Minnesota Statutes, section 444.075 only requires that these fees be reasonable and, in determining the reasonableness, the City may give consideration to all costs of the stormwater system, which expressly includes operation and maintenance. If there are necessary costs that go along with maintaining the rain gardens due to RCWD requirements, the City can certainly justify an increase in its stormwater fee to pay for those costs. (4) Finally, it sounds like RCWD has historically been uninterested in enforcing these maintenance agreements. Staff also indicates that many rain gardens currently do not function and there has been little, if any, pushback from RCWD in that regard. The City might wish to determine whether it wants to comply with the maintenance obligations by going through a cost -benefit analysis related to what might happen should it ignore these requirements. In other words, it might be a plausible option to disregard these obligations and let RCWD take up enforcement, if they so choose. Being that the requirements have been significantly relaxed since the agreements became effective, RCWD could be even less inclined to enforce them than they normally might be. One question this approach raises is whether the City receives funding from RCWD and whether that funding might be negatively affected by this type of a decision. This issue should certainly be explored before proceeding with this approach. III. Conclusion Nearly 700 rain gardens were installed throughout the City as part of multiple RCWD project permits. It is now a matter of what the City wants to do about them. The City's options are outlined above and it likely makes the most sense to start by reaching out formally to RCWD. The City might also wish to seriously consider increasing stormwater utility rates and/or disregarding the maintenance requirements altogether. Please let us know when you have time to discuss these options and desired next steps. 552997v2 MI7210-263