Stormwater Utility

Residential properties within the City of Hendersonville City Limits and ETJ are billed a flat stormwater service charge of $7.00 a month per dwelling unit. For non-Residential properties, including commercial businesses, non-profit organizations, churches, government buildings and other properties not used for residential purposes the service charge is based on the Equivalent Residential Unit or ERU (one ERU equals 3,000 square feet of impervious area).

Example: Property A has 9,000 SF of impervious area. 9000/ 1 ERU (3000 SF) = 3 ERUs X $7 = $21 per month.

The City has installed and maintained stormwater infrastructure within the City's Right-of-way for a long time. However, federal regulations requiring a comprehensive stormwater management program necessitate that the City take a more active role in managing stormwater. The utility fee enables the City to meet its responsibilities to maintain and improve the stormwater drainage system, plan for capital improvement projects, manage water quality, enforce stormwater regulations, and facilitate public awareness.

The service charge for residential property owners will remain at $5.00 per month per dwelling unit and the service charge for non-residential property owners will be based on the total impervious surface area on the property.

Impervious surface area is determined using aerial maps to quantify how much impervious surface is on your property. For new construction - we refer to the impervious area included on the site plan submittal.

The fee structure reflects the amount of runoff coming from each property. The more hard surface area on a property, the more stormwater flows to pipes and streams. The fee is set up so that properties that produce more runoff, pay a higher stormwater fee.

Impervious area is hard surface on a property that does not allow rain to soak into ground. This includes roofs, garages, carports, storage sheds, commercial buildings, driveways, sidewalks, parking lots, and patios.

Gravel is an impervious surface. Like concrete or asphalt, it functions as a barrier to absorption and places a demand on the storm drainage infrastructure. This demand on the system is what the stormwater utility fee pays for. Anyone who uses city-maintained street benefits from a property functioning stormwater drainage system. Additionally, these users contribute to stormwater runoff issues in the form of pollution from cars, such as brake dust, gasoline and oil leaks, and stormwater runoff that is generated by the streets themselves.

Yes. The stormwater fee relates to the stormwater drainage system, which is completely separate from the water and sanitary sewer system. The stormwater utility fee helps fund the operation and maintenance of the City's stormwater management system as well as the Stormwater Program which benefit all of the residents of the City of Hendersonville.

Without proper stormwater management, rain events may result in flooding on roads and properties throughout the City, leading to property damage and dangerous road conditions. Stormwater runoff must be channeled through a system of pipes, ditches, catch basins, and storm drains before being safely discharged into local streams and rivers. Note that even if a specific property has never flooded, the stormwater that flows from the property still contributes to the overall flow and must be managed so that it does not cause flooding or damage to property downstream.

In addition to managing the quantity of stormwater runoff, the City is responsible for maintaining and improving water quality by reducing or eliminating pollution in stormwater runoff. The City of Hendersonville is a federally designated National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Phase II community and operates under the authority of the Stormwater Management Program which became effective in August of 2007 after being drafted into the city's Code of Ordinances. NPDES Phase II is a federal and state-mandated program under the Clean Water Act to address non-point source pollution or stormwater runoff. The City's NPDES Permit consists of six management areas that reduce stormwater pollution and assures clean water is maintained in our city's water bodies:

• Public Outreach and Education
• Public Involvement
• Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination
• Construction Site Runoff Control
• Post-Construction Runoff Control
• Pollution Prevention and Good Housekeeping

Many areas in our community are subject to chronic flooding which impacts our residents’ quality of life and our businesses’ ability to operate without interruption. When severe flooding-related events occur,
they cause millions of dollars of damage to public and private property and require the use of City resources. The good news is that there are solutions to these problems, and the impact of these events can be lessened or eliminated over time if the resources necessary to address them are made available to the City.

Currently, the City relies on a flat monthly fee of $5.00 to fund the stormwater program and maintain the existing stormwater infrastructure. The updated fee will be calculated based on each property's impact on the stormwater system. Shifting to a stormwater utility system is designed to:

• Create an equitable user fee system in which fees are based on the amount of impervious surface and stormwater generated per parcel.
•  Provide a predictable and sustainable funding source to properly maintain the stormwater
  system.
•  Increase awareness about the City’s stormwater management system. Many communities in the
  United States have opted for a stormwater utility to fund their stormwater programs.

Since every property generates runoff and benefits from the infrastructure in place, the utility model represents a fair method of collecting revenue from those who place a demand on the stormwater management system.

The revenues generated by the stormwater service charge is used to fund all stormwater related services, which includes the City's Stormwater Management Program, enforcement of the City's stormwater ordinances, planning for future impacts, stormwater infrastructure maintenance and repairs within City owned right-of-way, and construction of necessary capital improvement projects. The fee also pays for annual compliance requirements of City's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (NPDES MS4) permit. For example, the stormwater system, composed of catch basins, pipes, and various control measures, ensures that stormwater runoff from the entire City is managed properly to help reduce flooding, erosion, pollution, and property damage. The Stormwater Program is responsible for managing all aspects of the City's NPDES Phase II Stormwater Permit from Public Education and Outreach to Illicit Discharge Detection and Asset Inspection, Operation, and Maintenance.