News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
The City of Sisters will have to get busy creating plans and implementing systems development charges.
The charter amendment that passed by 69 votes last week requires that within the next six months the city must put plans in place and assess the maximum systems development charges allowed by state law.
Systems development charges are paid by anyone building a house or commercial building to cover the impact of the new development on streets, sewers, water systems and parks.
In order to charge an SDC, a city has to have a systems plan in place.
According to city administrator Barbara Warren, the city has approached the Oregon Department of Transportation for help in funding a transportation plan. That will enable the city to charge an SDC for streets.
Warren the plan is estimated to cost $60,000 to $100,000.
ODOT could pay for part of the study, but "we're going to have to come up with some money, too, somewhere," Warren said.
Engineer Dick Nored will revise the city's water system plan to account for new development, according to Warren. The city will adjust its water SDC according to the revised plan.
A parks plan will probably be paid for out of money currently in the city's $36,000 parks development fund, Warren said.
The city will likely put out requests for proposals for the plan and then ask an SDC consultant to calculate the parks SDC, according to Warren.
A sewer SDC will have to wait until the city actually has the service to charge for. According to Warren, the final sewer plan and SDC will be based upon how much of the project is funded by bonds and how much is funded by grants.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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