A. Water Use Determination. The amount of water rights to be transferred to the City pursuant to Sections 12.10.030 and 12.10.040 shall be sufficient to serve the estimated equivalent residential units (“ERUs”) of anticipated water usage for the area that is the subject of the annexation or application based upon the City regulations applicable to (or, in the case of an annexation, will be applicable to) development of the property in effect at the time of the petition for annexation or application for the short plat, subdivision, binding site plan, planned development, master planned resort, or building permit is submitted. This determination shall be made by the Public Works Director and the determination communicated in writing to the applicant property owner(s) within twenty (20) days of the City receipt of the Section 12.10.030 petition for annexation or the Section 12.10.040 application for approval. In the case of an annexation, in no event shall the ERUs of anticipated water usage be less than the number of ERUs required for development in the applicable zoning district. In the calculation of the amount of water rights that must be transferred to the City, credit shall be provided for any existing and previously approved connections to the City municipal water system that are currently in use on the subject property. In addition, if the owners of property subject to the application of the provisions of this chapter have an exempt well or wells and desire to transfer the water rights associated with said wells, as currently provided for in RCW 90.44.105, then credit shall also be provided for the water use associated with said wells to the extent the water rights associated with said wells are successfully transferred to the City.

B. Excess Water Rights. To the extent the water rights associated with the subject property exceed the anticipated water usage for the subject property as determined pursuant to subsection A of this section, the City in its sole discretion may (1) require the owner(s) of the subject property to transfer any amount of the excess water rights to the City and the City shall pay the owner(s) of the excess water rights for the excess water rights to be transferred to the City an amount representing the then current market value of the excess ERUs as determined by the Public Works Director, or (2) allow said owner to transfer the excess water rights to the City in exchange for credits to be applied to other property owned by said owner within the City limits of the City, subject to the provisions of Section 12.10.040 and subsection E of this section. In the event the City acquires the excess water rights, the transfer will be processed simultaneously with and part of the transfer process outlined in Section 12.10.080, and the City shall be responsible for the proportionate share of the transfer costs attributable to the excess water rights.

C. Payment in Lieu. In the event (1) no water rights are associated with the property that is the subject of a Section 12.10.030 annexation or a Section 12.10.040 application, or (2) the water rights associated with said property are less than the Public Works Director determines to be sufficient to serve the estimated ERUs of anticipated water usage for the area that is the subject of the annexation or application as determined by the Public Works Director pursuant to subsection A of this section, or (3) the water rights successfully transferred to the City are less than the Public Works Director determines to be sufficient to serve the estimated ERUs of anticipated water usage for the area that is the subject of the annexation or application as determined by the Public Works Director pursuant to subsection A of this section, or (4) a building permit application is sought and the City does not require water rights to be transferred as set forth in Section 12.10.040.B, then the City may elect to have the owner(s) of the subject property pay to the City, at the then current market value as determined by the Public Works Director, such sum that represents the current market value of the water rights the City estimates will be necessary to serve the property as determined in subsection A of this section.

D. Payment of Costs. The owner(s) of property subject to the application of the provisions of this chapter shall pay the City for all costs associated with (1) the City determination of the anticipated water usage for the subject property and current market value of an ERU of water and all costs associated with the transfer of water rights to the City, and (2) the costs associated with completing the transfer and acquisition of the water rights. The owner(s) of property required to make payment to the City in lieu of transfer of water rights to the City shall also pay the City’s estimated costs of processing the transfer and acquisition of the water rights. The term “costs,” as used in this subsection, shall include, but is not limited to, City staff time, engineering fees, attorneys fees, application fees, publication fees, and any other fees or charges associated with processing and recording the transfer and acquisition of water rights.

E. Commitment by City. Effective upon the date the water rights are successfully transferred and conveyed to the City as required by this chapter and for a period of ten (10) years thereafter, the City shall make available to the transferor property water usage in amounts at least equal to the amount of water usage transferred to the City by the transferor property. The requirement of the City to make available this water usage shall not be construed to require the City to construct any City water system extensions or improvements that may be necessary to serve the transferor property. Any such City water system extensions or improvements shall be constructed by the owner of the transferor property at owner’s expense. Nothing herein precludes the City from making commitments to provide municipal water service as part of an annexation agreement, when the owner of property subject to the annexation is required to pay some sum of money to the City as set forth in subsection C of this section. In the event (1) a building permit is denied solely because of water unavailability, and (2) the property for which said building permit is sought was previously subject to the provisions of this chapter resulting in a transfer and conveyance of water rights or the payment in lieu thereof to the City, then the building permit applicant, as the sole and exclusive remedy, shall receive a payment equal to the ERU(s) originally attributed to said property at the value established at the time of the original application (all as determined by the Public Works Director), without interest from the date of the original application.

F. Appeal. Any decision committed to the Public Works Director will be reviewed by the Mayor; provided, the affected property owner serves a written notice to the City requesting the review within fourteen (14) calendar days of the issuance of the written recommendation of the Public Works Director. If a written notice requesting review is not timely served upon the City, then the Public Works Director recommendation shall be the final decision of the City. If a written notice requesting review is timely served on the City, the Mayor shall review the recommendation of the Public Works Director and issue a final decision within twenty (20) calendar days of the service of the notice requesting review on the City. Any final decision within the limited scope of this subsection may be appealed for abuse of discretion by filing an appeal in the Grant County Superior Court within twenty-one (21) calendar days of the date of the final decision. [Ord. 2021-06 § 1, December 2021.]