2009 10 27 Staff Report to CouncilI OF THFp~~
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YELM
WASHINGTON
City of Yelm
STAFF REPORT
To: Mayor Ron Harding
Yelm City Council
From: Grant Beck, Director of Community Development
Tim Peterson, Public Works Director
Date: October 21, 2009 (for October 27t" City Council Meeting)
Subj: Palisades West Subdivision Alteration
Recommendation
None. Information only from the October 12, 2009, Council meeting.
Background
LIABILITY ISSUES WITH NOT MEETING DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH REGULATIONS FOR THE
OPERATION OF A GROUP A WATER SYSTEM.
As noted during the public hearing on the subdivision alteration, the Smiths cannot
waive any City liability for not meeting Department of Health regulations for water
service. Section 246-290-230 (5) WAC requires that:
New public water systems or additions to existing systems shall be
designed with the capacity to deliver the design PHD quantity of water at
30 psi (210 kPa) under PHD flow conditions measured at all existing and
proposed service water meters or along property lines adjacent to mains if
no meter exists, and under the condition where all equalizing storage has
been depleted.
The static pressure at Palisades West is 24 psi under normal conditions, not during
Peak Hour Demand (PHD) and with the water tanks nearly full.
The City can not waive this standard without being in jeopardy of an enforcement action
by the Department of Health. As indicated at the hearing, Department of Health
regulations do allow the use of booster pumps for individual services as an interim
measure until system improvements are made to resolve pressure deficiencies.
Individual booster pumps must be under the management and control of the purveyor,
in this case the City of Yelm. Interim is not defined but is considered to be short term
with plans for long term solutions to be in progress or planned within a reasonable time
October 21, 2009 Page 1 of 4
frame. It is not unreasonable to expect that the Department of Health would require the
City at some point in the future to remedy the situation at City expense.
Dan Lee, the developer's agent and contractor for the Smiths, indicated at the hearing
that he had installed an individual booster pump inside the home. This pump was
placed without a permit from the City of Yelm and does not meet the standards for an
exception to pressure requirements noted above. In order for the individual booster
pump to be allowed under Department of Health regulations, it would have to be:
• Reviewed and approved by the City of Yelm and the Washington Department of
Health. Located on the public side of the water meter in the public right-of-way.
• Enclosed in a heated structure.
• Be provided with auxiliary power in the form of a generator.
• Dedicated to the City.
Individual booster pumps were explored as an option by the City in December of 2008
and were determined to be unfeasible for these reasons and for the fact that an
individual booster pump would not provide required fire flows.
An individual booster pump would also not solve a potential water quality issue caused
by back-siphonage. A single household would not use enough water to keep the water
in the main serving Palisades West fresh which could result in unsatisfactory water
quality for the home owner. This situation could also cause the City increased public
works staff time and resources for the purpose of water testing and main flushing for
one residential home. Additionally, during a fire flow or low pressure event in another
area of the City, stagnant water in the main at Palisades would be drawn back down the
hill into other portions of the distribution system, potentially causing water quality issues
and potentially a violation reportable to the Department of Health.
The booster pump station that was originally identified through the development review
process as necessary for the proposed development solves the above issues.
RESPONSE TO APPLICANT'S ENGINEERING REPORT RELATED TO FIRE FLOW.
As noted during the public hearing, Dr. McClure's letter is based on incorrect
assumptions regarding the situation in Yelm.
Dr. McClure properly quotes the International Fire Code as adopted by the City of Yelm
but makes the incorrect assumption that the Fire Chief of SE Thurston Fire/EMS is the
`fire code official' for the City of Yelm and has the authority to determine compliance
with codes or standards.
In fact, the City of Yelm contracts with SE Thurston for fire protection services but does
not utilize the fire district for fire plan review or fire code compliance reviews. Gary
Carlson is the City's duly appointed Building Official and Fire Marshal and serves at the
City's fire code official. Mr. Carlson has participated in every stage of the review of the
Palisades West subdivision and the Smith building permit and has consistently
October 21, 2009 Page 2 of 4
maintained that fire flows as required by the International Fire Code must be maintained
in the subdivision before occupancy of any habitable structure.
Mr. Carlson reviewed the letter from SE Thurston Fire/EMS submitted by the
developer's agent and building contractor and determined that the district did not
conclude that required fire flows were met at the site but rather provided a tactical plan
for fighting a fire without the required flows. This conclusion was confirmed by the
Deputy Chief of SE Thurston at a meeting between the City, the District, and the
Smith's. The Deputy Chief also noted at this meeting that allowing a development with
inadequate fire flow could impact the fire insurance rating throughout the City,
increasing fire insurance premiums for other City residents.
The static pressure in the hydrant in Palisades West subdivision is less than the
required residual pressure during fire events. At 20 psi residual pressures, as required
by fire codes, the hydrant provides just over half the required fire flow. The hydrant in
question flows 578 gpm and the required flow is 1,000 gpm for 60 minutes without
sprinklers, per Appendix A of the International Fire Code. The Yelm Development
Guidelines at Section 6.030 require hydrants to provide fire flows per the IFC except
that under no conditions shall a hydrant flow less than 750 gpm at 20 psi residential
pressure.
RESPONSE TO APPLICANT'S ENGINEERING REPORT RELATED TO SEWER SYSTEM PRESSURE
SUSTAINING VALVE.
Dr. McClure assumes that the Yelm sewer system is a traditional gravity system rather
than a pressurized Septic Tank Effluent Pumping (STEP) system and apparently did no
independent research relating to the current pressures found within the existing sewer
collection system.
The engineering firm Parametrix has been involved in the planning, engineering, and
operation of the STEP sewer system since its initial conception. According to
Parametrix, the Yelm STEP sewer system is designed to maintain a minimum pressure
throughout the collection system. This design is intended primarily to maintain asingle-
phase flow in the system, reducing the introduction of air to the system and thus
improving system efficiency and reducing odors. The existing STEP collection is
generally very flat, allowing pressure to be maintained throughout the system using a
single control point located at the wastewater treatment plant. All the homes in the
Palisades West development are located approximately 60 feet above the average
elevation of the collection system, rendering the control point at the treatment plant
ineffective in maintaining system pressure in the Palisades West system. The pressure
sustaining valve was recommended by Parametrix to maintain pressure in the higher
area of the collection system for the Palisades West subdivision to maintain existing
pressure conditions in the system and prevent inefficient system operation and odor
issues in the subdivision.
CITY LIABILITY FOR NOT ISSUING OCCUPANCYAFTER BUILDING PERMIT WAS ISSUED.
Brent Dille, the City Attorney, has reviewed the City's potential liability for not allowing
occupancy of the home despite the issuance of a building permit that was not for a
October 21, 2009 Page 3 of 4
model home. Mr. Dille's response is in the form of a memo attached to this report. Mr.
Dille has also been in contact with the Association of Washington Cities, Yelm's
insurance provider.
It should also be noted that the approved building plans, attached to the building permit
issued for the construction of the home and an official part of the permit, included a
copy of the final subdivision condition relating to the booster pump station with a note
which reads "No certificate of occupancy will be Issue until Booster Pump is provided."
Whether Dan Lee, the developer's agent and Smith's contractor, informed his clients of
this condition is unknown, but the City did provide notice that the condition applied.
Finally, even if the City waived the requirement for a booster pump station by issuing a
building permit to here should have been no expectation that occupancy of any
structure would be granted until the sewer pressure sustaining valve was in place, as
this note was also on the final subdivision.
Current Situation
As noted in the staff report dated October 1, 2009, the policy issue before the City
Council is whether to waive a clear requirement of the International Fire Code and
Department of Health Regulations and knowingly allow occupancy of a dwelling unit in
which the requirements for fire flow and residential pressures cannot be met.
October 21, 2009 Page 4 of 4