HomeMy WebLinkAboutORDINANCES-2010-057-O-10• Effective Date: October 27, 2010 7/27/2010
7/7/2010
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AN ORDINANCE
Amending the Evanston City Code
Title 7, Chapter 13, Relating
To the City Sewer System
WHEREAS, pursuant to 65 ILCS 5/11-139-8, the City of Evanston is
empowered to make, enact, and enforce all needful rules, regulations, and
ordinances for the care and protection of a sewer system, which may be conducive
to the preservation of the public health, comfort, and convenience and to rendering
the water supply of the municipality pure and the sewerage harmless insofar as it is
• reasonably possible to do so, and to charge the customers thereof a reasonable
compensation for the use and service of the sewer system and to establish rates for
that purpose; and
WHEREAS, it is estimated that the City of Evanston Sewer Enterprise
Fund will have a deficit of $2.1 million dollars at the end of Fiscal Year 2010/11; and
WHEREAS, Evanston City Council held public hearings, pursuant to
proper notice, to consider the structural deficits in the City of Evanston Sewer
Enterprise Fund and the critical infrastructure needs relative to the safe and
effective provision of sewer services to all City of Evanston customers, received
information from City staff, and deliberated regarding the setting of appropriate
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WHEREAS, if the Sewer Enterprise Fund will be in deficit in the •
amount of $2.1 million dollars as currently estimated, the provision of safe and
effective sewer services to any and all Evanston customers will be severely
impacted and result in deleterious health and environmental effects; and
WHEREAS, because the differing rates assessed to certain property
tax exempt sewer customers is reasonably related to different cost impacts in
providing services, the differing rates are therefore reasonable; and
WHEREAS, the different rates assessed to certain property tax
exempt sewer customers is sufficient to pay for the debt service on the general
obligation bonds issued by the City of Evanston for the sewer system, as well as
depreciation, and the operation and maintenance costs as required by Illinois law;
and
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WHEREAS, the City of Evanston must be allowed to charge a
sufficient rate to meet the interest and amortization requirements of the debt on the
general obligation bonds; and
WHEREAS, the City of Evanston has the right to classify consumers
based upon reasonable classifications such as the cost of service, the purpose for
which the service is received, the quantity or the amount received, the different
character of the service furnished, the time of its use, or any other matter that
presents a substantial difference as a ground of distinction; and
WHEREAS, the City Council considered and adopted the sewer use
rates pursuant to its Home Rule powers and following its deliberations, set rates that •
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• are rationally related to legitimate government purposes; and
WHEREAS, the sewer use rates set forth below are fair and equal to
all similarly situated parties and that the City is entitled to realize reasonable
revenues from the operation of the sewer system,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF EVANSTON, COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS:
SECTION 1: That the foregoing recitals are found as fact and
incorporated herein by reference.
SECTION 2: That Title 7, "Public Ways," Chapter 13, "City Sewer
System," of the City Code of Evanston be and is hereby amended to read as
follows:
• CHAPTER 13: CITY SEWER SYSTEM
7-13-1: DEFINITIONS:
Unless the context specifically indicates otherwise, the meaning of the terms used in
this Chapter shall be as follows:
BILLING UNIT: One hundred cubic feet (100 cu. ft.) of water.
BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (BOD): The quantity of oxygen utilized in the
biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure in five
(5) days at twenty degrees (200) centigrade, expressed in milligrams per liter.
BUILDING DRAIN: That part of the lowest piping of a drainage system which
receives the discharge from soil, waste and other drainage pipes inside the walls of
the building and conveys it to the building sewer or other approved point of
discharge, beginning five feet (5') (1.5 meters) outside the inner face of the building
wall.
BUILDING SEWER: The extension from the building drain to the public sewer or
other place of disposal.
• CITY: The City of Evanston, Cook County, Illinois.
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CITY MANAGER: The City Manager and/or their designee.
CITY TREASURER: The City Treasurer and/or their designee.
COMBINED SEWER: A sewer which is designed and intended to receive
wastewater, storm, surface and ground water drainage.
COMMERCIAL USER: Transient lodging, retail and wholesale establishments or
places engaged in selling merchandise, or rendering services.
CONTROL MANHOLE: A structure located on a site from which industrial wastes
are discharged. Where feasible, the manhole shall have an interior drop. The
purpose of a "control manhole" is to provide access for the Metropolitan Water
Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRDGC) representatives to sample
and/or measure discharge.
EASEMENT: An acquired legal right for the specific use of land owned by others.
EFFLUENT CRITERIA: These are defined in any applicable National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits.
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FLOTABLE OIL: Oil, fat or grease in a physical state such that it will separate by
gravity from wastewater by treatment in an approved pretreatment facility. A
wastewater shall be considered free of flotable fat if it is properly pretreated and the is
does not interfere with the collection system.
GARBAGE: Solid wastes from the domestic and commercial preparation, cooking,
and dispensing of food, and from the handling, storage and sale of food.
INDUSTRIAL USER: An establishment engaged in manufacturing activities
involving the mechanical or chemical transportation of materials of substance into
products.
INDUSTRIAL WASTE: Any solid, liquid or gaseous substance discharged, permitted
to flow from or escaping from any industrial, manufacturing, commercial or business
establishment or process or from the development, recovery or processing of any
natural resource as distinct from sanitary sewage.
INSTITUTIONAUGOVERNMENTAL USER: Schools, churches, penal institutions
and users associated with Federal, State and local governments.
MAJOR CONTRIBUTING INDUSTRY: An industrial user of the publicly -owned
treatment works that: (a) has a flow of fifty thousand (50,000) gallons or more per
average work day; or (b) has a flow greater than ten percent (10%) of the flow
carried by the Municipal system receiving the waste; or (c) has in its waste, a toxic
pollutant in toxic amounts as defined in standards issued under section 307(a) of
the Federal Act; or (d) is found by the permit issuant authority, in connection with
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• the issuance of the NPDES permit to the publicly -owned treatment works receiving
the waste, to have significant impact, either singly or in combination with other
contributing industries, on that treatment works or upon the quality of effluent from
that treatment works.
MAY: When used in this Chapter the word "may" is permissive.
MILLIGRAMS PER LITER (mg/1): A unit of the concentration of water orwastewater
constituent. It is 0.001 g of the constituent in one thousand (1,000) ml of water. It
has replaced the unit formerly commonly used, parts per million, to which it is
approximately equivalent, in reporting the results of water and wastewater analysis.
NATIONAL POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM (NPDES) PERMIT:
Any permit or equivalent document or requirement issued by the Administrator of
the United States Environmental Protection Agency or his designee, after
enactment of the Federal Clean Water Act to regulate the discharge of pollutants
pursuant to section 402 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of
1972, and any subsequent amendments thereto ("Federal Act").
NATURAL OUTLET: Any outlet into a watercourse, pond, ditch, lake or other body
of surface or ground water.
ORDINANCE: Shall mean this Ordinance.
• OWNER: Where necessary to effectuate the intent of this Chapter, 'owner" shall
mean "persons in control".
pH: The logarithm (base 10) of the reciprocal of the hydrogen ion concentration
expressed by one of the procedures outlined in the Illinois Environmental Protection
Agency ([EPA) Division of Laboratories Manual of Laboratory Methods, latest
edition.
ppm: Parts per million by weight.
PERSON: Any and all persons, natural or artificial including any individual, firm,
company, municipal or private corporation, association, society, institution,
enterprise, governmental agency or other entity.
POPULATION EQUIVALENT: A term used to evaluate the impact of industrial
waste on a treatment works or stream.
PRETREATMENT: The treatment of wastewater from sources before introduction
into the public sewer.
PROPERLY SHREDDED GARBAGE: The wastes from the preparation, cooking
• and dispensing of food that have been shredded to such a degree that all particles
will be carried freely under the flow conditions normally prevailing in public sewers,
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with no particle greater than one-half inch (1/2") (1.27 centimeters) in any •
dimension.
PUBLIC SEWER: A sewer provided by or subject to the jurisdiction of the City. It
shall also include sewers within or outside the City boundaries that serve one or
more persons and ultimately discharge into the City combined sewer system, even
though those sewers may not have been constructed with City funds.
REPLACEMENT: Expenditures for obtaining and establishing equipment,
accessories, or appurtenances which are necessary during the useful life of the
collection facilities to maintain the capacity of performance for which such works
were designed and constructed. The term 'operation and maintenance" includes
replacement.
RESIDENTIAL USER: All dwelling units such as houses, mobile homes,
apartments, permanent multi -family dwellings.
SANITARY SEWER: A sewer that conveys sewage or industrial wastes or a
combination of both, and into which storm, surface and ground water or polluted
industrial wastes are not intentionally admitted.
SEWAGE: Wastewater.
SEWER: A pipe or conduit for conveying sewage or any other waste liquids, •
including storm, surface and ground water drainage.
SEWER USER CHARGE: Shall be the charge levied bimonthly on all users of the
public sewer. The service charge shall be computed as outlined in subsection 7-13-
3(A) and shall consist of the total of the operation, maintenance and replacement
charge, the capital charge and the debt service charge.
SEWERAGE: The system of sewers and appurtenances for the collection,
transportation and pumping of sewage.
SEWER ENTERPRISE FUND: The principal accounting designation for all
revenues received in the operation of the sewerage collection system.
SHALL: When used in this Chapter the word "shall" is mandatory.
SLUG: Any discharge of water, sewage or industrial waste which, in concentration
of any given constituent, or in quantity of flow, exceeds for any period or duration
longer than fifteen (15) minutes more than five (5) times the average twenty four
(24) hour concentration or flows during normal operation.
STORM SEWER: A sewer that carries storm, surface and ground water drainage
but excludes sewage and industrial waste other than unpolluted cooling water. •
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• STORM WATER RUNOFF: That portion of the precipitation that is drained into the
sewer.
SUSPENDED SOLIDS (SS): Solids that either float on the surface of, or are in
suspension in water, sewage, or industrial waste, and which are removable by a
laboratory filtration device. Quantitative determination of suspended solids shall be
made in accordance with procedures set forth in the IEPA Division of Laboratories
Manual of Laboratory Methods.
UNPOLLUTED WATER: Water quality equal to or better than the effluent criteria in
effect or water that would not cause violation of receiving water quality standards
and would not be benefited by discharge to the sanitary sewers and wastewater
treatment facilities provided.
USEFUL LIFE: The estimated period during which the sewerage collection system
will be operated.
USER CLASS: The type of user "residential", "institutional/ governmental',
"commercial', or "industrial" as defined herein.
WASTEWATER: The spent water of a community. It may be a combination of the
liquid and water -carried wastes from residences, commercial buildings, industrial
plants, and institutions, together with any ground water, surface water and storm
• water that may be present.
WASTEWATER FACILITIES: The structures, equipment, and processes required to
collect, carry away, and treat domestic and industrial wastes and transport effluent
to a watercourse.
WASTEWATER TREATMENT WORKS: An arrangement of devices and structures
for treating wastewater, industrial wastes and sludge. Sometimes used as
synonymous with waste treatment plant or pollution control plant.
WATER QUALITY: As defined in the Water Pollution Regulations of Illinois.
WATERCOURSE: A channel in which a flow of water occurs, either continuously or
intermittently.
7-13-2: SEWER ENTERPRISE FUND ESTABLISHED:
There is hereby established a separate fund designated the sewer enterprise fund,
which fund shall be supported by sewer usage fees established, from time to time,
by the city council. Said fund shall be reserved and utilized exclusively for operation,
maintenance, rehabilitation or reconstruction of the sewer system of the city.
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7-13-3: SEWER USER RATES:
(A) There is hereby established a sewer user charge for the use of, and service
supplied by, the public sewer of the city. The sewer user charges shall be assessed
for all users each bi-monthly billing period commencing on or after January 1, 2011.
(B) The sewer user charge for users of the system within the City that are not
exempt from the payment of property taxes shall be three dollars ninety four cents
($3.94) per billing unit of water consumed.
(C) The sewer user charge for users of the system within the City that are
exempt from the payment of property taxes shall be three dollars ninety four cents
($3.94) per billing unit for the first one hundred (100) billing units of water
consumed. Thereafter, the sewer user charge shall be four dollars fifty three cents
($4.53) per billing unit in excess of one hundred (100) billing units of water
consumed.
(D) The adequacy of the sewer user charge shall be reviewed annually by the
city council. The sewer user charge will be revised by ordinance as needed.
(E) The users of the public sewer will be notified of any change in the total sewer
user charges in conjunction with the regular sewer billing.
(F) Those furnished with sewer service only, and not connected with or supplied •
with water from the city water supply system, shall pay a bi-monthly_sewer service
fee based on a calculated estimate of the volume of use at the rate established in
subsection (A) of this section.
(G) Those furnished with water service only and not connected with or supplied
with sewer service shall pay only the water rates and charges established by
Section 7-12-17 of this Title.
(H) Those furnished with water and sewer service but not consuming any water
shall pay a bimonthly minimum sewer service charge of nineteen dollars and
seventy cents ($19.70).
7-13-4: BILLING PROCEDURES; DISPOSITION OF FUNDS:
(A) The rates and charges calculated and applied to the user of the public sewer
shall be added to, and separately recited upon, a statement of charges for water
consumption and sewer use. Such statement shall be sent to the user on a
bimonthly basis and shall become delinquent if unpaid after twenty (20) days from
the date of the statement. A penalty of ten percent (10%) of the amount due and
owing for the period recited upon such statement shall thereafter be added and
collected in addition thereto. •
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• (B) Whenever any sewer use charges shall remain unpaid after the expiration of
thirty (30) days from the date of such statement, the water supply for the premises
so serviced and delinquent shall be turned off, and service shall not be turned on
until all sewer bills in arrears shall have been paid, including accrued penalties. A
water turn on fee as established in Section 7-12-17 of this Title shall be paid for the
turning off and subsequent resumption of water supply service. The City Manager or
his /her designee shall enforce this provision.
(C) All revenues and monies derived from the operation of the sewerage system
shall be deposited in the Sewer Enterprise Fund. All such revenues and monies
shall be held by the City Treasurer separate and apart from all other funds of the
City. The City Treasurer shall receive all such revenues from the sewerage system
and all other funds and monies incident to the operation of such system and deposit
the same in the Sewer Enterprise Fund of the City. The City Treasurer shall
administer such fund in every respect in the manner provided by the Illinois
Municipal Code, 65 ILCS 5/11-139 et seq., as modified, or as may be supplemented
or amended by the City Council of the City from time to time pursuant to its home
rule powers under section 6 of article VII of the Illinois Constitution of 1970.
(D) The City Treasurer shall establish a system of accounts and shall keep
books, records, and accounts in which complete and correct entries shall be made
of all transactions related to the sewerage system, and at regular annual intervals
• shall cause to be made an audit by an independent auditing concern of the books to
show the receipts and disbursements of the sewerage system. In addition to the
customary operating statements, the annual audit report shall also reflect the
revenues and operating expenses of the public sewer, including a replacement item,
to indicate that sewer service charges under the cost -recovery system meet these
regulations. In this regard, the financial information to be shown in the audit report
shall include the following:
1. Flow data showing total cubic feet of water consumed.
2. Billing data to show total number of cubic feet billed per fiscal year.
3. Debt service for the next succeeding fiscal year.
4. Number of users connected to the system.
5. Number of nonmetered users.
(E) The IEPA, through its authorized representative shall have access to any
book, document, paper and record of the City which is applicable to the City's
system of user charges for the purpose of making audits, examinations, excerpts
and transcriptions thereof to insure compliance with any loan agreement and rules
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pertaining to funds obtained from the IEPA Water Pollution Control Revolving Fund.
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7-13-5: CHARGES CONSTITUTE A LIEN: •
Charges for sewer service shall be a lien upon the premises served pursuant to
relevant law. When such charges have been delinquent for a period of thirty (30)
days, a statement of lien shall be filed in the same manner as provided for water
service in Section 7-12-7-4 of this Title. The City Manager shall execute releases of
such liens on behalf of the City upon receipt of payment thereof.
7-13-6: USE OF PUBLIC SEWERS REQUIRED:
(A) It shall be unlawful to discharge to any natural outlet within the City, or in any
area under the jurisdiction of said City, any sewerage or other polluted waters.
(B) It shall be unlawful to construct or maintain any privy, privy vault, septic tank,
cesspool, or other facility intended or used for the disposal of sewerage.
(C) The owners of all houses, buildings, or properties used for human
occupancy, employment, recreation, or other purposes situated within the City and
abutting on any street, alley, or right of way in which there is now located or may in
the future be located, any public sanitary or combined sewer of the City, are hereby
required at their expense to install suitable toilet facilities therein, in compliance with
all applicable Code requirements, and to connect such facilities directly with the
proper public sewer in accordance with the provisions of this chapter within ninety
(90) days after date of written notice to do so. •
7-13-7: BUILDING SEWERS AND CONNECTIONS:
(A) No unauthorized person shall uncover, make any connections with, or
opening into, use, alter, or disturb any public sewer or appurtenance thereof without
first obtaining a written permit.
(B) All disposal by any person into the sewer system is unlawful except those
discharges in compliance with federal standards promulgated pursuant to the
federal act and more stringent state and local standards.
(C) A building sewer permit will only be issued, and a sewer connection shall only
be allowed, upon a demonstration that the downstream sewerage facilities,
including sewers, pump stations and wastewater treatment facilities, have sufficient
reserve capacity to adequately and efficiently handle the additional anticipated
waste load.
(D) Any person desiring to connect a building sewer to the public sewer shall, at
his own cost and expense, install such building drain from the point of said
connection to the public sewer to the end of the building sewer. It shall be the
responsibility of a person utilizing the public sewer to maintain the building sewer
connection at its juncture with the public sewer and the pipe from the juncture to the •
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• point of the building drain. Such maintenance shall include keeping said building
sewer clean and free flowing, and the repair or replacement thereof in the event of
broken or defective connections. Repair or replacement of the building sewer shall
be to the specifications established by the plumbing code of the city and shall be
inspected by the plumbing inspector prior to backfilling.
(E) A separate and independent building sewer shall be provided for every
building, except that where one building stands at the rear of another on an interior
lot and no private sewer is available or can be constructed, in the opinion of the
water and sewer division, to the rear building through an adjoining alley, court, yard,
or driveway, the building sewer from the front building may be extended to the rear
building and the whole considered as one building.
(F) Prior to the abandonment or permanent disuse of a presently existing sewer
connection(s), the owner of the property abutting or served by said sewer
connection(s) shall make an application in writing for a permit to abandon said
connection(s). Upon obtaining the permit, the property owner shall locate, remove
and seal off any and all existing sewer connection(s) abutting or serving the property
at the sewer main in a manner prescribed by the water and sewer division and
restore the street and parkway surface to its preexisting condition. Prior to the
closure of any excavation to facilitate the sealing of a presently existing sewer
connection(s), the owner or contractor shall notify the community and economic
• development department, and an inspection of said sealed connection shall be
conducted prior to backfilling.
(G) Preexisting building sewers shall not be used in connection with newly
constructed buildings unless approval is granted by the water and sewer division.
At a minimum, the existing building sewer must meet the requirements of this
chapter by both examination and test.
(H) The size, slope, alignment, materials of construction of a building sewer, and
the methods to be used in excavating, placing of the pipe, jointing, testing, and
backfilling the trench, shall all conform to the requirements of the building and
plumbing codes or other applicable rules and regulations of the city. In the absence
of code provisions or in amplification thereof, the materials and procedures set forth
in appropriate specifications of the American society of testing materials, water
pollution control federation manual of practice no. 9, and standard specifications for
water and sewer main construction in Illinois, shall apply.
(1) The connection of the building sewer into the public sewer shall conform to
the requirements of the building and plumbing code, the MWRDGC sewer permit
ordinance, or other applicable rules and regulations of the city, or the procedures
set forth in appropriate specifications of the American society of testing materials,
• water pollution control federation manual of practice no. 9, and standard
specifications for water and sewer main construction in Illinois. All such connections
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shall be made gastight and watertight. Any deviation from the prescribed procedure •
and materials must be approved in writing by the water and sewer division before
installation.
(J) The applicant for the building sewer permit shall notify the director of
community and economic development when the building sewer is ready for
inspection and connection to the public sewer. The connection shall be made under
the supervision of the director of community and economic development or his
representative
(K) All excavations for building sewer installation and repairs shall be adequately
guarded with barricades and warning lights so as to protect the public from hazard.
Streets, sidewalks, parkways, and other public property disturbed in the course of
the work shall be promptly restored in a manner satisfactory to the city.
7-13-8: USE OF THE PUBLIC SEWERS:
(A) No unauthorized person shall break, damage, destroy or tamper with any
structure, appurtenance or equipment which is a part of the sewage and storm
collection system.
(B) No person shall connect, or cause to be connected, any sanitary sewerage
outlet or industrial wastewater outlet into any storm water sewer or storm water
sewer catch basin now existing or hereafter to be constructed. •
(C) Storm water and all other unpolluted drainage shall be discharged to the
public sewer system in accordance with the Stormwater Control Regulations in
Section 24-3-5.
(D) It shall be unlawful for any person to cause or allow a discharge not meeting
the standards of article III, prohibited wastes of the sewage and waste control
ordinance, latest edition of the MWRDGC.
(E) Any new building connecting to the combined sewer shall have the sanitary
drain be distinct from the property's storm water drain within the property lines to
facilitate disconnection of the storm water drain should a storm sewer become
available.
(F) Any storm water drain connection to the combined sewer shall be removed
from the combined sewer and connected to the storm sewer within one year of a
separate storm sewer becoming available within one hundred feet (100') of the
building.
7-13-9: POWERS AND AUTHORITY OF INSPECTORS:
(A) The city manager or his/her designee, bearing proper credentials and •
identification, shall be permitted to enter all properties for the purposes of
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• inspection, observation, measurement, sampling, and testing in accordance with the
provisions of this chapter.
(B) While performing the work on private properties referred to in subsection (A)
of this section, the city manager or persons he/she so designates shall observe all
safety rules applicable to the premises established by the owner and the owner
shall be held harmless for injury or death to the city employees and the city shall
indemnify the owner against liability claims and demands for personal injuries or
property damage asserted against the company and growing out of the gauging and
sampling operating, except as such may be caused by negligence or failure of the
company to maintain conditions as required in the sewage and waste control
ordinance, latest edition of the MWRDGC.
(C) The city manager and other duly authorized employees of the city bearing
proper credentials and identification shall be permitted to enter all private properties
through which the city holds an easement for the purpose of, but not limited to,
inspection, observation, measurement, sampling, repair, and maintenance of any
portion of the sewerage works lying within said easement. All entry and subsequent
work, if any, on said easement, shall be done in full accordance with the terms of
the easement involved.
is
SECTION 3: That all ordinances or parts of ordinances in conflict
herewith are hereby repealed.
SECTION 4: That if any provision of this Ordinance 57-0-10 or
application thereof to any person or circumstance is held unconstitutional or
otherwise invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of
this Ordinance that can be given effect without the invalid application or provision,
and each invalid application of this Ordinance is severable.
SECTION 5: That this ordinance shall be in full force and effect from
and after its passage, approval, and publication in the manner provided by law.
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Introduced: -Ae, ► YL W,)? , 2010
Adopted: I , 201 C
Attest:
f <.
-' odney Gree , 6ty Clerk
Approved:
b h2b,&r / , 2010
Eli beth B. Tisdahl, Mayor
Approved as to form:
W. Grant Farrar, Corporation Counsel
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