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ITEM 20

City Council Memorandum Management Services Memo No. 24-104

Date:

June 27, 2024

To:

Mayor and Council

Thru:

Joshua H. Wright, City Manager
Dawn Lang, Deputy City Manager - CFO

From:

Kenya Lugo-Waite, Acting Environmental Services Manager

Subject:

Introduction of Ordinance No. 5087 City Code Chapter 45 Updates

Proposed Motion:

Move City Council introduce and tentatively adopt Ordinance No. 5087, amending City Code Chapter 45 Storm Drainage requirements by adding definitions, declaring stormwater pollution to be a public nuisance, declaring that altering or failing to maintain a stormwater collection system is a public nuisance, providing for enforcement through civil citation or criminal enforcement for willful violations or habitual offenders, adding construction and post-construction stormwater runoff/release control requirements, and providing for appeals.

Background:

The City of Chandler is subject to Clean Water Act requirements as prescribed by Phase II Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) Arizona Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (AZPDES) Permit No. AZG2021-002 (Permit). The Permit was issued by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) in 2021. In accordance with the Permit, the city is required to reduce the discharge of pollutants to the maximum extent practicable to protect water quality. To satisfy this requirement, Chandler must implement Minimum Control Measures (MCM) required by the permit.

The ordinance revision is required for the city to enforce sections of the ADEQ MS4 Phase II Permit and the city’s drainage requirements to address stormwater quality concerns to provide for the health, safety, and general welfare of the citizens of Chandler by establishing procedures and practices that will prevent or minimize, to the maximum extent practicable, the discharge of pollutants to City right-of-way or a stormwater collection system. The revisions to City Code will allow the city to enforce and issue citations based on Chapter 45 as referenced in the Enforcement Response Plan (ERP). It will also allow enforcement at construction sites that discharge pollutants into the city’s MS4 system and continue to allow enforcement on pollutant discharges to the city’s MS4 system.

Discussion:

The proposed changes to City Code Chapter 45 are summarized on the Chapter 45 crosswalk attachment. Changes include the addition of definitions, updated references to city and county policies, defining what is considered a nuisance or violation of the city’s MS4 Permit, referring to City Code Article II of Chapter 30 for administrative enforcement if considered a public nuisance, and adding construction site stormwater runoff/release control requirements, post-construction stormwater runoff release and maintenance requirements, the ability to inspect and enforce (based on City Code Article II of Ch. 30), the ability to impose civil citations or criminal enforcement for violations and penalties for willful/negligent violations (refers to City Code Chapter 30 and Section 1-8.7), the ability to appeal to superior court of Maricopa County, and finally the ability to provide for criminal enforcement for habitual offenders penalized through City Code Section 1-8.7.

The amendments will clarify stormwater violations and the corresponding penalties in an equitable and consistent manner in order to protect the public, the city’s investment in its infrastructure, and personnel working in or on the municipal storm sewer system.

Attachments

Ordinance 5087 Ch. 45 Stormwater Drainage and Pollution Prevention Update

Ch 45 Update Crosswalk