Summary The City has submitted and been awarded two Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD) cost sharing grants. One grant awards a SRWMD cost sharing amount of $86,900 of the total $173,959.72 cost of the NW 142 Terrace drainage-portion of the improvement project and the second awards a SRWMD cost sharing amount of $42,795.00 of the total $85,591.16 cost of Merrillwood Stormwater System Improvements.
The cost sharing grants were awarded by the SRWMD in recognition of the positive water quality and conservation impact of both projects. Both grant awards are conditioned upon the city opting in to the Alachua County year-round water conversation measures and water shortage regulations (County Code Chapter 80) or adopting the same measures by City Ordinance.
Staff recommends opting in to Chapter 80 of the County Code which provides the mechanism of uniform implementation of the SRWMD year-round water management and water shortage plans. Opting in to Chapter 80 of the County Code meets the requirements of both cost sharing grants and provides enforcement by the county Environmental Protection Department as is currently the case within the City limits for similar irrigation (Chapter 78) and fertilizer application (Chapter 79) Alachua County Code Sections. There is no cost to the City for enforcement which would not be the case if an ordinance were adopted.
The NW 142 Terrace project is a part of the 2014/15 Capital Improvement Plan approved by the City Commission as part of the current year budget. The cost share grants received provide funds also to advance by one year completion of the Merrillwood Project that was approved by the Commission on September 22, 2014 as a part of the 2015/16 Capital Improvement Plan.
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