COUNCIL , from Page 1 spending on drainage improvements ; it ’ s not any new money — but just spread it amongst the users in a more equitable fashion ,” Emerson said .
Emerson confirmed Vettese ’ s numbers , but noted that there are now more than 2,000 municipalities with stormwater utilities , with “ more and more every day .”
“ It is relatively new to New Jersey , one of the last states in the
country to have them . The reason for that is they just recently passed legislation that made it possible in the state of New Jersey ,” Emerson said .
Emerson described how the funds from a stormwater utility can be used .
“ Not just anything ; it ’ s not a general fund . It has to be used for drainage improvements , stormwater management in general , but the list is long — so it ’ s not just upgrading a flood-prone intersection ,” Emerson said .
The funds , Emerson said , can be used for “ soft costs ,” like public education and other matters .
“ The last one I put in here that I think is appealing to a town like Hammonton is , it can be used as matching funds — which would make the procurement of future grant awards a lot easier if you have that dedicated funding source ,” Emerson said .
Emerson detailed how a stormwater utility would work .
“ A property is assessed based on how much impervious cover it has . That ’ s obviously where the runoff is disproportionately generated from — the pavement . It ’ s relatively easy . It ’ s fair ; this is the way it ’ s applied pretty much across the board ... You take your required revenue — what you currently spend — and you divide it by how much impervious coverage is in the town , and that sets your rate . It ’ s quite simple ,” Emerson said .
Emerson said that Princeton Hydro received three years ’ worth of recent data from the town regarding costs for drainage projects , which ranged from $ 55,000 in 2019 to $ 110,000 in 2020 and $ 127,000 in 2021 , averaging to $ 97,333 per year .
“ That ’ s about $ 7 per person . I ’ ve looked around ; that ’ s pretty low . You guys are doing well with
Wednesday , June 8 , 2022 • The Hammonton Gazette • Page 3
Council heard stormwater utility presentation on May 23
THG / Joseph F . Berenato . To purchase photos in The Gazette , call ( 609 ) 704-1940 .
Clay Emerson , the technical director of Princeton Hydro , gave a presentation regarding a possible stormwater utility .
what you have ,” Emerson said .
For the average residential property , Emerson said , that would reflect an additional $ 11.47 per year on their utility bill from the town .
“ This isn ’ t a new $ 11 per year . They ’ re already paying for this in their taxes ; it ’ s just a way to equitably pay for it across users . The average business — there ’ s definitely no such thing as the average business — but that might be more like $ 30 a year ,” Emerson said .
A large box store with approximately 10 acres of impervious cover , Emerson said , would be assessed at approximately $ 800 / year . A business in downtown Hammonton , with approximately 4,000 square feet of impervious cover , would pay roughly $ 7.50 .
Emerson said that stormwater utilities “ almost always have a credit or incentive program .”
“ In New Jersey that ’ s actually a requirement ; it ’ s not an option . Why is that important ? It gives people an incentive to make things
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