TO: Mayor and City Council
THROUGH: Krishna Namburi, Interim City Manager
FROM: Brian D. Martin, PE, Public Works Director
SUBJECT:
title
Notice of proposed administrative rulemaking for updates to the existing Public Works Design Standards related to stormwater (Administrative Rules 109-001 and 109-004) and Public Works Operations & Maintenance of Stormwater Facilities (Administrative Rule 109-011).
Ward(s): All Wards
Councilor(s): All Councilors
Neighborhood(s): All Neighborhoods
Result Area(s): Natural Environment Stewardship; Safe, Reliable and Efficient Infrastructure
end
SUMMARY:
summary
Administrative Rules 109-001, 109-004, and 109-011 are proposed to support recent amendments to Salem Revised Code (SRC) Chapter 70 (Utilities) and SRC Chapter 71 (Stormwater) under Ordinance Bill No. 9-24, which were required to comply with the City’s 2021 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System Phase I Individual Permit (Municipal Stormwater Permit) issued by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). The changes to existing Administrative Rules include the following:
(1) Lowering Large Project impervious area thresholds that trigger stormwater management,
(2) Promoting and prioritizing retention as the preferred method for stormwater treatment where feasible, and
(3) Addressing the City’s strategy incorporating Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) facilities and Low Impact Development (LID).
end
ISSUE:
Notice of proposed administrative rulemaking regarding updates to the Public Work Design Standards and Public Works Operations and Maintenance of Stormwater Facilities pursuant to SRC Chapter 20J.040(a)(3).
RECOMMENDATION:
recommendation
Information Only.
body
FACTS AND FINDINGS:
On September 23, 2024, City Council passed Ordinance Bill No. 9-24 amending SRC Chapter 70 (Utilities) and SRC Chapter 71 (Stormwater) to comply with the City of Salem’s 2021 Municipal Stormwater Permit, which follows an earlier permit issued to the City in 2010. This new 2021 permit contains updated requirements related to stormwater discharges from new development and redevelopment projects, which necessitate updates to City of Salem’s existing Public Works Design Standards related to stormwater. These standards are contained in Administrative Rule 109-004.
To inform and guide the work on revising the Public Works Design Standards, SRC Chapter 70, and SRC Chapter 71, City staff have been working with two engineering consulting firms (Brown and Caldwell and Otak, Inc) and a team of stakeholders, collectively known as the Stormwater Advisory Group (SWAG). The SWAG includes representatives from MultiTech Engineering Services, Inc; AKS Engineering and Forestry; Westech Engineering; Studio 3 Architecture; the Home Builders Association of Marion & Polk Counties; Glenn-Gibson Watershed Council; City of Keizer; Marion County; and City Councilor Linda Nishioka from Ward 2.
Through the process of updating Administrative Rule 109-004, staff revised and standardized definitions in Appendix A (Acronyms and Definitions) of Administrative Rule 109-001 (General - Design Standards) of the Public Works Design Standards and updated and added maintenance definitions and forms in Administrative Rule 109-011 (Public Works Operations and Maintenance of Stormwater Facilities).
A summary of the proposed revisions to the stormwater-related Public Works Design Standards (Administrative Rules 109-001 and 109-004) and the Public Works Operations and Maintenance of Stormwater Facilities (Administrative Rule 109-011) is provided in Attachment 1. Revisions made based on feedback received through SWAG meetings are summarized in Attachment 2.
The authority to promulgate administrative rules is granted under SRC 20J.030, and SRC 20J.040 which outlines the procedure for adopting administrative rules. This procedure requires providing notice of the proposed rulemaking to the public as well as to City Council. City Council has the authority to review a proposed administrative rule. City Council’s authority is limited to determining whether the proposed rule is within the scope of the Code authority, whether the rule is duplicative or conflicts with another rule or law, or if the proposed rule is outside of the City Manager’s administrative rulemaking authority.
The proposed rules are updates to the existing Administrative Rules 109-001, 109-004, and 109-011.
City staff emailed the public notice for the proposed rules to affected parties and posted the notice at two locations at City Hall (the City Recorder’s Office and the Main Library) on September 18, 2024. The public notice was also published in the Salem Reporter on September 19, 2024. The public comment period closed on October 4, 2024.
Staff received over thirty comments - primarily from SWAG members - on the preliminary proposed rules during the public comment period. City staff met with these SWAG members on October 22, 2024, to discuss the comments received, which resulted in several recommended changes to the proposed rules. Staff reviewed the recommended changes and updated the proposed rules as needed. Staff then shared final responses with the SWAG in January before finalizing the proposed rules and presenting to City Council. Attachment 3 summarizes the comments received and the City’s responses.
The proposed Administrative Rules will become effective on March 28, 2025. The full text of the proposed rules is provided in Attachments 4, 5, and 6.
BACKGROUND:
In 2010, DEQ issued to the City of Salem a Municipal Stormwater Permit authorizing discharges from the City’s municipal stormwater system into waters of the state, which include Salem’s creeks, lakes, and the Willamette River. This permit was issued under the NPDES program, which is a component of the federal Clean Water Act.
To comply with the 2010 Municipal Stormwater Permit, and after significant and comprehensive public engagement, the City created SRC Chapter 71 (Stormwater), which became effective in January 2014. In addition to meeting the specific requirements of the Municipal Stormwater Permit, SRC Chapter 71 contains provisions that reduce risks of flooding, reduce impacts of high stormwater flows on the aquatic environment, and reduce discharges of pollutants into Salem’s creeks, lakes, and the Willamette River.
In 2021, DEQ renewed the City’s Municipal Stormwater Permit. The 2021 Municipal Stormwater Permit contains revised provisions that required the City to amend several definitions to SRC Chapter 70 (Utilities) that apply to provisions in SRC Chapter 71 (Stormwater). Additionally, amendments were needed to SRC Chapter 71 related to thresholds and performance standards for stormwater runoff from new development and redevelopment projects. Other amendments were also made to SRC Chapters 70 and 71 based on lessons learned by City staff over the past ten years implementing the two codes. City Council passed Ordinance Bill No. 9-24, which encompassed these proposed code changes, after the Second Reading at the City Council meeting on September 23, 2024, and took effect on November 1, 2024, in compliance with the timeline given in the City’s 2021 Municipal Stormwater Permit.
Allen Dannen, PE
City Engineer
Attachments:
Attachment 1 - Summary of Proposed Changes to Administrative Rules 109-001, 109-004, and 109-011
Attachment 2 - SWAG Meeting Summary of Updates
Attachment 3 - Public Comments and City Responses
Attachment 4 - Proposed Administrative Rule 109-001 Appendix A
Attachment 5 - Proposed Administrative Rule 109-004
Attachment 6 - Proposed Administrative Rule 109-011