Lewiston employees explain fees that start soon

An infrastructure upgrade to prevent flooding along one of Lewiston’s busiest arterials is among the improvements that will be covered by new stormwater fees that start in January for city of Lewiston residents.

The fees are anticipated to generate $1.9 million in the first nine months of 2024 to pay for the maintenance and expansion of the network of pipes, ditches, culverts, curbs, gutters and ditches that carry rainwater into green spaces and waterways.

The city of Lewiston held two open houses about the fees Tuesday, at which citizens could pose questions to city employees about the fees and stormwater.

How much homeowners and businesses will pay depends on where their properties are and on the volume of impervious surfaces such as roofs, patios, roads, driveways and parking areas on their lots.

The fee will be $7.40 per month for every 4,500 square feet of impervious surface area in the part of the city described as service area one. It includes neighborhoods such as Normal Hill and the Elks Addition that drain into the Snake and Clearwater rivers. Those on the utility assistance program will pay a discounted rate of $5.54 per month in that part of the city.

It will be $5.70 per month for every 4,500 square feet of impervious surface area in service area two that encompasses neighborhoods in the Orchards that drain into Lindsay and Tammany creeks. The utility assistance program rate is $4.05 per month in that area.

The new revenue will allow the city to complete a number of new projects. One of the largest is estimated to cost $1.2 million and require saving a portion of the stormwater fees for four years before the city will have enough money for it.

The $1.2 million will pay to replace 150 feet of a 36-inch diameter pipe that runs 34 feet underground below Joe Hall Ford Lincoln and Rogers Toyota as well as put a new liner in 1,600 feet of the line, said Joe Kaufman, wastewater and stormwater project supervisor.

The city fixed the line previously when it broke, but discovered additional damage when it was making the repair, he said.

The line originates on Thain Road about three blocks northwest of Crosspoint Church, near the former Money Saver building. It parallels Thain Road, Thain Grade and 21st Street roughly to where McDonalds on 21st Street is, where it reaches an upgraded section of pipe that takes water to the Clearwater River.

Issues in the section of pipe underneath the car dealerships could translate into problems anywhere along the line even when it’s not raining because part of the pipe’s function is to carry groundwater, said Public Works Director Dustin Johnson.

Right now the city is transferring money from its street fund to maintain and repair its more than century-old stormwater infrastructure.

In addition to bolstering infrastructure, imposing the fees has another benefit, Johnson said.

The city has a stormwater permit issued by the Environmental Protection Agency and administered by the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality under requirements established by the 1972 Clean Water Act.

The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality prescribes how the city will handle its stormwater in the permit, and if the city is out of compliance it could risk hundreds of thousands of dollars of fines, he said.

Williams may be contacted at ewilliam@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2261.