Stearns Lane Extraterritorial Jurisdiction (ETJ) September 18, 2018

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1 Stearns Lane Extraterritorial Jurisdiction (ETJ) September 18,

2 What is ETJ? From the Texas Local Government code: Sec PURPOSE OF EXTRATERRITORIAL JURISDICTION. The legislature declares it the policy of the state to designate certain areas as the extraterritorial jurisdiction of municipalities to promote and protect the general health, safety, and welfare of persons residing in and adjacent to the municipalities. 2

3 What is ETJ? Informal definition: Extraterritorial Jurisdiction (ETJ) is an area that is outside of a city s City Limits, but within an area that has been designated using criteria in statute or negotiation with a neighboring city as an area that is subject to some municipal regulations and may be annexed under specific conditions. 3

4 What is the purpose of ETJ? From a government planning perspective, ETJ provides a buffer between the incorporated city and unincorporated areas that allow cities to grow and expand, subject to constraints of the annexation process. 4

5 Description of the area The Stearns Lane ETJ area consists of approximately 13 acres of land. There are six residential lots which front on Stearns Lane. Five of these are 1.0 acre lots and the other one is a 1.3 acre lot. The total area of these lots is 6.3 acres. Additionally, there is a 6.7 acre tract that is located to the west of these lots which is owned by the City of Austin and is part of the Gaines Creek greenbelt. 5

6 Map of the area 6.7 acre Tract owned 4310 by City of Austin Blue ETJ 6 residential lots on Stearns and 6.7 acre tract behind them owned by City of Austin Yellow Sunset Valley residential lots Green Sunset Valley - Gaines Greenbelt 6

7 Description of the area All of the Right of Way for Stearns Lane (for the full length of the street) is in the City of Austin. For the lots on the west side of Stearns Lane that are located in Sunset Valley s city limits, the driveways enter into the street at the City of Austin City Limits. The same is true for the six lots in the ETJ; the full street is in the city of Austin and the street and the utilities located within this street are maintained by the City of Austin. 7

8 History The Stearns Lane ETJ is in Sunset Valley s ETJ as a result of negotiation between the City of Austin and the City of Sunset Valley in While this area is adjacent to the City Limits of both Sunset Valley and Austin, it is only under the limited jurisdiction of Sunset Valley and could only be annexed by Sunset Valley. The City of Austin could only regulate or annex this area if there was a renegotiation of the 1979 agreement between the two cities. 8

9 History When the Sunset Valley Comprehensive Master Plan was updated in 2010, there was discussion about both the Stearns Lane and Country White ETJ areas, but the only outcome was that these two areas were retained as Single Family Use on the Future Land Use Map, if they were ever annexed into the City of Sunset Valley. 9

10 Annexation process Cities can only annex land that is located within their ETJ and is adjacent to the existing city limits. 10

11 What starts the process for annexation? Annexation statues are complex, but in general, Sunset Valley can only annex land if it is requested by the property owner(s). 11

12 Annexation request has been submitted As a result of the recent discussion of this issue by staff and at the Planning & Environmental Committee, the residents in this area submitted a petition on September 12 th as this presentation was being finalized. The petition is signed by five of the six residential properties requesting that Sunset Valley annex the entire 13 acre area. 12

13 Annexation petition 13

14 Annexation petition The petition has been provided to the City Attorney so the City Council can be briefed at the September 18, 2018 City Council meeting regarding obligations of the city in response to this petition. 14

15 History Water and Wastewater Utilities The City of Austin provides wholesale water and wastewater service to the City of Sunset Valley. In 2007, a new 30 year contract was negotiated between the two cities. 15

16 History Water and Wastewater Utilities As a part of the contract negotiation, the Utility Service areas for the two cities were adjusted by agreement and coordination the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). 16

17 Water and Wastewater Utilities More specifically, the Stearns Lane ETJ area was included in the Sunset Valley Utility Service area by agreement of the two cities. Even though the City of Austin had historically provided some water service to most of the residences in this area, with the adjustments to the service areas, the 2007 Wholesale contract included provisions that Sunset Valley would provide utility service to its ETJ areas by

18 Water and Wastewater Utilities The objective of this requirement was that since the areas in Sunset Valley s ETJ could only be annexed by Sunset Valley, this area should be served by Sunset Valley. While there are currently water service connections to five of the six residential lots, they cannot be easily transferred to the Sunset Valley water and wastewater system without construction of new water and wastewater lines. 18

19 Austin Water Contract Requirements Provide Service to Austin Retail Customers within Sunset Valley (and Sunset Valley ETJ) by July Engineered plans must be submitted to Austin Water Utility for approval. Water System extensions must be submitted to TCEQ for approval. Master Meters must have backflows. 19

20 Austin Water Contract Requirements Sunset Valley may purchase existing Austin lines if applicable. Utility lines located within City of Austin Right of Way will have a $100 per 1000 ft annual license fee. Public Utility lines located on private property would require designated easements. 20

21 Future Sunset Valley Customers 21

22 ETJ Utility Line Expenditures The City has a Fund for Utility Line replacements. The new lines needed to comply with the Water Contract requirements are budgeted in this Fund in future years. There are projects scheduled out over time. The current balance and projections through the next few years are sufficient to pay for these projects in the ETJ. This is Fund for Utility Line replacements has no direct connection to the General Fund Operating Reserve (that was used to fund the City Facilities project). 22

23 Excerpt: 5 Year CIP Schedule Funding has been set aside for these projects Division/ Funding Source CIP Projects Water Reserves Jones Road/AISD Meters Conversion 18/19 19/20 20/21 21/22 22/23 $ 133,690 5 Year Total Reserves Brodie Line Extension $ 245,975 Reserves Stearns Line Extension (City +ETJ) $ 595,382 Total $ 133,690 $ 245,975 $ 595,382 $ - $ - $ 975,047 Wastewater Green Tax Country White ETJ Extension $ 170,530 Reserves Lift Station Upgrades $ 221,685 Reserves Stearns ETJ Extension $ 156,762 Stearns Lift Station Force Main $ 74,898 Total $ - $ 623,875 $ - $ - $ 623,875 23

24 This area has been in Sunset Valley s ETJ for almost 40 years and the water contract has been in place for more than 10 years, so the issues regarding this area have not changed. The water and wastewater construction projects have been on the schedule for a number of years. In order to meet the contractual obligations, design work will need to begin in the next 12 to 24 months. 24

25 Staff initiated discussion with the Planning and Environmental Committee prior to start of engineering work on utility lines to evaluate issues related to the ETJ with intent of bringing this to Council, but as a result of the discussion, residents in the ETJ have requested annexation. 25

26 Stearns Lane ETJ Annexation Under Subchapter C-3: The request must be from each owner of the area, so the current petition would require the following modifications to meet statutory requirements: 1. The City of Austin property would need to be removed from the area (assuming that the City of Austin does not want this annexed into Sunset Valley) 2. The map would need to be revised to exclude the last lot (4310 Stearns Lane) or this property owner would need to sign the document. 3. All owners would need to be verified that they match the deed records (if property is jointly owned, both owners must sign for it to be valid). 26

27 Stearns Lane ETJ Annexation Under Subchapter C-3: If the request is revised to resolve these issues, then the Council could choose to enter into negotiations with the property owners for a written agreement for provision of services to the area. Once the agreement is completed, public hearings could commence followed by annexation. 27

28 Stearns Lane ETJ Annexation Under Subchapter C-4: The City Council initiates the process by adopting a resolution. Between 31 and 180 days after the Council initiates the process, a petition must be signed by at least 50% of the registered voters in the area (and they must also own at least 50% of the area). Again, assuming that the City of Austin would not be signing the petition, the 6.7-acre tract owned by the City of Austin should be excluded from the area being considered. 28

29 Stearns Lane ETJ Annexation Under Subchapter C-4: While the current petition does not meet the submission timeframe of the petition in Subchapter C-4, it clearly provides an indication of the interest by these property owners, so if the Council initiated the process then these same property owners would need to submit a new petition to allow the process to move forward. 29

30 Stearns Lane ETJ Annexation There are timeframes for holding public hearings to comply with either process, but under C-3 the Council has discretion of whether or not to negotiate with the property owners in response to a petition and under C-4, the Council has discretion of whether or not to initiate the process (and ultimately approve the annexation). 30

31 Next Steps Questions? 31