New $1,000 Sump Pump Fine

The Arnold City Council modified the sump pump ordinance and passed a $1,000-a-day fine for all residents who violated the new law.

The city council voted 6-2 on both ordinances—an ordinance in which sump pumps can discharge water as well as the penalty fee—during the Feb. 17 meeting at City Hall, 2101 Jeffco Blvd.

The modified ordinance requires sump pump owners to:

• Drain water through rigid piping
• Drain the water at least 2 feet from the building, but not closer than 10 feet to neighbors' property

Under the ordinance, the water cannot, without the City’s prior approval

• Drain onto public sidewalks, walkways, roads or streets
• Drain into the storm water system
• Drain into the sanitary sewer system

The ordinances task the Public Works Department and Director Bryson Baker to find new ways to drain large volumes of water from a few sump pumps throughout the city.  The ordinances also allow Baker’s department to determine the time needed to solve the problem.

Councilmen Jason Connell of Ward 4 and Jim Edwards of Ward 2 opposed the ordinances for different reasons. Edwards said people, in violation of the new ordinance, lacked an appeal process.

Connell said the council should enact the ordinance when the weather is warmer. In some situations, people need the ice to thaw and for the soil to soften prior to solving their water drainage issue, Connell said.

Large volumes of water have created ice slicks during the winter and a slimy situation in the summertime for some neighborhoods, Sweeney and the council members learned during a council work session in January.

There were various reasons for the water volumes, the council members learned.

Steve Shannon of Jere Lane owns a house that sits over a natural water spring. His sump pump will drain up to 5,000 of gallons of clean mineral water per week, for up to eight weeks, after a rain.

We, the residents, are simply trying to protect our investments, our homes, Shannon said.

Shannon asked the city for advice prior to the new ordinance on where to drain the water. The city’s advice violates the current ordinance. The advice was for Shannon to allow the water to drain down the street and into the sewer system.

Ward 3 Councilman Bob Lindsley, who voted for the ordinance, suggested a signed memo from the city to Shannon, for example, be added.

Arnold City Attorney Bob Sweeney said the ordinance gave the city the flexibility to solve the numerous problems of each sump pump problem.

“The ordinance allows the city to deal with all existing problems and addresses any issues that might occur in the future,” Sweeney said in a separate meeting in early February.

The ordinance also provides more time to residents with more complex drainage problems, Sweeney said. The flexible timelines also allow residents to wait for warmer weather or to order items needed to solve the drainage problem.

Arnold’s Public Works Director Bryson Baker can estimate whether the resident is making the effort to solve the drainage problem and waive the penalty fees, Sweeney said.

The council left unanswered whether the city should pay to repair residential property issues to solve a public safety problem.