The Avondale City Council held a public hearing Oct. 6 on proposed land use assumptions and an infrastructure improvement plan that will form the basis for updated wastewater development impact fees.

The hearing focused on a planned expansion of the city's Water Reclamation Facility from 9,000,000 to 12,000,000 gallons per day and a project budget the presentation described as approximately $155,000,000. Eric Bey, public works assistant director, said, “This particular expansion is adding an additional 3,000,000 gallons a day of treatment capacity which will take our plant from 9,000,000 gallons a day of permitted capacity up to 12,000,000 gallons a day to accommodate these growing flows.”

Why it matters: the expansion’s cost and the city’s decision to debt‑finance the project are the main drivers of a proposed increase in the wastewater portion of the city’s development impact fees. Renee, the city’s finance and budget director, told council the current wastewater fee for the most common single‑family meter (3/4‑inch) is $3,153 and that the study-supported fee would be $10,854 before an adjustment made after stakeholder comments; the total combined development impact fee for a single‑family home would rise from $14,432 to $22,133 under the updated wastewater figure presented to council.

City staff said the fee calculation followed a cost‑allocation approach: existing utility rates are applied to portions of the plant that replace or rehabilitate existing infrastructure, prorated rates were used for elements serving both existing and future capacity (roughly 75% existing/25% new capacity), and pure new‑capacity costs are allocated to development impact fees. Bey said the line‑by‑line analysis produced an overall split roughly equivalent to 15% covered by utility rates and 85% by impact fees for the expansion to reach 12,000,000 gallons per day.

Staff and the city’s consultant said the update is required under state law and the city’s internal timelines. The report posted online was updated after two stakeholder meetings (Aug. 28 and Sept. 11) and a written comment from the home‑builder community led staff to revisit an assumption about plant capacity; that revision reduced the proposed wastewater fee from the earliest posted draft. Renee said staff sent the revised report to the targeted developers and home builders who had participated in the stakeholder meetings.

No action was taken at the meeting; staff recommended the council accept the land use assumptions and infrastructure improvement plan process and return for formal adoption later. The timeline staff presented calls for a council recommendation on Nov. 17, 2025; formal adoption on Feb. 23, 2026; and an effective date 75 days after adoption (May 9, 2026) if the adoption occurs as scheduled. Renee told council projects already in the pipeline would be subject to the new fees only when typical contract or permit triggers occur after the effective date.

Council members asked about meter sizes and typical users (single‑family, apartments and commercial), the city’s longer‑term capacity needs and timing for a future expansion to 15,000,000 gallons per day (staff estimated roughly 2037 under current trends), and the expected asset life of major plant components. Bey said design was roughly 60% complete and moving toward 90% as required for compliance submittals.

The record of this hearing will be used in the city’s notices under the Arizona Revised Statutes governing development impact fees. Staff will return with recommendations following the public process outlined in the posted documents.

For now, the item remains a public hearing and discussion; council did not vote on the fees or the infrastructure plan on Oct. 6.