Gloucester County:
“The Gloucester County Board of Supervisors was asked at its
April 1 meeting to consider fees for stormwater management to advertise for a
public hearing on the matter, which is scheduled for June 3. Gloucester’s
environmental programs administrator Scott Rae updated the board of supervisors
during its meeting in the colonial courthouse on a stormwater management
program, mandated by the state’s Department of Environmental Quality.
Gloucester supervisors are exploring managing the new
requirements locally versus having the state DEQ administer the program.
Therefore, the county must submit its final plan to DEQ by mid-June. According
to Rae, the purpose of the stormwater management plan is to protect local water
resources by minimizing off-site transport of sediment and other pollutants
during and after construction.
County staff is currently proposing a set of fees for developing
property in Gloucester, with a stormwater review base fee of $750, plus a
per-acre cost and a land disturbance base fee of $200, plus per-acre cost.
However, the board of supervisors will essentially have the final say in
setting the fees for permitting and stormwater review.
Rae told supervisors that one thing they must decide is
whether to set the fees lower to benefit business development, effectively
offsetting county services through the use of general fund money, or they may
set fees at a higher rate to meet the services provided and reduce reliance on
the tax-sourced general fund.”
~ Writes Quinton Sheppard the Gazette-Journal
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