The decision brings the sewer district a step closer to implementing a fee based on the amount of impervious surfaces, such as rooftops and driveways, on a property. It would cost an average of 57 dollars a year for homeowners, but could run into many thousands for businesses, school districts and other entities that own large buildings and parking lots.
The district asked the court to affirm its authority to impose the fee back in January of 2010. A countersuit currently involving some two dozen cities challenging the plan is still in play.
Last week, Cuyahoga County Executive Ed Fitzgerald called all the parties together in an effort to seek an out-of-court agreement, saying some 2 million dollars in legal fees has already been spent on the lawsuit, with more to come.
That mediation is still ongoing. Sewer District Director Julius Chiacci says either way, he's confident the fee will stand.
Ciacci: "First of all, I'm hoping we can come to some kind of mediation so that we can all agree on what we want to do here. And if we have to move to court, we're very confident. There have other utilities across the country that have faced these kinds of challenges and the vast majority of them have been successful."
The plan will fulfill an agreement reached late last year between the sewer District, the U.S. EPA and the U.S. Justice Department to bring the system into compliance with the Clean Water act. The upgrades, expected to cost 3 billion dollars over 25 years, will halt the flow of billions of gallons of raw sewage into rivers, tributaries, and Lake Erie.