FELLSMERE — Indian River County is on the hook for more than $12,800 to maintain the City of Fellsmere’s fire hydrants, according to a judge’s ruling Friday.
Special Master John Banks, who handles the city’s code enforcement cases, ruled the county violated the city’s code by failing to pay for the maintenance of 112 fire hydrants.
“I feel good about that,” City Manager Jason Nunemaker said Friday afternoon, adding that he would temper his enthusiasm because the county could decide to appeal the decision to the Circuit Court. County Attorney William Collins declined to comment on the ruling as he had not yet had time to review the judge’s filing.
If the county chooses to appeal, it has 30 days to file its intent, according to Banks’ ruling.
If not, the county has 30 days to pay $12,871.04 to the city, according to Special Master Banks’ order. The county is also supposed to pay for fees associated with the case as well as a late payment charge, penalty, interest, and attorneys’ fees, the order states. How much that might amount to has not yet been determined.
However, City Attorney Warren Dill asked Special Master John Banks to order the county to pay approximately $24,000, which would cover all the case’s costs.
In October, the city and county argued over which government should absorb the cost of maintaining the city’s fire hydrants — a cost the county had traditionally paid for more than a decade.
The City of Fellsmere argued that the county is a water customer of the city’s water utility because it is the county that provides fire rescue service, which taps into the fire hydrants.
The county countered the argument citing state law that states, in part, that the owner of the utility is the one who is responsible for maintaining the fire hydrants. However, there is nothing in the law that prohibits the utility owner from passing on that cost to the end user — in this case, the county.
County Attorney Collins also argued that the city’s code does not apply to the county and therefore the county could not be held in violation.
His argument over the constitutionality of Fellsmere’s code was also overruled. Banks wrote in his ruling that the issue may not be decided in an administrative hearing, but instead should be a matter for the Circuit Court.
The city charged the county $225 per fire hydrant, explaining that it’s the total of three fees:
$53 for general maintenance
$121 for flushing
$51 for reserving water capacity for the hydrants’ use.
The issue of who should pay for the hydrants came up earlier this year after Fellsmere billed the county $225 per hydrant instead of the $170 per hydrant it charged last year.
The county asked Fellsmere for justification of the then-$170 per hydrant rate, County Budget Director Jason Brown told VeroNews.com a few months ago.
Fellsmere commissioned a rate study, which showed the city was actually charging less than it should have been to cover its costs, which led to the rate increase to $225.
The county rejected the $225 fee and, instead, paid the equivalent of $110 per hydrant, leaving $12,800 in the balance.