[Ord. 649, 5/31/1988,
§ 301]
1.
There is hereby imposed upon the owners of each property upon which a building is connected to the Stroudsburg sanitary sewerage system a quarterly service charge. The quarterly rental shall be based upon the quantity of water use, as evidenced by meter readings of water meters installed and maintained by the Stroudsburg Municipal Authority for the purpose of measuring water purchased from the Authority. If a building is connected to the sanitary sewerage system and is not connected to the Authority's water system, see § 18-203 of this Part 2. The quantity of water recorded by a meter shall be conclusive on both the user and Borough, except when the meter has been found to be registering inaccurately or has ceased to register. In such cases, the quantity shall be determined by the average of the two previous quarters' registration when the meter recorded accurately. The quarterly service charge shall be an amount fixed by the Borough Council (§ 18-202, Subsection 2) and determined for individual properties by § 18-201, Subsection 3.
2.
A quarterly rental and service charge shall be paid for all buildings connected to the Stroudsburg sanitary sewerage system. The owner of a vacant building may discontinue quarterly sewer rental and service charge payments only by physically disconnecting the building from the Stroudsburg sanitary sewerage system and Stroudsburg Municipal Authority water system at the curb line. If the owner later connects to the sanitary sewerage system, he/she shall not be required to pay the capital contribution charge required by § 18-205 of this Part 2; however, connection fees shall be paid.
3.
When sanitary sewer service is provided through one sanitary sewer
lateral to a mixed use building, apartment house, group of house trailers,
or to any building having more than one unit (each trailer, store,
apartment, office, shop, manufacturing establishment, or other similar
use being hereby designated as a unit), each such unit shall be subject
to the same charges (rental and service charge) as would be applied
if separate connections had been made to each such unit. In those
instances in which separate connections do not exist, the service
charge shall be determined by multiplying the quarterly service charge
by the total number of units contained in the building or located
on the lot serviced.
[Ord. 649, 5/31/1988,
§ 302; as amended by Ord. 831, 1/8/2003, § 1;
by Ord. 868, 12/20/2006; by Ord. 881, 12/19/2007; by Ord. 896, 12/18/2008;
by Ord. 937, 12/16/2010; by Ord. 952, 1/3/2012, by Ord. 958, 12/5/2012;
by Ord. 981, 12/18/2013; by Ord. 996, 12/16/2014; by Ord. 1011, 12/1/2015;
by Ord. No. 1047, 1/16/2018; by Ord. No. 1062, 12/18/2018; by Ord. No. 1099, 12/1/2020; and by Ord. No. 1118, 1/18/2022]
[Ord. 649, 5/31/1988,
§ 303]
If any building or group of buildings serviced by the Stroudsburg
sanitary sewerage system obtains part or all water used from a source
other than the Stroudsburg Municipal Authority, then such water supply
or source shall be metered in a manner acceptable to the Borough.
All meters not provided by the Authority but required by this section
shall be furnished, installed, and maintained at the owner's expense
with installation approved by the Borough.
[Ord. 649, 5/31/1988,
§ 304; as amended by Ord. 774. 4/7/1999]
1.
All bills for sewer rental and quarterly service charges shall be
dated and shall be due and payable upon presentation thereof. A penalty
of 5% shall be added to the total amount due and payable if payment
is not made within 30 days from the date of such bill. If the bill
is not paid within 60 days of the date thereof, a penalty of 9% shall
be added to the total amount due. If the bill is not paid within 90
days from the date of such bill, an additional one-percent penalty
shall be added to the total amount. For each thirty-day period beyond
the ninety-day penalty, a penalty of 1% per thirty-day period shall
be added.
2.
If any person refuses or neglects to pay charges for sewer rental
or quarterly service charge as provided herein within 90 days of the
date of such bill, the Borough may collect the amount of the bill
plus penalties in any manner provided by law, including by lien filed
in the nature of a municipal lien, which shall be collected in the
manner provided by law for the collection of such liens. The Borough
may elect to collect the charges by assigning its claim to a collection
agent and/or may cause water service to the property to be discontinued.
With respect to accounts remaining unpaid for 90 days, the procedures
set forth below shall be followed:
A.
Delinquencies Without Payment Agreements.
(1)
All notices or demands sent by the Borough pursuant to this Subsections 2 shall be sent by certified mail to the property owner. Copies if any such notices or demands shall be sent to any tenants of the property owners.
(2)
The Borough Manager or his or her agent shall notify the property
owner, in writing, of the total amount due, demanding that payment
be made in full within 30 days. A copy of the letter will be sent
to the tenant if the property is a rental property. If the property
owner or the tenant has not paid the account by the end of the 30
days, the Borough may file a lien according to the following procedures:
(a)
The total amount due to the Borough will be calculated. This amount will include the penalties imposed pursuant to Subsection 1 above, as well as the costs to file and satisfy the lien.
(b)
A lien will be filed in the office of the Monroe County Prothonotary for the amounts due as calculated in Subsection 2A(2)(a) above.
(c)
Another demand for payment will be sent to the property owner
after the lien has been filed. Payment will be required within 10
days of the demand letter, which will be sent by certified mail.
(d)
Those failing to pay the account and failing to enter into a
written payment agreement within the ten-day period will be turned
over to a collection agency. In such case, the account will be forwarded
to the agency authorized by the Borough Council to collect the debt.
The agency may add additional charges to the delinquent account.
(e)
When full payment is made, the lien will be removed.
B.
Delinquencies with a Payment Agreement.
(1)
The Borough may enter into a payment agreement for a delinquent
account, providing for installment payments of the delinquent amounts
over a period not to exceed one year.
(2)
During the term of any payment agreement, the property owner
must make timely payments thereunder, as well as make timely payments
of current charges.
(3)
If the account holder fails to make two consecutive payments,
the Borough Manager or his or her agent will send a letter via certified
mail to the account holder requesting payment of missed payments within
10 days.
C.
Owners in Bankruptcy.
(1)
An owner in bankruptcy is responsible for paying sewer rental
charges for the periods subsequent to the date of the filing of the
petition in bankruptcy. During the pendency of a bankruptcy, the owner's
property will not be liened without court approval, nor will court
action to collect the delinquency be initiated. However, other remedies
available to the Borough with respect to delinquent accounts may be
exercised with respect to accounts of owners in bankruptcy for post-petition
delinquencies. The Bankruptcy Code permits the Borough, in specified
circumstances, to require payment of security deposits. Accordingly,
if the account of an owner in bankruptcy was already delinquent at
the time the petition in bankruptcy was filed, then at any time after
20 days after the petition was filed, the Borough may require the
owner to pay a security deposit for continued service in the amount
of twice the last quarterly sewer bill. The security deposit shall
be refunded upon the owner's making timely payment of four successive
quarterly bills.
(2)
If the account of an owner in bankruptcy becomes delinquent
post-petition, the Borough may also follow its usual procedures to
terminate water service to the owner's property, and notwithstanding
anything herein to the contrary, action may be taken to collect post-petition
debt as may be authorized under law.
3.
If any sewer rental and quarterly service charge is not paid within
90 days of said bill, the Borough may direct the Stroudsburg Municipal
Authority to disconnect water service to the property charged. Water
service to the charged property shall not be restored until all delinquent
bills and penalties against the same are paid in full. In addition,
prior to restoring service, the Borough may require the property owner
to pay a security deposit, which shall be in the amount of two times
the amount of the last quarterly sewer bill. If the Borough elects
to disconnect water service, the procedures set forth below shall
be followed:
A.
The owner, and the owner's tenants if a tenant is occupying the property,
will be given 30 days to pay the delinquent amount or enter into a
payment agreement with the Borough before the claim is assigned to
the Stroudsburg Municipal Authority.
B.
If the tenant or property owner does not pay the account and does
not enter into a satisfactory payment agreement within the thirty-day
period, then the Borough, by action of the Borough Council, will assign
that claim to the Stroudsburg Municipal Authority.
C.
The Stroudsburg Municipal Authority will follow its established procedures
for service disconnection, which procedures shall comply with 53 P.S.
§ 2261 and shall include not less than 10 days' notice of
shutoff, which notice shall be given by both mail and posting.
D.
Upon payment of the delinquent amounts, together with penalties,
the Borough shall advise the owner whether and in what amount a security
deposit shall be required prior to reconnection of water service.
[Ord. 649, 5/31/1988,
§ 305]
Whenever sewer service begins after the first day or terminates
before the last day of any calendar quarter or whenever ownership
of a serviced property is changed during a calendar quarter, the quarterly
service charge shall be determined by multiplying the amount of the
quarterly service charge by a fraction having the total number of
days in the quarter as a denominator and the number of days sewer
service was provided as a numerator.
[Ord. 649, 5/31/1988,
§ 306; as amended by Ord. 705, 6/12/1991, § 1]
1.
The owner or owners of property are responsible for all quarterly
service charges and for all sewer rentals rendered to any tenant or
occupant.
2.
All owners and persons occupying property connected to the sewer
system shall give the Borough their correct address. Failure to receive
bills shall not be considered an excuse for nonpayment nor permit
for extension of a period during which bills are payable at their
face value.
3.
The owner or owners of properties connected to the sewer system shall
be responsible for ascertaining the accuracy of the quarterly sewer
bills, including the number of units billed under the quarterly service
charge. When an owner or owners pay an incorrect quarterly service
charge, the Borough shall not reimburse the owner or owners for the
overbilling. Conversely, when the Borough discovers it underbilled
an owner or owners for the number of units billed for quarterly service
charges, the Borough shall not back-charge the owner or owners. All
owners must inform the Borough of changes in the number of units at
their properties.
[Ord. 649, 5/31/1988,
§ 307]
Includes offices, retail and wholesale establishments, automobile
service stations, laundromats, hotels, churches, schools, and non-profit
agencies, provided each office, store, or place of business is considered
a separate unit even though such units are contained in one building.
Includes factories, mills, manufacturers, assemblers, and
warehouses, provided each factory, mill, manufacturer, assembler,
or warehouse is considered a separate unit even when contained in
one building.
A building or portion thereof with exclusive culinary and/or
sanitary facilities designed for occupancy by one person or one family
(household).
