Although San Juan Water District’s Retail service area is nearing build-out, there remains opportunity for new development.  New development is guided by the appropriate county general plan and local plans, and new development projects are first approved through the jurisdictional county and city planning departments before San Juan Water District (SJWD) becomes involved.  SJWD only provides water service, and therefore we work with the various city and county planning departments, and affiliated entities (such as the fire departments), to assist developers and parcel owners to connect their project to the water supply.

Because SJWD is a special district it is independent of the county and city planning and building departments.  As such, there can be limitations in communications between those county and city entities with SJWD with respect to new projects, and specifically the plan review and approval process.  Therefore, SJWD requests that developers, engineers, and project owners contact SJWD’s Engineering Department early in the planning and/or design process so that questions can be answered, designs can meet the standards, and costly problems can be avoided.

Development projects that are to be connected to SJWD facilities must comply with SJWD Ordinances.  Typically, the process is to submit a preliminary or conceptual site plan to SJWD’s Engineering Department for an initial review and consultation.  This initial consultation will identify the requirements and improvements necessary to provide water service to the project.  Continuing forward, the review and approval process becomes more involved as the project needs and finer details are identified.   At this point in the process, the owner or developer would need to submit a completed Application and design plan for their project, along with a deposit and fees, to continue the project review and approval process. 

Development projects range from single family residential, minor subdivisions (less than 5 parcels), and larger subdivisions (5 or more parcels), commercial, and industrial.   Project complexity varies with the project type and size, location, water demands, and other project-specific factors.  The specific requirements for any project, no matter what size or type, may vary and are determined for each project as it is reviewed.  Processing development projects through approval and construction in general requires the following:

Subdivision, Commercial or Industrial Project

• Submittal of an Application for Water Service, or Initial Review Application form (by Owner or Agent)
• A deposit for design review, and construction inspection and materials testing (by Owner or Agent)
• A fee for pressure and flow analysis (as may be needed), and/or other design support requests (by Owner or Agent)
• Submittal of development design drawings meeting SJWD’s Standards and requirements for approval of the water facilities (by Owner or Agent)
• Preparation of a Connection Fee Quote (by SJWD)
• Execution of a Conveyance Agreement between the property owner and SJWD (by SJWD and Owner)
• Payment of Capital Facilities Fee (“Connection Fee”; by Owner)
• Selection and approval of a contractor (by Owner and SJWD)
• Submittal of a Performance Bond, and Maintenance Bond (by Owner or Agent)
• Submittal of insurance documents, naming SJWD as additional insured (by Owner or Agent)
• Provision of any necessary easements (by Owner or Agent)
• Determination of the value of the water facilities (preparation of a Letter of Pipeline Value; by Owner or Agent)
• Transfer of new water facilities to the District (Bill of Sale; by Owner)
• Submittal of as-built documents and drawings (by Owner or Agent)
• Payment of any remaining fees and charges (by Owner)
• Preparation of a Letter of Acceptance (by SJWD)
• Completion of individual Will Serve Applications for each service (by Owner or Agent)
• Initiation of Water Service (by SJWD)

Single Residential Project

• Submittal of an Application for Water Service (by Owner or Agent)
• Preparation of a Connection Fee Quote (by SJWD)
• Payment of fees and charges required to obtain service (by Owner)
• Installation of any facilities or improvements as necessary (by Owner and/or SJWD)
• Completion of a Will Serve Application (by Owner and SJWD)
• Approval of installed facilities, and/or the water meter (by SJWD)
• Initiation of Water Service (by SJWD)

Any new facilities or improvements needed to provide water service to a development project must be constructed in accordance with SJWD standards and specifications Checklist.

Developers are encouraged to review the FAQs and to reference the Development Project Checklist, and to contact the Engineering Department to obtain further information or answers to specific questions related to development and new water connections.

Fees and Charges

The cost of obtaining water service are borne by the requestor.  According to SJWD’s Ordinances, new development and water service connections must be funded by the project owner.

Connection fees (Capital Facilities Fees) and other fees and charges are reviewed and are typically subject to change annually.  Connection fees for new, single residential connections are usually paid for at the time that the water meter is issued, at the then-current rate.  Connection Fees for development projects (such as parcel splits, minor and major subdivisions, commercial projects, etc.) must be paid for concurrently with the execution of the Conveyance Agreement.  In addition, for cases where a connection is not completed within the allowable timeframe, between the original payment of Connection Fees and the time when a service is activated, additional incremental Connection Fees may apply.

The following table is presented to provide an overview of typical estimated fees and charges that may apply to a given single connection project or a subdivision project.  Other specific project-related fees and charges may apply and will be identified during the project review, approval, and acceptance processes.

Summary Table of Estimated Fees and Charges

Note – The deposit, fees and charges amounts listed in the table above are based on the 2022 amounts listed in the Schedule of Rates, Fees, Charges and Deposits.  These dollar amounts are subject to change without notification.  Deposit funds that are not used will be reimbursed.  Additional deposit amounts will be required if the District’s costs are higher than the initial deposit amount.  Please reference the most current Schedule for updates.

A full copy of the current Schedule of Rates, Fees, Charges and Deposits can be found through the link below:

Questions

Should you have any questions or need further information, please do not hesitate to contact SJWD’s Engineering Department.