Oak Ridge North, drainage district address fee issues

Oak Ridge North and Montgomery County Drainage District 6 are examining impact fees charged by the district after rule discrepancies led to some residents paying additional fees and taxes to DD6 for services provided by the city.

According to Texas law, a drainage district’s powers include the construction and maintenance of canals, drains, ditches and levees.

The districts can charge impact fees to residential and commercial property owners for construction that adds impervious cover that could affect the flow of water. Under current rules, those fees include residents who construct a new shed or driveway extension. The fee amount varies from case to case, officials said.

John Beisert, director of community development for Oak Ridge North, said he believes impact fees were not practical for development within the city because stormwater drains across the city before it reaches DD6.

“If we are at capacity handling this, [paying] impact fees to DD6 doesn’t accomplish anything because it just throws us over capacity and they’re the ones who get the money for it,” he said.

In another issue, residents behind Maplewood Drive are the only residents in Oak Ridge North who pay property taxes to DD6 because the houses there were developed after the city incorporated, according to the city.

At an April 20 meeting, the city and DD6 decided to hold a future workshop to address the issues.

“We are trying to work on ... coming up with a cohesive plan that works for everybody that everybody understands,” Beisert said.