Encinitas

Future homeowners in the Cardiff area of Encinitas may find their sewer connection fees three times that of their neighbors, under a proposal discussed by Cardiff Sanitation District directors Wednesday.

A plan, aimed at making newcomers pay the costs of expanding the community’s treatment plant, would hike hookup charges from $1,000 to $2,994. The proposal is in keeping with the new city’s slow-growth philosophy, said Mayor Marjorie Gaines.

“New growth should pay for itself,” said Gaines, who, along with the rest of the City Council, serves on the sanitation district’s board of directors.

Gaines, however, expressed concern that the city may give an inaccurate picture of how much sewage it processes daily, and that expansion might be unnecessary.

Past reports have placed the figure as high as 300 gallons a day per home, but more recent figures place the average at 220 gallons a day.

Gaines wants the city staff to provide statistics on anticipated growth in the community. “We have to determine whether or not we need a plant expansion, and if so, what level of expansion we need,” she said. The expansion discussed at this week’s meeting would increase the capacity of the San Elijo plant to 3.9 million gallons a day. The plant now has a capacity of 3.7 million gallons a day.

The existing San Elijo sewage facility, which Cardiff shares with Solana Beach, can accommodate 1,900 more homes before it reaches its maximum limit, Gaines said.

On Wednesday, other district directors rejected a proposal by Gaines that fee increases apply only after the sewage plant has reached its capacity.

Instead, the directors decided on increasing fees for all those connecting to the sewage system, regardless of the plant’s capacity.

The idea behind that proposal, according to Gaines, is that the treatment plant expansion could be paid for sooner.

The proposed new fee structure will be given a public hearing in two weeks.