Stormwater Management ($30,000) Bond - City of Kentwood, MI in Michigan

Brief Summary

On a Kentwood site plan with a detention pond or new storm sewer, the stormwater bond is what the Engineering Department holds until your engineer certifies the drainage was built as approved. A surety bond keeps that guarantee off your balance sheet, so the cash you would otherwise leave with the City stays in the project while the ponds, swales and pipe go in.

Kentwood's Stormwater Management Ordinance No. 9-84 requires a site grading and stormwater management bond, payable to the City, for any non-plat development that needs stormwater detention, floodway construction or surface or subsurface drainage. The city's prescribed Performance Bond under the Stormwater Management Ordinance carries a $30,000 penal sum in favor of the City of Kentwood and the Kentwood City Engineer. Developments of less than one acre are exempt, and the bond is released after a registered professional engineer certifies the as-built work and Engineering approves it.

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How to Apply for a Stormwater Management ($30,000) Bond:

• Confirm the development is a non-plat site of one acre or more that needs detention, floodway or drainage construction under Section 25.175.B.6.
• Get the stormwater plan designed by a registered professional engineer and approved by the City Engineer, as Section 25.181.A requires.
• Apply for the $30,000 bond with the property owner or developer as principal and the City of Kentwood and Kentwood City Engineer as obligees.
• If the controls cost less, submit a bid tab to Engineering and confirm the bond amount before the bond is issued.
• Sign the city's Performance Bond under the Stormwater Management Ordinance form with the contractor as principal's agent and the surety's signature witnessed.
• File the bond with the Engineering Department and pay the stormwater permit fee, listed at $1,300 for a commercial permit.
• After construction, submit the Stormwater Bond Certification signed by the engineer or surveyor to request release.

Detailed Information About the Michigan Stormwater Management ($30,000) Bond:

Check the one acre rule first

Section 25.175.B.6 of the Kentwood Stormwater Management Ordinance applies to non-plat development that requires stormwater detention, floodway construction, or surface or subsurface drainage construction. It also states that developments of less than one acre, or with a remaining undeveloped parcel of less than one acre, are exempt. Section 25.177.A separately lists parcels that are not subject to detention at all, including sites within the Crippen or Esbaugh Drains with adequate downstream channel, sites over 25 percent floodplain, sites where dry wells can be used, development at one dwelling unit per acre or less, and parcels already served by a master pond.

How the amount is set

The ordinance ties the bond to the estimated cost of the necessary stormwater management controls, and says the bond is posted to assure that the approved plan is built in the field. The city's bond form is drawn at $30,000. The Engineering fee schedule effective May 1, 2024 notes that the applicant can submit a bid tab for a reduced stormwater bond, so have your contractor's pricing for the detention and drainage work ready when you talk to Engineering.

Who signs and what the bond guarantees

The property owner or developer signs as principal, the contractor signs as the principal's agent, and the surety signs with a witness. The obligees are the City of Kentwood and the Kentwood City Engineer. The condition is that the principal will construct all stormwater detention facilities, floodways and surface or subsurface drainage facilities shown on the final construction plans approved by the City, in compliance with Ordinance No. 9-84 as amended.

Getting the bond released

Release requires the Stormwater Bond Certification. A registered professional engineer or surveyor certifies that as-built conditions match the approved plans for items such as detention ponds, swales, storm sewers and erosion controls, and the engineering staff then approves the release. A false certification is a violation of the ordinance, and Section 25.182 sets a civil infraction fine of not less than $2,500 per violation, with each day a separate offense.

A second bond on most sites

The stormwater bond does not cover soil erosion. Kentwood requires a separate Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control permit when natural vegetation is disturbed on land adjacent to a public street, within 500 feet of waters of the state, or larger than one acre, and the fee schedule lists a $5,000 SESC bond.

Eligibility and Requirements for a Michigan Stormwater Management ($30,000) Bond:

• Bond amount shown on the city form of $30,000, based on the estimated cost of the stormwater controls under Section 25.175.B.6.
• City of Kentwood and the Kentwood City Engineer named as obligees.
• Final construction plans approved by the City before the work starts.
• Internal storm sewer for parking lots with more than 2,500 square feet of pavement under Section 25.178.A.
• Separate soil erosion permit and SESC bond where the site meets the SESC triggers.
• Premium is set by the surety after underwriting the developer's credit and financial statements and the scope of the drainage work. The bond stays in force until the City releases it.

Michigan Stormwater Management ($30,000) Bond FAQs:

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