The North Bend City Council will consider including the Wood River residential neighborhood in its Utility Local Improvement District (ULID) No. 6 project, which is scheduled to extend sewer service to the Tanner and Truck Town areas by 2010.

More than 100 property owners near the district petitioned the city for sewer service, Public Works Director Ron Garrow told the Council earlier this month.

Because adding the petitioning properties would create an island of 15 to 20 land parcels inside the district, the city will also consider adding them to the ULID.

The Council will hold a public hearing on the matter on Tuesday, May 20.

Including the additional properties in the ULID will raise assessment costs of property owners already in it by an average of 0.7 percent, Garrow said. He didn’t expect the increase to be an issue for existing district property owners.

If the Council decides to move forward with the additions following the May 20 hearing, an appraiser will analyze what portion of the project cost each property owner will have to pay, and how much property values will increase by replacing septic with sewer, said City Administrator Duncan Wilson.

Though most property owners in the area support joining the ULID, some have expressed concern about paying the assessment.

To be included in the ULID, a single-family home on a small lot will be assessed about $2,400 over 20 years, Wilson said.

“On an annualized basis, that’s not a lot, but for some people on a fixed income, it means a lot to them. They’ll get that money back probably because of the increased value in the long run, but it’s a cash flow issue for people on a fixed income,” Wilson said.