April 22, 2024 |
Photo – Clean, cool water – Bigfoot99 file photo
The Rawlins city council must wait before instituting higher water and sewer rates.
During a January 30th special work session, Rawlins City Manager Tom Sarvey provided the council with a list of suggested rate changes for city utilities. Sarvey proposed large increases to the city’s water and sewer bills to pay for approximately $40 million worth of necessary maintenance.
Rawlins won’t be the only municipality affected by the proposed water rate hikes. The city is in the middle of a 50-year contract to provide drinking water to its neighbor, Sinclair. Any changes to the city’s water rates will also carry over to the town next door.
Before last Tuesday’s regular Rawlins city council meeting, the board met to finalize the rate and fee changes before approving them. However, City Manager Sarvey said the council needed to delay the vote on his proposed water and sewer increases. Sarvey said the contract with Sinclair requires the city to give the neighboring town additional notification before any changes to the water rates.
Sarvey still reviewed the proposed rate changes. The city manager began his presentation by saying that all water meter rates inside of city limits will increase by 80%.
The proposed rate increase means that a resident with a three-quarter-inch water tap will see their bill rise from $29.48 a month to $53.06.
Sarvey also suggested raising the price for every thousand gallons of water by one-third across the board.
Sarvey said the meter rates for properties outside of city limits should increase by the same 80% as in-town properties. An out-of-town resident with a three-quarter-inch water meter will see their bill go from $39.30 a month to $70.74.
Sarvey said the out-of-town rates for every thousand gallons of water should rise as well. The city manager recommended a blanket price increase of 33%.
Sarvey said the city charges Sinclair 60% of the standard residential rate for clean drinking water. The city manager said that rate should also increase by 33%, going from $2.09 to $2.78 per thousand gallons.
Back in January, Sarvey said the city’s sewer system needs over $22 million worth of repairs. With less than $300,000 in the sewer fund, a large influx of cash is required.
At Tuesday’s rate review workshop, Sarvey said the in-town fixed monthly sewer rate and the commercial charge for every 1,000 gallons should both increase by roughly 59%.
Sarvey said the out-of-town fixed monthly sewer rate and commercial commodity charge should also increase by approximately 59%.
The fee per thousand gallons of water used only applies to commercial properties. Councilman Chris Weisenburg asked Public Works Director Cody Dill if he had considered adding a similar charge for residential water use. Dill said determining how much water certain residential properties use, such as individual lots in a trailer park, would be difficult.
Councilman Weisenburg said it was his personal opinion that the city should look into adding the per thousand-gallon commodity use fee to residents’ bills. The councilman said commercial and residential properties use the same water and sewer pipes. With more residential properties in town, Weisenburg said the city may raise enough money to pay for the required repairs and maintenance.
Councilman Weisenburg asked the public works director to look into what it would take to add the commodity fee to individual residential properties.
The Rawlins city council will vote on the proposed water and sewer rate changes during the May 21st meeting, after the 30-day notice required by Sinclair has passed. All fee increases will go into effect 60 days after the rates are approved.
