City Council passed an ordinance at its October 4 meeting that will raise the sanitary sewer rate charges for 2023 only. This comes on the heels of the previous five-year rate schedule, which ends in December. The new rates for 2023 are being raised by 4.2%
Normally, the City hires a consultant to produce a five-year study of rates, which is the basis of recommendation. The last survey took place in 2017, when the City contracted Raftelis Financial Consultants, Incorporated to conduct the rate study. The recommendations that were made at that time were based upon the then-current usage and population of the city and the maintenance of the waste water system. The study concluded that an increase in user fees would be required to meet both those current and the anticipated upcoming expenses for the operation, maintenance and debt reduction of the Wastewater Treatment department for a term beginning in 2018 and lasting through 2022, as follows, per mcf:
2018, rate of $84.71 for the period of January 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018 and the rate of $79.29 with a $5.00 per month service charge from July 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018.
2019, rate of 82.98, plus a $5.00 per month service charge
2020 rate of $85.43, plus a $6.00 per month service charge
2021 rate of $87.09, plus a $7.00 per month service charge
2022 rate of $88.83, plus a $8.00 per month service charge
Although it has been the City’s practice to schedule the five-year plan, which would have begun this year, with a rate study that would cover the period of 2023 through 2028, the City administration has decided to push the study forward and deal only with 2023 for the time being.
Mayor Larry Antoskiewicz said that “We thought that everything that we have going on with the plant, let the costs stabilize, to get a better, accurate reading for the five-year plan. It’s hard to do that right now. Until we get a better gauge as to where we are at, it is not known what the effect of the costs will be.” He noted that this year, improvements were made to the “A” plant. In addition, the City is involved in a project that would include the conversion of “B” plant to a pumping station and the construction of a sewer main from “B” to “A” plant down Abbey Road. He also cited the highly increased cost of materials and chemicals for treatment. “It’s just hard for us to gauge right now,” he said.
Wastewater Treatment Superintendent Mark Smith addressed City Council recently, saying that the costs went up $1.71 to treat one gallon of sewage, now it is $2.72 per gallon. “With 30,000 residents, give or take, we treat, in a year about 2.2 million gallons. That’s operation and nothing to do with the sewer system itself. It’s just to treat.”
The 2023 sewer rate legislation raises to rate $92.56 per mcf, plus a $9.00 per month service charge. The rate will be allocated as follows: 36.25% for Wastewater Maintenance; 50.25% for Wastewater Treatment and 13.50% for Wastewater Debt Service.

By GLORIA PLEVA KACIK
Contributing Writer