Geneva hikes sewer rates (05/24/06)

GENEVA — After a series of public meetings, listening to complaints, and revising the ordinances, the Geneva Town Council successfully adopted new sewage and storm water rates during a special meeting Tuesday evening.

The proposals, including a water rate increase that went into effect earlier this month, were first introduced to the council in February, with plans to put them into action in April. However, during subsequent public meetings, residents of Ceylon repeatedly expressed objections about the way the sewage rate would be determined.

So council members went back to the drawing board in May to try to come up with a plan that would be agreeable to both the town and those residents.

With only a handful of concerned residents in attendance, the new rates were approved on a second reading Tuesday night and after council members Lou Wingler, Mike Schwartz, and Jim Timmons agreed to suspend the rules, they proceeded to adopted the ordinances on a third and final reading.

The new sewage rates should be reflected in the July billing, town clerk-treasurer Doug Milligan said. Collection of a storm water utility fee may not be done until August, he explained, since the town has not previously had such a charge and new software will have to be installed in the town’s billing system.

The revised ordinances, initially presented at a public hearing held April 22, will now offer non-metered users — including the 26 residents of Ceylon — a choice of how they want sewage rated. Water meters may be installed on connections from the user’s water well to the dwelling or they may be assessed a flat fee of $40.99. If a meter is installed, it will be done at the homeowner’s expense and will be subject to inspection by the town.

Most of Geneva’s 37 unmetered users are the residents of Ceylon, town manager, Steve Hampshire explained. All residents will now be offered the two options. There are 11 other residences hooked into the sewer system, including two inside the town limits.

Asked about the nearly doubled charge of $40.99 from $23.03, Scott Houser, CPA with Summers, Carroll, Whisler of Muncie, who developed the initial increases, explained since it was mandated several years ago by the state to provide the service to Ceylon, the town has never been able to recapture the expense of the $200,000 project.

“We want to try to recoup the costs of running the line out there,” he said Tuesday night. “They never recaptured expenses when they put it in. They should have.”

“This is in fairness to all,” Schwartz said about the options.

Wingler said there had been concerns expressed that plans may include annexing the community into Geneva.

“We have no desire to annex. It’s not financially feasible for the town or Ceylon,” he said.

“We were forced to supply sanitary sewage to the town,” Schwartz said about the project, “but I don’t know why they weren’t metered. If I had my way you wouldn’t be given an option. You would be metered.”

Concerning the collection of a storm water utility fee, there was no discussion.

The newly created charge has a base rate of $3 per month for residential, non-profits and governmental users. The monthly rate for commercial will be $6.50 per month, the monthly rate for schools and industry less than 100,000 square feet of impervious material, will be $10 per month. The monthly rate for industry of 100,000 to 300,000 square feet of impervious material will be $30 per month and anything more than that will be $80 monthly.[[In-content Ad]]