ETNA GREEN – A Baker Tilly representative recommended to the Etna Green Town Council Tuesday that they increase water rates by just under 50% and the sewer rates by about 10%.
Amber Nielsen, manager with Baker Tilly, said as of Sept. 30, the water utility had a balance of $155,00, which was a decrease of $33,000 since 2023. The water rate is still above the minimum amount required of the water utility, but the town doesn’t want it to get below the minimum.
Almost $232,00 is what is required to be brought in for the water utility, but at this point $157,000 is what is being brought in as of 2023 and 2024, Nielson said.
She said the almost 50% increase would be about a $20 increase for the typical user.
The last time Etna Green did a rate increase for the water utility was in 2014 and Baker Tilly recommends an increase every three to five years.
Council President Heath Roberts said the proposed increases made sense since everything else is going up. Councilman Keith Claassen said he thought the increases needed to happen. Roberts said the town needed to upgrade things like the chlorine system at the plant.
Nielson also went over information for the sewer utility.
She said there’s a $25,000 shortfall of revenues for the sewer utility and recommended a 10% increase, which would be about a $1 increase.
Etna Green is also doing income surveys through Commonwealth Engineers Inc. to possibly apply for grants to upgrade the utilities plant. Nielson asked if the town had any quotes for work or any further information at this point because it may possibly affect information Baker Tilly was dealing with and thus may affect a proposed rate increase.
Roberts said the town didn’t have that type of information as of yet.
No decision was made Tuesday.
Nielson said she would follow up with Clerk-Treasurer Patti Cook about what the council was thinking of possibly doing as far as the proposed increases.
In other business, the council:
• Tabled a decision on a quote to bring a well in town back into compliance after an Indiana Department of Environmental Management violation in order to solicit two more quotes.
• Approved a $2,400 quote with Craig Welding to do temporary work on the walkway at the utility plant after a worker fell through the walkway.
Roberts said when the town looks for grants to upgrade the plant, a more permanent solution will be looked at. He said the work is to make sure no one gets hurt in the meantime.
• Signed a memorandum of understanding for a mural to be placed on the building where the bank is.
The council also approved making a change to the MOU where the council and the property owner would discuss the mural every three years after the mural was done to make sure the integrity of the building was still there.
• Will hold its year-end meeting at 10 a.m. Dec. 30.