NORTH WEBSTER – Starting fee collection has come with its share of challenges for the Lakeland Regional Sewer District. The district has begun collecting a $11.20 monthly fee from users during the construction period, a taste of the $69.95 a month the average household will pay once the system is up and running. But several issues became apparent quickly, the district board heard Thursday, including unhappiness with the turnaround time on bills and difficulty tracking down some property owners and getting others to pay. About a third of the 1,660 invoices sent out have gone uncollected, Jennifer Ransbottom, a project manager with district billing agency Jones Petrie Rafinski, told the board. Invoices that were paid amounted to about $23,000, she said. The nonpayment rate is common for a utility’s first billing cycle, she noted, as some people don’t understand what the bill is or why they’re being billed in advance for the sewer system; many will wait for the second bill before dealing with it, she added. New owners or correct billing addresses also have to be tracked down for some properties. Board members voted to extend the turnaround on bills to address complaints about the 15-day due date. Bills will be mailed no later than the 10th of every month – and possibly as early as the 5th – and will be due at the end of the month. They also indicated a willingness to waive late fees for bills for the first month, which would require a change in language in the rate ordinance to be approved in September; and voted not to use measures beyond filing liens, such as suspending service, in cases of longtime nonpayment. Also to be reviewed at future meetings are specifications for electrical hookup to grinder pumps, and a formal policy on how to collect debt service fees on properties that were consolidated after the district was formed. The board approved the first set of bills from contractors Thursday, including $370,000 for the northwest segment of the collection system, $116,000 for the northeast and part of the southern segment and $45,000 for the remainder of the southern segment and the force main system. The payments also will have to be approved by the Department of Rural and Natural Development, which provides funding for the project. Construction so far has included directional drilling and staking out the locations for grinder pumps, according to Casey Erwin with DLZ Corp. Each grinder has a design location and a possible revised location, and engineers are gathering input from residents before grinders are actually installed, he said. The district has a list of properties that will require site visits in the coming weeks to verify what structures are on them and what will or won’t require connection to the system.
