NORTH WEBSTER – Town Council introduced a 31.25 percent sewage rate increase Tuesday and set a public hearing ahead of the next reading of the ordinance. The increase would bring the monthly rate to $48 for a single family residence, which includes a $2.35 service charge. In-town households would also see a $9 monthly garbage collection fee, council heard. The rate increase adds up to a $10 increase on an average homeowner’s bill, council heard, and is expected to generate an additional $200,000 in revenue from the 1,200 customer connections in town. The public hearing will be June 3 at 6 p.m. in the North Webster Community Center. Little public discussion occurred Tuesday, mainly centered around the basic question of why the increase is necessary. “How’d we get into this mess?” Alan Williams, a town business owner, asked during the meeting. “Good question,” council President Jon Sroufe answered, before explaining that the Indiana Department of Environmental Management mandated an overhaul of the town’s 40-year-old lift stations for health and safety reasons. Little has been done by way of upkeep in that time, leaving most of them to deteriorate. “Nothing lasts forever,” remarked Utilities Director Mike Noe. “It’s been years and years and nothing’s been replaced in them.” Sroufe asked Noe to attend the public hearing to attest to the problems with the town’s sewage system and “tell us about why IDEM thinks everything is falling apart.” Sroufe also explained that the overhauls will be funded by a bond and the town needs to raise rates to show it can repay the bond. The $1.4 million bond will be supplemented by a $450,000 Community Development Block Grant to fund the $1.85 million in lift station and wastewater treatment plant upgrades.
