NORTH WEBSTER – Town Council members held their noses and passed a sewage rate increase Tuesday of 31.25 percent. The increase and service charge add up to about an extra $10 on the average homeowner’s bill, bringing a single family residence to $48 a month. The new rate is expected to generate $200,000 more in revenue from the 1,200 customer connections in town, which is needed to fund a state-mandated overhaul of the system’s aging lift stations. Council introduced the rate amendment in May and held a public hearing June 3, leaving little to discuss Tuesday but their reluctance to approve the rate hike. It was calculated by the London Witte Group and presented in February by Bonnie Man, a certified public accountant with the firm. “We don’t want to do this, but Bonnie tells us we have to,” council President Jon Sroufe remarked before the vote. Clerk-Treasurer Betsy Luce observed that residents have remarked on the rate increase in her office but that complaints are rare. “The majority of people don’t seem too shook about it; it’s only $10,” she said. Council also approved Tuesday the transfer of $50,000 in unspent appropriations into the rainy day fund, in preparation for their first look at the 2015 budget; and the $1,600 purchase of four in-car cameras and memory cards at the request of town Police Chief Greg Church, who said the old tape recorders are breaking down. They tabled Utilities Manager Mike Noe’s request for the $2,190 purchase of electrical switchgear protection for the wastewater treatment plant, which he said will save $628 a year in electricity costs as well as guarding the pricey motors from power surges. The town had to replace a 60 HP blower in November at a cost of $14,000. Council postponed a decision after member Tim Hines asked if Severn Trent Services, the company that operates the plant and pays for electricity, would share the cost of the gear. Noe said he will bring an answer at the next council meeting.
