The first of two major sewage rate hikes needed to pay for expanded capacity and infrastructure repairs is being considered by Warsaw City Council.
The increase, which is scheduled to go into effect Jan. 1, is expected to hit customers across the board with about a 20 percent increase, according to the city.
The second, similarly sized, hike will come about a year later as the city faces a $41 million price tag for the two-phase undertaking.
The increases will affect customers in Warsaw and neighboring communities of Winona Lake and Leesburg that are served by the city.
Details about the first proposed rate hike were unveiled at Monday’s Warsaw City Council meeting.
The combined increase of the two proposed hikes is expected to be about 39 percent.
As part of the changes, the city will shift all residential customers on Indiana American Water from a flat rate to a metered rate.
Under the new arrangement, residential customers will pay a base fee of $12 and the rest of the bill will be determined by use.
Indiana American Water already tracks the flow; customers won’t have to do anything differently as a result of the transition, Mayor Joe Thallemer said.
Charges have been based on a residential customer using about 4,800 gallons per month.
Customers who use that amount of water would see a 20 percent increase, Thallemer said.
The hike will be the first increase in sewer bills since 2008, he said.
City officials hope to win council approval for the rate hike next month.
The city will host four neighborhood meetings to discuss the subject, the first at 7 p.m. today at Pike Lake Firemen’s Building, 1013 E. Arthur St.
Other meetings will be Wednesday at city council chambers, 102 S. Buffalo St.; Sept. 26 at the Kosciusko County Fairgrounds; and Oct. 4 at the Pete Thorn Center, 800 N. Park Ave.
All meetings start at 7 p.m. and are intended to last about an hour.
What residents will hear in those meetings will be similar to what was said at Monday’s council meeting – how the city arrived at the situation, details on a plan that will extend capacity for 20 years and the impact it will have on customers.
The last time the city expanded its treatment plant came in 2003, but the city has seen usage at the wastewater plant increase more quickly than expected because of growth in the community and the large amount of rainwater infiltrating wastewater pipes, Thallemer said.
The city is also under pressure from the federal government to expand capacity. 2020 is the deadline for improvements.
The first phase will involve $10.1 million in infrastructure improvements, much of which are critical because of crumbling pipes and manholes, which contributed to a series of recent road collapses.
There are about 88 miles of gravity lines across the city. About 60,000 linear feet of pipes were installed in 1899, according to information provided by Thallemer.
Much – but not all – rehabbing will involve “spin casting” a new liner inside the existing pipes, he said, a move that will avoid tearing up city streets.
By rehabbing the infrastructure first, the city hopes to slow down the increasing levels of material entering the treatment plant until the plant can be expanded.
Rehabbing the pipes will extend the life expectancy by 50 years, he said.
The infrastructure rehab effort will take about 18 months. Replacing all the pipes would involve tearing up many roads, cost $26 million and take five years to complete, Thallemer said.
Phase two will be a $31 million expansion of the sewer treatment plant that will increase daily capacity from 4 million gallons to 6 million.
A map on display Monday night suggests the plant can be further expanded beyond the immediate plans.
When it comes to expanding the plant, Thallemer said, “We have no choice, we have no options.”
Thallemer displayed a bar chart comparing sewer rates for similar-sized cities. Warsaw’s current $32 rate is among the lowest, and the first hike will still be below the average among those cities.
Thallemer said he thinks the second increase will shift the city to around the state average of about $46.
According to paperwork provided by the city, Nappanee has a rate of $70.68 and Columbia City has a rate of $78.70.
Council also heard presentations by H.J. Umbaugh and Associates as well as Barnes and Thornburg, which addressed financing.
The city plans to participate in a state revolving loan program that will help keep the interest rates for the bonds low.
