ELK RIDGE — Residents will face higher water bills just to maintain the status quo, Mayor Vernon Fritz said in a state-of-the-city address Tuesday.
But rather than grouse about the city dipping deeper into their pockets, residents offered suggestions on how to overcome the city's water crisis, including penalizing those who use an excess of water. About 60 residents attended the City Council meeting.
Fritz said an immediate need is to replace a failing well in the hillside community in south Utah County. The city will also need to prepare to dig another well and add a new water tank in the next year or so.
The replacement well is expected to cost $300,000 and will be sunk about 150 feet from the the existing well. Fritz said the aquifer remains usable but noted the casings in the existing well are deteriorating. The city plans to pay most of the cost with a $275,000 loan from the State Division of Drinking Water to be repaid over 20 years at 4.05 percent interest.
Each year the town faces "horrendous" costs for summer pumping from the failing well, Fritz said. He said that will be offset with a new well higher on the hillside to allow gravity feed to residences. City Recorder Jan Davis said new construction below the replacement well will cost less to serve.
Elk Ridge currently has seven wells, but only five are active.
The mayor is proposing a $17 increase in the city's base monthly utility rates to raise funds for the new well and a future water tank and to provide reserve money for the sewer and create a new storm drain fund.
The base water rate is currently $25 a month for 12,000 gallons of water. The water rate would go to $37; the sewer fee would add $2.50 to the current $20 fee; and the new storm drain fee would be $2.50. The new rates would help build cash reserves, Fritz said.
A tiered-rate system is also in the works that would bump the rate for high water users. The council expects to approve new rates at its meeting on May 28.
"I want our legacy to be that we passed (city government) on better than we received it, even if we have to raise rates," Fritz said during a work session prior to Tuesday's council meeting.
Faced with not only a limping well, but also state restrictions on water because of the long, four-year drought, the city imposed watering restrictions starting today. Residents are asked to not water between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.
Fritz said the city won't accept applications for future growth unless developers provide for water sources.
He also told residents that the city has reduced staff costs by eliminating two part-time positions and reducing one full-time post to part-time, saving $19,359 annually.
However, the city overran its budget on three road projects by $128,773, he said.
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