HUD-subsidized housing asks council to revisit sewer fee applied per apartment after rate increase

Residents and nonprofit leaders representing a HUD-subsidized building told the council the city’s sewer-rate increases are being applied in a way they say disproportionately charges elderly and disabled tenants. City staff explained the legal and administrative basis for the rates and described a conditional path to adjustment that depends on review of HUD subsidy documents. A written staff summary read to the council said that on Sept. 20, 2021 the council amended chapter 90 of the city code to raise the fixed monthly wastewater fee from $10 to $20 and to double the usage charge from $6.34 to $12.68 per 1,000 gallons; staff clarified that the $20 fee is a wastewater enterprise fee, not a general-fund charge. Representatives of Hillaby Towers and a letter from the facility’s board president said the building is a nonprofit HUD-subsidized property with one master meter for the entire building and that the city is charging the $20 fixed fee per apartment even though there is only one physical meter. The Hillaby representative said the apartment rent covers utilities and that the $20-per-unit charge added roughly $1,560 to the facility’s monthly bill before usage in a typical month; the board asked the council to treat Hillaby as a nonprofit HUD-supported residence and to charge the facility one meter’s fixed fee rather than a per-apartment fee. City staff said they met with Hillaby representatives and proposed a rate adjustment that would align the city charge with HUD subsidy levels if Hillaby would allow the city to review its HUD contract to confirm subsidy amounts. Hillaby representatives said HUD requires authorization before third parties can review subsidy paperwork and that they were not willing to provide those documents without proper HUD approval; staff warned that an inability to review HUD documents prevents the conditional adjustment from proceeding. Council members and housing advocates discussed an alternative technical option: switching a master-metered residential account to a commercial master-meter account on request, which staff said would apply a different fixed fee and different usage rate. Staff cautioned the council such account changes would reduce sewer revenue if broadly applied and said the rate changes left the utility fund behind its budgeted targets this year. No formal vote to change rates or adopt a different billing method for the building was recorded in the transcript; staff said they would continue to review options and follow up with the council. Ending: Staff told the council they will gather additional information, including current usage data and options for classification, and will report back to the council for possible future action.