Council work session advances plan to raise sewer rates, target high-strength dischargers to close $283,000 shortfall

At a Aug. 25 council work session, Town and Country Engineering and city public works staff outlined a four-part rate plan to close a projected $283,000 funding shortfall in the sanitary sewer utility for fiscal 2025–26. The plan would raise a $1 monthly fixed fee, add $0.20 per 100 cubic feet to volumetric charges, revise fixed fees by equivalent meter size and begin enforcement of local "category B" surcharges on high-strength industrial dischargers such as Riverside Foods.

The changes are intended to meet state and lender expectations and to ensure the utility can cover ongoing operations, major capital projects and debt service. Greg Dressler, vice president of Town and Country Engineering, told the council the city faces an estimated $118,486 shortfall on 2025 project funding and $165,000 for 2026 projects — a combined shortfall of about $283,000 under the current rates. Dressler said the city also must meet Department of Natural Resources requirements on coverage and that operating costs such as energy and chemicals have risen faster than revenues.

The rate study presented four revenue components and the approximate annual revenue each would generate: a $1 fixed monthly fee (about $67,800); a $0.20 per 100 cubic feet volumetric increase (about $60,000); moving to an equivalent-meter fixed-fee table to charge larger meters proportionately (about $132,000); and enforcing category B surcharges on high-strength dischargers (Dressler’s…