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Park City council approves water and sewer rate increases despite conservation concerns
Summary
By a 6-2 vote, Park City approved higher water and sewer base and consumption rates to cover sewer plant upgrades, personnel costs and water-tower maintenance; councilmembers raised concerns about impacts on fixed-income residents and the effect of mandatory watering restrictions on revenue.
The Park City Council voted 6-2 on March 25 to raise water and sewer base and consumption rates, a move staff said is needed to fund the Chisholm Creek utility authority sewer-plant upgrade, higher personnel and benefit costs, and a new water-tower maintenance contract.
City staff cited the City of Park City municipal code requirement for an annual review and said the increase would raise average residential combined bills by $8.88 per month and bring an estimated $715,000 in annual revenue to the utility fund. Staff detailed proposed residential changes: water base from $21.42 to $23.70 and water consumption from $3.50 to $4.00 per 1,000 gallons; sewer base from $29.00 to $31.90 and sewer consumption from $5.40 to $6.00 per 1,000 gallons. Commercial base and consumption rates were also proposed to increase (full schedule provided in staff packet).
Councilman George Glover said he was concerned about the equity impact on fixed-income residents and questioned whether mandatory watering restrictions — which the staff said are in effect — would reduce usage and therefore revenue. "That $8 rate could mean a lot to them," Glover said of the monthly increase. He recorded a “no” vote on the final motion.
Councilman Charles Schwenke argued the city remains competitive compared with neighboring utilities and noted Park City is "third from the bottom on the rate schedule" among nine cities in the staff comparison, supporting a modest increase to maintain utility equity.
Staff said the Chisholm Creek sewer-plant project cost estimate increased from $10 million to $21 million and that Park City's share was conservatively modeled at 60% for the staff projection. Staff also noted a roughly 27% reduction in peak-month consumption after water restrictions began and said projected revenue assumes growth in new accounts will help offset conservation-driven declines. The staff recommended the new rates be reflected on the May 2025 billing cycle.
The final vote passed 6-2; Councilman Charlie Davidson and Councilman George Glover voted no. Council members asked staff to monitor consumption and revenue impacts and report back as necessary.
