Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Wastewater Dewatering Septic Rates topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Shelby officials say wastewater dewatering project cost rose to about $3 million; septic receiving rates eyed to cover shortfall
Summary
Council discussion: dewatering project cost increase from about $1.99 million to $3 million, electric and auxiliary equipment driving higher estimate; city staff proposed raising septic receiving rates (residential to 8¢/gal) to generate revenue for an EPA loan note payment.
Council members on the Shelby City Council’s Utilities and Streets Committee said the estimated cost of a planned wastewater dewatering project at the city wastewater treatment plant has risen and staff presented proposed rate changes to cover the increase.
Councilman McLaughlin reported the project’s probable cost rose from about $1.99 million to roughly $3 million, an increase of about $1.2 million. He told the council higher auxiliary equipment and labor costs — including an estimated $600,000 for electric costs — are driving the increase. Other listed items included a press (about $390,000), a methane boiler (about $73,000), a front-end loader (about $150,000) and SCADA integration (about $78,000).
The committee discussed how to fund the project. McLaughlin said the city expects to seek an EPA loan that will likely require a dedicated revenue stream to secure the loan at a low interest rate (approximately 1%). Under current projections, septic receiving collections at the existing residential rate of $0.05 per gallon would yield about $200,000 on an assumed 4,000,000 gallons per year. Council staff estimated a 10-year, $3 million note would require about $300,000 per year, producing an estimated shortfall of about $100,000 under current rates.
To close that gap, committee members discussed raising residential receiving rates by 3¢ per gallon (to 8¢) and making a comparable increase for commercial and industrial customers; 4,000,000 gallons at 8¢/gallon was presented as producing about $320,000 annually. McLaughlin compared Shelby’s proposed rates to neighboring jurisdictions, saying Willard’s rate is 7¢, Marion’s is 8.5¢, and Loudounville is projected to be 8¢ in 2026.
The committee also reviewed related wastewater topics: proposed updates to the city’s industrial pretreatment local limits and bulk water rates. McLaughlin said the Ohio EPA approved modifications to the treatment plant’s industrial pretreatment local limits, reducing the cadmium limit from 0.4 mg/L to 0.14 mg/L and lowering nickel from 2 mg/L to 1.45 mg/L, changes intended to help plant operations manage pollutant discharges.
On bulk water, McLaughlin said the current rate established in 2018 is $11 per 1,000 gallons and staff proposed an increase (roughly a 9% rise) to align with 2025 base water costs. He said most bulk-water sales go to customers outside city limits — farmers, cistern fills and pool owners.
Finally, the committee heard that the utility billing system’s customer notification module is being finalized with the billing software vendor; the system will send texts, emails or calls and require customers to opt in via the utilities online portal when it launches.
No final rate ordinance was adopted at the meeting; the council moved several related ordinances to first reading and discussion continued during committee reports and subsequent agenda items.
