Resident urges Alexander County to restore meter-fee reductions for ARPA-funded waterline

Chad Lackey, a resident of the Wittenberg Community who signed up to speak during the Alexander County Board of Commissioners meeting on Aug. 6, urged commissioners to restore the reduced water meter fee that had been applied to earlier county waterline projects.

Lackey said his home, built beginning in 2011, relies on well water with high iron content. He told the board a household filtration system runs about $8,000 and that residents delayed buying new systems after being told city water would come through a county ARPA-funded project. "The water meter fee is $4,700 plus," he said, adding that the costs of the meter and a plumber to connect service would be difficult for many families.

Lackey recounted that the ARPA line funding was secured in 2021 and that earlier waterline projects in the county had used a reduced meter fee arrangement paid in part by the county. He said commissioners retracted that reduced rate for the current project in 2023 and asked why residents served by an ARPA-funded line should receive different treatment than those who benefited from prior grants. "These grants were worded on the premise to give better water quality in areas addressed," he said.

The speaker asked the board to apply the same reduced-rate treatment used in past waterline projects to households tied to the current ARPA-funded line. The chair and county staff did not take an immediate vote during the public-comment period; the meeting materials state topics requiring further investigation will be referred to appropriate county officials or scheduled for a future agenda.

Lackey’s remarks were made during the three-minute public-comment portion of the Aug. 6 meeting, where speakers are asked to limit remarks to issues of public concern.