Manhattan board approves multi-year water, sewer rate increases to fund $50 million projects
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Summary
Village of Manhattan trustees approved an ordinance to raise water and sewer rates over four years to cover planned wastewater plant and well projects after staff said infrastructure needs and growth made the increases necessary.
The Village of Manhattan Board of Trustees voted to amend village code and raise water and sewer rates over a four-year schedule to help pay for planned infrastructure projects, the board said at its regular meeting.
Village Finance Director Justin (first name only in the record) presented the ordinance amending Title 8, Chapter 4, Article A of the Village of Manhattan code and said the increases are intended to help fund a new wastewater plant and a well project. “Some of these projects combined cost up to $50,000,000,” a board member said during discussion; Justin and other staff described spreading the increases over four years so the village can pause implementation if it secures grant funding.
The rate package includes planned revenue to cover a wastewater plant the board later described in the meeting as the village’s largest upcoming expense. A village staff member, identified in the meeting as John, said the wastewater plant alone is about $42,000,000. John also said the village is pursuing a well-siting and treatment project that he described as roughly $9,000,000 to address water demand and remove iron and other contaminants.
Josephine (first name only in the record) spoke about how Manhattan’s current rates compare with neighboring municipalities, saying most surrounding communities have higher rates and that even after the four-year changes some Manhattan charges would remain lower than nearby jurisdictions for certain services.
Board members discussed the difficulty of approving rate increases. Trustee Dylan and others noted that raising rates is unpopular but necessary to avoid infrastructure failure or selling the utility to an outside company. A trustee said, “It’s better to maintain it yourself,” noting loss of local control is a risk if utilities are sold to private companies.
The board approved the ordinance in a recorded roll call; trustees voting in favor included Dylan, Miller, Bill, Benio and Young (full roll-call list recorded in the official minutes). The motion carried.
The board did not specify exact month-by-month rate changes in the meeting transcript; staff said the ordinance phases the increases over four years and will be adjusted if grant funding is awarded. Staff also noted the village will continue to pursue grant opportunities to reduce the local cost burden.
The ordinance will be codified in the village code and staff said it is intended to allow the village to proceed with the wastewater and well projects if outside funding is not obtained.
