Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Sewer Billing Winter Quarter Average topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Staff proposes ending winter-quarter averaging for car washes; committee agrees to post rule change for public comment
Summary
Aurora Water presented data showing car washes incur higher water usage in winter months and proposed a rules-and-regulations change to charge car washes on a month-to-month 1:1 water-to-sewer volumetric basis rather than the winter-quarter-average method; staff recommended posting the proposed rule under City Code 138327 for public comment.
Aurora Water staff proposed changing how car washes are billed for sewer volumetric charges, recommending that car washes be removed from the city’s winter-quarter-average calculation and instead be billed month-to-month at a 1:1 ratio of water consumption to sewer volumetric unit.
Elizabeth Gilitzer Gallardo, manager of pricing and revenue, presented a five‑year study of 13 car-wash accounts (a mix of tunnel, in-bay and combination facilities). Staff observed that January–March usage for those car washes was higher than summer months because customers wash vehicles more in winter conditions (for example, to remove road de-icing materials). The winter-quarter-average method averages December–February usage (billed on January–March bills) and sets a static sewer volumetric unit for the year; staff said that method produced higher annual sewer charges for car washes that do not return significant volumes of water to the sanitary system.
To address that inequity, staff proposed posting rules under City Code 138327 so that car washes’ sewer volumetric unit would equal the monthly water consumption for each billing month (a 1:1 ratio). Staff presented modeled outcomes: for the 13-car-wash sample, moving to 1:1 billing would reduce five-year sewer charges in aggregate by about $132,000 and an average monthly savings per property of about $181.
Staff advised that the proposed rule change would be posted for public comment and that the city will still recover sewer treatment costs for water that enters the sanitary system; the measure applies only to car-wash meters and not to irrigation accounts or other customer classes. Elizabeth said exceptions for other industries would be considered on a case-by-case basis and that Aurora is not proposing industry-wide code changes beyond the car-wash recommendation.
Committee members asked practical questions about whether washing at home affects bills and were reminded that high winter water use (for any customer) can raise an individual property’s sewer volumetric unit for the entire year; staff reiterated options such as leak adjustments for customers with winter leaks. The committee supported posting the proposed rule for public comment.
