Scappoose council declines multifamily sewer discount, asks staff to recalibrate rates

Scappoose officials at a Nov. 17 work session reviewed a staff proposal to change the city's sewer billing structure, including a potential 20% cut to multifamily base charges and a consolidation of commercial account categories.

Consultant Steve Donovan told council the city collects roughly $3.1 million in sewer revenue annually and that single-family customers produce the majority of both accounts and revenue. "Last year, you generated $3,100,000 in sewer revenue," Donovan said, laying out a proposal that would keep the single-family base charge at $78.71, raise the volume charge from $0.065 to $0.10 per 100 gallons, and reduce the base allowance from 4,000 to 2,000 gallons.

Staff's multifamily proposal would lower the multifamily base charge from $78.71 to $63.97 for eligible units — a reduction Donovan described as "about a 20% reduction, ... based on EPA guidelines." The change was projected to reduce system revenue by roughly $125,124 and to require recovery of that shortfall from other customer classes, chiefly single-family and commercial accounts.

Councilors questioned whether the benefit would reach renters in master-metered buildings and whether the city has sufficient data on bedroom counts and per-unit usage. Council members pressed that, because many apartment complexes are master metered, the city cannot determine how much wastewater each unit sends to the system without submetering or certified documentation from owners.

After discussion, Donovan said staff had received clear direction: "We heard loud and clear. We are not going to do that $125,000 reduction to the multifamily at this time," and staff will "go back, and we will recalibrate all of the rates, so we'll have hard rate figures for you" ahead of budget deliberations. Council did not take a formal roll-call vote; the meeting produced staff direction rather than an ordinance or rate adoption.

On a separate but related step, Donovan and staff advocated consolidating the city's legacy commercial rate codes into three industry-standard classes (low, medium and high strength) tied to EPA and American Public Works Association loading factors. Staff said the commercial restructuring would simplify billing and reduce administrative time; the commercial sector represents a small portion of sewer revenue (around 3% by staff's figures), so impacts would be limited relative to residential classes.

Staff also reminded the council that capital needs will continue to put upward pressure on rates: a planned wastewater treatment project has an estimated first-phase cost of roughly $20 million, a development Donovan said will affect future rate-setting.

Staff will return this winter with recalibrated rate figures and detailed options for commercial restructuring. Council members asked staff to look for ways to collect or verify apartment unit data if the multifamily issue resurfaces.