Price City Council approves advance of $12–$14M spring transmission-line replacement and adopts water-rate ordinance

Price City’s council voted April 9 to advance a spring water transmission-line replacement estimated at $12 million to $14 million and adopted a new water-rate ordinance to help pay for the upgrade.

The council approved a motion to pursue design and construction funding for the project — which would replace roughly seven miles of an 11-mile stretch of aging thin-wall steel pipeline — and then approved Ordinance No. 2025-002 establishing new culinary water rates. City and contractor presentations said the existing pipe is more than 95 years old in many places, difficult to repair and has experienced repeated leaks.

Why it matters: city staff and outside experts said the spring feed is a primary source for Price’s drinking water at certain times of year, and a failure of the transmission line could cause outages and water-quality problems. Engineers recommended HDPE (high-density polyethylene) pipe for the replacement because of its corrosion resistance and flexibility; presenters estimated the transmission-line work would take three to four years and likely be performed during warmer months to avoid taking the system offline in winter.

What officials said: Janelle Brethwaite of the Rural Water Association told the council the city’s rate and funding options were modeled against state grant requirements and the community’s income profile. “This rate increase has been worked over a 100 different scenarios of how to pay for this without hurting you,” she said, while acknowledging the increases will “hurt” some households and that grants are more limited now than in prior years.

Marie Owens of Advanced Engineering and Environmental Services, who managed the February 2024 condition assessment, said the pipeline is "beyond its life capacity" and that delaying replacement would likely increase future costs and elevate risks to both supply and water quality. She said some prior grant streams have been reduced or rescinded, increasing the need for local revenue and loan financing.

Funding and rates: presenters said typical funding packages for projects of this scale are a mix of loans and grants (commonly described in presentation materials as roughly 70% loan / 30% grant when grant eligibility is available). To qualify for the most favorable state grant/loan terms, the Division of Drinking Water often requires the community’s average bill to meet a MAGI (median adjusted gross income) threshold (illustrated in staff materials as 1.75% of MAGI). Staff said the city plans a series of rate increases over three years, with the first taking effect May 1, 2025. Staff presented an example average residential bill increase from $32.76 to $47.01 under the proposed structure; exact amounts depend on usage tiers.

Accountability and safeguards: residents asked how the council will ensure rate revenue is used only for the project. Finance and staff responses emphasized enterprise-fund accounting and bond covenant requirements. City staff said debt from revenue bonds requires restricted capital and bond-reserve accounts and that legal protections normally prevent unrestricted transfers from the water enterprise to the general fund.

Public response: speakers at the hearings raised concerns about short-term burdens on low-income households, impacts on local growers and small businesses, the length of time it took to reach replacement decisions, and whether alternatives such as secondary irrigation water had been adequately considered. Sharon Hansen of the Carbon County Farm Bureau urged caution and asked the council to consider staged approaches to reduce impacts on local producers.

Council action and next steps: after the public hearing, Council Member Miller moved to approve advancing the transmission-line replacement project and pursuing funding; the motion passed by voice vote. The council then opened and closed a separate hearing on rate changes, approved Ordinance No. 2025-002 establishing new water rates (voice vote), and passed related resolutions to implement administrative details and employee compensation changes on the consent agenda. Staff said the project schedule anticipates construction work mainly between late April and October to avoid winter shutdowns, and that the earliest projected start is "next spring," subject to securing financing and completing required environmental/permitting steps.

Votes at a glance: - Motion to open public hearing (spring transmission line): moved by Council Member Willis; second by Council Member Richardson; voice vote carried. - Approval to advance spring transmission-line replacement (Item 4c): moved by Council Member Miller; second by Council Member Richardson; voice vote carried. - Ordinance No. 2025-002 (water rates): moved by Council Member Miller; second by Council Member Richardson; voice vote carried.

What’s next: staff will continue funding applications with the Division of Drinking Water and the Permanent Community Impact Board, refine rate modeling, and hold follow-up public hearings on water rates and project details as financing and design proceed. The council indicated intent to monitor revenues and adjust the plan if circumstances change.

(Reporting in this story is based exclusively on Price City Council meeting transcripts and public presentations on April 9, 2025. Estimated costs, timelines and rate examples were presented by city staff and consultants during those meetings.)