Trustees back staff plan to advance 2026 water, wastewater and stormwater proposals; debate over rate structure continues
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Summary
Staff proposed a compromise package that would lower single-family water base charges by about 3% while increasing wastewater revenues by 18% and raising stormwater by roughly 25%; trustees debated the RAG recommendation versus staff's approach and asked staff to return with ordinances and the final consultant report.
Town staff presented recommended 2026 changes to Wellington's municipal utility bill and impact-fee schedule and asked the board for direction to bring ordinances forward.
Megan Smith, deputy director of public works, summarized board direction from recent work sessions and described the staff recommendation: retain the existing residential water rate structure but apply a 3% revenue reduction to single-family base charges (with a similar base reduction to multiunit classes while adjusting tiers), move commercial and irrigation customers to a uniform volumetric rate, propose an 18% wastewater revenue increase to meet operating and debt targets, and propose a 25% stormwater rate increase (raising the per-account charge from roughly $9.25 to about $11.56) to fund localized drainage projects and align with potential changes to the regional Box Elder Basin authority.
Smith said the wastewater recommendation was driven by the financial plan's need to support operations, reserves and debt service coverage; she said the plan also includes projections for additional increases in 2027 and 2028 if required by evolving capital needs. On impact fees, staff recommended a new category to lower fees for developments that use nonpotable irrigation sources (HOA wells, ditch irrigation), noting statutory requirements to make impact fees legally defensible.
Board members debated structure and equity. Trustee Teets argued the original rate-advisory-group (RAG) linear option should be included as a formal alternative and said the guiding principle should be that "you pay what you use for"; other trustees said the tiered approach gives greater revenue stability for a small community and praised staff's compromise. Trustee Daley highlighted the political and public-relief value of a proposed water-rate reduction, saying "reducing water in Wellington sounds really great to me." Several trustees asked staff to make the consultant (Raftelis) report and the impact-fee model available to trustees and the public prior to adoption to address defensibility and transparency concerns.
No final rate vote was taken tonight. Trustees directed staff to prepare ordinance language and bring back materials (including the final study/report) for a public hearing and formal vote at an upcoming meeting (staff indicated Feb. 24 was the likely next step for ordinances).
