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Residents press council for clarity on sewer fees and budget impact
Summary
During public comment residents and an emailed constituent asked whether the borough will reduce 2024 sewer appropriations now that a new sewer-fee ordinance will collect fees; mayor and staff said a sewer-maintenance line item will be created and staff will provide 2024 fee figures, and that HUD/pilot structures affect Village billing.
Public comment and an emailed constituent focused on how a forthcoming sewer-fee ordinance will affect the borough budget and certain Village residents.
An email read into the record from a constituent (identified in the record as Coling Hay) asked whether the $889,000 sewer appropriation reported for 2024 will be reduced now that the borough will collect sewer fees under a new ordinance, and whether any collected fees will be dedicated specifically for sewer maintenance. The council responded that staff will provide the actual 2024 sewer-fee numbers to the questioner; the mayor said the budget will include a specific sewer-maintenance line item and that conservative estimates will guide the first-year appropriation.
The mayor also stated that residents of The Village (a HUD-affiliated property discussed in the meeting) will not be billed directly because payments are handled through HUD and pilot arrangements; the mayor emphasized that those pilot receipts are separate from the newly proposed sewer-fee revenue. Bruce Patterson, a public commenter, expressed concern about the equity of assessing fees on low-income units and urged a town-hall style explanation of the fee changes for residents.
Council directed staff to locate and provide the 2024 sewer-fee figures and confirmed intent to create a dedicated sewer-maintenance budget line; no formal budget changes were voted on at the meeting.
