Council approves second reading of water, sewer and trash rates; discusses outside‑meter alternative

The Maxwell City Council closed the public hearing on Ordinance 343, which updates water, sewer and trash rates, and approved the ordinance’s second reading Wednesday, moving the measure forward through the required three-reading process.

The ordinance discussion and vote were the meeting’s key fiscal items. A council member moved to approve the second reading; recorded roll-call responses included yes votes from council members in attendance and the motion carried to proceed to the next reading. Council members reiterated that ordinances require three readings under city practice and noted staff will complete codification work after the third reading.

Separately, councilmembers debated whether to change the city’s approach to second (outside) water meters. A staff suggestion—proposed by Scott—would not issue physical temporary meters for every resident who requests outside-meter billing. Instead, the city would keep the current $10 request fee and calculate an outside‑use allowance by averaging each household’s October–March usage; water used above that baseline from April 1 through Sept. 30 would be billed as outside use. Proponents said the approach would reduce administrative and capital costs; others said it may not work for pool fills or for new residents without historical baselines.

No ordinance adopting the average-baseline method was enacted at the meeting; staff were directed to investigate costs and options (meter purchase and cellular-read capability, deposit models, and pilot customers who might volunteer) and return with a recommendation for future action.

Next steps: staff will prepare the ordinance for a third reading and finalize codification with the Iowa codification service; staff will also report back with feasibility and cost estimates for the proposed outside‑meter alternatives.