Astoria adopts 4% water and sewer rate increases as staff warns of large unfunded capital needs

Astoria’s City Council voted on June 15 to adopt water and sewer rate resolutions that will increase utility charges by about 4% to cover operations, debt service and several capital projects, city staff said.

Staff presented a roughly $10.7 million utility budget and highlighted major projects supported by the rate adjustments: a $3.3 million sewer station project, a slow-sand filter replacement (approximately $1.7 million), CSO monitoring and separation projects, and additional capital work tied to resilience and pump generation. Director Henson (the utilities director referenced in the meeting) told council that the city faces roughly $250 million in unfunded capital needs across the 10-year plan.

During public comment several residents described billing disputes and alleged meter-reading and customer-service failures. One resident, identified as Ashley, urged the council to link any rate increases to demonstrable service improvements and additional staffing for the utility office.

Councilors stressed the difficulty of raising rates and asked staff to pursue grants and mitigation programs for low-income customers. “We are barely keeping up,” one councilor said, urging staff to continue aggressive grant-seeking and to consider assistance programs for vulnerable customers. Councilors voted to adopt the rate resolutions after the discussion.

What happens next: staff will implement the new rates on the next billing cycle, continue pursuing grants to offset capital costs and report back on options to mitigate impacts on ratepayers.