Bloomington trustees forward utility ordinance to attorney amid sewer budget shortfall

At its Oct. 6 meeting the Village of Bloomington Board voted to forward an updated utility ordinance, including water and sewer schedules, to Attorney Wood for final adjustments after staff verify the rate figures.

President Robert McLimans reported feedback from Mr. Hoppman at Delta 3 and said the Public Service Commission declined proposals to set a flat $500–$1,000 installation fee but the approved tariff contains a "water lateral installation charge" that permits the utility to bill for actual lateral installation costs consistent with Wis. Stat. ch. 66.

Clerk/Treasurer Shawna Atterbury told trustees the draft ordinance's sewer schedule listed a fixed quarterly charge of $36 and a volume charge of $3.60 per 1,000 gallons, which do not match current village charges of $61.58 fixed and $6.73 per 1,000 gallons. The board directed McLimans and Clerk Atterbury to contact Mr. Hoppman at Delta 3 to reconcile the figures before returning the ordinance for final legal review.

Budget work presented to the board showed the water utility under the proposed budget is projected to have a $66,650 net income, while the sewer utility is projected to have a 30% loss despite rate increases implemented in late 2024 and 2025 (10% in Q4 2024, 15% in Q1 2025 and 15% in Q2 2025). Clerk Atterbury highlighted the need to finalize the budget in November to meet county tax timelines and newspaper publication deadlines.

No formal rate changes were adopted at the meeting; the ordinance will return for action after the rate verification and legal review.