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Commerce plans $8M wastewater rehab; proposes $6 monthly increase for typical residential utility bills
Summary
City staff proposed an $8 million rehabilitation of the wastewater treatment plant to be financed with certificates of obligation; to cover debt service and related costs, staff proposed a residential utility rate change equal to about $6 per month for the typical customer.
City staff told the council the utility fund will support a major wastewater-treatment-plant rehabilitation budgeted at roughly $8,000,000 and that the project requires financing. Staff said the work will be funded with certificates of obligation and that the associated debt service is the primary driver of a proposed residential utility rate change amounting to about $6 per month for a typical household.
"All in, we're looking at about an $8,000,000 investment in rehabbing that wastewater treatment plant," the staff member said, noting the cost will be repaid over multiple years and that the proposed rate adjustment is intended to ensure rates and fees cover debt-service obligations and bond covenants. Staff also discussed a forthcoming raw-water contract renewal with the Sabine River Authority that will increase the city's take-or-pay costs; staff said they expect to reduce contracted volumes and investigate longer-term supply changes such as switching raw-water sources to Chapman/Cooper Lake to avoid an interbasin surcharge.
