WHILE SIOUX CITY RESIDENTS ARE ALREADY STEWING OVER THEIR NEW PROPERTY VALUE ASSESSMENTS, A MINNEAPOLIS BASED CONSULTING FIRM IS TELLING THE CITY COUNCIL THAT THE CITY NEEDS TO RAISE SEWER RATES TO PAY FOR REBUILDING THE CITY’S WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT.
CITY UTILITIES DIRECTOR TOM PINGEL INTRODUCED REPRESENTATIVES OF HAZEN AND SAWYER BY BLUNTLY TELLING THE COUNCIL SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE NOW:
SEWER1 OC…RATES WILL LOOK. :30
THE COST OPTIONS FOR THE 50 PLUS YEAR OLD PLANT ARE AROUND $900 MILLION DOLLARS FOR A BRAND NEW PLANT OR AN ESTIMATED $580 MILLION TO REFURBISH THE EXISTING PLANT.
WILL MORTON OF HAZEN AND SAWYER SAYS A REBUILD WOULD TAKE PART IN TWO PHASES:
SEWER2 OC…….ADDITIONAL CAPACITY. :17
TIM DEVINE, ALSO OF HAZEN AND SAWYER, SAYS 40% OF CURRENT FLOWS INTO THE PLANT COMES FROM INDUSTRIAL USERS, BUT HE RECCOMENDS THE RATES BE SPLIT 50-50 WITH NON-INDUSTRIAL CUSTOMERS BECAUSE MOST OF THE DIFFICULT WASTE TO TREAT COMES FROM INDUSTRIAL USERS.
THE PROPOSED RATE INCREASE OVER SEVEN YEARS WOULD BE LARGE EACH OF THE FIRST TWO YEARS FOR RESIDENTS, AND LONGER FOR INDUSTRIAL USERS:
SEWER3 OC……..THROUGH 30. :27
THE YEARLY RATE COST TO SEABOARD TRIUMPH FOODS, OUR LARGEST LOCAL USER, WOULD INCREASE FROM FOUR-POINT-FIVE MILLION TO SEVEN-POINT-THREE MILLION DOLLARS PER YEAR.
THE FIRST READING OF THE PROPOSED ORDINANCE FOR THE RATE INCREASES AND PLANT REPLACEMENT IS SCHEDULED FOR NEXT MONDAY’S CITY COUNCIL MEETING.
THREE READINGS MUST PASS FOR THE RATES TO TAKE EFFECT.
