Meeting to address water and sewage rate structure by Bryan Schutt for the Carroll County Times

Meeting to address water and sewage rate structure by Bryan Schutt for the Carroll County Times

Meeting to address water and sewage rate structure

By Bryan Schutt, Times Staff Writer

Monday, July 21, 2008

A water and sewage rate structure study will likely show the need for Westminster to raise its water rates and correct deficiencies in the current billing structure, according to several city officials.

The study, which was started last winter by Municipal and Financial Services Group, will be unveiled during the July 28 meeting of the mayor and Common Council. The meeting will not be a public hearing and the rate structure will not be set then, but residents will have the chance to voice their concerns or thoughts on the study.

Although the city has not made the study available to the public, Mayor Thomas Ferguson said the current rate structure is essentially upside down and the city is generating insufficient reserves from the current billing system.

He said the rate structure, which has been in place for decades, basically has a quantity discount, which is one point the study examines.

Another area that he believes the study will address is the rate structure and financial risks involved for residents in and outside of city limits. Currently, people out of the city limits pay slightly higher water rates, the mayor said.

[…]

Reach staff writer Bryan Schutt at 410-857-7886 or bryan.schutt@carrollcountytimes.com.

If you go

What: Second monthly meeting of the mayor and Common Council

Why: To discuss the water and sewer rate structure study

Where: John Street Quarters of the Westminster Fire Hall, 28 John St.

When: 7 p.m. July 28

Information: City Hall, 410-848-9000

Read the rest here: Meeting to address water and sewage rate structure

20080721 Meeting to address water and sewage rate structure by Bryan Schutt for the Carroll County Times