The city of Gold Bar hosted a town hall meeting on Monday, Feb. 8, to give residents the opportunity to ask questions about the proposed water rate increase scheduled for implementation through a resolution pending passage by the Gold Bar City Council.
According to the city, the water rate fee amendment resolution is needed to help fund upgrades to the water system's aging infrastructure. Once passed, immediate impacts of the new fee schedule would include a $20 per month assessment charge added to the current assessment of $12.41, for a total assessment of $32.41. When added to the base rate for residential water consumption of $30.90 per month, it brings the monthly rate for an average residential customer up to $63.31 per month.
The fee amendment process is the result of several years of work including the completion of the city's Water System Plan (WSP), which was approved by the Washington State Department of Health last July. A Water Rate Study was completed by a third party in 2015, which analyzed what the city needed to charge in order to fund the necessary upgrades.-á -á
In addition to adding the $20 assessment, the resolution would also reduce the average monthly usage from 7,500 gallons a month to 5,000 gallons a month, to comply with state-mandated water conservation policies.
According to the Water Rate Study, the average usage in Gold Bar is 5,500 gallons a month; 6,500 in the summer and 4,800 in the winter. This means that families who use more than 5,000 gallons a month are charged for that water above and beyond the $30.90 base rate. Per the WSP, residential customers using anywhere from 5,001 to 6,500 gallons will pay an additional $.005 per gallon.
Based on the average residential usage of 5,500 per month, this adds $2.50 to the monthly total, taking it from $63.31 per month to $65.81 per month.
The town hall meeting was scheduled after several residents requested it during a council meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 5.
Approximately 11 residents spoke, raising concerns about the monthly usage reduction and projected annual rate increases per the Water Rate Study, which shows the rates increasing steadily over the next five years. Gold Bar Mayor Linda Loen assured attendees the city is exploring grants and low-interest loans in an effort to avoid the continual rate hikes advised in the study.-á
"That was a suggestion only. This is what council is already fighting against,GÇ¥ Loen said. "We do not want to follow what was advised.GÇ¥
Gold Bar resident Denise Beaston zeroed in on the negative impacts the average usage reduction would have on families and businesses. Beaston works for the city of Gold Bar as the office manager, animal control officer, code enforcement officer and utility clerk. Beaston said she was there to address councilmembers as both a resident and as the utility clerk.
She told them she understood the need for the $20 assessment to help fund upgrades to the system's infrastructure, but implored the council to reconsider the average monthly usage adjustment.
She explained that she had done an impromptu survey of approximately nine Gold Bar families, all with multiple children of various ages. She checked each family's average monthly usage to get a sense of whether or not 5,000 gallons a month was a realistic amount.
"They're all over the 5,000 gallons, on an average, and this isn't because they're wasting water,GÇ¥ Beaston said.
She said she's been told the difference between 5,000 gallons and 7,500 gallons is about $10. It might not seem like a lot, Beaston said, but to families on tight budgets, it's a big deal.-á
"The families are the ones you are going to hurt,GÇ¥ Beaston said.
Most attendees acknowledged they understood the necessity of an added $20 assessment, which according to the city would be used to help acquire a new, low-interest loan to help fund the infrastructure repairs. Gold Bar's water supply comes from two of four city-owned wells that are pumped through transmission lines into a reservoir site and blended prior to use.
The aging distribution system consists largely of six-inch pipe, including asbestos cement pipe, which needs to be replaced with eight- and 12-inch ductile iron.-á
Councilmember Lee Hodo explained what the $20 assessment fee would be used for, which caused confusion during initial discussion at the council meeting on Jan. 5. Residents felt the increased assessment didn't make sense in the context of the millions of dollars needed to fully repair the system; simply collecting an additional $20 per month from water customers seemed futile to some.
"We have to borrow money to repair the system. In order to borrow money to pay to repair the system, we have to have a way of paying it back,GÇ¥ Hodo said. "We can get a long-term, low-interest or zero-interest loan from the Department of Agriculture. This money will prove to them that we can pay so much money per year back for the loan that we get.GÇ¥
Hodo had resigned his position in December, but agreed to come back after the Jan. 5 council meeting. Attendees welcomed him back, saying they were grateful for his return.-á -á -á
Several residents said they feel the problem is too large for Gold Bar, and inquired as to the feasibility of having the Snohomish County Public Utility District take over Gold Bar's water system. Tracy Cotterill, a 59-year Gold Bar resident, said she feels like both the $20 assessment and the water usage reduction were a "double-dip,GÇ¥ and asked for the opportunity to speak with the PUD directly.
"This just feels overwhelming for us, at our size and with the magnitude of the problem,GÇ¥ Cotterill said.
Councilmember Davi Martin said she had talked with the PUD, to find out more about the process. The first thing that would need to happen would be a feasibility study, Martin said, that would cost the city of Gold Bar taxpayers anywhere from $10,000 to $30,000. Once the feasibility study was complete, the PUD would make a determination as to whether a system takeover was viable.
"It would take many, many years,GÇ¥ Martin said. "This wouldn't happen in six months.GÇ¥
Former Gold Bar City Councilmember Chuck Lie said he was disappointed the council hadn't invited the PUD to come and give a presentation in person. Lie, a 12-year Gold Bar resident, has long been advocating for the PUD to come and take over the system.-á -á -á
"I want to hear from the PUD directly,GÇ¥ Lie said. "I don't want to hear secondhand, filtered information that's self-serving. I want to hear it from the PUD.GÇ¥
Vickie McDaniel and Cotterill also said they had hoped the PUD would be able to attend the meeting and were disappointed to find out representatives hadn't been formally invited.
The bottom line is there is no easy fix and there are no shortcuts, said Public Works Director John Light. The upgrades need to be accomplished no matter what.-á
"It makes no difference who owns the system; the improvements still need to be made,GÇ¥ Light said.
The meeting lasted for about 90 minutes. Hodo said the council is scheduled to take action on the matter during its next meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 16. He thanked everybody for their comments and concerns, and said they would hold further discussion on the usage reduction issue.
"It's been brought up several times tonight, that 5,000 gallons was too low,GÇ¥ Hodo said. "That's something that the council will discuss and we do appreciate the questions that we're getting here tonight.GÇ¥
For more information on the Gold Bar Water System Plan, visit http://cityofgoldbar.us/city-services/reports/water-comp-plan/.
Photo courtesy of the city of Gold Bar Well no. 4 is the cityGÇÖs newest water source, drilled in 1993. According to the city, they are still making loan payments on the loan that was used to drill the well. Well no. 4 is the deepest well, at 720 feet, and has tested positive for arsenic. Water is blended with water from well no. 3 to assure required water quality standards.
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