Town considers water rate increase

By John Underwood / john@gulfcoastmedia.com
Posted 12/20/18

SILVERHILL, Alabama — The Silverhill Town Council is considering a water rate increase to help pay for a water expansion planned for 2019.

At its Dec. 17 meeting, the council voted to post …

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Town considers water rate increase

Posted

SILVERHILL, Alabama — The Silverhill Town Council is considering a water rate increase to help pay for a water expansion planned for 2019.

At its Dec. 17 meeting, the council voted to post proposed changes to the town’s water ordinance, which includes a $1 increase for in-town and out-of-town customers, plus the addition of a $25 service fee for each new water service requested.

At its Nov. 19 meeting, the council voted to approve a more than $500,000 general obligation warrant (GOW) to pay for the water expansion project.

The grant from the Alabama Drinking Water Finance Authority and the Alabama Department of Environmental Management will fund most of the project at an estimated cost of $548,22.56, plus $6,778.44 in capitalized interest and $10,000 in finance expenses, bringing the total loan amount to $565,000.

Of that amount, the town will only be required to repay $295,000. The rest will be paid by a federal matching grant.

The council voted to approve a resolution at its April 16 meeting to enter into an agreement with Civil Southeast regarding the running of 8-inch water lines and replacing of 2-inch water lines with 8-inch waterlines along East Boulevard.

The project requires a loan from the town, with the first payment not due until January 2020. At earlier meetings, officials discussed increasing water rates over a 2-year period to help pay for the loan.

If passed, Ordinance 451-12-2018 will amend Ordinance No. 408 adopted July 7, 2014.

Included in the changes are increasing residential rates from $21.79 to $22.79 for the first 2,000 gallons for in-town customers; $24.05 to $25.05 for out-of-town customers. Additional rates will remain unchanged.

The proposed ordinance also calls for the addition of the one-time service fee for new customers. The fee would not apply for existing customers.

The proposed change also adds that the town accepts credit card and debit card payments by phone and bank draft payments on the 15th of every month.

“These are things that we have already been doing,” said Town Clerk Nikkie Haigler. “They just felt that it should be included in the ordinance to make people aware of it.”

The proposes changes will be posted at town hall, the Post Office and at United Bank for 30 days and could be voted on at the council’s second meeting in January.

In other business Dec. 17, the council:

• Met with a representative from Harbor Communications to discuss providing data, Internet and phone service for the town.

• Heard from Frankie Kucera and Lamar Giles with the Silverhill Veterans Memorial Organization who gave a progress report on Phase II of the Veterans War Memorial and requested that the council consider a donation to the memorial.

• Donated $250 to the Central Baldwin Middle School cheerleaders to attend the National Cheer Competition in Orlando.