Tamaroa tables discussion of sewer rate increase
The Tamaroa Village Board again discussed locking water and sewer rates together. For many years, customers paid the same water and sewer rates. When the village was faced with frequent water rate increases from Du Quoin, the board voted to uncouple the rates.
Trustee Bill Place said that was more than eight years ago. Currently, customers pay $5.69 for the first $1,000 gallons of sewer and $5.69 for the second 1,000 gallons of sewer. The water rate is $8.24 for the first 1,000 gallons.
The sewer system is breaking even each month. There is $38,000 in the sewer account.
Place advocated raising the rates over a two-year period to bring them back into line. His reasoning includes future expenses to repair a sand filter, install liners in many older sewer lines and to get a telemetry system up and running for remote monitoring.
Trustee Fred Schultz agreed with Place that it makes sense to plan for the future.
Trustee Kirk Pestka asked for a more detailed accounting of sewer receipts and expenses. Treasurer Margaret Mays said excluding payroll, the fixed costs for the sewer department are $3,000 to $4,000 per month. However, there are months when more is expended to make equipment payments.
Mays also said that the sewer bonds (approximately $66,000) were paid using funds from the railroad and general funds. Those funds must be replaced using sewer funds.
Trustee Betty Roberts does not want to raise rates. Roberts said the board never decreased water rates after connecting directly to Rend Lake. Place disagreed, stating that the rates were as high as $13 per 1,000 gallons at one time.
Roberts said the village's water costs dropped from $22,000 per month to about $8,000 per month after switching to Rend Lake. She maintains that CCSD water customers saw a rate decrease when they became Tamaroa customers, but Tamaroa users never saw a savings. She will check how other area municipalities handle sewer rates.
Audience member and former Trustee Byron Stricker said in his opinion, the board should find grants to pay for major emergency repairs.
The board agreed to table the discussion until next month.
In other business, the board:
• heard from Village Attorney Calen Campanella that Mike Frost agreed to the board's terms and signed a contract allowing them to fill in the pond on his property. Any rock in the pond may remain there as long as it is covered by at least 24 inches of top soil. The village has 24 months to complete the initial work to fill in the pond.
• heard from Campanella that he sent a letter to Butch Kabat stating that the board agreed to allow him until October to begin work on the former lumber company building provided he puts up no trespassing signs on all sides of the building. He has not had any response. Village employees said no signs have gone up on the building as yet.
• heard from Mayor Curtis Stube that Trustee Kim Woodside resigned. He appointed Kerri Schoenbacher to serve the remainder of Woodside's term until the next election in April.