Silver Lake City Council looks at utility rate increases

The Silver Lake City Council took a look at its current water, sewer and storm water utility rates at the quarterly meeting on Monday, Oct. 1.
The current monthly base fees are $8.75 each for water and sewer and $2.00 for storm water. The storm water utility is calculated using a formula and square footage. The monthly usage rates are $4.50 per 1,000 gallons for water and $6.50 per 1,000 gallons for the sewer.
City Clerk Jon Jerabek proposed a $.50 per month increase on each utility unit, stating he felt it better to be proactive and gradually build the funds then have to increase the utilitites drastically when a project is needed to be done.
The council asked how Silver Lake’s rates compared to other similar communities. Jerabek stated that the last time he checked they were a lot lower than other communities.
The council was all in agreement of the gradual increase of rates, knowing that there would be infrastructure projects in the future.
The proposed monthly rates would be $9.25 per month for the water and sewer base fees and $2.50 for the storm water base fee.
Water usage would increase to $5 per 1,000 gallons and $7 per 1,000 for the sewer.
Jerabek will bring local rate comparisons to the next meeting for the council to review before a final decision is made.

(For the complete story, see the Oct. 3 print edition of The Chronicle.)