New Five Tiered Water Rate System for Cave Creek, Arizona: 100% Water Rate Increase Scheduled; Water Bills to Go from $40 to $77!!!; Family of 4 Expects $200 Water Bill to Go to $430!!! (AZCentral)
(Feb. 17, 2009, AZCentral)
Cave Creek will hear comments Tuesday night on a proposed water-rate hike that could double the average user’s bill and tack on an extra $37 in service charges.
Under the new rates, an average customer’s bill could soar to $77 from $40.
Current residential rates per 1,000 gallons are $2.46 for customers in Cave Creek and $2.61 for those in Desert Hills.
A proposed five-tiered system calls for a 79-cent to $6.79 increase per 1,000 gallons, depending on how much water a customer uses. The rates are higher than those in neighboring Carefree, which raised its rates last year.
Scottsdale charges between $1.74 and $4.45 for every 1,000 gallons.
For Cave Creek residents, the biggest hit could come in the form of elevated service charges.
Currently, residential customers pay a base rate of $13 to $35 per month, depending on their location and meter size. Under the new system, most customers would pay $50. For the same meter sizes, Scottsdale charges a base fee of $11.25 to $23.55.
Cave Creek oversees the drinking-water supply for 11,000 residents in Cave Creek, parts of Carefree and unincorporated Maricopa County.
The town bought the system, formerly two separate water companies, and has spent millions of dollars to upgrade it.
“We made a lot of improvements to the system that need to be paid for,” Utilities Manager Jessica Marlow said.
For resident Sonja Lockman, the new rates could mean an extra $230 a month.
Lockman is outraged by the rate hike. She called it “not a democratic thing to do.”
Cave Creek, she argued, is overcharging her already.
Lockman, who lives with her husband and 2-year-old daughter, received a monthly bill in January for charging her $200. Under the new rates, she expects to pay about $430.
“There is no way we’re using that much water,” she said.
To Lockman, the town is forcing the rate hike on residents who “don’t have the option of getting (water) from anywhere else.”
“I don’t see how this could possibly be legal,” Lockman said. “I’m hoping that there is some justice.”
Related posts:
- Carefree, Arizona Customer Takes Out Petitions for Referendum to Reverse Scheduled Water Rate Hike, which would DOUBLE or TRIPLE the Rates on Some of the 9,000 Customers Affected (AZCentral) (March 7, 2009, AZCentral) A Carefree resident is challenging Cave...
- 700% Water Rate Increase Coming to Horse Creek Valley, South Carolina! (TheWaterBlog, PortlandWaterBureau) (Feb. 18, 2009, The Water Blog, Portland Water Bureau) Residents...
- New Five-Tiered Water Rate Structure Scheduled for Palmdale, CA (Nov. 25, 2008, The Antelope Valley Press) A new rate...
- Arizona Water Bill Problems: MANY Chandler Customers NOT Paying Their Dues; “Call the City to Avoid a Water Shut-off“; 5% Delinquent!!! (AZCentral) (Feb. 11, 2009, AZ Central) Increasing numbers of Chandler residents...
- Foster City, California Endorses Tiered Water Rate Structure: Some Households’ Bi-Monthly Water Bills will Go from $128 to $221, while Others will Decrease; Average Water Bill to Rise 10%; 60 California Cities have Implemented Some Form of Tiered Rate Structure (MercuryNews) (March 7, 2009, The Mercury News) Foster City residents who...
Leave a Reply