By Kirk Ross
Staff Writer
Members of the Carrboro Board of Aldermen offered a courteous but thorough grilling of OWASA officials Tuesday night at Town Hall over the utility’s plan to raise service access fees this year.
OWASA is planning a comprehensive rate restructuring including a jump in some accessibility fees by more than 40 percent. The fees are a one-time payment customers make to connect to the system.
The rate structure has yet to be decided, but OWASA finance director Kevin Ray said this week that plans call for an average 11 percent hike in accessibility fees for water, and a 40 percent average hike in sewer access fees is expected.
For single-family home rates, OWASA uses a tiered rate structure based on house size. For a house with between 1,701 and 2,400 square feet of living space, sewer connection fees would jump from $2,071 to $2,991, a 44 percent increase.
In the presentation to the Board of Aldermen, Ray and OWASA board of directors chairman Mac Clarke said the philosophy driving the change in the rate structure is to make growth pay for itself. Clarke said that increasing the first-time hookup fees would help shift more of the cost to new customers.
Part of the increase comes from building replacement costs on OWASA facilities into the new rates.
Mayor Mark Chilton questioned whether that was fair since there are some facilties, like University Lake, where replacement costs wouldn’t make sense because it asks customers to pay the replacement cost on things the utility has no plans to replace.
Alderman Alex Zaffron also questioned if the plan was fair since it asks customers to pay for outstanding principle.
“Where I run into a little bit of difficulty is when you’re charging for outstanding principle for completed construction and financing,” Zaffron said.
Aldermen Jacquie Gist said she’d like to see some consideration be given to the size of lawns that people want to maintain. Watering lawns was a big problem during recent droughts. Homeowners who want to have lawns that require less water should be rewarded, she said. “I’m in favor of grass free-lower the fee,” she said.
Clarke said the utility is looking at a way to build conservation incentives into the rate structure. One method used is to make each new 1,000-gallon “block” of water for one dwelling more costly.
Clarke said OWASA might want to collaborate with the towns to make sure that when people apply for a permit with OWASA the size of the home is the same as that on the building permit.
The OWASA rates will be discussed at a meeting by the utility’s board of directors on May 10. A public hearing on the increases is scheduled for May 24. OWASA wants to have the new rate structure in place by Oct. 1.
In other action Tuesday night, the board discussed the report from the Leadership Advisory Committee on Carolina North.
Board members said that they will continue to push for more housing and insist on a comprehensive look at the massive development’s impact on regional transportation as the university drafts its plan.
Also on Tuesday, the board approved the appointment of Thomas Arnel, Mark Brantley, David Collins and Robert Kirschner to the Board of Adjustment.