By Per Peterson
Water and sewer rates will eventually be going up in Tracy, but the damage will be kept to a minimum.
The Tracy City Council on Monday approved a resolution to adjust the rate fee schedule after a water and sewer rate study presentation by Abdo Eick & Meyers, which was hired by the City of Tracy last year to conduct a debt management analysis, long-term plan and utility rate study for the City. The actual motion was to draft a resolution to formally implement new water and sewer rate fees at the next city council meeting. The motion was approved unanimously.
The proposed rates will be in line with area communities. For water, based on an average use of 3,000 gallons, Tracy residents water rates will be comparable to area communities. They will be charged more than are people in Slayton and Springfield, but considerably less than those in Mountain Lake, according to the rate study. Tracy residents will also pay more in sewer rates than people in Slayton and Springfield, but less than those in Mountain Lake.
The council voted to raise the water and sewer rates a minimal amount over the next few years, as opposed to a greater amount in fewer years.
Although no formal action was taken Monday the council agreed to raise rates 3% for both water and sewer. For water, that means an estimated $1.07 increase per month in 2020 for Tracy residents. The rates will then be projected to go up in increments of 3 cents in 2021, 2022 and 2023. The sewer rates will go up to 31 cents in 2020 and will rise 1 cent in 2021. According to estimates, the rate will hold steady in 2022, then go up to 33 cents in 2023 and to 34 cents in 2024.
See this week’s Headlight Herald for more on this article.