City Council Rejects Ordinance to Raise Sewer Rates

An ordiance that would have raised the sewer rates for Belmont residents by about $2.11 more per month was not approved Tuesday night by the Belmont City Council.

The ordinance, which required two-thirds majority to pass, received three votes in its favor and two votes against it. Mayor Coralin Feierbach and Vice Mayor Dave Warden were the dissenting votes.

The city had proposed the rate increase of 8 percent for the fixed per unit charge and the volumetric hundred cubic feet (hcf) charge, which would have come out to about $576 annually, up from $551 each year for the average residential customer, or about $2.11 more per month, according to staff reports.

The rate increase was calculated in order to produce the required revenue for the city -- $6.4 million -- and Finance Director Thomas Fil said on Tuesday night that if the city council didn't take action on the sewer rates, the city would bring in less revenue this year than the year before.

"Where does the money come from? It doesn’t always have to come from rate increases," Warden said. "The staff needs to go out and figure out other ways to find the money."

Belmont Treasurer John Violet said he understood Warden's concerns, but emphasized something will need to be done next year in order to produce enough revenue for the city.

"We’re OK for this year, but please keep in mind that next year we will be in a position where we have to do something," Violet said.

Warden issued a last week declaring his opposition to the proposed rate increase. In addition, Belmont received 22 letters protesting the potential rise in sewer rates.