Sewer ordinance postponed again

The Saratoga Town Council elected to postpone the ordinance which would increase sewer rates in town at their Oct. 21 meeting.

Ordinance 828, which will raise sewer rates to pay for the Saratoga Wastewater Outfall Project, was postponed after residents encouraged the council to take more time to examine the fees.

This was the second time the ordinance was delayed since it was introduced at the Sept. 2 meeting

The initial ordinance states residential dwellings may increase up to a maximum of $7.20 to go towards repayment of the Clean Water State Revolving Fund loan and additional maintenance and operational costs.

Members of the Joint Powers Board proposed revisions to the ordinances which lists two separate fees. The first being a maximum of $3.78 to recapture sewer revenue shortfalls for the sewer project. That rate may be increased up to 3 percent every calendar year.

And additional $3.42 is listed in section D of the ordinance which is intended solely for the repayment of the loan used to build the transmission line. This part of the fee is not subject to the 3 percent increase and will expire after the CWSRF loan is payed off.

In an email sent to Saratoga Town Clerk Cox by water and sewer board member Ed Glode, Glode explained the the annual payment on the loan was calculated to be $39,572.

“After a lot of discussion, (the water and sewer board) felt it best to make an additional subsection in the ordinance that is in place to pay this loan back, and it comes with the same expiration date as the loan itself,” Glode wrote in the email.

Cox explained she did not receive the email, which was sent by Glode at 7:17 p.m. on Oct. 27, in time for the town attorney’s review.

In a later interview, Mayor John Zeiger said he was concerned with the two-fee proposal. He said the reason for using the maximum of $7.20 is that they do not currently know what they are going to charge for fees.

“We are anticipating ($7.20) is what it is going to cost … but what if (the bid) came under $100,000?” Zeiger said. “If you set those two amounts [proposed by the water and sewer board] in there, then we are stuck with those.”

Zeiger explained he did not have any problem with putting in the “sunset clause” stating the fee will be reduced after the loan is paid off.

The water and sewer board can suggest changes to the ordinance to the council, but the council will ultimately make the decision on the fees.

Concerns with delays

Council members and town personnel were initially concerned with postponing the ordinance could miss the deadline for the loan application.

Town engineer Chuck Barlett and lawyer for the town of Saratoga Tom Thompson were both absent from the meeting. Councilman Steve Wilcoxson said he was told by Bartlett the ordinance had to be passed as soon as possible. At the Oct.1 town council meeting, Bartlett said if the town does not pass ordinance 828 within the allotted time, the town could lose the grant altogether.

However, in an email between Zeiger and Senior Community Loan Officer with the office of State Lands and Investments, Val Lewkowski, Lewkowski said “as long as ‘due diligence’ is being shown, and we know that you are continuing to work on a resolution to the problem, the conditional approval of the loan is not jeopardized in any way.”

The council recommended set Oct. 30 aside for a special meeting to approve the ordinance. At press time, it did not appear the town will need to call a special meeting.

Unequal billing

There were still those who are disapproving of the new sewer rates.

Nancy Jansa, who owns a 14-unit apartment building in Saratoga, said the ordinance fails to address hotels which she says often lease their rooms to long-term workers and serve the same purpose as an apartment.

“My fees will increase from $57 a month to approximately $318 with the same amount of water coming into my unit as a whole,” Jansa said.

She added several of their apartments function with weekly and month rates, much like the motels in town. Though she said she was not objecting to paying more for sewer rates, she was objecting to paying different rates than the lodging services in town.

“Why are we paying a different rate than the Saratoga Inn, the Hacienda and all the other places, some of which that have year-round rentals?” Jansa asked the council.

None of the council members made it clear if they would take the long-term occupants hotels into consideration.

The next Saratoga Town Council meeting will take place at 6 p.m. on Nov. 4 at Saratoga Town Hall.