Columbus Light & Water is raising water rates.
On Thursday, the CL&W board of directors voted in an 8-percent rate hike. It will likely take effect as early as March, according to Todd Gale, general manager with CL&W.
Gale said CL&W has a minimum customer charge that buys a certain amount of water each month. The rate increase will only apply to the volume charges for customers who go over the minimum amount. As such, it’s difficult to say exactly how much the rate increase translates to from customer to customer.
“If a family of four spends $25 a month on water, 8 percent of that would be $2,” Gale said. “Sewer payments are based on water, so that’d be a total of $4 per month.”
The rate increase — along with two other measures — were approved Thursday by the CL&W board as a way to try to stem the bleeding of the water department’s reserve funds.
The board also voted 3-2 to cut six jobs and slow capital improvement expenditures.
Chairman Andrew Colom motioned for all three measures and received support from board members Jimmy Graham and Charles Newell. Board members Michael Tate and Brandy Gardner opposed.
Gale said the board approved its current budget with a 2.2 percent rate increase in September. However, those increases aren’t enough to stop a steady decline in reserve funds that will put CL&W in a dangerous position if left unabated.
CL&W currently has about $3.3 million in reserves, CL&W Chief Financial Officer Mike Bernsen said.
A consultant predicted the department’s reserves could be at $921,000 by the end of fiscal year 2019, accounting for all needed expenditures, grants and borrowed money, he added.
However, that figure becomes a deficit of -$1.02 million without grants and loan money. Bernsen said that scenario is “much more realistic.”
“I’m coming up with the fact that if we keep capital expenditures as budgeted that me, Todd and the consultant worked up, then we’re going to end up a million dollars in the hole if we don’t do something,” Bernsen said.
Gale said he’s not sure what CL&W positions will be cut.
He told board members during the meeting that cutting a 5-person crew and one other position could save CL&W about $300,000 annually. However, in an interview with The Dispatch after Thursday’s meeting, he said he’ll need to take time for deeper consideration into viable options.
Though the board ultimately approved the cuts, Gardner offered stiff opposition.
“You have taken these employees through this whole rigmarole about this employee relations thing that we just kind of waved in their faces,” Gardner said. “Now it’s just kind of dangling there — that’s the way they feel.
“We did all that and waved that in their faces and we said, ‘We care about what you’re going through and want to help,’ and we did it,” she continued. “Then we came back and said well we’ll just cut five people. Regardless of who those five people are, it’s going to affect the entire workforce. I can guarantee you that. It is going to affect them so negatively.”
Gale reiterated, with support from Graham, that the other option was to further increase rates.
“I don’t want to send anybody home,” Gale said. “But if you’re going to protect 12,500 paying customers — I’m with Mr. Graham — then you’ve got to do the hard things.”
During the discussion, Colom said every option should be on the table while the board attempts to address the water department’s financial difficulties.
“We can’t have a golden calf which can’t be touched, which is saying that we’re not going to ever terminate any employees,” Colom said. “It’s not even that we’re terminating them — the economy has changed.”
Alex Holloway was formerly a reporter with The Dispatch.
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