Residential rates would go up by a total of $6.32 per month over five years if the council approves the proposed rate increases. The current average rate is $21.01 for 6,000 gallons of water used. The first raise next year would take that rate to $22.48.

Rates to commercial and industrial users, particularly those located outside the city limits, could be substantially raised.

Officials are not projecting rate increases that will be necessary beyond the first five years of the debt. The proposal calls for the city to pay off the debt in 20 years.

According to the city’s figures, a large-volume user who discharges 1.5 million gallons of wastewater a month would see their monthly bill go from about $1,600 to about $1,800. If that customer is not in the city limits, the bill would be 50 percent higher.

Nyander, the city’s manager of services including the wastewater plants, said Downstream is one of the city’s largest users, discharging an average of 1.5 million gallons a month. He said at that volume, Downstream ranks ninth out of the 27 largest industrial users.

Council action

While the City Council has taken no formal action on the proposed raises in regular rates, the council did approve the 50 percent surcharge at its May 4 meeting against the recommendation of city staff.

Finance Director Leslie Jones recommended a raise of 30 percent. The current surcharge is 10 percent for residential customers and 9 percent for commercial and industrial users outside the city limits.

Jones told the council that she believed the 30 percent raise could be justified by the costs incurred to provide service but she felt that any higher increase would meet with opposition of customers.

Benjamin Rosenberg introduced a motion to raise the surcharge rate to 30 percent, which failed because of the lack of a second.

Bill Scearce then made a motion to increase the rate to 50 percent. Morris Glaze seconded the motion. The council voted 6-3 to approve the higher rate. Those who voted in favor were Scearce, Glaze, Michael Seibert, Melodee Colbert-Kean, Phil Stinnett and Mike Woolston. Mayor Gary Shaw along with Rosenberg and Jim West voted against the higher increase.

The council has a policy that the mayor speaks for council decisions after a vote is taken.

The mayor said Wednesday that he wasn’t sure of the reasons behind the individual votes, but he defended the proposed rate increases.

“We’ve taken two or three looks at the rates, and tried to whittle them down as much as possible, even to the point of having an election to borrow the money from the state at a lower cost. None of us like increases. This is one of those things we’re mandated to do.”

Scearce said he proposed the higher rate because “the citizens of Joplin assume the responsibility of maintenance of the wastewater facility along with the liability that goes along with it.”