WICU12

The Erie Water Authority is looking at a plan that would raise rates by 9.5% the first year, 8% the next year, 7% the following year, and by 4.5% and 6.6% percent the two years after that. CLICK FOR VIDEO

If the proposal is passed, the average water customer would pay an extra $5.21 a quarter next year, hiking their bill to $65 a quarter.

The rate hikes are needed to pay for $50 million in capital projects, 40 million of that going to an upgrade at the Wasielewski Treatment Plant to better purify water from Lake Erie.

"The plant that we're talking about upgrading hasn't been touched since 1972.  That's 37 years ago.  It's becoming more and more difficult to maintain at a high level," said Erie Water Works CEO Paul Voytek.

The authority's biggest customer is the Millcreek Water Authority.  It buys water from Erie and sells it to it's customers. The Millcreek Authority says the treatment plant improvements are not needed.

"Erie Water Works has had a good history of water quality.  And certainly they send out the consumer information sheets, and we haven't seen any problems with the system as it is now," said Millcreek Water Authority Director George Riedesel.

Only two private citizens spoke against the proposal.  One said the authority should be tightening it's belt in a time when most households have to.

"It's just unreasonable when everybody in this economy, in the position that it's in, they're asking for that high of a rate increase.  Yet they've shown that they've done very little to cut their costs," said Dennis Stratton, of Erie.

The authority will vote on the plan during it's regular meeting in December. Another pubic hearing will be held on November 17, at 3pm, at the Water Works Administration Building.
  

John Last