| LUB approves fee changes Parker Wright news-herald.net
Loudon Utilities Board approved April 26 updates to water,
sewer and electric fees.
The board was initially presented the updates at an April 12 workshop and approved a change to the customer service policy.
“We examined our fee schedule in conjunction with department
heads looking at our labor costs and our accounting
department material costs,” Ty Ross, utility manager, said.
“We also surveyed our surrounding utilities and our internal review justified an increase, and low and behold, surveying the surrounding utilities we saw that we were trailing them in fee schedules. This will bump up the fees to be basically in line with our surrounding jurisdictions as well as covering our costs.”
A fee change
hasn’t been made “in quite a while,” he said.
Nicole Curtis,
Loudon finance director and city recorder, said the new
fee schedule is simplified.
“We had tap fees,
and they’re reclassified now as new service connection
fees,” Curtis said. “But they changed from — a water
line tap inside the city limits was $400 plus the
facilities charge of $250.50. That changed from $400 to
$700. This more accurately captures our cost for
payroll, equipment, materials to go install that, and
this is where there’s a new house with no service there.
This fee on the water and sewer changed. Both of them
were $400 and they changed to $700 to more appropriately
capture that. We are still the lowest total cost for our
services than our neighbors. We’re still on the lower
end of the spectrum there so that’s good to know. …
There was a water line assessment charge that is no
longer applicable so that went away.”
Curtis said there
is now no distinction between inside and outside city
limits for new taps.
Board members Bart Watson and Tim Dixon motioned and seconded, respectively, and the vote passed unanimously.
The board also
unanimously approved new outdoor lighting rates.
Board members at
the April 12 workshop considered decreasing the rates
while switching to LED fixtures.
In other news,
Loudon Utilities Board:
• Awarded a bid
for a bulk sodium hypochlorite system to Design and
Construction Services Inc., at $1,129,600.
• Approved a
contract extension with Cintas Corporation for crew
uniforms.
• Requested the
city submit a Community Development Block Grant
application to support the sewer system.
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5/12/21