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Show NSL Council Voted 4-1 Against Culinary Water Hates Increase By GARY R. BLODGETT NORTH SALT LAKE After nearly two hours of heated he-ated debate, the North Salt Lake City Council voted 4-1 last night to postpone raising the city's culinary water rates. ON A substitute motion by Councilman Richard Strong, the council agreed to continue subsidizing the water department's depart-ment's annual deficit of about $35,000 through "whatever funds are needed from the city's ci-ty's general fund." Councilman Council-man Rodney Wood cast the dissenting vote. Meanwhile, (the council approved the need of a water advisory board, consisting of three to five members, to be recommended by the mayor and approved by the council. This group is to make an extensive exten-sive study of the city's water department, its operations, capital improvements, and whatever else deemed necessary neces-sary and will report to the council within six months. NORTH SALT Lake has been subsidizing the water department's de-partment's maintenance and operations for the past several years. About $35,000 is anticipated antici-pated to meet next fiscal year's expected deficit, according to Mayor Robert Palmquist. Mayor Robert Palmquist said this is only second rate increase in the past 15 years. The last increase was for only a nickle per 1,000 gallons, that coming about four vears aeo HE EXPLAINED that there has been a "short-fall" in the city water department each year for the past several years . The city general fund budget has been subsidizing the water department for any deficit incurred. in-curred. "The water department should be self-sustaining, operating on a pay-as-you-go basis," he said. "Hopefully, these new rates will put the department de-partment into the black." THE MAYOR explained that North Salt Lake's water rate has been substantially below be-low other neighboring communities com-munities in Davis County. At the same time, he said, the cost of distributing water throughout the city has increased in-creased by more than 300 percent per-cent in excess of $10,000 per month. "OUR PUMPING costs are what have skyrocketed," said Mayor Palmquist. "We have to pump from our source in the northwest part of the city to our reservoir at 35 East and then from this point we have to pump to the residents on the hillside east of the city." He explained that even after reaching the 350 East reservoir, reser-voir, the water is distributed by pressure flow to the lower levels and thisMduires almost constaaLflaranon of pumping THE COUNCIL agreed fol lowing a previous public hearing hear-ing that additional revenue is needed to operate the water department in the black, as advised by the city auditor, but there was a difference of opinion opin-ion as to what method would be taken to raise.the necessary income. Councilman Rodney Wood, representing the council with the water department, said he had petitions with more than 500 signatures from persons seeking a two-tier water rate one for those residents who live on the hillside east of the city (where additional pumping pump-ing is necessary) and one for other areas of the city. COUNCILMAN WOOD noted that approximately 62 percent of the city's total pumping cost which is by far the largest single expense in the water department is required re-quired to pump the water from 350 East to the Gary Way Reservoir Re-servoir serving the residents on the hillside. He stressed that Bountiful has several rate schedules based on elevation and the size of the line serving the area Bountiful, too, has an extra pumping cost to serve the higher high-er elevation. MAYOR PALMQUIST said the minimum rate charged residents, resi-dents, $3.50 per month for the first 10,000 gallons, would be kept the same. After that, it would require "an average" of ten cents per 1,000 gallons over the minimum to reach a balanced budget in the water department. Most of the 40 residents who attended the recent public hearing voice objections to paying the extra pumping costs to serve the east bench area. "WE'VE PAID our way all these years and now they want to come in, build a new home on the bench, and have us subsidize sub-sidize their water rates. That's not fair," said one resident. Another noted that most of the city's services are going to the east bench where he claimed more time is spent for snow removal, street repairs and other services. COUNCILMAN John Graves agreed, but noted that residents of the each bench area also pay more taxes because be-cause the assessed valuation is more. He said he is not convinced con-vinced that the water costs are sufficiently more (than the proportionate of taxes paid) to require a different rate schedule sche-dule than the rest of the city. Although there were differences differ-ences of opinion among the council members, it was concluded con-cluded that the water department depart-ment in the future must not only be self-sustaining but that it must also have a contingency tund adequate to handle repairs re-pairs and replacements. |