Water and wastewater rates are going up for residents in Innisfil and one member of council is predicting this is just the beginning.
Councillors approved a three per cent fixed rate water and wastewater increase and a 1.5 per cent volumetric rate increase at their meeting Wednesday night. For the average homeowner consuming 177 cubic metres of water and generating 148 cubic metres of wastewater, the increase translates into an extra $13.73 and $9.46 on their bill.
It’s money InnServices requires.
“The increased rates will help cover costs related to infrastructure that needs to be maintained, repaired, or replaced to ensure safe drinking water and treatment of wastewater for all residents,” a staff report on the increase stated.
The report also indicated staff will be undertaking a “comprehensive review” this year to make sure that InnServices’ rates are appropriate to meet the utility’s future capital infrastructure needs.
Deputy Mayor Dan Davidson had a bad feeling about what that review could showcase.
“This is the beginning of a spiral that we as a municipality are going to face,” he said.
With the amount of growth Innisfil is slated to see in the coming years - whether the town wants it or not, Davidson stressed - the water infrastructure in the municipality will be stretched thin. While development charges can tackle growth-related capital projects, the staff report indicated, water and wastewater rates are set by the town to meet non-growth-related needs.
And without new money coming from the federal or provincial governments, the burden to pay for necessary improvements will fall on the ratepayer, with annual increases of three or four per cent a possibility.
“This is below the rate of inflation, this three per cent increase,” Davidson said. “We’re doing it, but we’re actually falling behind. This is going to escalate more.”
Davidson suggested he and his colleagues look at perhaps letting the County of Simcoe take part in the sharing of water and wastewater costs, allowing them to take the lead in lobbying upper tiers of government for grants to alleviate any potential annual increases in ways the municipality is unable to.
A harmonized rate throughout the county could help the town avoid a “tornado” of increases.
“I think this will be on our agendas for the next 10 years,” Davidson said. “I’m afraid we’re falling behind the rate of inflation where sometime InnServices is going to come to us and say… we’re going to need a 10 per cent or a 15 per cent (increase).”
Coun. Bill Van Berkel and Innsifl CAO Oliver Jerschow - who is also the chair of the InnServices board - agreed Davidson’s comments were valid.
“The increase this year… could be easily five per cent,” Van Berkel said. “We can get by with (three per cent) and that’s all we can do. It will come back in future years where we probably have to play catch up. It’s no different than going through with a zero per cent municipal tax.”
Coun. Alex Waters wanted to make sure residents know that even though rates are going up, each household ultimately controls how much they pay each year for water, while hopeful the town could do more to encourage conservation.
“The rate increase they’re asking for is a volumetric rate increase, which means it’s based on the amount of water you use. So, unlike taxes… there is an opportunity for residents to take a serious look at the way they use water,” he said. “If we’re going to have these kinds of rate increases, at the same time, there has to be on the other side a concrete way to help residents reduce the water they’re using. It’s not enough to send a note out in the mail.”
The new rates come into effect April 1.
