Ypsilanti Township residents will soon see their water and sewer rates increase.
Ypsilanti Community Utility Authority executive director Jeff Castro said the rate increases are a result of the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department passing on increases to the YCUA.
A minimum user will see a 4.77-percent increase on their bi-monthly bill, or approximately $2.23. The average user - which Castro said is typically a family of four - will see a 4.75-percent increase, or approximately $4.43 per bi-monthly bill.
A minimum user uses under 600 cubic feet bi-monthly while an average household uses between 1600 and 2000 cubic feet bi-monthly.
The Ypsilanti Township Board of Trustees unanimously approved a first reading of the increases, which would go into effect in October.
Jeff Castro
Tom Perkins | For AnnArbor.com
The DWSD passed on a 6.3-percent increase in operating costs and a 6-percent increase in its fixed rate. No matter how little a consumer uses, they are automatically charged a minimum, or fixed, rate.
Castro said water usage in Michigan is dropping in general and the DWSD needs to make up for those lost revenues by increasing the fixed rate.
Ypsilanti Township Treasurer Larry Doe noted that the YCUA was able to pass on a much smaller increase to its customers than what the DWSD passed on to it.
“That’s due to the containment of other operating costs,” Castro said.
Ypsilanti Township’s water consumption has dropped by 24-percent over the past five years, which is largely attributed to its loss of industry. At one time the GM Willow Run Plant was the largest water user of its kind in the country.
Despite that, Castro said the township’s levels have been stabilizing and the YCUA is projecting that usage will continue to stay at current levels.
“We’ve seen the worst,” Castro said. “We’ve hit bottom and, projecting out, we see the future looking bright.”
The Ypsilanti City Council and Ypsilanti Township Board of Trustees must approve rate increases. YCUA Customers last saw a rate increase in late 2012.
Tom Perkins is a freelance reporter. Contact the AnnArbor.com news desk at news@annarbor.com.