To the editor,
I am a retired schoolteacher on a fixed income. I budget carefully. I know within a few dollars what my electricity and heating oil will cost each month, and I plan accordingly. But my water and sewer bill from the town has become impossible to predict.
In January, my quarterly bill was $186. In April, it was $214. That is a 15 percent increase in three months. When I called the town office to ask why, the clerk told me the rates had been adjusted and that a notice had been sent with the January bill. I checked. It was a single paragraph printed in eight-point type on the back of the billing statement. I am not confident I would have noticed it if I had not been looking for it.
I am not opposed to rate increases when they are necessary. The town’s water infrastructure is old — I know that. The main on Elm Street bursts every other winter, and the repair crews do good work. But a 15 percent jump with no public hearing and no visible discussion at Town Meeting feels less like responsible management and more like an end run around the voters.
The selectmen ought to hold a public information session on water and sewer rates before the next round of bills goes out. Let the town’s residents see the numbers and ask questions. That is how things are supposed to work.
Sincerely,
Ms. Ruth Pendelton 12 Elm Street Willow Creek