Girard water rates

By jeanne starmack

starmack@vindy.com

girard

City water rates will rise 14.3 percent, and customers will notice the increase in July bills, said the city’s service director.

Jerry Lambert said the raise in the rates reflects increases passed on by two of the city’s suppliers — Youngstown and Niles. They and Girard’s third supplier, McDonald, get their water from the Mahoning Valley Sanitary District. McDonald did not increase Girard’s rates.

The city was expecting Youngstown’s 8.75 percent increase, but it was not expecting one, at 12 percent, from Niles.

Youngstown’s increase has been spread out over five years for capital improvements in its water system.

Niles had to pass on an increase because it got one from the MVSD, Niles Service Director Neil Buccino told Girard.

That increase was for operational costs, said Buccino. He said Niles has been absorbing rate increases from the MVSD since the last one was passed on to Girard in 2008.

Under the new rates, water will go up from $8.06 to $9.21 per thousand gallons for the first 10,000 gallons used. After 10,000 gallons, the cost was $7.27 per thousand gallons and that will rise to $8.31.

Lambert said minimum users, who use 3,000 gallons, will see their bills rise from $37.32 to $40.77.

Girard bills every two months.

Lambert said there will be a letter in the water bills that explains the rate increases.