Citing water department deficit, Campbell to increase water fee

June 10, 2016 at 12:02a.m.

CAMPBELL

The city will restructure and increase its water rates, effective July 1.

The monthly fixed service cost will increase from $12.75 to $21.75. The variable monthly fee will decrease $5.50 per 1,000 gallons consumed to $4.50 per 1,000 gallons consumed. A fixed water capital-improvements fee would remain the same at $6.75 a month.

The average Campbell household uses 4,430 gallons of water a month, according to Finance Director Michael Evanson.

Evanson, Council President George Levendis and Mayor Nick Phillips said the fee increase is necessary to put the water fund in the black. The fund ended April with a deficit of $96,043.

In 2014, the water department ended the year $226,685 in the red. Officials attributed that deficit to Aqua Ohio’s purchasing about $288,160 less in treated water from the city than it had the previous year. To correct that deficit, the city advanced money from the general fund to the water fund. The water fund has so far paid the general fund back all but about $126,000.

The city purchases untreated water from Aqua Ohio, spending about $18,000 a month. Aqua Ohio extracts that water from Lake Hamilton. Campbell treats water at its own plant and sells some of that treated water back to Aqua Ohio.

Phillips has the authority to set water rates. He said, after Levendis brought the issue to his attention, he crunched numbers and decided on the rate increase.

“I’ve been sick about this all weekend,” Phillips said. “If the past administrations hadn’t been putting a Band-Aid on [the deficit], the increase wouldn’t be as steep. They didn’t do their jobs, and now I have to do my job.”

Phillips added he is re-evaluating the city’s finance department staff members, who were appointed under a previous administration.

“I know this will be an unpopular decision,” Levendis said of the fee hike, “but, I cannot in good conscience allow this fund to go into the red. I have to keep us from going back into fiscal emergency.”

The state auditor placed Campbell in fiscal emergency in 2004. The city shed that designation in 2013.

Councilwoman Juanita Rich expressed concerns about the effect of a rate increase on residents.

“I feel like we’ve been blindsided,” Rich said. “We have a lot of senior citizens in this town, and their income is not going up. This is going to be devastating to them.”

The median Campbell household earns $32,154, according to the last year of available data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Per-capita income for Campbell is $18,126 a year. The census estimates close to a quarter of Campbell residents live in poverty.

Levendis said after noticing problems with the water department’s finances, he consulted with a representative from the state auditor’s office. Levendis said because he believed the city could not further cut expenses at the water plant, increasing revenue would be the only solution.

Evanson agreed.

“We’re running very much bare bones now,” Evanson said.

The water department has eight full-time employees in addition to a supervisor, according to Water Superintendent Joe Tovarnak.