Canfield city utility bills to go up $15 per quarter

CANFIELD

Council members approved a $15 quarterly increase to city utility customers’ bills, to generate more money for stormwater infrastructure upgrades.

The ordinance, approved as an emergency after a first reading during Wednesday’s regular council meeting, bumps the fixed $9 quarterly fee to $24, in order to generate an annual stormwater fund surplus of about $358,610.

Single-family residents can expect to pay $60 more a year on utility bills, he said. The increase will take effect on the next billing cycle.

City Manager Wade Calhoun said the fee has not changed since 2003 and “it was about time for that stormwater increase.” The fee was first introduced at $1 a month in 1992.

Though some residents questioned whether officials would make good use of the fee increase during a late June meeting on the proposal, the measure found supporters Wednesday.

Read more about the matter in Friday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.