The Brattleboro Selectboard has been trying to establish new water and sewer rates to defray the cost of the proposed new wastewater treatment plant, and as of last Thursday, they thought they had a plan. But Public Works Director Steve Barrett noticed that for businesses with high water usage, the impact of the first year rate hike was going to be substantial. At today's special Selectboard meeting, Barrett asked the board to reconsider water usage rates and try to spread out the increases a bit more.

If you'll recall, the plan as of last week was to raise the water usage rate from $1.72 per 100 cubic feet to $2.72, an increase of exactly $1, and to do so immediately. Thereafter, water rates were to rise at approximately 3% per year for the next 20 years.

Under a new plan, devised this week, water usage rates have been revised downward such that the first year rate increase is a more modest 20 cents. Increases in future years would average between 3 and 4% with the goal of reaching a budget surplus of around $500,000 in 2022.

Obviously the price of the bond that these increases are paying for has not gone down. The board was able to reduce water rates by reducing the amount of the expected surplus from $1,000,000 by 2022 to half that. According to Dora Bouboulis, there was sentiment at the meeting that trying to save up a $1 million dollar surplus in today's climate was not realistic. Sondag said that the board did not want to have businesses fleeing town and homeowners digging wells.

Sondag said that she hoped people turn out for the information sessions on April 15th and the 28th at Academy School. She also expressed concern that enough people will turn out for the Special Town Meeting (May 7) and bond vote (May 8).

The Selectboard will be meeting again on Monday at 4pm to finalize rates and other matters related to the Special Town Meeting. There will be a first reading of the revised ordinance at the board's regular April 21 meeting.

For information on the new sewer rates, which were not revised at this meeting, see Brattleboro Water and Sewer Rates Are Going Up - For The Next 20 Years