Thumbnail photo: Crescent City wastewater treatment plant | Photo by James Brooks
Three harbor commissioners declined taking a position on whether or not Crescent City’s water and sewer rates should increase.
Chairman Rick Shepherd, Vice Chairman John Evans and their colleague Gerhard Weber abstained from a vote to oppose the proposed rate increases. Though they toured the sewer plant with City Manager Eric Wier, Shepherd and Evans said taking a position on the issue would be difficult for them.
Shepherd echoed points Wier has made to the Crescent City Council — that it’s been about 10 years since water and sewer rates have increased and that the sewer system is in dire financial straits. But, Shepherd also noted that the increased water and sewer rates may cost the Crescent City Harbor District $10,000 to $12,000 a year.
“That’s a cost that we don’t have,” Shepherd said, adding that he sympathized with water and sewer customers that are on a fixed income and noted that gas prices and inflation are also increasing. “It’s really difficult for me to make a stand on this because, like I said, I do believe that the rates are valid.”
Water and sewer customers have until 4 p.m. Monday to submit a Proposition 218 protest letter opposing the rate increases. Letters can be sent to Crescent City Hall by mail or in person.
Accountholders can also submit protests at a public hearing scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday at the Flynn Administrative Center. Under Proposition 218, the rate increase is not allowed to proceed if the city receives valid protests from 50% plus 1 of the total number of eligible properties with water and sewer accounts.
Only one protest letter per property will be counted for each proposed rate adjustment, Wier told the City Council at an April 20 meeting.
If the protest fails, monthly water rates for the “typical residential customer” who uses 500 cubic feet of water monthly, bills are expected to increase from $22.49 per month to $46.18 in July 2026. Rates will increase to $48.41 in July 2027; $50.86 in July 2028; $53.55 in 2029; and $56.50 in 2030.
If the sewer protest fails, rates for customers within the city limits would go from $72.21 to $98.06 as of July 1. Rates for single-family residential customers would increase by $12.26 in 2027; $7.17 in 2028; $6.46 in 2029 and $6.20 in 2030. According to a sewer rate study by Willdan Financial Services, monthly sewer rates for residential customers within city limits would be $130.15 in 2031.
Evans agreed that paying an additional $10,000 would be a lot to carry for the Crescent City Harbor, though he said he understood the need to keep the infrastructure operating properly.
Evans said he also considered that with the proposed increases, the city’s water and sewer rates would be lower than most Northern California communities. He also asked what would happen if the water and sewer systems went bankrupt.
“Financially that’s a hard pill to swallow for the harbor and the increased pricing,” Evans said.
Though they were unable to take a stance on the proposed rate increases, Shepherd said modifications could be made to the sewer mains within the harbor that would save the district about $300 to $400 a month.
Even if the rate increase fails, Shepherd said CCHD and the city should work together to reduce the size of those pipes. He also noted that there’s a meter connected to a bathroom facility that had been demolished that the Harbor District is still paying about $24 a month for.
“I think we’re going to do an audit on our meters in the harbor and maybe get (them) a little bit more efficient,” he said.
It was Shepherd’s colleague Dan Schmidt who proposed officially opposing the rate increases. He noted that many senior citizens, including those who have paid off the mortgage on their house, don’t have the funds to foot the increased bills. Schmidt also noted the future development that’s already starting to be realized.
“In the old days, in Southern California, they would form what’s called an area of benefit district,” Schmidt said. “Schools, landscape, maintenance, stop signs, all of that would be paid for by the future developers. They’re the ones that are bringing the impact that result in the increased costs whereas us old folks that have been around for awhile, we’ve already paid for all that.”
Evans noted that developers do pay connection fees to hook up to water and sewer.
“Having these new apartments, it’s not overloading the facility,” he said. “They’re paying into it now.”
The city’s sewer fund is expected to run out of money in about two years if rates aren’t increased, Wier told councilors on April 6. The Proposition 218 process comes as the city is pursuing $50 million in grants from the Clean Water State Revolving Fund to replace aging equipment with more up-to-date technology that allows the plant to handle wet weather flows.
About a month ahead of presenting the rate studies and proposed increases to the City Council, Wier said the city had received a $228,000 fine associated with stricter National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit standards on total Coliform bacteria.
During Wednesday’s Harbor District meeting, Shepherd said the money to replace the city’s aging equipment is coming from grants, not the proposed rate increases
