Holmdel raises quarterly sewer rate

HOLMDEL — Residents will see their water and sewer bills increase by $11.25 per quarter this year, an increase triggered by rising costs and a lack of surplus funds.

By a 3-2 vote on Aug. 19, the Holmdel Township Committee approved an ordinance that amends the township’s sewer rental and use charge ordinance, increasing the flat municipal sewer rate from $90 to $101.25 per quarter for residents. Nonresidential and commercial properties will see a $14 increase per quarter in their rates, from $56 to $70.

Mayor Serena DiMaso, Deputy Mayor Patrick Impreveduto and Committeeman Rocco Pascucci voted yes on the ordinance, while Committeeman Larry Fink and Committeewoman Janet Berk voted no.

DiMaso explained that the amended sewer rate structure in the ordinance is based on calculations from the Bayshore Regional Sewerage Authority (BRSA).

The authority, which bills eight municipalities, including Holmdel, calculates its expenses for the year and comes up with a flow rate, which is $4,782.19 per million gallons for the year 2010, according to documentation from BRSA.

“I placed a call to the chairman of the Bayshore Regional Sewerage Authority,” DiMaso said. “He said he did all he could to pull down costs this year and what he is charging us is what he has to charge us. Their fees went up and his rent went up, and that’s just the way it is.”

The authority is predicting a threepronged component of rate reductions by the year 2012, including the retirement of debt associated with the upgrade of its 24- acre wastewater treatment plant, grant money and rebates from both the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the Board of Public Utilities (BPU), and savings from the wind-to-energy project.

The local governing body, faced with a $587,846 reduction in state aid, a $350,000 decrease in surplus funds, and an $184,000 reduction in the township’s capital fund balance under its $19.4 million 2010 spending plan, has “no other choice” than to raise sewer rates, DiMaso said.

“I don’t want to increase it anymore than anybody else does,” DiMaso said. “I know that if and when I vote yes, it is going be used against me politically, but I have to do what’s best for the township and balance this budget. It had to be submitted by July, and it’s already a month late. We have to send out the sewer bills, which we have not done.”

During the public hearing on this ordinance, resident Anthony Cooper called it “appalling” and “unfair” that the governing body would resort to raising sewer fees instead of addressing township-wide overspending.

“Over the years, many Holmdel residents such as myself have paid thousands of dollars to the sewerage utility plant, and as recently as five years ago that fund had a very healthy surplus to meet legitimate sewer emergencies,” Cooper said.

He said that more than $2 million was used from the township’s sewerage utility surplus to subsidize Holmdel’s 2006 and 2007 municipal budgets. For the future, Cooper suggested that the Township Committee should not offset municipal budgets with surplus sewer money, end sewer-connection subsidies to new users from surplus funds and anticipate reductions from the BRSA.

“Clearly, this was an unfair and discriminatory action by this Township Committee,” he said.

Fink agreed with Cooper, saying that the new rates place another economic burden on the community at large.

“The rate increase that is proposed is a 12.5 percent increase,” Fink said. “I have to say that is a rather large increase in these tough economic times for people to swallow. I listened carefully to what Mr. Cooper had to say, and I agree with much, if not all, of his sentiments. I would like to see us, in lieu of passing this ordinance, make a request to the Bayshore Regional Sewerage Authority to work with us to lower the cost that they charge to us and other towns, and see if that would be a way to get the budget balanced rather than increasing fees to residents at this time.”

According to a previous statement from BRSA Executive Director Robert Fischer, the authority is projecting that it will lower sewer rates by 20 percent in 2012 and by another 15 percent by 2013 as a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding for the 1.5-megawatt industrial wind turbine and the retirement of debt at the plant.

However, Berk said the Township Committee would not be raising sewer rates this year if the $2 million utility surplus was available to provide taxpayer relief, but DiMaso said the funds helped lower the tax rate in years past.

“There’s been a lot of decisions made over the years in order to help the taxpayers as a whole to reduce their tax bills, and unfortunately this is one of the times we need to make an adjustment upward,” Di- Maso said. “As soon as we can, I promise, we will reduce it. If the rates go down next year from Bayshore Regional Sewerage Authority, then we will absolutely be the first to ask for a reduction because that’s what’s fair. I am trying to be as fair as I can.”