Plainfield residents will see a water rate increase Feb. 1 due to price increases by Chicago for Lake Michigan water.
Under an ordinance passed last month, the charge for 100 cubic feet of water will increase from $5.32 to $5.82. That means the overall water and sewer bill for using an average of 800 cubic feet a month, or about 6,000 gallons, will increase by $4, from $74.16 to $78.16, according to village documents.
The sewer and capital improvement charges, $23.60 and $8, respectively, for an average monthly user, will remain the same.
Increases also will follow in 2016 and 2017 by $2.30 and $2.40, respectively, for the average user.
Even with a 50-cent reduction in the $8 capital surcharge that will take effect in 2016, a resident using 800 cubic feet a month will pay $82.86 for the service by 2017, compared with $74.16 today, according to village records.
The 10 percent discounted rate for senior citizens who qualify for the county’s tax freeze exemption will remain in effect.
Plainfield Mayor Michael Collins said the price increases stem from Chicago raising its rate to supply Lake Michigan water. In recent years, Plainfield received “the great gift from the city of Chicago” via an annual water rate increase of 25 percent, followed by three years of 15 percent increases each year after that, Village Manager Brian Murphy said.
He said this will be Chicago’s final 15 percent increase year, and that any future increases for Lake Michigan water will be tied to the producer price index, which should mean less drastic increases.
Collins said “the only reason” rates were being increased in Plainfield was Chicago’s actions.
“We’ve phased (the increases) in so that it’s not blunt trauma, if you will, for the residents,” he said. “Nobody likes to have increases in anything. But rather than raising our tax rate, this is one of the best ways we can do it.”
Paying for Lake Michigan water is a better alternative than existing well sources, Collins said.
“It’s better than having the radon in the water from our deep wells,” he said. “We think over the long haul this is going to be beneficial for our residents.”
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