The Nugget Newspaper - News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon

Sisters residents have flooded city hall with complaints over recent water bills. Meters now measure nearly every gallon and once-emerald lawns have withered to a parched brown.

"Everybody is upset. The city council is upset," acknowledged City Administrator Barbara Warren on Friday, September 15.

The new meters are the result of improvements to the Sisters water supply system over the last

couple of years. The new reservoir and supply lines under city streets were partially paid for through state and federal grants and loans.

As a condition of giving this money, the state and federal governments required that water meters be installed.

Residents in Sisters used to pay a flat rate for water, regardless of how much was used. There was no way to detect leaks, unless water started percolating up out of the ground, and no incentive to repair leaks if they were suspected.

On February 23, 1995, the Sisters City Council adopted a resolution setting new water rates. For five-eights or three-quarter-inch meters, typical for a residence or small business, the base rate is $16.50 for the first 10,000 gallons, or 1,337 cubic feet, according to city records.

The base rate for the same 10,000 gallons goes up depending on meter size, to $50 for 3 inch to 8 inch meters serving large commercial clients.

"The council gave each hook-up 10,000 gallons (at the base rate), which they thought would be enough for winter time," said Warren. This was actually perceived to be a decrease, she indicated, since the old flat rate was $18 per month.

Each connection then pays $1.65 for each additional 1,000 gallons, (133.7 cubic feet) after the first 10,000, according to the resolution. Significantly, this is the same as the rate for the first 10,000 gallons -- there is no reduction in rate for additional water use.

There is also an additional monthly fee of $6 to repay the federal loan for the reservoir and water line improvements.

With meters measuring the water, and the city charging for every 1,000 gallons, some local residents have been stunned by the water they used and how much it cost. One residential monthly water bill hit $173, according to administrator Warren.

The high school used $5,264.78 worth of water in August. The Pines, the housing settlement just west of the Three Winds Shopping center serving low-income families, used $4,069.18 worth.

The school district was heavily irrigating its playing fields, at one time significantly drawing down the city's reservoir, according to Warren. She said The Pines has massive leaks in one of the oldest water supply systems in the city.

Neither the school district nor owners of The Pines had to pay the full fee since the city has granted new meter installations a grace period to find and repair leaks or otherwise reduce use.

How do Sisters rates compare to other central Oregon cities? City Manager Warren cautions that a direct comparison is not valid, since Bend and Redmond can each spread costs over a much larger payer base. Still, a direct comparison shows that water in Sisters is much more expensive than elsewhere.

Changing the units of measurement from gallons to the cubic feet used by both Redmond and Bend (1 cubic foot equals 7.479 gallons), Sisters is charging $1.23 for each 100 cubic feet (ccf) used. In Redmond, most of the 4,500 users are charged $9 for the first 500 cubic feet of water ($1.80/ccf), with a charge of $.52/ccf beyond the minimum, according to David Reeves, City of Redmond Finance Director.

Bend charges a flat rate for residential use, according to Beverly Tucker in Bend's accounting and finance department. She said the occupants of a two-bath home would be charged $12.98 for water, plus $13.71 for six months of the year to irrigate a 2,000-square- foot yard, or up to about $27 a month, depending on the season.

For metered users, the Bend rate is $6.36 for the first 600 cubic feet ($1.06/ccf), plus $.61/ccf beyond that, Tucker said.

Tucker said the city of Bend estimates that residential use is 150 gallons of water per day per person, increasing to 450 gallons per day during the irrigation season.

Using those numbers, and assuming a four-person household, it's clear why Sisters residents are so upset.

A four-person household using 18,000 gallons per month in winter would pay nearly $30 in Sisters, plus the $6 FmHA loan repayment. The same use in Bend would cost about $13 at the subsidized flat rate, $17.37 at the metered rate. In Redmond it would cost about $20.

Adding an additional 36,000 gallons for yard watering in summer would add $59 in Sisters, bringing the total bill to $95, or $89 without the FmHA loan repayment. In Redmond, the total bill would be $45. In Bend, the summertime water bill would be $27 at the flat rate and $47 off a meter.

But according to Sisters City Recorder Bernie Sorenson, Sisters residents don't use that much water. In winter, most are under the 10,000 (1337 cubic foot) minimum, Sorenson said, and pay the base of $16.50 plus the $6 FmHA loan repayment, for a bill of $22.50.

In Bend, that water would cost $10.85, and in Redmond, it would cost $13.35.

In summer, Sorenson said residential water accounts were averaging about 2,500 cubic feet (18,700 gallons), costing $30.85, plus $6 for FmHA loan repayment or $36.85. In Bend, that water would cost $17.95, and in Redmond, $19.40.

Whether or not the fees are fair or help conserve water is open to question. Water users in Sisters feel they are being gouged.

At the same time, it can be argued that Redmond and Bend are encouraging waste with rates that decrease with quantity used, and that the first few thousand gallons should in fact be the least expensive, with rates increasing as use goes up.

Another question is how the meters and new rates will impact the city. This was an unknown when the meters were installed, according to Warren, and remains uncertain.

If usage continues at the current rate, which is unlikely, and if rates are not lowered, it will be a considerable windfall for the City of Sisters.

In August 1994, the city of Sisters billed 505 accounts $13,351 for water only, with another $5,485 billed for irrigation, according to city records.

In August 1995, 551 accounts would have been billed $31,098.04, including the $9,334 total that would have been charged to The Pines and the high school if they were not under the grace period for new meter installations.

In fiscal year 1994 (which ends June 30), the city had $152,672 in water revenues, $31,027 more than the $121,645 in water-related expenses.

If the irrigation season lasts from May through September, and if use continues at the rate shown in August 1995, the city would receive $155,490 for those five months alone.

If water use dropped by two-thirds for the other seven months and the city had revenues of $10,000 per month or $70,000, the total income for the year would be $225,490 for the year, about 50 percent more than received on average over the last two years.

However, there is a problem in using these projections. With the price of water jumping so quickly, people will begin to use less. The owners of The Pines have embarked on a serious program to identify and repair leaks. According to City Administrator Warren, many homeowners aside from the large users have also started to look for leaks in their system.

Dripping sinks have been fixed, running toilets have been repaired. So it is still difficult for the city, after only one full month of meter-driven water bills, to determine how much will be used, and what the revenue will be.

There are also possible expenses. Warren said the City of Sisters is being required to complete what could be a very expensive water conservation study, possibly costing $25,000.

The city council may also modify its new rate structure to make it easier for homeowners to water their lawns.

"We don't like what is going on either," said City Administrator Warren. "We are not out here to make a bunch of money. If we find we are more than paying for the system, water rates can come down."

She indicated this was a probable agenda item for the next city council meeting.