The City of Plant City City Commission voted 5 to 0 Monday night to approve changes to water, stormwater and sewer rates and fees. The recommended changes were a result of hiring Raftelis Financial Consultants, Inc. to prepare a financial forecast through Fiscal Year 2028 to ensure utility revenues will be sufficient to meet the operational and capital needs of each system.
A thorough review of the systems was conducted in 2004 for water development charges, 2006 for wastewater development charges, 2018 for water and sewer rates and 2003 for stormwater.
The City currently serves approximately 14,500 water accounts, 12,000 wastewater accounts and 11,000 stormwater accounts with approximately 3,200 residential units in development and 7,800 residential units planned. Those numbers are expected to increase significantly.
All three water systems (water, wastewater and stormwater) work independently to help water flow to and away from homes and businesses. Water is the treated water that flows from water treatment plants, through pipes and into your home or business. The water that goes down a sink or toilet flows to a wastewater treatment plant, via gravity lines and lift stations, where it’s biologically treated and filtered. Water that flows down roofs, driveways and streets flows into a gutter and goes into a storm drain which flows directly to a canal system, lake or river.
Increased rates may have a positive impact on a sustainable water supply, according to the Southwest Florida Water Management District. Water pricing can “reward customers for making cost-effective changes in water appliances and behaviors through greater savings.”
The changes were approved following a series of public workshops detailing rate studies conducted in November 2023. The water, stormwater and sewer changes will go into effect on January 1, 2024, while the water and wastewater development charges will change on April 1, 2024.
Stormwater rates will increase by $0.39 per ERU (equivalent residential unit) from $8.85 to $9.24 per month. The rate will increase over the next five years to $12.40 on October 1, 2027. An ERU is defined as “the average impervious area of residential developed property per dwelling unit located within the City.” The definition of one ERU will increase from 2,280 to 2,980 square feet of impervious area.
Water utility deposit increases, depending on meter size, which range from 5/8” to 10”, from $176 to $14,080 to $235 to $27,030.
Some miscellaneous charges are also increasing. The new account charge increases from $25 to $45. The Customer Requested Turn-off charge or disconnect after non-payment increases from $50 to $75. Convenience calls (request for repeat trips for rereading meters, checking for leaks and return trips to activate service after the first free call) will increase from $12.41 to $45.
Residential customers will be happy to learn their deposits will be refundable, applied as a credit to the existing account, after two years of good payment history. A new deposit will be required if the account becomes delinquent.
“I feel it’s important that if you pay your bill on time, you aren’t late, why shouldn’t you get your money back,” said City Manager Bill McDaniel. “I think this is a good practice.”
Commercial and industrial water, wastewater and stormwater fees have also been impacted. Apartments will be billed at .5 ERU per dwelling unit. Assisted living facilities will be billed as non-residential. Commercial ERUs will be recalculated based on the new definition of 2,980 versus 2,280.
City commissioners approved a substantial increase in development charges, also known as impact fees, paid by developers, when residential and commercial properties are connected to the water and wastewater systems. Although Florida’s Impact Fee Act states that the fee increase may not exceed 50 percent of the current impact fee rate, it allows an exception for extraordinary circumstances. The study cited significant construction cost inflation, rapid population growth and a lack of existing water system capacity. The existing four water treatment plants have less than 10 percent available service capacity to meet the demand of new development, the increased cost to construct water treatment plant 5 currently under contract and the ability to repay expansion-related debt as extenuating circumstances necessitating the rates to nearly double. For a 5/8” meter, the existing water development charge is $790; the new charge is $1,573. The existing wastewater development charge is $3,120; the new charge is $3,222.
At the commission meeting, Mayor Nate Kilton commented that even though rates are increasing, they’re still in-line with what neighboring municipalities are charging and are needed to maintain the city’s water systems. “We have to make these improvements to keep up with the growth that we’re having, this is an important option for our community,” he said.
A breakdown of the water, wastewater and stormwater rates for the City of Plant City can be found online at plantcitygov.com.