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SHEILA MULLANE ESTRADABelleair Beach officials consider placing a cap on bills, changing the rate structure or joining the county sewer system.
BELLEAIR BEACH - A new rate structure that has increased some residential sewer bills fourfold since March may be changed, largely as a result of a contentious City Council meeting Monday night.
The council is considering placing a cap on sewer bills, recalculating the rate structure or even turning over the sewer system to Pinellas County.
Nearly 100 residents packed council chambers Monday, complaining that they cannot continue to irrigate their lawns if the sewer rates are not reduced.
Last year the council hired a consultant who recommended the city change to a rate system that would bill residents based on water usage. Although city officials estimate that nearly half the water delivered to the town is used for irrigation, there is no way to determine exactly how much each resident contributes to the sewer system.
"I don't mind paying for the water. I take pride in my home and I don't want to see rocks in my yard. You need to step to the plate and do what is necessary," said Belleair Beach resident Jim Miller.
"We are paying four times what the flat rate was," said John Robertson, mayor of Belleair Shore, a gulffront community served by the Belleair Beach sewer system. He urged the council to come up with a common-sense solution.
For the city, the issue is red ink. The city's previous sewer rates, based on a flat fee, did not generate enough revenue to pay for both maintenance and fees charged by the county to process the sewage.
The situation was exacerbated in 2001 when the county increased the amount it charged municipalities for wastewater treatment. The city had to subsidize the sewer fund roughly $3,600 each month because of the imbalance.
The new rate structure was based on a monthly rate ranging from $8.89 to $71.12, depending on the size of the water meter, plus $2.84 for every 1,000 gallons used.
The council anticipated that some residents who irrigated their lawns with tap water would pay higher bills, but no one realized how much higher they would be.
The first sewer bills under the new rate structure ranged from $20.62 to more than $700, according to Tim Wiley of Pinellas County Utilities.
Many residents immediately cut back their water usage, with the result that 68 percent of the residential sewer bills are now either the same or lower when compared to the previous billing system, according to Bert Cutler, presiding officer of the Belleair Beach City Council.
But that fact did not mollify the residents at Monday's council meeting.
"My water and sewer bill was higher than my paycheck," said Richard Conrath, a college professor.
Rudy Davis urged the city to return to a flat rate billing system. "To be penalized (for irrigating landscaping) is totally unacceptable. You should refund those of us who were overcharged."
One resident cautioned council members against penalizing owners of smaller homes. "A flat rate is not fair. Some of us would be paying the same as large home owners. If you can afford to have a big house, you can afford to pay for the sewer rates," said Randy Ware.
The council is considering a 35,000-gallon cap on the sewer rate, which would keep bills from exceeding about $117 (for homes with a three-fourths-inch meter). City officials are concerned, however, about maintenance costs. Currently, the city faces a $100,000 repair to part of the system.
"I think we should pursue turning the system over to the county," Cutler said, adding it could take at least a month to research an alternative billing structure. "The city has its work to do."
Both the city's consultant and its attorney strongly recommended that the city not return to a flat-rate system, which would penalize those who use less water by forcing them to subsidize residents who use large amounts of water to irrigate their lawns.