Water and sewer rates going up

By Travis Andersen
Town Correspondent

Melrose residents will pay more for water and sewer service starting in July, but the increase won’t hurt as much as it did in prior years.

The Board of Aldermen passed a measure on Monday to increase the residential water rate by 9 cents per unit in fiscal 2010, which starts July 1.

The new rate, $4.91 per unit, means the average household will pay about $345 in fiscal 2010, an increase of roughly $8 from the current year, according to the Department of Public Works.

The residential sewer rate will jump from $8.24 to $8.97, meaning the average household will pay about $565 for sewer costs in fiscal 2010, up from roughly $519 at present.

“[We] wish there was no increase,” said Patrick Dello Russo, the city’s chief financial officer. “But these are figures we believe are necessary.”

Increases to the total bill – water and sewer – for an average household continue to drop. Households saw a bill increase of 13.5 percent in fiscal 2007; 8.6 percent in fiscal 2008; 6.9 percent in fiscal 2009; and now 6.4 percent in the upcoming year, according to the DPW.

“This shows us that the work we’re doing on the water system is paying off,” said Robert Beshara, superintendent of the DPW.

Dello Russo told the board that 80 percent of the sewer budget goes to the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, the state agency that provides water and sewer services to Melrose and 60 other communities in Greater Boston.

Ward 2 Alderman Monica Medeiros said she wished officials could cut the rates somehow for households.

“At least we are decreasing the increase,” she said.