Residents in Christiansburg say they’re fed up with rising bills for water that is sometimes discolored.
The villagers pay a flat rate for water, and for years that price remained stable. But in late 2019, water bills jumped — and in some cases, doubled.
“For a lot of us, it’s payable,” said Christiansburg resident Brian Moore. “But for some of the older people on fixed incomes, it’s really not.”
For someone living in the village limits, they now pay about $120 a month for water and sewer services.
Moore said a fire was lit under him when he started listening to people in the village talk about their own struggles via a village Facebook page.
He said he took his concerns to the most recent village council meeting, but felt what he was saying wasn’t taken seriously.
LOCAL: Urbana man sentenced to jail after attempting to meet 12, 13-year-old girls
“They have to give us clean, drinkable water at an affordable rate. That’s all we’re asking for,” he said.
Just outside of the village, Tim Reuber and his wife also use Christiansburg water and said their rates increased from $32.50 per month to $75 per month.
He said while they can afford the rate, for him — it’s a matter of principle. He said he’s looked into other municipalities bigger than the village of Christiansburg that are not paying nearly that much for water.
“I brought it up to the council that really the only fair and equitable way to do this across the board would be to put water meters in — and that was like throwing daylight on a vampire,” Reuber said. “It’s not a good business practice…I have a car payment. Every month Nissan isn’t going to send me a message and say, ‘Hey, just because we had a bad quarter doesn’t mean we’re going to double your rate.”
Two village council members did not return messages for comment on the increase, but a letter sent to Reuber from the village council says they “had no choice” but to increase water bills because of “rising costs of providing water to the village.”
The letter said the cost to coat the inside of the village’s water tower had to come in part from reserve emergency funds.
“Everything we spend money on like chemicals, electricity, operations, maintenance, etc. have all gone up over the years,” the letter says.
And while Reuber said he doesn’t have too many problems with the quality of his water, Cecil Miller and his wife said they do, although it doesn’t stop them from drinking it.
He said whether the water is clear or not is variable and has been for years.
CHAMPAIGN COUNTY: Mechanicsburg’s Kaleb Romero enjoying breakout season at OSU
“She’s ruined a lot of clothes with that rusty looking water,” Miller said.
Other residents said they go out and buy bottled water when the quality isn’t clear.
The Ohio EPA said drinking water samples from the village are meeting safe drinking water standards.
“The village received reports of discolored water on January 31. Christiansburg officials have informed Ohio EPA that the village flushed the water system and the drinking water currently is running clear,” a statement says.
Moore said he’s encouraging all residents who have concerns to show up to the next village council meeting at 7 p.m. on Feb. 18.
“We’re tired of having bad water. We’re tired of not getting answers from the village council, and we’re tired of not being represented by the people who are supposed to represent us,” he said. “So we’ll be there at the next meeting, and we hope they’re ready for it.”
Thank you for reading the Springfield News-Sun and for supporting local journalism. Subscribers: log in for access to your daily ePaper and premium newsletters.
Thank you for supporting in-depth local journalism with your subscription to the Springfield News-Sun. Get more news when you want it with email newsletters just for subscribers. Sign up here.
"much" - Google News
February 15, 2020 at 07:02AM
https://ift.tt/3bIM2MS
Christiansburg residents say they’re paying too much for water - Springfield News Sun
"much" - Google News
https://ift.tt/37eLLij
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Christiansburg residents say they’re paying too much for water - Springfield News Sun"
Post a Comment