Aldermen Approve Water, Sewer Rate Hikes For Next Year

The Melrose Board of Aldermen passed the water and sewer rate increases for next year as originally proposed on Monday night, after attempts to cut from the budget to lower the rate increases quickly went nowhere.

The increases are:

• The residental water rate will increase 5 percent to $5.25 per 100 cubic feet of usage. The current rate is $5.
• The commercial water rate will increase 5.39 percent to $6.45 per 100 cubic feet of usage. The current rate is $6.12.
• The residential and commercial sewer rate will increase 2.3 percent to $9.35. The current rate is $9.14.

Last week, by Melrose Public Works Superintendent Bob Beshara and Deputy City Engineer John Scenna, Board President and Aldermen at-Large Don Conn, Jr. said he would "make some motions to cut some things" in order to drive down the rates further. Beshara and Scenna were not present at Monday's meeting.

Noting that every $6,705 cut from the $4,351,794 Water Enterprise Budget would translate to a one-cent reduction in the rate, Conn's first motion on Monday night to cut $1,000 from the part-time salary and wages line passed without debate.

Would cuts stymie any emergency repairs?

However, Conn's next motion to cut $5,000 from the overtime line item led to Ward 5 Alderman Gail Infurna saying she was uncomfortable passing any cuts to the budget without the department heads being here to talk about how those cuts would affect them, adding that cuts could leave the city "scrambling" in the case of emergency projects, such as water main breaks and other emergency repairs. Alderman at-Large Mary Beth McAteer Margolis agreed on both points.

On the other side, Ward 1 Alderman John Tramontozzi said that the board had already heard from Beshara and Scenna and that the public elected the aldermen to scrutnize the city's budgets. Conn added that he thought Beshara and Scenna would be in attendance and that any emergency repairs would always be completed and not stalled until the budget could be verified.

Conn also said that the board needs to be "as precise as we possibly can," because the budgets represent a direct charge to the ratepayers.

"Last year, luckily we had a surplus in these accounts, which is good from one perspective but bad from another," he said. "It means we weren’t incredibly precise."

Beshara told the board last week that a projected $150,000 surplus from the current water budget would be applied to next year.

Auditor: Projected budget surplus this year actually result of surplus from previous year

However, in response to questions from Ward 3 Alderman Frank Wright, Patrick Dello Russo, Melrose city auditor and chief financial officer, said that the city first came out of fiscal 2010 with a $500,000 surplus that was applied to fiscal 2011. Then, the fiscal 2011 budget had the aforementioned $150,000 surplus.

Wright pointed out that meant the city was actually down $350,000 this past year in its water budget, with the previous year's surplus covering that loss. Beshara told the aldermen last week that Melrose's water use was up: In calendar year 2009, the city used 751 million gallons of water, and in calendar year 2010, the city used 825 million gallons.

"If we hadn’t have that $500,000 cushion, we wouldn’t have collected enough money to pay our assessment and repairs," Wright said.

"And we surely would not be able to apply the $150,000 to lower the rate (next year)," Dello Russo responded.

Dello Russo also said that the rate increases are driven by an increase in assessments from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA). The MWRA's preliminary fiscal 2012 water assessment is an 8 percent increase over the current fiscal year, a total of $2.26 million, while the sewer assessment is a 3.5 percent increase over the current year, a total of $5.43 million.

With an apparent lack of consensus on the board to pass any cuts, Conn said he would forgo proposing anymore reductions in the budget, saying "I don't think it's productive to spend time cutting $1,000."

Conn added that water and sewer budgets have been "managed responsibility," with Melrose having never seen a mid-year change in the rates or any deficits in those budgets. He also reiterated that surpluses in the budgets come from the ratepayers and again commended the administration for applying the surplus to next year's budget to stem any rate increases.

"I think that’s the fair practice. I’m glad to see that’s the path we’re going to follow," he said. "It's apparently good accounting practice, and also morally right and the fair thing to do."

"Hear hear," Infurna added.

The new rates and budgets were recommended by the Appropriations Committee and then passed by the full board by a 7-3 vote, with Conn, Tramontozzi and Ward 2 Alderman Monica Medeiros opposed. Alderman at-Large Jackie Lavender Bird was absent.