Politics & Government

Wrentham Water Rates Staying the Same

Wrentham will be seeing the same rate for over four years.

 

The Wrentham water rate will remain the same for its fourth straight year for 2014, according to the Wrentham department of public works assistant superintendent Jack Manchester.

The board of selectmen voted 4-0, with Michael Carroll abstaining, to accept the DPW’s recommendation to keep rates the same.

Find out what's happening in Wrenthamwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Wrentham will charge $4.90 per thousand gallons for properties that consume less than 50,000 gallons and $5.90 for properties that consume more than 50,000 gallons.

The rate, while the same as previous years, allows for a minimum of $100,000 in excess revenue to help fund capital improvement projects for the town. Currently, the Madison Street Water Main project, the Elysium Street water main project and improvements to the water storage tank mixers are the beneficiary programs for the funds for 2014 and coming years.

Find out what's happening in Wrenthamwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Wrentham ratepayers will see a slight reduction in their rates as well because the assessment for the capital project on the Taunton Street water main has decreased about 8 percent.

Manchester said that in 2013 the DPW was able to buy two new trucks and a backhoe with the saved revenue.

“We anticipate the budget to increase somewhat, but we will still have a certain amount of excess for [the capital improvements] buffer,” he said.

Selectman Michael Carroll expressed doubts that estimates for the costs of such projects will be accurate. He said he thought it deserved more discussion.

“I believe we don’t have sufficient info to forecast whether the current rates would be adequate,” he said.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from Wrentham