Huber Ridge Area

Dear Neighbors,

Enough is enough.  A RECOMMENDED 30.37% increase for water and 36.94% increase for sewer is outrageous.  We worked so hard to let them know the injustice of it all - yet we got slapped with a recommended HIGHER rate increase.

Not everyone can move - FRANKLY WE SHOULD NOT HAVE TO MOVE!  Our trustees need to fight against this.  We should all deluge them with phone calls along with sending our (new) letters to the PUCO and Governor Strickland.

Call 882-1270 Monday through Friday and ask what our trustees will do to stop this.  Call them at home.  Two of our trustees live in our neighborhood.  Will they write personal letters objecting to this rate increase?

We wrote letters, emails, signed petitions, circulated petitions, attended a public forum - and this is what we get?

The PUCO will decide our case in by October 4, 2008.

Do the math on your water bill.  Most will have to pay at least $30 more per month.  We already pay way too much.  Who is listening to us?  I feel mocked.  How about you?

Talk to you neighbors.  It is time for plan B.  Maybe we need to consider annexation to Westerville, if we can be certain to get their water.  Do not think they pay higher taxes than we do - I have checked and ours are higher.

Meanwhile, what is everyone going to do about this?

Very upset,

Pam Clegg

Thank you Pam. 

I am ashamed to say I did not attend the public meeting regarding this.  I will send letters as you have requested.  Perhaps someone could post an outline of some statistics and facts regarding rate comparisons, service issues, and information regarding our relationship with OAWC.  We can then use that information to construct our individual letters.

I have always been one that believed that private enterprise is more cost effective for services than government entities.  Apparently, that isn't the case here.  Apparently OAWC is more inefficient than government.  What a joke!!!

I understand why you feel mocked.  OAWC is taking full advantage of this situation.

I would love to see us annexed to Westerville with the certainty that we are reliant on OAWC. 

Blair Staud

The "stipulation and agreement" proposal presented to the PUCO commissioners by all parties involved is broken down to figures in our "community pages" section under "OAWC increase huge update" heading. Please take the time to read this and possibly visit the PUCO website and read the entire 52 page proposal, if you have a strong stomach. But I would like to ramble a little more on the subject of just pricing.

OAWC suggest the average consumer bill is now 7 ccf. Let me put a chart together with present rates and the suggested (pending approval) rates. Then I will present Columbus water and Westerville water into the picture.

7 ccf OAWC bill

                                          present                                   pending

water                                 22.45                                     35.35

service charge                   9.45                                       9.55

sewer                                 42.12                                     57.82

reverse osmosis                9.28                                        8.35

total bill 1 month           $83.26                                    $111.03

22 ccf Columbus bill (3 months - quarterly billing) from Feb. 2008 bill

Clean river fund 1 eru          7.74

sewer                                 75.16

storm water 1 eru               11.88

water                                 53.66

total bill 3 months           $148.42

7 ccf  Westerville from may 2008 bill

sewer 1^st 2 ccf                      13.94

sewer over 2 ccf =5ccf         21.15

water  1^st 2 ccf                       4.45

water 1 ccf                             1.52

water next 12ccf = 4             7.96

total bill 1 month                $49.02

To bring into comparison:

Columbus bill of quarterly 22ccf  =           $148.42

Westerville bill x 3 month 7 ccfx3=21ccf   $147.06

OAWCbill x 3 month 7 ccfx3=21ccf          $249.78 now's rates

OAWCbill x 3 month 7 ccfx3=21ccf          $333.09 PUCO's proposed rate

OUTRAGEOUS!!!!!!!! Profit is not a crime but rape is. Mix in the inferior product and service.

SEND LETTERS NOW! ACCOUNTABILITY NOW! NO "STIPULATION AND AGREEMENT"!

These are just the facts in black and white. Blendon Township residents deserve better, heck any human being deserves better. Its water, the basic need to human and animal life!

If this was a normal business they would have run themselves out of business by now. Unfortunately they are PUCO backed, and they are a monopoly! Who suffers? we do! it is apparent no one from the PUCO lives in any OAWC service area.

Where is our state and local government? We need change and accountability now.

We have a very short time to respond to this, Oct 3rd 2008. So lets get your letters in to the PUCO and GOV. Strickland. The address's are:

Honorable Ted Strickland
Governor's Office
Riffe Center, 30th Floor
77 South High Street
Columbus OH 43215-6108

re: PUCO case # 07-1112-ws-air

PUCO
Attention: Docketing Division
180 East Broad Street
Columbus OH 43215

re: PUCO case # 07-1112-ws-air
 

"Stipulation and Recommendation"

The "Stipulation and Recommendation" has been entered into the PUCO docket information case no. 07-1112-WS-AIR regarding Ohio American Water rate increase application on September 4, 2008. The stipulation is not binding upon the Commission. The stipulation is a documentation that represents a cooperative effort among the parties petitioned to this case. The PUCO Commissioners must approve this "Stipulation and Recommendation" before it becomes official.

To briefly summarize the 52-page entry, the entry outlines a proposed monthly customer charge of $9.51 per month for a 5/8" meter; $9.41 is our current charge--an increase of $.10 a month. Water consumption charge for basic water service for the first 13.33 ccf will be increased to $5.0449 per ccf. Currently we are paying $3.2074 per ccf--a increase of $1.8375 per ccf.

Sewer consumption charge: The first 13.33 cubic feet increased to $8.2600 per ccf; our current charge for wastewater is $6.0173 per ccf--an increase of $2.2427 per ccf.

Reverse osmosis charge will be $1.19220 per ccf; our current charge for reverse osmosis is $1.325 per ccf. This will be a decrease of $.1328 per ccf.

This is an increase for Franklin County of 30.37% increase for water and a 36.94% increase for wastewater under this "Stipulation and Recommendation."

In November 2007, Ohio American Water applied for a rate increase asking for an increase of 36.8% on wastewater and a 26.81% increase for water.  Please note the "Stipulation and Recommendation" percentages are higher than what Ohio American Water originally asked for.

Huber Ridge water treatment plant customers were exclusively mentioned in this "Stipulation and Recommentation." To summarize: it is no different than the previous rate increase that improved the water quality but did not resolve all of the issues. In my opinion, repeating the same measure is no fix. This recommendation allows the OAWC to sample the water quality at the plant's service tap; this does account for any infrastructure (lines) problems in our community that may be causing our quality concerns.

To review this entire 52-page report, you can double-click on our PUCO link under "Community Links." Enter 07-1112-WS-AIR in the Docket Information block on the PUCO website. From there, you can view everything!

The PUCO Commissioners still must approve this "Stipulation and Recommendation." This allows us some brief time to write the PUCO and Governor Ted Strickland asking to deny the "Stipulation and Recommendation" and asking for accountability now!

We need to act fast! Get your letters in now!

This is your community! We can and do make a difference!
--Jim Welch, HRAA President