GMU Announces Increase In Water, Sewer Rates

Glenwood Municipal Utilities (GMU) customers will receive written notice in the next 7-10 days of a change in rates for all water and sewer service customers.

According to a resolution passed in August by the Glenwood Municipal Utilities Board of Trustees, the minimum monthly bill for GMU customers will increase from $36.57 per month to $51.15 plus taxes. The new rates go into effect Sept. 16 and will appear on bills due Nov. 15.

The new “minimum bill” will include a newly-added $5 water infrastructure fee and a $5 sewer infrastructure fee.
Utilities Superintendent Dave Malcom and GMU Board Chair Doug Meggison said the rate increase will cover the costs of water and sewer expenses incurred during the 2019 flood not covered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), infrastructure repairs and updates and future capital improvement projects. The 2019 flood forced a temporary shutdown of GMU’s water treatment plant.

“We’re over $5 million in expenses from the flood two years ago,” Malcom said. “We’re hoping that 75 percent of that will be covered by FEMA but the rest of the money has to come out of GMU. There is a little bit of state assistance but we’re still going to be stuck with unexpected costs.”
Malcom said work at the water treatment site includes final repairs from the flood, the elevation of wells and the construction of a berm for future flood protection. At his point, none of those projects have been obligated by FEMA, he said.
“We think it’s going to happen. We have weekly meetings with FEMA.,” he said. “We’re keeping our fingers crossed that we’re going to get compensated for it, but GMU has had to pay all the contractors up front. Our general fund has been pretty much depleted.”
Malcom and Meggison said GMU is hoping to stay “ahead of the game” when it comes to making repairs and updates at the nearly 50-year-old water treatment plant and 40-year-old waste water treatment plant.
“The sewer infrastructure fee and the water infrastructure fee are going to play a big role in us being able to do some repairs and have some money sitting there rather than taking it out of the general fund,” Meggison said.
Every day operational costs for both water and sewage treatment are also increasing, Malcom noted.
“Everything is going up, our chemical prices are going up, our power, our gas – everything across the board is going up,” he said.
Malcom also noted that GMU has lost nearly 200 residential customers in the Pacific Junction area as a result of the 2019 flood and a major commercial customer (Love’s Travel Center).
Malcom and Meggison said future capital improvement projects on GMU’s agenda include the construction of a $2.2 million water tower near Lake Ohana and a pumping station at the site of the existing water tower north of the Glenwood city limits on 221st Street.
Meggison said GMU will likely take a loan out to fund construction of the new water tower.

The Opinion-Tribune

116 S Walnut St Glenwood, IA 51534-1665
P.O. Box 377, Red Oak, IA 51566
Phone: 712-527-3191
Phone: 712-623-2566
Fax: 712-527-3193

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