If you live within an area served by either of Chemung County’s two sewer districts, you can expect to see a big increase in your bill.
The county recently sent out notices to customers in the Chemung County Elmira Sewer District — which serves the City of Elmira, the Town of Elmira, and portions of the Town of Southport — informing them their user rate will increase by 45%.
Customers in Chemung County Sewer District No. 1 — which includes the Village of Elmira Heights, most of the Village of Horseheads, and portions of the towns of Elmira, Horseheads, Veteran, and Big Flats — will see a 78% increase in their user fees.
Why are Chemung County sewer bills going up?
The county has little choice in the matter, according to County Executive Christopher Moss, as it has to spend up to $285 million to upgrade its aging wastewater treatment facilities under orders from the state Department of Environmental Conservation.
“It hasn’t been upgraded for decades. We were mandated by DEC,” Moss said. “If we don’t meet their timeline, there will be substantial fines daily. We’ve been working on it for two years.
“This is a problem we inherited. Now we’re told by DEC we have to do it,” he said. “It’s one of the biggest infrastructure projects in Chemung County.”
About 80% of the 35,000 households in the county and more than 90% of all businesses are served by Chemung County’s two sewer districts.
Sewer rates are based on water usage, even though some residential customers who have sewer line hookups also have their own private wells.
Residents with wells who feel they aren’t being accurately billed for sewer service have the option of buying meters to monitor their water usage, Moss said.
Sewage from the Chemung County Elmira Sewer District is treated at a 35-year-old wastewater treatment plant on Milton Street, while wastewater from Sewer District No. 1 is treated at a 62-year-old facility on Lake Street.
Under the state-mandated upgrade, the county is working to modernize and expand the Milton Street wastewater treatment plant, take the Lake Street plant out of service, and consolidate the two facilities.
In March, Chemung County was awarded more than $200 million in state and federal money for the project, but that figure is misleading, said Alexandra Rennie, executive director of the county’s two sewer districts.
Only a small part of that money is in the form of grants, and the rest is zero interest loans the county has to pay back, Rennie said.
“Only 22% of the project is funded at this time,” she said.
“The life expectancy for this type of facility is 30 years. We’ve exceeded that for both,” Rennie said. “We haven’t had an important upgrade for either facility. The last one was in 1989.”
Chemung County sewer customers not happy
Customers can expect more rate hikes in 2025 and 2026 as the project is completed, but rates should stabilize after that, Moss said.
The county has tried to keep the public informed about the sewer upgrade project and its impact, Rennie said, but she admits her office has gotten some complaints.
Among the residential customers who said he was blindsided by the fee increase is Roy Reed, of Grove Street in Elmira.
Tourism 1.3M visitors and counting: Watkins Glen ready for strong tourism season in NY’s Finger Lakes
Reed said he was unaware of what the county was doing until he received a card May 18 informing him of the 45% increase in sewer rates.
“I received little to no input before the increase or the opportunity to have a discussion about the matter,” said Reed, who added he has lived in Elmira for more than 30 years.
“Forty-five percent is much more than the cost of inflation,” he said. “Several years ago the city increased taxes 17%, also more than inflation. Any other entity except the government would not be allowed to do this.”
Follow Jeff Murray on Twitter @SGJeffMurray. To get unlimited access to the latest news, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
This article originally appeared on Elmira Star-Gazette: Elmira area residents with public sewer service to see big rate hike
Source Agencies
