Politics & Government
Get Ready, Here It Comes: Utility Fee Increases for 2014
How will your water rates and other utility fees be impacted by increases in 2014?
Downers Grove residents will soon see heftier water and utility bills.
Beginning with bills distributed after March 1, 2014, the new bi-monthly rates for water usage and the fixed charge by water meter size are as follows.
Bi-Monthly Rate Per Unit (1 unit = 750 gallons)- Inside Village: $5.23 (from $4.89)
- Outside Village: $6.00 (from $5.61)
Bi-Montly Fixed Charge by Water Meter Size
- 5/8-inch: $11.55 (from $10.50)
- 1-inch: $17.33 (from $15.75)
- 1 and 1/2-inch: $57.77 (from $52.52)
- 2-inch: $92.42 (from $84.02)
The typical residential user operating on 5/8-inch pipes will see a roughly $6.00 increase in the bi-monthly bills.
Find out what's happening in Downers Grovewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
WHY THE INCREASE?
The DuPage Water Commission (DWC) purchases Lake Michigan Water from the City of Chicago and in turn, distributes and sells it to member communities, including Downers Grove.
Find out what's happening in Downers Grovewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The water rate hike includes increases from the DWC—which went into effect Jan. 1, 2012. The City of Chicago increased its water rates, which trickles down to all the communities it supplies. Part of the increase also includes increases in DWC's debt service payments and planned capital improvements. See more on the Village's website.
Stormwater Rate Increase
Stormwater utility rates also went up, beginning with any bills dated Jan. 1, 2014 and later.The increase is to align with the recommendations of the 2012 Stormwater Study, which created the plan for the implementation of the stormwater utility in 2013.
The fee covers the cost of future capital projects, paying off any debt related to those projects, and also operational and maintenance costs. The stormwater management costs are now fully shifted away from the property tax levy.
RATE
Single Family Residence
(2,501-4,000 sq. ft. of
impervious area.)
- New fee: $107.28
- Old fee: $100.80
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