St. Petersburg residents could see their monthly utility bills climb by nearly 7% next year, an increase city officials say is needed largely to maintain existing services and keep planned infrastructure work moving as costs rise.<\/p>\n
The proposed rates, outlined in a presentation to the St. Petersburg City Council Aug. 6, would increase the monthly bill for what the city considers a typical residential customer by 6.86%. Customers who also receive reclaimed water, treated wastewater reused for lawn irrigation, would see a 7.71% increase.<\/p>\n
The city\u2019s estimate is based on a household using 3,500 gallons of water per month. The actual increase would vary based on water use and the services a household receives.<\/p>\n
Utility bills cover several city services, and their rates would not all rise by the same amount. Drinking water would increase 7.5%, wastewater 6.5%, garbage and recycling 6% and stormwater 8.5%. Each increase applies only to that service\u2019s share of the bill. Reclaimed water would increase 9.75%.<\/p>\n
The increases come as the city\u2019s own affordability review shows rising utility costs are beginning to put more pressure on household budgets. While several measures still indicate bills are generally affordable, others show growing strain, particularly for lower-income residents. The city\u2019s analysis warns that continued rate increases could make affordability a greater concern.<\/p>\n
Council Member Richie Floyd questioned whether looking at the rates one year at a time understates what residents have been asked to absorb over the past decade.<\/p>\n
He also raised a broader issue: whether today\u2019s ratepayers are being asked to shoulder the cost of infrastructure investments that the city did not make years ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe feel like we\u2019re more than making up for maybe a lack of investment in the past,\u201d Floyd said. \u201cAnd I thought that that was a fair analysis if we look at it cumulatively.\u201d<\/p>\n
City officials said holding rates flat would come with its own consequences.<\/p>\n
Public Works Administrator Claude Tankersley said the proposal does not add employees or new services. The additional revenue is needed to cover rising costs while maintaining current operations and projects already in the city\u2019s plans.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo if we did a zero rate increase this year, we would have to look at how we would reduce those operation costs, and I don\u2019t know how we would do that without having to cut staff, to be honest with you,\u201d Tankersley said.<\/p>\n
The utility increase also comes as St. Petersburg prepares to ask voters to pay for another major infrastructure investment.<\/p>\n