In a 4-1 vote, City Council decided last night to raise water rates by 30%, a result of the increase in the amount that the RSWA is charging for the water. This rate hike expires at the end of the year, by which time a city study should have been completed exploring, among other things, alternate pricing schemes. The new water rates go into effect on July 1st. WINA has the story.
News and meta-news about Charlottesville, VA, since 2001.
Sideblog
Police announced this afternoon that their investigation into what was initially believed to be a fatal fire on Rugby Avenue is now a homicide investigation. #
The Virginia Supreme Court has denied George Huguely’s appeal. His second-degree murder conviction will stand, WRIC reports. #
In a carefully worded story, and not citing specific sources, WTVR reports that forensic evidence belonging to Jesse Matthew Jr., the main suspect in the disappearance of Hannah Graham, matches forensic evidence collected during the investigation of Morgan Harrington’s 2009 murder. #
In the wake of Hannah Graham’s disappearance, and the evidence that came from private security footage, city officials are revisiting the question of installing security cameras on the downtown mall. #
Both Charlottesville Registrar Sheri Iachetta and former Electoral Board member Stephanie Commander have turned themselves in to the police on
foursix and four felony counts of embezzlement, respectively. #Ten years ago, the National Institutes of Health budget doubled and schools like the University of Virginia built massive new research facilities. A decade later, those buildings remain largely underutilized. NPR visits UVA in this story on the effect of federal binge and spurge spending in the sciences. #
In 2012, Council approved a new student housing complex on West Main—now some council members are questioning whether what they were shown matches what was built. #
The Architectural Review Board has approved a bike-themed mural on West Market, below the McGuffey Art Center, although at least one member expressed concerns that it might look like the bicyclists were riding away from Charlottesville’s downtown. #
City Police Chief Tim Longo is meeting with city leaders to work on protocols regarding the use of military surplus police weapons in Charlottesville. #
A 100-year-old Colonnades resident received military honors for her service in the WWII Women’s Army Corps #
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30% water increase. $2 trash stickers. when the hell is city council going to stop gouging city residents out of all their money??? or better yet, when are c’ville residents going to wise up and vote these cocksmooches out of office???
It would be interesting to know what similar-sized cities charge their residents for water and trash. Maybe Charlottesville has been giving residents a bargain on such things in the past and now they are just bringing rates up to what other localities are charging.
If the RWSA is raising the amount that they charge the city for water, why is the city bad for raising our rates? we’re the users of the water, right? is it supposed to come to us free of charge? or heavily subsidized (i.e., make someone else pay for it)?
How much should we be paying for trash and water?
I showed my water bill to my relatives from Richmond and they laughed out loud.
It falls out of the sky for free, people. There’s plenty for all. All they have to do is gather it up and distribute it for a reasonable fee. A private company could do that for a fraction of what the government-mandated monopoly is demanding. Another example of our fine local government at work here. They’d rather charge us endless surcharges for a reservoir that was never built and will never be built than do anything realistic about this artifical crisis they’ve created for us.
That`s right, Bruce.
I have my "lil ole well" out in the county and for all the trash I want to generate it`s 17 bucks
So for 17 dollars a month I get my trash hauled and my duck watered. Not bad, huh?
I have my “lil ole well” out in the county and for all the trash I want to generate it`s 17 bucks
So for 17 dollars a month I get my trash hauled and my duck watered. Not bad, huh?
I’m aware of nothing preventing city residents from digging a well or paying a private company to pick up their trash. If this is such a swell option, how come people aren’t doing this?
Well, Waldo, I dunno why, but your premise (" I know of nothing, etc. ) is a bit shaky. Inasmuch as they don`t do it perhaps there is a legal bar to privately doing this.
Refine/research your premise and we may learn something. Maybe.
…because it’s not free, one, and wells don’t work too well (pun intented) when the power goes out, which is often in this area of the world.
The well needs to be dug and equiped. It needs to be repaired/replaced when it breaks. You may need to filter your water, because sediment can come up. The water pressure may be lousy at times. And you’ll miss that pressure when lightening strikes the antiquated AEP or DP equipment.
It’s a choice many city and county residents can make for themselves, and that’s good.
Well, Waldo, I dunno why, but your premise (” I know of nothing, etc. ) is a bit shaky. Inasmuch as they don`t do it perhaps there is a legal bar to privately doing this.
I was being charitable. There is no reason why people can’t pay a private trash collection service or dig their own well. People don’t do so because — surprise — it’s cheaper to pay the city, who provides water and trash collection at rates below what it would cost to get it from a private corporation.
People don’t do so because — surprise — it’s cheaper to pay the city, who provides water and trash collection at rates below what it would cost to get it from a private corporation.
I’m not sure it’s overall cheaper. But to do it oneself involves an investment in money, time, energy and patience that just aren’t that attractive. Plus, as I was saying higher, all you need is one good pwer outage, say, a few days long, like recently, to realize you’re just swapping one “bad” monopoly for another.
I’m not sure it’s overall cheaper. But to do it oneself involves an investment in money, time, energy and patience that just aren’t that attractive. Plus, as I was saying higher, all you need is one good pwer outage, say, a few days long, like recently, to realize you’re just swapping one “bad” monopoly for another.
I know that trash pickup is cheaper through the city. Water, of course, starts off more expensive (due to the cost of drilling the well) but, should you live in the same place long enough, would presumably be paid off at some point.
Great suggestion. I just picked Asheville, NC, because it’s close by (and presumably affected by the drought; if memory serves, NC had a real problem with that, too, same as us), of a similar size and density to Charlottesville, and a swell town.
Their rates are structured somewhat differently, but similar enough for comparison. They charge $32.20 per 1,000 cubic feet, with a base $4.83 bill. We charge $31.80 per 1,000 cubic feet, with a base $4.00 bill.
Anybody want to provide any more examples?
We’ve gotten 6.5 inches this month, and it’s only half over.
What is the deal? If we are collecting vast amounts of water which we can’t store since our resevoirs are full, why not GIVE it away? Is it that expensive to pump it?
Then do it yourself. My family does. We use substantially less water than most other city residents because we use rain barrels, toilets with two flush types and a low-consumption washing machine and dishwasher. The few of these items that were more expensive than their standard counterparts were negligibly so, and the water cost reduction nearly immediately compensated us and has since saved us notable sums of money. We’re paying less for water now than we were before the drought, and that accounts for the increased water price.
I hear lots of people like yourself complaining about the cost of water and the way the city (which is generally untrue, it’s the RSWA, not the city) is handling the water, and rarely, if ever, offering suggestions for resolving problems. What would be far more effective than that is to fix the problem yourself, right there in your own home. You can do it immediately without having to wait for the city/county/RSWA/whatever, and it will *save* you money, not just keep your costs the same.
And as for your claim that the water crisis was artificial, well, I’m not really sure what to say. We were indeed in a certifiable drought for at least two years, which the local governments have absolutely no control over whatsoever. They can’t change the water table. And it followed that the reservoir’s level did indeed plummet in a plainly dangerous manner. And the general complaint was that the local governments didn’t react quickly enough, rather than overreacting. So I believe your claim comes off fairly baseless to anyone who was paying attention for the past year.