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Round Hill water rates set for 83 percent hike

Susan Wood

Faced with drought conditions and rising costs, Round Hill water district officials are evaluating a rate hike for nearly 500 users behind Round Hill Square.

The board is proposing an increase from $30 to $55 for the average monthly bill, an 83 percent increase.

If approved, the rate hike would take effect Aug. 1. The last increase was in 1993, raising the average bill from $10 a month to $30.



The rate hike is needed to offset a water fund that has lost money in the last decade, experienced an increase in costs from electricity, a shrinking water supply and a substandard filter plant, district manager Cameron McKay said Friday.

The district wants to build a larger filter plant to increase flow and move its existing intake lines. It also plans to build another water tank with state funding upon approval from the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency.



“The plant is not big enough. And if everybody would quit watering their lawns so much, it would be fine,” McKay said.

McKay is also concerned about increased fire danger and would like to see a water reserve that doubles the supply “to be safe.”

Currently, users are tapping out the maximum flow capacity to 600,000 gallons a day, equivalent to what users consume in August.

“We realize (the increase is) hard for people on fixed incomes, but we have to do it,” he said. “It’s scary – the water usage.”


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