Over the previous 10 years, St. Helena has elevated its water charges by 150 p.c to attempt to enhance our water provide system. But even with these big charge will increase, we’re nonetheless looking out for unfinished capital enhancements that needed to be paid for from the 2017 water charge will increase. A few of these initiatives haven’t even been accomplished but. launched. Examples are the Bell Canyon Consumption Tower, the Holmes Reservoir Improve, and the Reservoir 2 Rehabilitation.

In 2017, these three capital initiatives alone are anticipated to price water prospects $ 4,133,000. But within the final survey on enhancing the town’s water capital, those self same initiatives are actually anticipated to price $ 7,179,906. That is $ 3 million greater than 4 years in the past as a result of the town was unable to start out the initiatives. My query is, the place did the cash go that was taken from the 2017 charge hikes to finish these previous capital enchancment initiatives? Was it spent another method?

Saint Helena has carried out three utility tariff research since 2006 and has considerably elevated water tariffs every time to enhance our metropolis’s water enterprise. But the town’s water enterprise remains to be in dire want of capital enhancements. In accordance with the town’s newest estimates, the 10-year hydropower enchancment record now exceeds $ 45 million.

Let’s finance a lot wanted capital enhancements by a blanket bond and on the identical time set up purple pipes subsequent to all new water pipes to supply tertiary water to metropolis water prospects. And on the identical time, recuperate a lot of the inexplicable 60.5 million gallons of water the town is at present losing due to its age-old water system.