Log in

Election Q&A

Posted

I couldn’t disagree more with Mr. Shelstrom’s Q&A idea about changing the Sanitary District’s flat rate fee to charging per 1,000 gallons usage. As he is not a licensed master plumber and only gets his knowledge from referring to books like the “Uniform Plumbing Code,” he has no firsthand, on-the-job training or experience in water usage.

One of the pleasures of living in our town is how we enjoy the way our neighbors maintain their landscaping, properties and pools. Mr. Shelstrom has no idea how many gallons of water we use for our drip systems and to maintain the water levels in our pools and spas. How about the people who wash down their patios, driveways, walkways? And some who still wash their cars.

None of this water goes into the sewerage systems from our homes or to the treatment plant. How many times have we the people been surprised to receive a large water bill? When we call the water company about it, they tell us to check our drip systems and pool fillers. Landscaping and plumbing contractors are constantly replacing drip heads, PVC piping and zone valves. Our water bills always go up in the hottest months.

I am sure the last thing EPCOR Water Co. would want to do is joint billing and collecting money for another business. First of all, while EPCOR Water Co. bills monthly, the Sanitary District bills every three months. I only have two people living in my home, but at one time there were eight of us. I had a 100-gallon water heater, and the washing machine seemed never to shut off. I know most of our homes here in town use thousands of gallons of water per year that do not go down the sewerage system.