10/07/2003 Meeting Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Council Minutes of 10/7/2003 The system is broken down into pressure districts, and that is also the basis by which the rates are charged. It's based on elevation. The rates change as you move further away from the lake into the higher elevations. The repair of tree lawns after work has been completed is a problem. As the crews work all wiener long, there is always a huge backlog of tree lawns to be repaired at the beginning of the year. Alternative methods are being considered with some communities expressing a willingness to take on the repair of tree lawns with the costs to be reimbursed by Cleveland Water. Some communities use this same procedure for repairing roads when the dpartmem has to dig a hole in the street. The Water Department makes repairs on the length of pipe that is broken and does not extend outwards. If the length of pipe is so bad to the point where just a portion cannot be fixed, the entire length of pipe will be taken out. The contract does define what is a Cleveland Water Division asset and what is a suburban asset. Any water main 20 inches in diameter and above is considered a supply main and is an asset of the Cleveland Division of Water. Anything less than that is a local distribution main and is actually an asset of the suburban community where located. In accordance with the contract, the Cleveland Division of Water must maintain that line regardless if it's their asset or not. However, as far as capital improvements, relining or a total replacement, that falls under the responsibility of the community. Some communities are effectively using the state Issue 2 program to replace mains. Many of the suburban communities through the mayors and mangers association are signing onto a water suburban council of governments approach. The Cleveland Water Department is more than willing to talk about the terms of the contract. The contracts contain an exclusive franchise clause that Cleveland Water is the only provider of water in the contracting community. They would oppose any other water system putting water into their lines because they would have no control over the water quality. With regard to rates, there is a Cleveland rate which is all equal. There are suburban rates which are based on the service districts or the hydraulic grade system. The subject of rates was argued in the court case years ago, and the court held that the Cleveland residents are the owners of the system. They were the original investors in the system, and they had a right to a return on their investment in the way of lower water rates. Cunerrtly, the Cleveland residents pay $8.13 for the first unit of water and $17.38 for every unit of water thereafter. (A unit being a thousand cubic feet.) The North Olmsted first high district charge is $14.48 for the first unit of water and $30.91 for every unit thereafter. Due to a question from a resident, he researched the reason for low water rates in Phoenix, Arizona, which is in the middle of the desert. The federal government spent $4 billion to bring water to Phoenix from the Colorado River. The other reason for lower water rates is because Phoenix has a new system. They have very little maintenance costs, and we have an old system with a lot of maintenance. Also, because of the hot weather, they can bury their pipe 2 feet below the surface of the ground where we have to bury ours 6 feet below the frost line. The Division of Water is considered an enterprise fund. All revenues are derived from the rate payers, and the rate payers are to be protected from any co-mingling of funds with the City of Cleveland General Fund. He knows of two times when funds 2