Holyoke City Council approves sewer rate increase for FY27

The City Council discusses increasing the sewer rate to $8.76 during its June 2 meeting.
Photo credit: Holyoke Media

HOLYOKE — Holyoke residents can expect to pay more for their sewer bill after the City Council approved a sewer rate of $8.76 per 1,000 gallons used, an increase from $7.50, during its June 2 meeting.

The discussion came after the Board of Public Works proposed an increased sewer rate of $9.11 per 1,000 gallons used.

The Ordinance Subcommittee met on May 26 to discuss the proposal before recommending the $8.76 rate. City Councilor Linda Vacon, who serves on the Ordinance Subcommittee, said the meetings featured “spirited discussions relative to portions of the contract that are citywide versus those that are only to the sewer users.” After a lengthy conversation, the subcommittee recommended that street sweeping not be considered in the rate.

However, Vacon explained that the only thing the City Council can do is recommend the rate relative to the budget. The council can not do anything relating to the tax levy.

“The budget that’s before us is the budget that’s us,” Vacon stated.

The original recommendation rate from the Board of Public Works was for an increased sewer rate of $9.11. Vacon said the argument for that proposal was to make the enterprise fund whole. Those not in favor argued that, regardless of the set sewer rate, there would be no reduction in taxes.

Vacon explained, “So, if you’re a sewer user and the rate changes, your rate will go up, but there’s nothing in terms of the budget unless this body by seven votes makes cuts in the budget that will change your tax increase relative to the budget. It will be a situation unless we make significant cuts in the budget, where sewer rates will increase, and along with them, taxes will increase.”

Mayor Joshua Garcia’s proposed budget includes just over $1 million in surplus. The mayor stated that this sounds familiar because he already told the council and the public the same thing last year, but that surplus had to go toward subsidizing the sewer fund.

At the time, Garcia stated, “If we can pass this rate before the budget is set, we can make sure that the taxpayers will continue to benefit from the one million in savings.”

This was not the first time Garcia urged the Holyoke City Council to vote on a new sewer rate for FY27. During the Dec. 2 City Council meeting, Garcia highlighted a sewer deficit of approximately $1.2 million and said that the city needs an updated sewer rate, or else the deficit will likely persist.

In a letter sent to the City Council in December, Garcia urged the City Council to consider establishing a new sewer rate for FY27 and set a sustainable rate that will protect the long-term health of the enterprise fund. The hope is that the new rate would allow the city to invest in critical infrastructure while reducing the burden on taxpayers.

On Dec. 2, City Treasurer Rory Casey said the current sewer rate was $7.50 per 1,000 gallons used. That rate was set in 2021 and was the first increase since 2008.

During the June 2 meeting, City Councilor Israel Rivera explained why he was in favor of the $8.76 sewer rate that ultimately passed.

“It’s a happy medium in between considering the circumstances that, yes, taxes are going to go up again and everything is going up,” Rivera explained. “If we continue to do things that allow for water rates to go up, for sewer rates to go up, for electricity to go up, then we’re always going to be chasing that pendulum in a sense.”

City Councilor Juan Anderson-Burgos explained why he was in favor of the sewer rate recommendation, and he reflected on the drastic increase.

“So, we’re thinking, wow, this is a lot. The real reason why this is a lot is because, we kicked, many, many, many years ago, we kept kicking the can and avoiding what we knew was coming,” Anderson-Burgos said. “Now we have the Board of Public Works saying this amount is the amount that will straighten everything out, and here we go again, kicking the can, trying to find another way to pay this bill.”

City Councilor Michael Sullivan agreed with Anderson-Burgos and said the sewer rate needs to reflect the rising cost of maintaining the city’s current wastewater system.

City Councilor Mimi Panitch stated, “I do appreciate my colleagues’ concern about putting the expensive street sweeping on the ratepayers and not on the entire city, but we just have to decide which allocation is fair and go with it and understand that we are not going to save any money, no matter how we do this.”

Vacon, who voted against the proposed increase, spoke as a taxpayer and someone who has septic and does not have sewer services available to her.

“For my money, looking at this rate, I would prefer that my general tax money be used to make the enterprise fund whole,” Vacon stated. “My taxes aren’t going down; my taxes are still going up. They’re just going to spend the money on something else. It’s not going to make savings for anybody when we increase the rate and then pass the budget that increases the taxes.”

The City Council voted to increase the sewer rate to $8.76 by a 10-2 vote.