Water rate hike or restaurant/beverage tax? Yorkville aldermen delay decision

YORKVILLE – The Yorkville City Council is delaying a decision over whether to increase water rates for a second year in a row or to impose a tax on restaurant meals and beverages.

With little discussion, aldermen on April 11 tabled a vote on the fiscal year 2024 budget until April 25, less than a week before the new budget year starts.

The question is whether the council wants to hike water rates again or create a new 1% tax on restaurant meals and drinks.

The city needs to increase revenues in order to pay for the $120 million infrastructure project to bring Lake Michigan water to Yorkville.

The “places of eating tax,” which would include delivered meals, is expected to produce about $700,000 a year.

Under the city administration’s budget proposal, the tax would not be implemented until six months after the start of the budget year, producing roughly $350,000

Or, aldermen could continue phasing in water rate increases, with the administration budgeting that proposal at $350,000 as well.

Last year, the city increased its base water rate for the first 350 cubic feet of water consumed from $17 to $24, City Finance Director Rob Frederickson said.

A “volumetric” rate for every 100 cubic feet of water over the first 350 was increased from $4.30 to $4.80, Fredrickson said.

The typical residential household uses about 1,200 cubic feet of water per 60-day billing cycle, for a total cost of about $64.80, Fredrickson said.

The precise increase in the water rate this year, if aldermen choose that option, has yet to be determined, Fredrickson said.

Like the food tax proposal, the water rate increase would occur six months into the budget year, meaning that aldermen could approve the budget on April 24 and make a decision on the two revenue proposals later.

The city administration is proposing a $23 million balanced general fund budget, down slightly from last year’s spending plan.

Total expenditures for the city, including a $21 million capital budget along with utility enterprise funds, are slightly more than $55 million, Fredrickson said.

The city is planning to spend about $10 million on water-related projects as part of the budget.

These include nearly $4 million to replace leaky water mains, about $3.5 million to rehabilitate a well and nearly $2 million for other work directly related to the plan to connect the city will the DuPage Water Commission’s pipeline to bring Lake Michigan water to Yorkville.

The goal of the water main replacement project is to get the city’s water loss rate down to less than 10%, which is a requirement for communities sourcing their water supply from Lake Michigan.

Currently the city loses about 14% of its treated water supply through aging pipes dating from the 1970s.

Meanwhile, the city is appropriating $3 million to get the planned public works garage project underway.

The city already has acquired property in an industrial park just west of Route 47 on the far north side of the community. The total cost of that project will be $23 million to $30 million, depending on how big a facility aldermen decide build.

The budget also includes money for the city’s ongoing “Road to Better Roads” program to repave city streets.

The spending plan includes $1 million in motor fuel tax revenues and another $1.15 million from the citywide capital development fund.

The city will spend $1.1 million on the Kennedy Road-Freedom Place intersection project, but this money will be reimbursed through grant funds.

The budget also includes $2 million for operations and capital improvements at the Yorkville Public Library.