After months of delay, the Flagler Beach City Commission last week approved a series of rate increases for water, sewer, garbage and stormwater. Water, sewer and garbage-collection rates will increase 3.5 percent. The monthly stormwater fee will increase 37.2 percent. Further increases may be slated for coming years.
Combined, a typical household with consumption of 5,000 gallons a month will see the monthly utility bill go from $192.55 to $204.26, an increase or $11.71, or $140.52 for the year.
A household that consumes 5,000 gallons of water a month currently pays $86.47 in base and consumption water charges, and $65.42 for sewer, a combined bill of $151.89. The rate increase will bring that to $89.51 for water and $67.72 for sewer, a total of $157.23, an increase of $5.34 per month, or $64 per year.
The garbage-collection rate will go from $26.08 to $27.03 (including the recycling fee), a monthly increase of 92 cents, or $11.04 a year.
The stormwater-rate increase in actual dollars will equal the water and sewer rate increase. The stormwater rate will go from $14.58 a month to $20 a month, or by $5.42 a month, an annual increase of $65.
The increases are considerably lower than those Palm Coast are contemplating. Customers in Palm Coast may see annual increases to their water and sewer bills alone of nearly $500 a year by 2028, while the city is contemplating borrowing nearly half a billion dollars to address extensive water and sewer capital improvements. (See: “Palm Coast Plans to Sharply Raise Water-Sewer Rates and Borrow $456 Million to Finance Needs, Dwarfing Previous Debt.”)
Households will discover additional fees they’re no familiar with. “We never charged anybody to pick up a mattress before. Now all of a sudden we are,” Commissioner Rick Belhumeur said. “Nobody knows about it.”
Any household dumping appliances such as stoves, fridges and ovens, mattresses or furniture (whether it’s side tables, love seats, sofas or dressers) must pay for the specialized pick-up ahead of time. The fee will be $50 for any single appliance, $100 for a small pile of furniture, $200 for a larger pile, or for more than two large items of furniture.
The city conducted a study on needed improvements in the city’s stormwater infrastructure. Commissioners were still a bit hesitant about increases separated from an accessible list of ongoing or upcoming projects that clearly show residents and businesses what the stormwater revenue is going toward.
“If we’re going to have the citizens get a big increase,” Cooley said, “we need to be able to tell them: here’s what’s done, here’s where we’re going, here’s exactly what we’re going to do, and if there are things in the study that aren’t viable, we need to be able to say we’re not going to tackle them.”
City Manager Dale Martin described the stormwater work list as “low-hanging fruit,” such as software upgrades, cleaning existing outfalls, installation of 19 backflow preventers, installation of 120 new manholes with 50 more to go, with a new list in preparation, ahead of the budget season. Cooley wants the list tied to completion dates to give residents a clear idea of what’s getting done, and Commissioner James Sherman wants it published on the city’s website. As of today, the list was not readily accessible on the web, and searching the stormwater page did not produce it beyond a January 2024 overall capital improvements list.
“This got bounced around a little bit,” City Commissioner Eric Cooley said, describing the numerous times the rate increase was discussed since last fall. Back then, the city would approve its budget by September, but then bring forward any utility rate increases, upsetting the budget cycle. That will change., From here on, commissioners will combine budget and utility rate discussions in their summer workshops. That will be preceded with a utility-rate discussion in March or April.
“It’s a great approach and it solves a lot of things,” Cooley said. “That way staff is going to be able to come to the commission and say: here’s what we believe i’s going to cost to run this department.”
“I don’t see it as being that different. We went through all that at budget time,” Commissioner Jane Mealy said. “We’ve gone over this a number of times.”
Joe D says
Yikes! I’m retired on a fixed budget, I guess it could be worse (Palm Coast really got slammed due to TOO FAR delayed water/storm/sewer upgrades, and too much quick development to overburden the existing systems).
I’m very conscious of water use. I’ve upgraded toilet water use valves, replaced all my water supply valves, and really try to reclaim some food prep water, using a bowl of water rather than just running the tap, to water plants.
I guess it’s time for that old time adage, “if it’s yellow, let it mellow, but if it brown, flush it down.” I have looked at those two way toilet valves that turn one way for a small flush, and the opposite way for a full flush, but I haven’t taken the plunge, so to speak.
At least it’s just me, I can’t imagine how a family of several kids would keep track water use. I do remember my blue collar father going through the house when I was growing up turning out lights, and saying, “Do you guys think I OWN the ELECTRIC company!?!” 😉
I’m seriously starting to consider some rain water collectors, to use for my balcony vegetable garden.
Because after all these water related rate increases, you KNOW Florida Power and light isn’t far behind in their increases, too!
Michael Buchanan says
I live alone and have been here for about 11 years. These fees have skyrocketed in that amount of time and now the base fees alone are more than double what the entire fee was, and now far exceed my electric bill. The storm water fee is especially vexing, because there’s not a storm drain anywhere on the street. The rain water runs down the street, into my driveway and then the neighbors yard. It would sit there like a small pond in his yard and my driveway until he put in a drain and piped it into the canal behind our properties at his own expense. The city needs to come up with some alternative funding, because this is getting to be a financial hardship that there’s no way to avoid. Between these fees and the property insurance I can barely afford to live here anymore.
Deborah Coffey says
Aren’t these all the same people that voted for Trump and Republicans to lower prices…after they blamed Joe Biden for protecting their environment, improving their infrastructure and $35/month insulin? Right. Keep voting the way you do, Flagler people. Here’s hoping you enjoy being broke. By the way, there were no eggs at Walmart today. Congrats.
Phil says
I didn’t vote for uncontrolled building of houses and apartments. Which increases demand for roads and infrastructure. So I don’t agree we should pay for increases because of something we didn’t want, ask for or agree too. If they stopped building so many houses and apartments we wouldn’t need .5 billion dollar renovation for water plants, Etc.
Chance Walker-Smith says
LOL Facebook keyboard warriors complained about the increase, and even blamed others for past increases, but no one showed to Thursday’s Commission meeting to voice their opinion. With that said, increases are happening but the work that is supposed to be done to warrant the increase never occurs. Guess residents only like to spew on social media. Commissioners and the City Manager need to be held accountable. 😆
Belinda Darling says
Well, maybe now they can fix the sewer system on S Flagler Ave that floods all the time into yards as well as backing up in showers and toilets!!!!
BMW says
Typical partisan hack comment. Have you even the intellect to research and understand what is happening with our poultry industry? Guess not, easier to spew the idiotic hate from your keyboard.
T says
Nobody wanted this growth in Palm coast you all pay for it
Endless dark money says
I thought the orange terrorist said prices were going down? Or was that just to stay out of prison?
Endless dark money says
Little controversy? Who represents the common people? Nobody…. Only the oligarchs as they purchase the representation for themselves. Citizens united ensured the representation was for sale. Time to end it and start over with the foundation of people over profits!