By Dave Fidlin
Correspondent
After combing through the list of forthcoming projects that need to be funded, Union Grove officials recently green lit a proposal to increase the municipal storm water utility rate for the upcoming calendar year.
Village Engineer Gary Vogel went before the Village Board on Nov. 25 and gave his pitch behind the rate increase, which is going from $101.52 per year per equivalent residential unit, or ERU, to $123.94 per year per ERU.
“The storm water utility rates are based on the utility’s budget and the number of equivalent runoff units,” Vogel said of the methodology behind calculating rates.
Speaking to the rationale behind the increase, Vogel added, “We reviewed the budget and ERUs from the original 2009 report, made the appropriate revisions to the values and determined a new proposed rate.”
ERU rates within the utility have been adjusted in recent years as new properties within the village have come online. This is especially true of Dunham Grove, Canopy Hill and the Granary sites.
“There are three large projects that have yet to be completed,” Vogel said in further explaining why the utility rate should be increased. “If you add all of the projects together, you get a budget of around $400,000, rather than $250,000.”
Originally, upon adoption of all components of the municipal 2025 budget, the Union Grove Village Board had set the stormwater utility’s capital budget at around $250,000, which would have been covered with the $101.52 ERU rate that had been in place.
Spending within the utility budget is used for a variety of purposes, Vogel said – most notably toward capital projects that will lead to improvements to the existing storm water system.
Rate proceeds also are applied in other ways, including routine maintenance, costs associated with the Yorkville-Raymond Drainage District assessment, equipment replacement, staffing and planning.
Vogel’s recent discussion with the board about the utility rate structure also was an opportunity to look back at the structural process, which was created 15 years ago.
“The user fee rate structure determines the distribution of the proportionate share of the annual storm water utility budget that will be charged to each individual property or utility customer,” Vogel said. “The budget is simply divided by the number of ERUs. Single-family and two-family properties equal 1 ERU.”
In other recent business, the Village Board:
• Discussed, but took no action on, a proposal to use impact fees to have ramps consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act installed. Leider Park was discussed as one possible site.
Village Administrator Connor LaPointe recommended the board hold off on a vote for the time being as more logistical details are fleshed out.
“We would need a playground manufacturer to get the right equipment,” LaPointe said. “I think there’s going to be more work that’s needed on this one.”
• Canceled the regularly scheduled Village Board meeting that was scheduled to take place on Monday, Dec. 23. The board typically meets at 6 p.m. on the second and fourth Monday of the month, but officials opted to nix the upcoming meeting because of the holidays.
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